MMA News: Rich Franklin is Ready for UFC 77 in Cincinnati

Rich Franklin, seen here beating Yushin Okami at UFC 72 in June '07, says he's ready to fight Anderson Silva on Oct. 20 at UFC 77: Hostile Territory in Cincinnati. (AP Images)

At a a pre-fight press conference for UFC 77: Hostile Territory, former UFC champion Rich Franklin (22-2-0) said he's ready for the biggest fight of his mixed martial arts career.

Oct. 20 in Cinncinati, he'll face the man who beat him with a brutal series of nose-crushing knees to win the belt; Brazilian super-striker Anderson Silva (19-4-0). It's a chance for redemption in front of his home crowd and a shot to win back the title.

So what kind of pressure is he feeling?

"Mentally I've really tried to eliminate all that stuff out of the equation; the title and all that," he said calmly. "To me, a fight's a fight. I think I just want to win a little more this time because he beat me last time, and in the fashion that he did, as well. It changes things a little bit."

Silva, who arrived in town on Thursday morning, said he isn't concerned with the fight being in the home town of his opponent.

"I'm prepared to fight wherever the UFC would like me to fight," he explained through an interpreter. "As far as the pressure, I believe that there's just as much pressure on him as there is on me. He's fighting in front of his hometown. We'll see on Saturday night."

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