OH SNAP!!! PVT Radio recently interviewed Anderson’s main trainer, Diogenes Assahida, who hints that The Spider has been lacking motivation for his past few fights. Diogenes - In each training session, we find a mistake or a flaw, we have positive and negative perspectives. I’m very systematic, I complain a lot, I want more strength and I want more energy, but I have tried to keep myself in check because we have felt that Anderson is tired, that’s the reality, you know, this is not an excuse and I’m not trying to defend him, but it’s the truth. Host - And do you think this will cross over to his next few fights, Diogenes? Do you think you can try to improve this problem of his, the motivation and the fatigue? Diogenes - Correct, you used the correct word there in the right context, it's motivation. The motive for what you do or fail to do. At a certain point It becomes tiresome for you to go training and leave your family aside, and repeat [each day], its reality. I mean, how many times has Anderson defended his title? At a certain point you hit the brakes. I don’t know, I get worried, I have already made comments [with the team], we have already talked about this and I worry. As trainers, when we pressure [the athlete] too much it can have the opposite effect of discouragement sometimes. Today, I am trying to work more on the psychological side of things. Host - But are there other ways? The guy is defending his belt and winning. He either asks Dana White for six months to a year off for vacation because his mind game isn’t there, or there’s no way out, he’ll have to live with this pressure because it’s his job, right? Each fighter has their own pressure, right? Diogenes - For sure, it’s part of the game, it’s indisputable, we already talked about this. Sometimes he’ll say "ok, I’m not going to [train] anymore" on a given day, he does that. But I have to do my job, as long as there is a fight scheduled I have to do my job. Host - do you think this time off will be good for him? Do you think now that he’s taking time off to recover from the rib injury will be enough to get the fatigue out of him until his next fight which is schedule for January? Diogenes - This break is good enough to relax and get some rest and get hungry and get motivated again. But then again, it could have a negative effect as well because it’s just too much time off resting. I’m going to be honest with you, it’s going to be a "surprise box" (closest translation should be "not really knowing what to expect"). But let me tell you something, the guy is tough, the guy is champion [material]. He proved it there, inside [the octagon]… to me… in that fight, he wasn’t strong, he was champion. I’ll tell you something, many others would have given up during that fight. The guy is champion [material]. So I think we’ll come back in full force, we’ll come back energized, we’ll come back motivated, I’ll be talking to him this week, so you know… we’ll be ready for the next [fight].