Feb-24-2009
Terry Etim: Don’t call me Anderson Silva just yet
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Hoodie Zipper Fleece - Kelly Green
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By Elliot Worsell
One recurring theme has run through the last two UFC shows to hit England – Terry Etim is getting better and better with each and every fight. Whisper it quietly, though.
The long-limbed Liverpudlian lightweight may just be one of the most improved and exciting young talents in the UFC right now. Still only 23 years of age, Etim has now twice in a row been the talk of UFC crowds on this side of the Atlantic.
On Saturday night, the Etim love-in reached a breaking point. No longer were fans merely drooling over Etim’s potential and future hopes; he was now being compared to middleweight king and all-round destroyer Anderson ‘The Spider’ Silva.
That piece of hyperbole came from the lips of none other than UFC colour commentator Joe Rogan. Though delighted to be on the receiving end of such acclaim, Etim pretends he didn’t hear it.
“That was an awesome compliment,” he admits. “You’ve just got to keep your feet on the ground with stuff like that, though. It’s nice to hear things like that, but it doesn’t actually mean I am Anderson Silva yet. I’ve got a long way to go.
“Don’t get me wrong, it’s very nice what people are saying about me, but I’ve just got to get back in the gym and work hard. Every fight is just going to get tougher and tougher from this point on.”
Despite coming over all coy on the Silva comparisons, Etim admits he admires and studies the man from Curitiba, Brazil.
“I watch lots of fighters,” adds Etim, 12-2 in his own mixed martial arts career. “Anderson Silva is absolutely phenomenal. I’ve watched him for many, many years and his stand-up is brilliant. To even get mentioned in the same sentence as him is an honour.”
Anyone with two working eyes, or even one, can see the comparisons between Etim and Silva from the moment Terry whacks the inner leg of his opponent with a vicious kick. Using his lanky lightweight frame to dart in and out of range, Etim controls the distance with noisy kicks and top-notch Thai-boxing.
If you don’t trust the commendation of Joe Rogan, just ask Saturday’s opponent Brian Cobb how hard and precise Etim’s kicks are. Following a round of eating up Etim’s kicks with his own increasingly reddening shins, Cobb was then knocked out in the second stanza with a kick to the head.
“It went well, didn’t it?” recalls Etim. “I’ve been working on my all-round game and especially my Thai-boxing and it all paid off on the night.
“I wanted to use a lot of kicks to break him up. He was a bit flat-footed on his lead leg so I knew he’d eat up those kicks and not be able to do much about it.
“I knew if I landed right with one of those head kicks there was a good chance of ending the fight. I just timed it right and caught him flush.”
Despite ending matters merely 10 seconds into the second round, Etim once again put on a kicking master class. Last October the Scouse talent looked similarly impressive in whacking the dust off Sam Stout’s legs over three rounds. This time, however, Etim was even more decisive – notching the knockout win he always craves.
“I said before that fight on Saturday that I needed a big win,” he adds. “I needed a knockout win. I didn’t want to go to another decision. Sometimes even when you win well with a decision it just doesn’t feel satisfying. It’s always so much nicer to knock someone out.”
As Cobb stalked and winced, Etim quickly realised his kicks were the key to securing his second consecutive Octagon victory. Even when renowned wrestler Cobb attempted to take the fight into his domain, Etim simply pulled guard and manoeuvred himself back to his feet.
“I didn’t feel any danger when we did go to the ground,” Etim admits. “I was very comfortable there.”
Once back to their feet, the fight swayed back to Etim’s territory. When opponents are upright and in Etim’s range, very few will survive.
“Leg-kicks can change the opponent’s whole game,” explains Etim. “They make them get twitchy and start panicking. They’ll either dive in for the takedown or start dropping their hands. As you break them up with leg kicks, they start trying new things and end up giving you their head. Then you whack them in the head.
“When your game plan works out as perfectly as it did Saturday night, you’re just over the moon, aren’t you? I couldn’t contain my happiness at the end of the fight. It was easily the best win of my career and I’m just glad I was able to put on a show for the crowd and also show the UFC what I can do. That was the kind of performance I want to put on each and every fight.”
As far as Etim’s concerned, the UK crowds never seem to require much persuading. Time and time again Etim receives as big an ovation as any other fighter on the card. Already established as a firm fan-favourite, the proud Liverpudlian appears to feed off the crowd’s roar more than most.
“It was an awesome atmosphere,” adds Etim. “The crowd have always been amazing at my fights. I think they like my style and the fact I’m always looking to finish my fights. I have a lot of fans from Liverpool, but also a lot of other fans from all over the country. I was speaking to a lot of fans after the fight and they were all made up with my win. These were fans from all over the place, too, and not just ones from Liverpool.”
This embracing of all who represent Britain is a common happening at UK shows. Rather than merely supporting fighters from their own town or city, UFC fans in Britain support every British-tinged fighter as though they live next door. That can only bode well for both Etim’s future and the future of the UFC in Great Britain.
That kind of all encompassing support extends to the locker room, too.
“Before my fight (with Cobb) I watched Paul Kelly’s scrap and I was made up when he got the win,” reveals Etim. “That inspired me to go out and do a job on my opponent, and then obviously Dan (Hardy) topped it off with that great knockout win over Markham.
“All in all it was a brilliant night for the British lads and for the UFC in Britain. I think there’s going to be more and more British fighters breaking through the UFC in the next couple of years.”
Give it two more years and comparisons with Anderson Silva may not seem so pie in the sky for Terry Etim. Just don’t shout it too loud in the meantime.
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