Elvis Sinosic “Welcoming the UFC to Australia”

By Dave Carpinello

The "King of Rock & Rumble" makes his return to the Octagon at the UFC’s first ever event in his home country of Australia on Sunday, February 21st at UFC 110. Elvis recently talked with PDG about his upcoming fight, world travel training, "Cro-Cop", the UFC’s international expansion and more!

PDG: How does it feel to be back in the UFC for the fourth time in your career?

Elvis Sinosic: It is awesome because the UFC is the pinnacle of this sport.  It is not only a great thing to be back fighting but I am getting twice the bang for my buck because the UFC is coming to my hometown and country for the first time ever.

PDG: Does it make it any sweeter that you are getting a chance to revenge an early loss in your career at the hands of Chris Haseman?

Elvis Sinosic: For me, this is just the next fight in my career; I don't look at the past and worry about the rematch aspect of my fights.  What's done is done, this is a completely different fight and considering that the fight took place over 10 years ago, both of us are completely different fighters now.

PDG: You were recently training in Thailand; what kind of training schedule are you keeping with heading into this fight?

Elvis Sinosic: Yes I took myself away from home, my business there and work so that I can concentrate on this fight.  The first stop on my trip was Thailand so I could work on my stand up game and tighten up my striking technique overall.  Then it was off to Dallas, Texas where I concentrated on my grappling and ground game in the second part of my training camp and the final part was a trip to Las Vegas to put everything together and work on my overall mixed martial arts game plan.  Then it is back home to finalize my training at the Sinosic-Perosh Gym leading up to the big show.

PDG: Do you have any worries that all of that travel and ensuing jet lag could have an adverse affect on how prepared you are for your fight at UFC 110?

Elvis Sinosic: I can't say that it doesn't come to mind but I have had to travel extensively throughout my entire career.  So I'm not too worried about it as it is just something that happens.  I will be sure that I leave enough time once I get back to Australia to get that out of my system.  Travel is just another part of my training and I will make sure that I am ready to go next Saturday night.

PDG: It has been over two years since your last fight; what changes if any have you made to your training this time around?

Elvis Sinosic: I am constantly working on improving my technique and it's not like I haven't been training hard for the past two years because I did have some chances to fight but the organizations that I was in talks with went out of business such as Bodog, EliteXC and others.  It has definitely been a strange last couple of years but I have been training students at my gym and training throughout the whole time.  So even though I haven't had fights I have been consistently working with other fighters on their strengths and technique while also improving myself as a fighter.  I am always learning, improving and discovering new techniques to help me get prepared to fight.

PDG: UFC 110 is stacked with veteran fighters including many that fought in the now defunct PRIDE organization such as Mirko "Cro Cop", Antônio Rodrigo ‘Minotauro’ Nogueira and Wanderlei Silva.  Do you think that the UFC picked those fighters because of their celebrity in that region and what was the reaction in Australia when those fighters were announced?

Elvis Sinosic: I think there is a couple of reasons that the UFC picked those fighters; one being that those guys are very popular fighters, they are well known for fighting in the Asian region and another big reason is that those guys are all used to the travel.  This is the first time that the UFC has come to Australia and it is a long trip for anyone to make.  I think that they wanted to make sure that they had big-name stars such as Nogueira that were used to making long trips to fight.  Another guy on the card, Michael Bisping is always traveling from Great Britain to America to fight.  Like I said the trip to Australia is a long one and because this is the UFC’s first card here they need to make sure that they have fighters that will be well-prepared to fight and put on a great show for the fans.

PDG: What do you think about facing a fellow Australian in your return to the UFC?

Elvis Sinosic: Chris is from Kingsland, Australia and although it is a great match up between countrymen I would have preferred to fight someone from a different country so that my fight had that international flavor in it.  Regardless though, I always treat every opponent with the same amount of respect and I know that Chris will come to the cage ready to fight.  It's just another fight, another opponent but it just happens that he is from Australia.

PDG: Haseman also hasn't been very active the last few years...

Elvis Sinosic: Yeah he kind of retired for a while and then made a comeback in 2008 after not fighting since 2004.  I wouldn't say though that he has been inactive because he was always training his own fighters and himself throughout the years when he wasn't fighting.  So I am sure he is going to be in good shape and ready to fight.  It is kind of like my situation in that even though I wasn't having fights, I made sure to stay in fighting shape.

PDG: There have been 40 UFC events, not including fight night events since the last time you were in the Octagon.  What do you think have been the biggest changes within the organization over that time period?

