London Braces for the Phil Baroni Show
Posted by Jonathan Snowden on July 8th, 2008
The list of struggling international stars looking to regain lost glory with Britain’s Cage Rage promotion now includes the infamous “New York Bad Ass” Phil Baroni. The voluble American star will be the main event attraction at Cage Rage 27 this Saturday in Wembley Arena in London.
A journey to Britain has been a mixed blessing for stars looking to get back on track. Vitor Belfort was able to rack up three big wins in Cage Rage, while Ken Shamrock and Tank Abbott had less hospitable welcomes. Baroni, a former UFC and PRIDE middleweight contender, is confident that Cage Rage will be the first step on the long road back to the top of the sport. Not only is London a change in scenery, the fight will also be a much needed change in weight class. At 185 pounds, Baroni was packed with plenty of superflous muscle mass. The 170 pound Baroni should be leaner, quicker, and hungrier.
“I train with a lot of the best one seventy pound fighters in the world. And have always thought about dropping to one seventy,” Baroni told the MMA Torch. “I just feel I match up better with welterweights. I’m not short for welterweight, I am as fast as any welterweight and feel very strong when training with one seventy pound fighters. I always thought if I could just make welterweight I’d be a champion. And with a lot of discipline and hard work I can.”
His opponent, Englishman Scott Jansen, seems tailor made for Baroni’s heavy hands. Jansen is a banger whose fight record leaves no doubt about where his strengths lie. When it goes to the ground, he loses. When he stands and trades, he knocks his opponent out. Baroni has much the same mindset and after his inevitably ridiculous ring entrance, look for Baroni to start his march to the top of the Elite XC 170 pound division.
The rest of the show features a collection of Cage Rage regulars, including Brad “One Punch” Pickett, Tom “Kong” Watson, and a rematch between Robert “Buzz” Berry and Neil Grove. Our own Iain Liddle will be live at the fights this weekend so expect much more throughout the week.
July 8th, 2008 at 9:06 pm
Baroni is a former UFC MW champion? Other than that, hell with it, I’m excited to see him at 170.
July 8th, 2008 at 9:37 pm
Baroni knows that Jake Shields is at WW, right?
July 8th, 2008 at 10:43 pm
Oops. I was thinking that Baroni beat Menne for the title. That was, um, wrong.