Bigfoot wants to dominate Japan

By Guilherme Cruz

Photo Marcelo Alonso

Returning to Japan with victory, Antônio “Pezão” (Big Foot) celebrated one more triumph is his career, this time against Yoshihiro Nakao, on Sengoku’s seventh edition. Returning to Brazil to get a passport, before returning to Florida, U.S, the giant from American Top Team talked with TATAME about another victory.

“Thank God… It wasn’t how I expected, I wanted to finish the fight in a different way, with a knockout or finalizing, but what matters is the victory, the positive result in my cartel. Unfortunately he got hurt, put his hand on the knee and I’m not judging if it was true or not, but the important thing is the victory”, celebrates Big foot, satisfied with the return to the Earth of the Rising Sun. “The little time I was in the ring, people liked a lot, I was very welcomed back in Japan”.

Owner of three belts (EliteXC, Cage Rage and Cage Warriors), the Brazilian wants more. “I want to be the best heavyweight of Sengoku. I’m going to respect my opponents, but I’ll train hard to be the best of it, God willing. I hope to come back as soon as possible. It wasn’t spoken when I’ll come back yet, but they said at the press conference before the fight that if I win, they could give me the chance to be at the heavyweight belt challenge”, revealed the fighter, who waits anxiously for the confirmation of the good news.

“They want to do eight shows in 2009, and I’ll be prepared to fight at any moment. If continues the way it is, the best heavyweight that is there is Josh Barnett, but I don’t know if he’ll fight there… Much water is still going to roll under the bridge, we have to see the results and wait”, said Antônio Silva, celebrating the victory of Jorge Santiago, in the same night, winning the belt of the average weight of the event. “It was very exciting. Jorge was very well focused and went flying below. He didn’t seat between any round, he was very well physically and a fight for a belt is like this, always complicated, but thank God the party was complete. Not so complete because our little brother Gesias didn’t fight, because if he would, it would have been three victories”.

Leaving the celebration to treat with a seriously issue, Big Foot doesn’t discourage as he knew the threat of punishment from Athletic Commission, that wants to prevent the Brazilian to fight again in any American event. “Who don’t duty, don’t fear. If I were guilty, I wouldn’t be spending US$44 thousand with fines and lawyers, I’d simply let my head down and accept. I’ll go until the end with this story”, guarantees Silva, who doesn’t make much care of fighting in the American market.

“Fighting in the United Stares is great, my family likes it too, the American public likes my stile of fighting, but I’m being judged and, meanwhile, I’m going until the end with this. But I want to take my space in Japan. Being good at Japan, being well treated as I am, it makes no difference to me”, finalized Pezão, drawing to thank the support of his friends in this difficult situation. “I want to send a hug to the people from TATAME that are helping me with this and to the people that knows me, or the ones that don’t, and believe that I’m innocent, as the people from ATT, my family and my lawyers”.