UFC 125: Antonio McKee - "I Feel Like I’m the Muhammad Ali of MMA"

by Nick Thomas on Dec 27, 2010 9:13 AM EST in UFC Quotes

"I’m going to take them out one at a time. Who’s going to beat McKee at 155? Only way I lose is if I’m not in shape or I get caught. Whose wrestling is better than mine? Gray Maynard? [Jacob] Volkmann? I’m going to make Volkmann look like nothing. We thought Volkmann could wrestle. Volkmann can’t wrestle."

"I feel like I’m the Muhammad Ali of MMA. I feel like I’m the Don King of MMA. I feel like I’m the Tupac Shakur of MMA. I’m the mouth, the talent, the brains, and I’m also the business side. Where does that put me? That puts me as one of the all-time greatest black mixed martial arts fighters."

"I knew what the UFC was looking for previously, and I wasn’t, at the time, willing (to fight with a risky, crowd-pleasing style) for the amount of money being paid. It wasn’t worth it to me, as a young man, to go out and put on a monkey show for two or three thousand dollars. I would rather win a decision and walk away with not a scratch on me. But with these incentives, absolutely, it changes things. I’m going to try to knock Volkmann’s head off his shoulders."

-- Check out the excellent article on one of the world's top lightweights at Sherdog.com.

Antonio "Mandingo" McKee (25-3-2)
Win Luciano Azevedo - TKO (Doctor Stoppage) MFC 26
Win Rodrigo Ruiz - Submission (Kimura) CCS
Win Carlo Prater - Decision (Unanimous) MFC 22

Jacob "Christmas" Volkmann (11-2)
Win Paul Kelly - Decision (Unanimous) UFC Versus 2
Win Ronys Torres - Decision (Split) UFC FN 21
Loss Martin Kampmann - Submission (Guillotine Choke) UFC 108

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Comments

I don’t believe a fighter who naturally is very risk averse will really change all that much. If his opponent shows any fire at all his response will be to take zero chances to a decision win.

"an excellent example of why most MMA "journalism" is a joke. Pseudonyms like "toxic" and shitty writing like that dopey article"--- Joe Rogan.

by toxic on Dec 27, 2010 9:16 AM EST reply actions

I agree.
I’ve seen it happen all the times with risk-averse fighters like A. Silva, GSP and Lyoto Machida.

Now I understand McKee’s ego is being supported by his interest in making a name for himself. But I have to give him some kidn of respect for his last fight. He said he will finish his opponent or simply quite MMA. Well he finished his opponent but I just don’t see him doing that time and time again. He’s not a young fighter at all. Hey, he went to college with Dan Henderson.

Excuse my emotional, reactionary, fanatic output but Pettis will be the next UFC lightweight champion. Period.
- - - - -
VEe is ANIMated!

by VeeisAnimated on Dec 27, 2010 9:48 AM EST up reply actions

Haha

Over the last year or so, I am slowly learned to stop hating McKee and start appreciating him and his bravado.

This is great.

"Vo-cab-u-lary's necessary when diggin' into my library..."

by TDITZ on Dec 27, 2010 9:25 AM EST reply actions 3 recs

I would also say he is the “mandingo” of MMA if ya kno what i mean…

if u dont look up mandingo on any porn site you know hahah

by yellopanda on Dec 27, 2010 2:10 PM EST up reply actions

“Mandingo” was a book written in the fifties. It was about slaves being trained to fight in bare knuckle matches for the entertainment of the owners.

It’s not porn.

by judonerd on Dec 27, 2010 9:36 PM EST up reply actions

And in porn Mandingo is a black dude wig a huge dong.

by hexbreaker on Dec 28, 2010 12:56 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

you were the friend who would always kill the fun with depressing facts weren’t you?

by DCJon. on Dec 28, 2010 1:19 AM EST up reply actions 1 recs

This made me giggle.

Fitch's only fan. It's lonely, being me.

by zakkree on Dec 28, 2010 1:23 AM EST up reply actions

YES. Yes, I was. Actually, nothing at all has changed, obviously.

by judonerd on Dec 28, 2010 11:17 AM EST up reply actions

McKee would know.

And it’s a good comparison. He’s already as old as Muhammad Ali. Hooooooooo~!

(Kidding.)

(Kinda.)

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by McKinley B. Noble on Dec 27, 2010 9:49 AM EST via mobile reply actions

says the guy fighting Jacob Volkmann on the undercard. :/

by judonerd on Dec 27, 2010 9:53 AM EST via mobile reply actions

You cn’t just throw the new guy into the lion’s den. and I know the word “new” is a stretch.

They made a video game about Yakuzas. It’s called Yakuza. And it’s about Yakuza

by Krimson on Dec 27, 2010 10:58 AM EST up reply actions

When he beats Volkmann we won’t be fighting on the undercard

"You should work for 15 minutes to knock your opponent out, submit him, or improve your position to give yourself the best chance of doing either." - Dan Hardy

by Day Man on Dec 27, 2010 1:31 PM EST up reply actions

yeah, we're not good enough to be on the UFC.

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by Anton Tabuena on Dec 27, 2010 10:26 PM EST up reply actions

McKee has got the gift of gab

The man gives a great interview.

by capital L on Dec 27, 2010 9:53 AM EST reply actions

The Tupac of MMA

I love it. I hope he wins.

