UFC and PRIDE veteran Josh "The Babyfaced Assassin" Barnett (29-5-0) is about to embark on his first mission inside the Strikeforce cage since signing with the promotion earlier this year in order to take part in their highly anticipated heavyweight grand prix; Saturday, June 18, Barnett will square off with one-time challenger to Alistair Overeem's throne, Brett Rogers (11-2-0).
Yesterday, Barnett caught up with the "Savage Dog Show," on the Sherdog Radio Network and had the following the say regarding his opponent in the quarterfinal round.
“I’m sure he’s thinking if he does lose, this is going to be really detrimental to his MMA career but especially his Strikeforce contract. I think he thinks he can kick my ass. I’ve always had that thought ever since the first day I met him. I’ve always had the notion in the back of my head that this guy really thinks that he can beat me up. So I want to see how that comes off when he gets in the cage and looks at me across from him.”
The perennial top-ten heavyweight also shared some thoughts on the other side of the tournament bracket and the match-up that will headline the card he'll fight on this Saturday when submission specialist Fabricio Werdum takes on promotion, and 2010 K-1 World Grand Prix champion, Alistair Overeem.
“I think it’s Overeem’s fight to lose. … But one of the things about this tournament is how will he handle having to fight some guys that can take him further into the rounds? I want to see that myself because he really hasn’t had anybody push him for a while here. With Werdum, it’s a matter of control. He needs to control the fight and keep it standing. It’s not that I don’t think he has the ability to grapple with him on the ground. I think he does, at least to be defensive, but that’s where Werdum wants it to be. That’s where his best odds are, so best to not give him any of that opportunity whatsoever."
Never one to lack confidence, "The Babyfaced Assassin" has fought many of the sports biggest names in his fourteen-plus year career and believes he's the man to beat in this tournament, particularly when you look at the resume before him; Barnett is currently on a six-fight winning streak, with notable career wins over Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Jeff Monson, and Randy Couture among many others. To date, his only career losses have come at the hands of a prime Mirko Filipovic (3), Nogueira in a tightly-contested rematch, and Pedro Rizzo at UFC 30 in 2001. When asked where he stands in this field of giants, Barnett was frank.
“Plain and simple, I’m the best fighter in this tournament. I’ve got the most experience. … I’ve been fighting longer. I’ve been in the sport longer. I’ve fought all the top guys, and the fact that some of these guys in the tournament are the top guys now, well, they weren’t the top guys when I was fighting. A lot of the top guys I fought were the top guys for years, some near a decade. Just because you got into the upper echelon just now -- we’ll see how it turns out later on in life. I’ve got the biggest skill set and I think I’ve got the best overall, all-around ability and I’m just the meanest, angriest, most bloodthirsty bastard out of them all.”
Be sure to catch the action Saturday, June 18, live from the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. The full fight card is found below:
Alistair Overeem vs. Fabricio Werdum
Josh Barnett vs. Brett Rogers
K.J. Noons vs. Jorge Masvidal
Daniel Cormier vs. Jeff Monson
Valentijn Overeem vs. Chad Griggs
Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante vs. Justin Wilcox
Conor Heun vs. Magno Almeida
Nah-Shon Burrell vs. Joe Ray
Todd Moore vs. Mike Bronzoulis
Brian Melancon vs. Isaac Vallie-Flagg
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