Covering the weekend in British MMA with Lee Whitehead from MMA Weekly and UFC 86 with a brief word from Forrest and Rampage.

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 Total MMA Radio 9 July 2008 [61:58m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Following the final bell of last night’s UFC light heavyweight championship title bout, Forrest Griffin could be heard thanking the cornermen who helped him reach this moment:

“Thank you guys so f—ing much… Seriously, I don’t say it enough.”

Griffen had yet to be declared victorious in the bout, but had already proven more than capable to go blow for blow with the world’s very best. His transition from the brawler of three years ago to today’s tactical world class Mixed Martial Artist is complete, with more than a little help from his friends. It was a Forrest Griffin I never expected to see.

The only response from his cornermen came (appropriately enough) from UFC heavyweight champion Randy Couture, who quietly replied, “it was an honor.”

For the rest of us, it was a moment to remember — one of many in last night’s classic UFC title fight and my “fight of the year” so far.

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When historians look back at the history of MMA (and they will), Forrest Griffin will stand out as one of the most important fighters in the sport’s brief history. When the UFC needed a great fight, when The Ultimate Fighter concept was still hanging by a thread with SPIKE TV executives, Griffin delivered. His legendary slugfest with Stephan Bonnar at the first Ultimate Fighter Finale helped introduce a legion of new fans to the sport.

And it wasn’t just Griffin’s crowd pleasing style that made him a big star. He and the UFC have also carefully manufactured an everyman persona. The television Forrest is always cracking jokes and is the model of the self deprecating good guy. Sometimes that shell cracked a little, like when Forrest was such a jerk about traveling to Northern Ireland that he actually had to apologize for his attitude, and people saw the real Forrest Griffin. Despite being a product of the reality television show, Griffin hates it. Too much like work. “It was annoying. I didn’t really like cameras or having to be certain places,” Griffin said. “It felt like you always had to be somewhere doing something stupid you didn’t want to be doing.” That’s the real Forrest-the guy who is notoriously difficult with reporters and single-mindedly ambitious. But that’s just real life. The TV character Forrest Griffin is who’s important here and he’s finally getting a title shot.

“It’s the biggest fight of my life,” Griffin said. “I realize that. And I’ve done everything right for it. So I’ve got no doubts and no worries. Quinton makes fun of me because I don’t hit that hard, but he doesn’t realize I was a black belt in Tae Kwon Do and if you hit too hard you get penalized for it. So, I’m working on the hitting harder thing.”
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Your Roundtable:
Lee Casebolt (LC)
Dave Walsh (DW)
Alan Conceicao (AC)
Chris Henderson (CH)
Kendall Shields (KS)

Can Griffin buck the odds and legitimately become THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER? Our staff opines.

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