"If I wanted to spend a half hour between two hairy legs I'd go to your mother's house." -Don Frye

by mburtoni on Dec 27, 2010 10:07 AM EST via mobile reply actions

I thought id like him but

With that “I wasn’t gonna do a monkey show for those prices but will for these prices” talk I’m hoping he gets whooped

I’m not resting until I’m officially Anderson Silva status.- Jon "Bones" Jones

by AfroSamurai on Dec 27, 2010 10:16 AM EST via mobile reply actions

Add

Yes a very loose quotation being lazy

I’m not resting until I’m officially Anderson Silva status.- Jon "Bones" Jones

by AfroSamurai on Dec 27, 2010 10:16 AM EST via mobile up reply actions

His focus on everything being race related turns me off.

Said he wasn’t in the ufc because they were racist. Says they want him to put on a monkey show now. And a billion other comments along the same lines. I don’t like it.

Especially when he’s beaten nobody worthwhile and has finally started finishing. At 40. With no improvements in his skillset or significant upside. He’s got a mouth that is a liability and a game based on a diminishing physicality. Pardon the UFC for not caring that much about a guy who is less legit and more boring than nik lentz.

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by pdl on Dec 27, 2010 1:12 PM EST via mobile up reply actions

I largely agree

I think the clear potential damage from one of his rants on the big stage has kept him from being signed sooner.

"Sometimes I wonder if the world is being run by smart people who are putting us on, or by imbeciles who really mean it."
-Mark Twain
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-Bruce Lee
"People griping about this matchup need to stop using fight finder as their primary source of MMA information and watch some fights already."
-smoogy2

by The American Ronin on Dec 27, 2010 1:25 PM EST up reply actions

Less legit than Nik Lentz???

"You should work for 15 minutes to knock your opponent out, submit him, or improve your position to give yourself the best chance of doing either." - Dan Hardy

by Day Man on Dec 27, 2010 1:32 PM EST up reply actions

I think you misinterpreted what he meant

What he was saying was, he had a family to feed and fighting taking risks wasn’t worth it because the money being paid if he didn’t win wasn’t enough, so he’d go for the surefire win even if it meant boring. Then the UFC said if you can show us you can finish, we’ll give you a shot in the big show, so he went out and finished and now is in the big show.

He’s actually talked about scaling back his shit-talking and acting like a businessman in and out the cage like GSP.

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by S.C. Michaelson on Dec 27, 2010 10:34 PM EST up reply actions

I think alot of the time now because of certain things McKee has said in the past people interpret things he says that have no relation to race to be race-driven simply because of his past and I think it attributes to alot of the dislike he receives.

by DCJon. on Dec 28, 2010 1:22 AM EST up reply actions

WTF is he talking about??? Wow…

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by CSC Memorabilia on Dec 27, 2010 10:28 AM EST reply actions

U got to be kidding me,ahahahaha

by Rampage01 on Dec 27, 2010 10:29 AM EST reply actions

Well, McKee did finish his last two fights, so that could be a sign, but I think that he’ll just get decision wins as the competition is tougher from here on out. He could prove me wrong though as he does have the tools to finish on the ground, but doesn’t always use them.

Check out MMA For You at http://www.youtube.com/user/Gobusiness123 for MMA reviews, predictions, and analysis.

by chrisbboy82 on Dec 27, 2010 10:56 AM EST reply actions

I know it never happens, but i wanna see McKee vs, Travis Lutter

The Muhammed Ali of MMA vs. The Michael Jordan of BJJ.

I'm Dutch-Irish. My Father was from Wales.

by hobbie on Dec 27, 2010 12:35 PM EST via mobile reply actions 3 recs

Dear boy...

If I could rec that via mobile I would. Made me lol at work. My boss didn’t find it as funny though. _

by ssstute89 on Dec 27, 2010 12:55 PM EST via mobile reply actions

I don’t think he matches up well against BJ but against Edgar and Maynard he could be very very dangerous

"You should work for 15 minutes to knock your opponent out, submit him, or improve your position to give yourself the best chance of doing either." - Dan Hardy

by Day Man on Dec 27, 2010 1:33 PM EST reply actions

You'd think...

That being an amalgamation of Muhammad Ali, Tupac and Don King (shudder) would go ahead and put you at #1, not “among the greatest”.

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Nate: When I banned Subo?
Luke: That was a good one.

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by Derek Suboticki on Dec 27, 2010 1:42 PM EST reply actions

I don’t think he is one of the greatest black mixed martial artists ever.

we mutha fuckin thug life riders westsiiiide till we die

by cosmic fist technique on Dec 27, 2010 2:59 PM EST via mobile reply actions

Number One on my list

Though I can’t really be sure about the Shogun of Harlems’ ground game, so Maurice Smith until then.

by troy_doney on Dec 27, 2010 4:06 PM EST up reply actions 2 recs

You get a rec for

SHO’NUFF!!!!!!!!! THAT IS MY FAVORITE MOVIE EVER LAST DRAGON. A MOVIE WITH MOSTLY REAL FIGHTERS THAT WAS REALLY GOOD.

by BIGNAT on Dec 27, 2010 8:37 PM EST up reply actions

i love mckee. and if his last fight and age are any indication, i expect him to be a lot more exciting than he used to be (not that thats very hard considering he made nik lentz look like cain velasquez)

by ryan daut on Dec 27, 2010 3:00 PM EST reply actions