Clay Guida Happy to Welcome Anthony Pettis to the UFC

There are few fighters who can match the charisma of Clay Guida. A rough cut ball of kinetic energy, Guida uses pressure and endurance to grind his opponents down until their will breaks. Over the past three years the Johnsburg, Illinois native has seen varying levels of success as he has faced some of the division's finest. With that said, Guida current string of wins, including impressive stoppages of Rafael Dos Anjos and former Pride superstar Takanori Gomi has "The Carpenter" looking more like a true contender than just an entertaining fighter.

After the Maynard vs. Edgar stalemate at UFC 125 caused a traffic jam atop the division, Anthony Pettis saw his guaranteed title shot postponed for the time being. "Showtime" made it clear he was not interested in shifting into neutral, so the UFC tapped Guida to introduce Pettis to the big stage. Which was a challenge Clay Guida was more than happy to accept. With the fight now slated for the TUF 13 Finale on June 4th in Las Vegas, Guida has a clear vision of the road to the top. In his Bloody Elbow Exclusive interview "The Carpenter" talked about his his latest endeavor, the UFC/WEC merger and his reaction when the call came to fight Anthony Pettis.

"Let's sign the contract," Guida stated straight away.

For the past few years Clay Guida has been a litmus test for the top fighters in the 155 lb. weight class. If they could survive or manage to stop Guida's constant charge they were deemed worthy of the upper tier in the division. After suffering a loss to Kenny Florian, Guida set out to change the perception and has yet to look back. With a run at the top locked front and center, Guida welcomes the new wave of fighters that have come from the WEC with Anthony Pettis leading the way.

"The WEC is great," Guida answered when asked about the merger. "I think they have some of the best fighters and some of the best matchups. The unification was one of the biggest things the UFC has done. The merger was awesome and I'm excited to send a message to everybody. Whether that message goes to the guys coming from the WEC or Strikeforce it doesn't matter. I'm no one to be taken lightly and here in the UFC it's just a matter of time before I get my shot. A big win over Anthony Pettis is just going to set me up and get me closer to the title shot that's coming in 2011."

Guida's cardio and wrestling have been the talents that have carried him to this point in his career, but it has been a much improved striking attack that has carved out his most recent victories. In an interview with Guida's striking coach Mike Winkeljohn, "Coach Wink" urged the MMA fan base to be on the look out for Guida's hand game. While Guida acknowledges the progress, he knows there is little mystery about what will take him to the top of the heap.

"I know my ground game is what is going to propel me to the lightweight title but every fight begins on the feet," Guida stated. "Coaches Mike and Greg (Jackson) know that opening our hands up will open up the ground game which is going to be what gets us that belt. Our hands are dangerous. We've dropped people, broken jaws and all that stuff but ground and pound is where it's at. But we also have to be a threat on the feet and that's where we have been in these past few fights. To out-strike a striker like Takanori Gomi is a big confidence booster to say the least so I was super excited about that. The progression I've seen with Mike Winkeljohn has me very happy and super excited about where I'm at right now."

Guida's position in the division may be up for debate but the gym he calls home is in Albuquerque New Mexico at Jackson's/Winkeljohn's MMA. Despite an impressive win and finish percentage the all-star roster has developed a stigma that has lingered for some time now. With recent examples made by Guida, Brian Stann and most recently Melvin Guillard at UFC Fight for the Troops, the fighters at Jackson's/Winkeljohn's are looking to set things straight.

"I couldn't believe it was ever started in the first place," Guida answered when asked about his team's stigma for safe fighting. "I think Dana realizes now that he was speaking about one or two fighters but not the whole lot of us because if you look at what we're doing, we are running through guys, taking names and busting up heads. That is what it's all about."

Since former lightweight king B.J. Penn was dethroned and then trounced by the current champion Frankie Edgar, the weight class has opened up into a "Wild Wild West" type shootout. Despite the pre-fight talk that a matchup between the division's top two fighters would be a bore fest, Edgar and Maynard set the tone for what could be a great year of fights that will showcase one of the most exciting weight classes in the UFC.

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"It's a tough call between 155 and 205 but we're up there," Guida replied when asked where his division stands amongst its fellow weight classes. "The welterweight division was very tough there for awhile and maybe it's fallen off a bit but not much. I think lightweight is definitely the most competitive division but 205 lbs. is always tough. The light heavyweights have some of the best all around fighters in the world but the best athletes in the game are in my weight class at 155 lbs. We definitely have the most to offer. There is knockout power here but you don't see a lot of knockouts but we are always walking away with "Fight of the Night" or "Submission of the Night" bonuses so when you show up to fight you always get top notch results."

As the interview came to a close, Guida also shared his excitement for his latest endeavor outside of the cage. In addition to preparing for the Pettis fight he will open a fitness center in the Chicagoland area that will focus on his trademark quality...cardiovascular endurance.

"I'm opening my first gym down in Crest Hill Illinois," Guida exclaimed. "It's a suburb of Chicago and the gym is going to be a state of the art facility that is geared more towards fitness. It's going to be called MMAStop Fitness Clay Guida and it's going to be great. We have two cages, a regulation boxing ring and all of the cardio and conditioning equipment you could ever need. We have a full doctor's facility and massage therapists so it's fantastic and it's going to be a one-stop shop for everything you need. There is a retail store and a pro shop so it's all there. If you are more geared towards family and fitness, not necessarily a fight gym, then check it out. Fighter's can still fight out of the gym but it's more geared towards people getting in shape, staying in shape and living a healthy lifestyle. I'm really excited about that and the grand opening is going to be February 26th. We're still yet to announce which big named fighters will be there so stay tuned for that."

Clay Guida can be followed on Twitter at: @ClayGuida.