UFC QUOTABLES: Lyoto Machida on UFC 123 fight with Quinton "Rampage" Jackson - "We are equals in there"

By: Jamie Penick, MMATorch Editor-in-Chief

"In every fight you have to prove why you are there. This is no different; I have to prove to myself and to my fans why I'm still in there... We are equals in there, no one has an advantage and we are really going to see who is the best in the cage... People should be excited to watch two ex-Champions of the UFC fighting each other to find their place back in the title picture in the 205 lb. division."

-Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Lyoto Machida talks about his fight with Quinton "Rampage" Jackson at UFC 123 in a pre-UFC 123 video interview (Posted below - app users, video available at MMATorch.com).

Penick's Analysis: I think most are coming into this fight believing Machida is the significant favorite, simply because Rampage has not performed all that well over his last handful of fights. His motivation to fight and prove himself as the best hasn't seemed to be present recently, with his distractions into acting and all that went into that situation last year. We simply don't know what Rampage is going to show up, but if he can put everything together he could represent some danger to Machida. But Machida is also out to prove he can get back to a championship once again, and this is going to be a very important fight for both guys at UFC 123.

[Lyoto Machida art by Cory Gould (c) MMATorch.com]

Source: http://www.mmatorch.com/artman2/publish/UFC_2/article_7443.shtml

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