The Triangle Choke: Rich Franklin Interview

Pro Fighting Fans has videos & an interview with Rich Franklin as he prepares for UFC 103

UFC megastar Rich Franklin will battle “The Phenom” Vitor Belfort at UFC 103 in Dallas, TX. Belfort is making his long awaited return to the UFC. Franklin fought at 185lbs for the majority of his career which included a stint as the UFC Middleweight Champion. Franklin, still considered by many to be the 2nd ranked Middleweight on the planet, couldn’t get by what appears to be the indestructible Anderson Silva thus he moved up to 205lbs. In his first bout at 205 at UFC 88 in Atlanta, Franklin picked apart Matt Hamill with precise leg kicks and powerful punches. He then took on two legends in the sport, Dan Henderson and Wanderlei Silva. Dan Henderson defeated Rich via a controversial decision in a very close fight at UFC 93. Rich, in what was a very entertaining fight, got the “W” via a unanimous decision at UFC 99 over Wanderlei at a catch weight of 195lbs.

I spent some time with Rich as he made final preparations for Belfort:

SD- You are now fighting at higher weights (195 & 205 pounds). Talk about how you feel in terms of your energy level and preparation.

RF- I can make 185lbs, but it is such a stretch for me - I almost have to cut off a limb. Making the 195lb weight is so easy to do for me. I’m going to be fighting stronger guys, especially at 205lbs but I feel a lot stronger at that weight as well; strength is a relative issue. I feel much better there than I did at 185lbs.

SD- What do you typically walk around at?

RF- Around 210 pounds.

SD- Talk about how your last bout against Wanderlei Silva prepped you for this bout against Belfort, both are strikers who sometimes fight with reckless abandon.

RF- Yeah, similar styles in the fact that they are both strikers. I wouldn’t go so far with the reckless abandonment. Wanderlei is one of those guys who gets inside and just throws punches and punches. With Vitor, he is fast but I think he is more methodical with his punches and how he attacks and uses angles better and all that kind of stuff. Prepping for Wanderlei is not the same as prepping for Vitor.

SD- You mentioned some of the challenges Vitor brings, did you prep for him any differently?

RF- No, other than the fact that he is a southpaw. We brought in Robbie Lawler to help me get ready. He was with me in Seattle training. When we came back here to Cincinnati he was here as well. Robbie is a good southpaw and moves a lot like Vitor does. I think this really helped me prep for this fight.

SD- You have a lot of fights under your belt and are still a main event fighter. This fight will be the first UFC event in (Dallas) Texas. Talk about that experience.

RF- It is exciting to be a main event fighter but any time you go to a new city it just makes it that much better. I’ve had the privilege of fighting in Atlanta and Montreal as co-main events, I was the main event twice in Ireland, and I was the main event in Germany. Anytime you go to a new city the fans are just so excited to have you there. This is a good fight. Bringing Vitor back to the UFC is big. I think the fans will know this is a really big fight and they are going to be hyped to see it.

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Rich Franklin trains with Neal Rowe for his UFC 103 fight against Vitor Belfort.

SD- You have always conducted yourself in a professional manner and are viewed as one of the good guys in the sport of MMA. Talk about how important that is to you.

RF- I don’t know how important that is to other people but it is important to me. I think that the sport really needs fighters who conduct themselves like I do and also need fighters who conduct themselves like the Brock Lesnars of the sport. If everyone conducted themselves like me or everyone conducted themselves like Brock it would be a little boring. Brock has a specific fan set for a reason and I have a specific fan set for a reason. I’m sure there is some overlap there. I think it is important to have both ends of the spectrum.

SD- Long term, what are you looking at in the 205lb division? Is the ultimate goal to get a rematch against Lyoto Machida?

RF- My goal right now is to win Saturday night. If I win this fight then they give me another fight, win that fight they give me another so on so forth. At some point if I keep winning then I will get a title shot. As long as I keep doing what I need to do then I’ll work my way back to a title.

SD- Thanks Rich, best wishes against Belfort.

By Scott Dryden
ProFighting-fans.com Editor-in-Chief

More viedos of Rich Franklin training for the UFC 103 fight with Vitor Belfort: