Ryan Bader (20-4) kommer ta sig an Anthony Johnson (20-5) på UFC on FOX 18 och Baders coach, Aaron Simpson (12-5), har fullt förtroende för att Bader kommer att besegra ’Rumble’.
Simpson förklarar att Johnsons mentala svaghet redan visade sig under hans brottningskarriär, då Simpson ville rekrytera Johnson.
”It’s just evident in his career, it’s evident in his college career. I go back and his college coaches told me that when we were looking to recruit him. Once that’s in you, once you’ve quit and you’ve done it, it’s in you. It’s hard to get past that. It’s hard to be someone who when the going gets tough or you’re on your back or you’re on your knees and you’re starting to get tired you can come back from that.
”I love Anthony Johnson. I do. I think he’s a good guy and a great athlete and was a stud junior college wrestler, but that’s about it. When it gets into the fight game and we take him to deep waters, we’ll see how he responds and maybe he’ll be something different, but he hasn’t shown that in the past,” sa Simpson.
Simpson förklarar att Johnson slår hårt, men att Bader har bättre teknik stående, då det gäller fotarbete, rörelse och atletisk förmåga.
”He’s a heavy hitter and he throws wild, but technically, Bader is a better striker than him. If we’re talking about a pure striker and pure footwork and movement and athleticism, Ryan Bader is better. I’ll put that on anything,” sa Simpson.”Bader is stronger on the cage. Bader is stronger off his back. Bader is stronger on top. If Vegas saw what I saw everyday, it be leaning towards Bader.”
Bader har vunnit fem raka matcher i rad och efter sin senaste vinst över Rashad Evans (19-4-1) på UFC 192 tyckte många fans att Bader var värd en titelchans, men den fick han inte. Simpson blev väldigt besviken över att Bader inte fick utmana om titeln, men hoppas att en vinst över Johnson kan ge Bader en titelchans.
Simpson tror att Bader kommer att avsluta Johnson antingen i den tredje eller fjärde ronden och förklarar att fem ronder är för lång tid för Johnson som kommer att bli trött och slarvig.
’It was definitely disappointing that he got overlooked twice and that he’s been disrespected twice, but that right there just puts more of a chip on his shoulder… Now, it’s just one more step and hopefully is one more step,” sa Simpson. ”We know how this business works, so all we can do is handle what we can handle and control what we can control. We love this fight with Anthony Johnson. This is a fight we would of liked a long time ago and now we’re here.
”I feel like we’re going to wear on him, you know. We’re going to put him on the cage, we’re going to take him down, we’re going to land big strikes. If we don’t knock him out early, he’s going down in the third or fourth round. I don’t see it going to distance. I think Ryan will finish it earlier than that, I really feel that way. I think 25 minutes is just too long for Anthony Johnson to go. I mean look at any of his fights even torwards the end when he wins these fights he starts getting a little more sloppy and tired. Even in the three rounders,” sa Simpson. ”But again, it’s a fight and anything can happen. I just feel real confident on Ryan.”
