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Monday, October 31, 2011

UFC 137 winner Donald Cerrone wanted to ‘show the world what real kickboxing is’

LAS VEGAS – His bout with Dennis Siver had the makings of a show-stopper.

In fact, Donald Cerrone found himself on a Spike TV "UFC Prelims" special – rather than Saturday's UFC 137 pay-per-view main card – because the matchup had the potential to sway last-minute PPV buyers.

But as Cerrone told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com), he knew it was more of a mismatch than most people believed.

Cerrone picked up a $75,000 "Submission of the Night" bonus and battered the German lightweight with a flashy striking display at UFC 137. Cerrone (17-3 MMA 4-0 UFC) vs. Siver (19-8 MMA, 8-5 UFC) was one of two bouts that aired on the Spike TV special from the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.

Cerrone entered the fight with five straight wins, Siver with four. A further move up the ladder awaited the winner.

But like the oddsmakers, Cerrone knew he was the clear favorite.

"I wasn't impressed with his striking," Cerrone told MMAjunkie.com. "I wanted to show the world what real kickboxing looks like. I was glad to go out there and be kind of technical.

"I don't want to overlook anyone, but I felt like my striking was better than his striking. He's really flashy and did a lot of spinning and karate-type kicks. I didn't want to say I didn't respect his striking. I just thought mine was better."

Cerrone, who's now 6-0 in the past 13 months, dazed Siver with a shin-to-chin head kick and then dropped him with a right hook. He then followed Siver to the mat and secured the fight-ending rear-naked choke. Admittedly, though, he would have preferred a knockout.

"I was looking," he said. "He dropped his hands a lot. I was looking for the high kick. I didn't turn it over. I missed my shot for the KO, but that's OK. I've just got to work on the things I need to work on."

A longtime contender in the now-defunct WEC, Cerrone is one of the most successful transplants. In the UFC's deepest and more intriguing division, he's clearly cemented himself as a contender. But simply fighting – and not necessarily fighting for a title – is the former bullrider's top priority.

"Cowboy" wants to fight again by year's end, but what if he's in contention or near a title shot if he waits?

"I want to fight," said Cerrone, who was awarded lifetime PBR passes after the fight. "I want to keep fighting. I don't want to sit and wait.

"I want to go down to 145 and fight, also. I'm not leaving 55 by any means. It's just whatever keeps me fighting, pretty much. I'm chasing 'em down."

Cerrone doesn't like layoffs. He doesn't like having the opportunity to "get fat" and slack off. So if he's not injured, he wants to be in the gym and preparing for his next challenge.

"Whatever I need to do to stay active and keep fighting, that's what I want to do," he said. "I'll fight anybody, anywhere, anytime. I don't care. That's the God-given truth. If I've got to go down, I've got to go up – I'm just trying to stay active and stay fighting. That's what I want to do."


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