Dana White on Mark Hunt: ‘One of the greatest stories in sport right now’

THIS weekend, Sydney-based Mark Hunt has a chance to complete his fairytale in what UFC boss Dana White describes as an “unbelievable” story.

‘One of the greatest stories in sports’

THIS weekend, Sydney-based Mark Hunt has a chance to complete his fairytale in what UFC president Dana White describes as an “unbelievable” story.

The “Super Samoan” has an opportunity few ever imagined he would get: A shot at the UFC heavyweight title.

Though it’s only for the interim belt when he goes toe-to-toe with Fabricio Werdum in Mexico City on Sunday (AEDT), 40-year-old Hunt’s rise from the scrapheap has been nothing short of incredible.

“I like stories in all of sports where you have a guy like Mark Hunt, who is older, an underdog, came from one style and a lot of people doubt what he is capable of doing yet the athlete himself doesn’t doubt himself,” White tells news.com.au.

“He wants to go out and challenge himself against the best. He wants to go out and prove everybody wrong and Mark Hunt is one of the greatest stories in sports right now.”

But can he actually win, having been granted his shot through an injury to reigning champion Cain Velasquez?

“Hell yes he can win,” White says.

“Anybody who thinks Mark Hunt can’t win on Saturday night is nuts.

“First of all, even though he’s taken this fight short notice, he just fought on September 27th in Japan.

“Then he had a few weeks off and then he got his call for Mexico. For a guy Mark Hunt’s age, that’s way better.

“Mark Hunt already knows how to fight. He’s not going to learn anything new in camp.

“He just needs to be in shape and he needs to be acclimated. And he just came out of a great camp. And when he steps into the Octagon on Saturday night he will have been in Mexico for three weeks.”

I see tons of people doubting Mark Hunt!!! Just a reminder of what he can do. #televisa #foxdeportes… http://t.co/mX5QkAiTL8

— Dana White (@danawhite) November 10, 2014

After losing six straight fights between 2006 and 2010, White did not want to bring Hunt to the UFC. He offered to pay Hunt the money owed on his contract and let him walk away, but Hunt didn’t want free money.

Hunt wanted to fight.

“He proved me wrong and he proved a lot of people wrong,” White says.

“What this guy has accomplished and what he has done is unbelievable.”

“The fight in Australia with him and [Antonio] “Bigfoot” Silva is the greatest heavyweight fight I’ve ever seen.

“The guys he’s knocked out. The things he’s accomplished since he’s come back. Stepping up for this fight, flying down to Mexico. It’s unbelievable.

“I’ll never count Mark Hunt out ever again.”

Trying to explain how Hunt had been able to make such a dramatic transformation, White said: “I see this thing in guys when they see their window closing in their career and they want is so bad and Mark is one of these guys.”

Mark Hunt will get a fairytale shot at a UFC heavyweight belt against Fabricio Werdum.

“He’s so resilient,” White added.

“He has a granite chin. He has unbelievable stamina for a guy his age and his size.

“His heart, his desire to win, his desire to move forward. He keeps throwing punches when he feels exhausted and feels like he’s going to die is second to none.

“He has all the tools physically, mentally and emotionally to be guy the who’s doing what he’s doing.

“He’s got it all.”

Hunt has had to drop an extraordinary 20kg in three weeks to make weight for the fight and reportedly only has 3kg to go.

White said he was not concerned.

“He was having trouble with his weight before his last fight too but the difference for a guy like Mark Hunt, who’s a heavyweight, when he loses the weight he can lose the weight. It’s not like a guy who’s 160 pounds (72.5kg) and needs to get down to 140 (63.5kg), that’s a big difference.”

Asked what Hunt’s success meant for the UFC as a whole, White said: “It means a lot. Australia is so huge for us. I love Australia. First of all, we never have a bad card in Australia. Australia always delivers. The fans are awesome, man. Australia’s really important to us and obviously it’s important for an Aussie to be doing as well as Mark Hunt — and being a heavyweight.”

HUNT CAN SHOCK THE WORLD

NO ONE is prepared to write off the Sydney-based hitman thanks to the dynamite knockout power he carries in both fists, which has delivered stunning KOs of Roy Nelson, Stefan Struve and Cheick Congo for his past three wins.

