Tuesday, August 23, 2011

Gurgel interview: Slugfests are in his blood

Jorge Gurgel's record may look a little pedestrian at 14-7, but he has nothing to be embarrassed about. Just about every fight with UFC, and now Strikeforce, has been a slobberknocker. It's kind of amazing considering Gurgel is best known around MMA as a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt.

"There's a business conception that people always say I fight to entertain the fans, I fight stupid because I fight for the fans. No disrespect to all my fans, I love you guys very much, but that was never the case," Gurgel told ESPNRadio1100/98.9 FM's DC and the Sunshine Man Show. "When the cage door shuts and the bell rings, I just see red."

Gurgel's original gameplan of using his striking to set up a takedown and twist up his opponent the ground goes out the window.

"The guy punches me, I want to punch him harder. The guy kicks me, I want to kick him harder," Gurgel said. "And at the end of the fight, it's usually me looking at my coaches saying 'did I win? Did I win?'"

Gurgel won't apologize for his fighting style. He simply loves to stand and bang.

"I've lost a lot of fights I shouldn't have, but I live with no regrets," Gurgel said. "I fell in love with Muay Thai the day I stepped into this country in 1998. In my first professional fight, I opened up with a head kick and broke his nose."

Gurgel went on to win his debut via triangle choke. Shortly after that, he made an appearance way back on Season 2 of "The Ultimate Fighter" and fought seven times officially for the UFC. With Joe Duarte on tap this Friday in Las Vegas on a Strikeforce card, Gurgel is currently 2-2 with the smaller Zuffa promotion.

Gurgel tops of solid card on Showtime (11 p.m. ET/PT) that also includes Danillo Villefort, Pat Healy, Gian Villante, Maciej Jewtuszko and female fight between Ronda Rousey and Sarah D'Alelio.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Gurgel-interview-Slugfests-are-in-his-blood?urn=mma-wp5690

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