Ze Mario Sperry Interview about his upcoming Superfight at ADCC- From Tatame.com

		19/05/2011 08:35
Ze Mario Sperry sees Renzo Gracie in advantage at ADCC 2011 super fight
By Guilherme Cruz Photo Marcelo Alonso BJJ black belt graduated by Carlson Gracie, Ze Mario Sperry has a great history in fighting. World champion of Jiu-Jitsu and absolute champion of ADCC, keeping the title after two super fights, the tough guy will return to the mats this year, on a match-up fight, in ADCC 2011, against another legend of the sport: Renzo Gracie. “I was caught by surprise”, reveals the black belt, on an exclusive interview with TATAME, commenting on his expectations for the duel on which he promise to be always remembered and also talking about his life in general, betting on an advantage of his opponent when it comes to “fighting rhythm”, and analyzing he bouts between Royler Gracie vs. Eddie Bravo, scheduled for the same ADCC edition, and Braulio Estima vs. Ronaldo Jacare, a super fight that will figure one of the main events of the tournament. How did you get the invitation to fight in ADCC? Man, I was caught by surprise. The guys from the Arab Emirates and they invited me and I got tempted, despite I’m not fighting anymore, I’m not training frequently or taking it serious. I was tempted with the invitation, especially since it’s a bout against Renzo, a great name in the sport. You two are close to Sheik... Do you know who the idea came from? Man, I believe it was him (Sheik)… I gotta tell you that I have no clue whatsoever of who came up with this idea. What you hope when fighting Renzo? You see, in my point of view, it’s a great opportunity to me to relive that thrill of all that I’ve been through in ADCC, and try, in a way, to return to the sport with this invitation, but I’m not fighting for a long time… I don’t train on regular basis, I’m not that excited about competing anymore. I believe that that’s the greatest legacy I’ve got with this invitation: to feel again the thrill of being competing. It’s priceless. Renzo’s been teaching on his gym in New York and he’s been coaching guys like St. Pierre and Frankie Edgar, both UFC champions. Do you think it’ll be an advantage he’ll have against you, since he’s training and teaching every day? Absolutely. Renzo’s on the fighting business, and I’m not, I don’t fight for a living anymore for years. It’ll be an advantage for him, for sure. But, apart from that, I want to take it as a self-pleasure, I’ll try to get back in shape the best way I can and do a good presentation. What have you been doing since you stopped fighting? I got into a business. I’d rather not talk about it for now (laughs). But are you still training hard? What do you do then? Man, to tell you the truth, I don’t. I train when I can. I run, I work out, I try to be in touch with the sport as much as I can, but obviously I don’t do it for a living anymore, so I’m not that close as I used to be. Where will you train for this bout? I’ll train here with my friends. I know lot of people in Rio de Janeiro. Basically it’ll be it. I’ll try to train the most I can, when I have the time to do it, I will. Do you consider training at BTT? I’ll train here in Barra (in Rio de Janeiro), because it’s easier for me. There’re the guys from X-Gym, where I work out. There are many guys here. It’s hard to find some time to train, but I’ll take it as a challenge, so let’s move on and see where it goes. They’ve also matched a bout between Royler and Eddie Bravo. What do you hope to see on this fight? Well, I believe Royler is more likely to win this one. Each bout is unique, and it’s always hard. But I guess Royler has more game, he’s aware of Eddie Bravo’s strong points, so he’ll come hungry for winning… Let’s see. I believe Royler will crave this win like crazy. Since their first bout, eight years ago, Eddie Bravo has been focusing his trainings with no gi. Do you believe it can be an X factor for this bout against Royler? It’s hard to tell because I don’t know what Royler is up to, I don’t know what Eddie Bravo has been doing, but looking at their record, Royler has done much more, so I believe he’s capable of winning this bout. Absolutely his name will be a factor and, this time, I guess he’ll be more focused on it than he was when they last fought… He’ll be more focused and prepared this time. There’s also the super fight between Braulio, who earned weight and absolute titles in 2009, versus Ronaldo, who has defeated Drysdale. How do you think it’ll end like? It’ll be a very busy fight, they’ll move a lot. Braulio is dangerous, he has a great spin, his guard imposes a strong rhythm, he can be attack you from anywhere. I believe it’ll be a busy fight and it’ll all depend on whoever is stronger, focused and better conditioned.