Yushin Okami training with Team Quest for Marquardt, talks Anderson Silva & declares Chael Sonnen innocent
Posted on November 6, 2010, 02:23 PM by Jamie KennedyJapanese UFC middleweight Yushin 'Thunder' Okami has been sharpening his skills with none other than Team Quest, ahead of his UFC 122 main event showdown with Nate 'The Great' Marquardt, in a bout that will determine the number one contender spot for the winner of the Anderson Silva - Vitor Belfort title fight.
Okami has stated that: 'Team Quest have given me a road map on how to beat Nate Marquardt'
When asked about his thoughts heading into UFC 122 , Yushin had this to say:
'I've gotten my techniques from Team Quest, so now I believe I have more power than Nate. I'm not thinking about the title fight, I'm thinking about the challenge that's facing me right now, and my game plan to win this fight'
Okami then weighed in on the controversy surrounding his new found team mate Chael Sonnen and had this to say on the matter:
'He's innocent, I trained with Chael and I think he's innocent (because) of his personality'
Okami who is currently on a two fight winning streak, with wins over Lucio Linhares and Mark Munoz is aiming to continue his streak as he heads into his UFC 122 bout with Nate Marquardt. The Japanese fighter from Kanagawa Japan, last loss came at the hands of now team mate Chael Sonnen, and an interesting fact is that Marquardt's last loss also came at the hands of Sonnen, and I see this as a clear advantage for Okami, as Chael will know the ins and outs of both fighters games and will look to work to Yushin's strengths and Nate's weaknesses.
Another interesting fact is that Okami holds a win over UFC middleweight Champion Anderson Silva, Okami was victorious when they met over 4 years ago at a Rumble on the Rock event in Hawaii, where Anderson was disqualified for an illegal up-kick that struck Okami.
Speaking via a media conference call earlier this week Okami then talked about Anderson Silva and his preparations for UFC 122, and had this to say:
'I would like to fight against Anderson Silva. I have lost some very important fights, so I never thought I was bypassed. It's going to be a big challenge because Nate Marquardt is a very well rounded fighter, and he has no weaknesses. He has very good finishing power so I should be very careful about that'
'I would like to finish by KO or submission. I've been training for finishing Nate Marquardt in three rounds, so I have no pressure about a decision or anything like that. I do not have that kind of pressure. I'm prepared for the fight and I know that when I do what I have to do, it's going to be a very exciting fight. Anderson Silva is one of my goals so this is a very important step for me'
Okami is certainly setting high goals for himself, but he will firstly have to get passed a very tough fighter in Nate Marquardt, Okami and Nate square off on the 13th of November in the Main event of UFC 122, which takes place in Oberhausen Germany as the UFC continues to expand into the European market.
SOURCE: MMAJUNKIE
Comments
Okami is extremely underrated, he has a really good chance of beating Nate ans even Silva
I agree.
Nate yeah, but Siva....??? Hell no!!!
If hes training at Team Quest that means he wants that title shot so bad
Don't back Chael. Bad Yushin bad.
He's innocent because of his personality? Wow that is possibly the worst piece of reasoning I have seen in a long time.
I AGREE .
i hope you know this is a translation and doesn't always come out sounding normal in the english language, just some food for thought
What other word is there that's like personality but kinda not such that a translator would substitute it and would skew the meaning?
some languages have words or phrases that don't directly translate into english at all it could of meant personal integrity or honor. i work with tranlators daily and trust me they mess up all the time even most language to language dictionarys are filled with mistakes and mis translation
I see what you're saying but under your reasoning there isnt a direct word for personality in Japanese language. Also it's a short phrase so it's not hard to remember what he said.
I said it before and I'll say it again, Okami is the most underrated fighter in the UFC! I pray he takes out Nate big time!
I agree that Okami is underrated. He has a good chance against Nate and Anderson Silva. We all know anything can happen in MMA.
I think it's more than just anything can happen, dude. Thing is you ask a casual fan who Okami is and they are like...some Japanese dude? the thing I don't get is that a. Okami's been with the UFC for a while and has gotten barely any coverage and b. why he isn't being promoted if the UFC is TRYING desperately to penetrate the SE Asian market....
thanks for your reply. I think the UFC was not fond of Okami's 'boring style' of fighting, and as such explains his lack of coverage, BUT Okami has looked great in his recent performances and this has been reflected with the UFC and Okami's main event status come UFC 122.