Elvis Sinosic: UFC 70 was really the beginning of their push into international markets as far as holding events goes.  Before that they were very focused on the US markets and UFC 70 was their big foray into the international scene and has led to fights in several different countries.  With that move we're seeing a lot more fighters from different countries and the sport getting much more exposure internationally; which is what I would have to say is the biggest difference in the sport and the UFC as an organization.  They first tried it at UFC 38 which was held at the Royal Albert Hall in London, England (I lost a unanimous decision to Renato “Babalu” Sobral) but I think that after that show the UFC realized that they weren't ready and nor were the fans for the organization to go global.  So they took a step back and waited until UFC 70 to try again and this time around it has been met with great success and reception and you can see that with their move to hold their first-ever event here in Australia.  They are also going to Abu Dhabi later this year and I can only imagine that they have many more locations in mind for the near future.

PDG: I'm glad that you mentioned Abu Dhabi because there has been some controversy about the UFC selling a minority stake in the company to a company owned by the Prince of Abu Dhabi.  Some people have complained and mentioned that this could strain the relationship between Israeli born and Jewish fighters and the UFC.  Do you see any long term problems with this transaction and the UFC holding an event in Abu Dhabi?

Elvis Sinosic: I think that it was purely a business transaction that involves no underlying aspects besides the ability to forge into a new market and be successful and make money.  I am sure that going forward it will stir up a bit of controversy but saying that....it's not like they sold a controlling interest in the company as you said it was only a minority stake.  You can only hope that it is a deal that proves profitable for the organization and that any problems that it may create with people of other nationalities and religions are easily resolved and don't lead to any major controversies.

PDG: Let's get back to UFC 110; what other fights on that card are you looking forward to watching?

Elvis Sinosic: There are going to be a lot of good fights on a card with a lot of world-class fighters but the fight that I think has the most relevance in its division is the main event between Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira and Cain Velasquez.  They are two of the top heavyweights in the UFC and Nogueira has been around for a long time.  He is one of the greatest fighters and Velasquez has shown that he is one of the best up-and-coming heavyweights in the division and I think the winner of that fight will definitely be getting a title shot soon so that fight definitely has interest for me.  The rest of the card is full of great fighters and I look forward to seeing every one of them and I think the fans are going to be extremely excited and impressed with this event.

PDG: Being part Croatian, what do you think the chances of Mirko "Cro Cop" being a contender for the heavyweight title in the UFC are going forward?

Elvis Sinosic: He is always going to be a legitimate heavyweight fighter and I think that is the question of many people as to whether he can regain that contender status as a fighter.  He is still a great fighter with world-class skills even though he lost to Junior Dos Santos in his last fight.  This fight is going to answer a lot of questions because if he has a great performance how can you not say that he is ready to start challenging again for a spot at the top of the heavyweight division.  If he has a great performance you can definitely say that is a step in the right direction and we will just have to see what happens going forward.

PDG: What changes in your fight style do you have to make when you are fighting in a cage as opposed to a ring and do you prefer one or the other?

Elvis Sinosic: There is obviously a big difference between fighting in a cage and fighting in the ring.  It is not as easy to cut corners when advancing to your opponent in the cage as it is in the ring and the cage is a much larger area than you typically see in a ring.  As opposed to the fight being restarted when you go into the ropes, in the cage you have to know how to defend yourself and reverse your opponent to get your back off from against the cage.  There is also the distinct difference between the rules of fighting in a ring and the rules of fighting in the cage and that definitely requires a period of adjustment if you have spent the majority of your career fighting in one or the other. That goes for both transitions whether it is from a cage to a ring or a ring to a cage.  You have to change a lot of things in your training and in your awareness when you are fighting in a new environment.  I think that fighting in a ring is easier because you can't get trapped against the ropes like you can in the cage.  There is a big difference between being pressed up against ropes and pressed up against a metal cage.  I also think that the rules about using elbows on the ground in a cage does more damage then kicks and stomps that you can use in a ring because of the cuts and damage that close range elbows on the ground can do.  Overall though I don't mind fighting in either one, it's all about being prepared.

PDG: When you haven't been in training for your fight what have you been doing with your downtime?

Elvis Sinosic: I love teaching fighters and so when I am not training myself I am hard at work at my gym working with our fighters.  Back home though I really do enjoy spending time with my girlfriend, my dogs and just relaxing and enjoying life.  Whether you are fighting or training fighters this sport takes a heavy mental and physical toll on your body and so it is nice to step away and get some relaxation and to be honest I even enjoy getting on the computer and going to the forums of different mixed martial arts websites to get some perspective on what the fans think about the sport and news that I haven't heard.  I could sum up most of my non-fighting activities with the term “just chilling”.

PDG: Thanks for your time Elvis; is there anything else you wanted to add?

Elvis Sinosic: Thanks Dave, I need to thank all of the guys at my gym, Sinosic-Perosh Gym and my family and especially all the fans that have supported me throughout my career.  Without the support of the fans I don't know if I would be fighting at UFC 110.  I want to thank Lojack Fightwear, Cage Fighter Australia, Fairtex, Fightwear International, Gamma O, Hayabusa. MMAWarehouse, The Gun Store - Las Vegas and KOreps.com and all of the sponsors that have helped me out throughout the years.

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