The Bleacher Report’s Kristian Ibarra put Hunt and Werdum head-to-head in a comprehensive breakdown, giving the Super Samoan the edge in striking.

“Mark Hunt wasn’t always a Super Samoan. Boasting a sub-.500 record from 2009 to early 2011, Hunt’s performances inside of competition were anything but ‘Super’,” Ibarra wrote.

“But then something happened.

“Suddenly, the aging Hunt was coming into his own as one of the nastiest knockout artists the heavyweight division had to offer. He managed to knock three dudes senseless in four victories before running into a well-rounded Junior dos Santos.

“This’ll probably be the closest category of the bunch. But with a 25-minute fight ahead of them, the nod goes to the man keeping us on the edge of our seats while he wields dynamite in his hands at all times.”

Mark Hunt connects with an elbow during his epic bout against Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva.

The bad news for Hunt: Ibarra gave Werdum - an exceptional exponent of Brazilian jiu-jitsu - a clear edge in wrestling, grappling, speed and cardio, tipping him to win a unanimous decision. Yet he touched back on Hunt’s KO power as an intangible of the fight.

“Whether you’re in there for five minutes or 25 minutes, one thing is certain: You’d better keep your hands up when fighting Mark Hunt. Few men in the sport have the sort of power that Hunt carries in both of his hands,” he wrote.

“Fabricio Werdum will need to put the Super Samoan away before he can feel comfortable with his chances of taking the gold back with him to Brazil.”

Velasquez has weighed in on the fight, telling The MMA Hour he expects the better-rounded Werdum to win - but noted Hunt’s heavy hands.

“I think Werdum, with his length and his wrestling, the ground, Werdum has it,” Cain said.

“On the feet, with the power that Hunt has, he has a chance of winning it there, but that’s pretty much it.”

Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole agrees, saying Hunt must stay in a stand-up battle.

“Hunt might be the UFC’s hardest puncher, and he has one of the sport’s greatest chins,” Iole wrote.

“The rest of his game isn’t nearly as evolved as his striking, and if the fight is on the ground for any length of time against Werdum, he’s likely to be in serious trouble.”

Andrew Richardson of SB Nation’s mmamania.com concurs that Hunt really only has a shot at victory via an explosive stand-up battle. He applauded his recent marvellous form.

“Though Hunt has not compiled an extended win streak, his recent fights have been extraordinary,” Richardson wrote.

“He may have lost to Junior dos Santos, but that fight is now one of the best UFC heavyweight fights in history, only topped by Hunt’s brawl with “Bigfoot” Silva. Plus, being the first man to stop Roy Nelson inside the Octagon is nothing to scoff at.”

Richardson noted that Hunt’s defeats had tended to come from over-aggression.

“Against a brutal submission ace like Werdum, it’s vital that Hunt controls those tendencies. He simply can’t make any mistakes against the Brazilian,” he wrote.

Mark Hunt’s heavy hands have proven lethal in recent UFC bouts.

“It’s really, really clear that Hunt’s path to victory is on the feet.

That’s not to say it will be easy for Hunt. Werdum’s improved kicking game and length could give Hunt some serious problems, but that does not mean takedowns should ever be considered as an option for “The Super Samoan.” That’s simply making it too easy for Werdum.

“Instead, Hunt needs to pressure Werdum on his feet and get him along the fence. Werdum does not react especially well when his back is to the cage, as he suddenly becomes much more hittable. That’s Hunt’s opportunity to tear up Werdum’s body and then work his way higher.

“Hunt also has to be wary of Werdum’s habit of playing possum. Werdum is more than willing to act hurt or even fall to the ground in the hopes that Hunt will follow or get himself off-balance. This is one fight in which Hunt’s walk off habit will actually benefit him.”

Hunt has been typically relaxed in the build-up and certainly hasn’t been daunted. Fielding plenty of questions about Werdum’s superior ground game, Hunt gave a classic answer.

“Well, everyone’s a world class ground fighter until they get a punch to the face,” Hunt told Submission Radio.

“So that’s how I deal with all these ground fighters like everyone else. I hit ‘em in the head and there goes your f***ing black belt. First-round walk-away knock out.”

The Super Samoan has been so chilled, he’s even been taking selfies with Werdum and joking around with him at promotional events.

And then he also got a haircut... let’s hope it’s a lucky one.