Feb-1-2010

Paulo Thiago: Nothing to Prove, Much to Improve

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By Martins Denis

Paulo Thiago likes to say that in every one of his bouts, a new fighter emerges from Brasilia, Brazil. And these are not just words; it is a necessity when you have been competing at the highest levels since your first step in the Octagon.

So if a new version of Paulo Thiago was introduced against Jacob Volkman at UFC 106, for his upcoming match against Mike "Quick" Swick Saturday at UFC 109, don't expect the same fighter, and don't expect similar gameplans to the ones that he showcased in his three prior UFC fights. The 29-year old Brazilian wants to show his developing abilities as well as some new tricks for his new opponent.

"Besides the specific training for each fight and foe, there is the natural process of evolution. I’m trying to keep things moving in the right direction," he says. "Facing Swick, I'm not the same fighter who beat Volkmann, and this is what I have in my mind: humbleness and determination to learn from my mistakes and, with that said, to avoid repeating them."

To speak about mistakes signifies that, even though he beat Volkmann by unanimous decision, some points of that match could be different if fought again. Better on the feet, Thiago strangely opted to fight on the ground, while everybody expected him to finish his rookie Octagon foe with strikes. If the variation from punching to grappling wasn't clear on that occasion, the confident Thiago says that it has much more relation to an objective than to a bad choice.

"Every fight has its peculiarities; don't you remember the fight of Silva vs. Leites?" he asks. "A lot of times only the ones who are inside the fight can talk about what happened regarding the way that the outcome was or should be. I didn't fear the defeat in any moment of that fight, so by reason of strategy and choice I tried a submission because I wanted the Submission of the Night award - the KO of the Night is very competitive."

For not pursuing what - perhaps - could have rendered him a second KO of the Night award after he captured one against Josh Koscheck, Thiago heard critics. A confused game plan, lack of confidence in his fists, hesitation and attempts to guarantee a safe win were a few of the comments. Yet showing respect for Volkman, Thiago keeps the same stance.

"Everybody that steps in the Octagon is worthy and deserves their place there; my opponent was tough and tried to complicate my victory in all ways. Perhaps his ground game was a bit more polished than I expected, but I can't say it surprised me. I felt comfortable in that fight."

As for the critics, Thiago knows that if an elite athlete cares too much about it, he can lose sight of his goals.

"There is no place for thinking about critics inside my mind. I wouldn't be able to concentrate enough if I worried myself about shutting the mouths of the critics. At the same time, I think my concerns would be huge if all the opinions were positive and unanimous. So I just keep in my head that I need to evolve constantly, so, in the next fight, my game is harder for my opponent to study."

Ten days after the unanimous decision victory over Volkmann on November 21st, Thiago was back in the gym, an impressive feat for a guy coming from a three round battle. While in these moments many fighters are still healing their wounds or resting their bodies, Thiago has an amazing recovering ability, and a knack for simply not getting injured in training or in his matches. This power is similar to the system of the comic book hero Wolverine, who is capable of quick recovering. But this is not just a gift, as Thiago explains.

"Probably the genetic question influences this. I feel physically privileged and I search for a balance in my preparation," he says. "With this pace I avoid overtraining and obtain a good result. All is linked to the level of professionalism you have - my diet is better, so the interaction of ligaments and tendons have a high immunity, as my workouts are tough. The body speaks, so if we know how to listen to it and respect it, a good return is a guarantee."

But the comparison with the Marvel Comics character still stands regarding the enhanced physical capabilities. For Logan, it was born in him; for Thiago it is gradually getting better.

"The process of evolving is dynamic and never stops. The physical preparation developed by Luis "Lula" Guerreiro is focused not only on the sport in general, but in what is necessary to face a determined adversary."

Once again splitting his preparation between Brasilia (Constrictor Team) and Rio de Janeiro (X-Strike and Nova Uniao), Thiago had the chance to train with UFC middleweight kingpin Anderson Silva. The man who has the 185 pound belt around his waist was seen by Thiago as an encyclopedia of resources in MMA, and he didn't waste time in adding new wrinkles to his game.

"Having the opportunity to train with Anderson was a privilege for me. In the last edition of UFC Magazine he was considered as the best MMA fighter of all times. He really added a lot to my learning and I made a few of these changes to my game and to my training in Brasilia."

Prepared to face his third American Kickboxing Academy representative in Swick, Thiago doesn't think it's an aid, as Koscheck and Jon Fitch are different to the style of ‘Quick’. But he'll try to join his past experiences and his observation of Swick to elaborate a successful game plan.

"He's as complete as his teammates,” said Thiago. “He has a good reach, good cardio and ground game and is aggressive. I have the intent to transform this to an advantage for me. As I can't base my study in the matches I had against his teammates, he can't base himself either. If he does it, he will be surprised. I prefer to stay in my opponent’s place. 'What would I do if I was him?' I think this way I can block his tactics. MMA is a complex game."

Figuring in almost all 170-pound rankings around the world, the native of Brasilia has everything to gain in this weekend’s fight. But all that matters to him is keeping his game and his training evolving. If he does that, everything else will work itself out.

"This is going to be a nonstop action fight, and because of it the cardio is very important. I think clinches will happen and eventually a takedown by him will be inevitable. From this point, I'll explore my ground game,” said Thaigo. "So I just need to keep my focus on my training each time more than the last, and to not think about rankings.”