Coming off of a third round TKO loss to highly ranked middleweight contender Nate Marquardt this past February, American Top Team’s Wilson Gouveia hopes to erase the specter of that loss with a win over Alan Belcher, a man he considers one of the most dangerous fighters in the middleweight division, when they meet on the preliminary card of UFC 107, Saturday, December 12 from the FedExForum in Memphis, Tennessee.
Tapology’s Steven Kelliher recently caught up with Gouveia to discuss his training at ATT for Belcher, his thoughts on losing to Marquardt and not fighting up to his potential, and his goal to get a title shot by the end of 2010.
Tapology: You have been training with American Top Team for your entire career. How important has that team been for you in shaping you as a fighter?
Gouveia: ATT has been important not only for my career but also for me as a person. My friends are like brothers here. ATT is like a second family for me. For my career, I have improved my game 1000% since I have been here. When I got here I was a purple belt and now I am a black belt, so I am very thankful to ATT.
Tapology: What have you been working on in recent training sessions?
Gouveia: MMA is a mixed martial art, so I am trying to improve everything. My wrestling, my stand up game, everything I am trying to improve. I am going to be fighting Belcher soon, so we are training some specific stuff for him.
Tapology: Looking at your last fight—against Nate Marquardt at UFC 95—and at your professional record, it seems that you have had some trouble in the striking department, with five of your six professional losses coming by way of TKO. Have you been working hard on your striking and do you see that as a weakness that can be exploited in your game?
Gouveia: I think my biggest weakness is my cardio. Once I start getting tired, everything becomes a mess. What happened in the Nate fight is that in the third round I was completely gassed. Nate is a tough guy and very experienced and he got me when my head was down. I try to be exciting—I give that to my fans—winning or losing I am going to try to knock somebody out and finish the fight, which is why my fights do not usually go to decision.
Tapology: Do you think dropping down from 205lbs has affected your cardio or do you think you just need to work on that more in the training camp?
Gouveia: I don’t think it is the cut. I felt it a little bit in the first cut against Jensen, but in the second and third fights I actually felt good, but the thing is I have never had good conditioning in my life since I was a little kid. I have been trying to improve my condition—I think it might be the adrenaline and the experience—but I don’t know what it is. I feel that every fight I have been getting better conditioning each time.
Tapology: Your next fight is against Alan Belcher. He is a very technical striker, so do you think that is where he poses the most danger to you?
Gouveia: I think Belcher is a very underrated fighter. A lot of people talk about other guys, but I think he is way better than people think. He has great striking skills, takedown defense, and Jiu-Jitsu, so I am watching his fights and trying to figure out how I am going to beat him. He is a tough dude.
Tapology: You train with Jorge Santiago and he was knocked out badly against Belcher a few years ago. Has he been able to help you out in this training camp or do you not put too much stalk into that kind of stuff?
Gouveia: When they fought it was a long time ago, and they have both improved a lot since then. It is a completely different fight now. The way I see him right now, Belcher is 100% a better fighter [than he was]. If they fought today, it would be a completely different fight.
Tapology: Are you going to look to use you Jiu-Jitsu in this fight to get it to the ground?
Gouveia: My Jiu-Jitsu is my biggest strength, and I think my biggest mistake [in the Nate fight] was not using my Jiu-Jitsu. I think I need to grow a little bit more as a fighter and as a professional, and if I need to take somebody down and submit him then I will because that is my biggest strength.
Tapology: Would you feel ashamed trying to win a decision if a fight was not going your way?
Gouveia: Sometimes we have a game plan, and when the fight starts the game plan is gone, but like I said my style is always going to be to try to finish fights. It doesn’t matter who I am fighting, but I think eventually I am going to get to decision, and at the end of the day the ultimate goal is to be the winner, that is the most important thing for me.
Tapology: Should you defeat Belcher, what are you looking for after him in the middleweight division? Would you like to step in against another top guy like Marquardt again or are you looking to take a slower road back up?
Gouveia: I’m in this business because I really think I can hang with the best guys in my weight class, and I think Belcher is one of the top guys in this weight class, I really think he is. Hopefully, if I beat him, I want to fight the best guys. I would like a rematch with Nate or a fight with somebody of his caliber.
Tapology: I wanted to get your thoughts on how the middleweight division stacks up against the other divisions in the UFC, and also on the champion of your weight class, Anderson Silva.
Gouveia: Anderson is amazing, you know. How can I say something about Anderson—there is nothing to say—he is the best. The only guy who can get close to him is the Russian guy, Fedor, but I don’t see anybody in this weight class or in any other weight class in the UFC getting close to Anderson.
All of the divisions are very tough, man. From lightweight to heavyweight, all of the divisions you are going to find tough guys fighting. The only difference between me fighting at 205lbs and 185lbs is the size. I remember walking by guys like Tito and Forrest, and those guys are huge compared to me.
Tapology: What is the theme of your 2010 going to be? What are you going to try to accomplish?
Gouveia: Hopefully—after I beat Belcher—is to go out there and make sure people really see who I am and my potential, and hopefully I can get my title shot by the end of the year. I want to have a chance to fight the best, and by the end of next year I hope to accomplish that.
Tapology: Thanks for the time, Wilson.
Gouveia: Anytime. Thank you.
