Means has business in Oklahoma
He will have cheering section against Garcia
Tim Means’ return to his native Oklahoma is semi-sentimental at best. Born in the Sooner State, he came to New Mexico with his mother when he was 2 years old. Now, he’s 33.
“I was born in Wilburton (Okla.), but I was raised in New Mexico,” the Moriarty MMA fighter said in a phone interview from Oklahoma City, where he’s scheduled to face Montreal’s Alex Garcia on Sunday. “I’m green chile through and through.”
Even so, he’ll have a substantial cheering section: “Uncles, cousins, and my parents live here now. I still have a bunch of ties here.”
Means is not even semi-sentimental, however, when Garcia is mentioned.
Early this week, mmajunkie.com posted a story headlined, “Alex Garcia wishes his UFC Fight Night 112 opponent was better than Tim Means.”
The headline was misleading. What Garcia actually said was that he wished his opponent was ranked in the UFC’s top 15 — the better to
advance with a victory.
“No disrespect toward Tim Means,” he told the website, “but I want to move forward.”
Nonetheless, Means took offense. Yet, he took even more offense from interviews in which Garcia said he planned to stand and trade strikes with Means, who’s among the UFC welterweight division’s most effective strikers. Of his 26 victories (against eight losses), 18 have come by knockout or TKO.
Garcia (14-3, six KOs, five submissions) has lost twice by knockout and never by submission.
“He did some interview saying he’s gonna make this a standup fight and go for the big knockout or whatever,” Means said. “But we know that’s not gonna happen.”
In preparation for Garcia, Means has honed his wresting skills at Albuquerque’s FIT-NHB with coach Jonathan Judy and with visiting UFC welterweight Bobby Nash, a former Michigan State wrestler.
Though Garcia has provided Means with plenty of bulletin-board material, most of “The Dirty Bird’s” motivation comes from his last fight — a loss by secondround submission to Brazil’s Alex Oliveira in March.
It was a rematch of a December fight in which Means devastated Oliveira with knees — ruled illegal because the Brazilian had one knee on the ground. Because of the ensuing confusion, the fight was ruled no contest.
Means was angry because he believed Oliveira pretended to be unable to continue after taking those knees. So badly did he want to win the rematch, he said, that he trained though a bone bruise that probably should have prompted him to ask for a postponement.
Then, during the fight, he fractured a foot.
“It wasn’t my night that night, but I’m just looking to get this fight,” he said. “I either go out on my shield or I send guys out on their shield, and that’s the plan for this one.”
The loss to Oliveira was a career setback, particularly for a 33-year-old fighter. But Means, as badly as he wants to win on Sunday, sees a UFC future for himself win or lose.
He’s been knocked out only once in his career.
“If I’d been in a bunch of crazy wars and beaten up and stuff, it would be a real concern,” he said. “But I haven’t really been beaten down or anything like that.
“As I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned how to train better. Better recovery, better nutrition. I’ve gotten smarter in my 30s than I ever was in my 20s and my late teens.
“Right now, it’s just about getting out there and doing what we do in practice. If I can do that, it’s gonna be a long night for Garcia.”
RIVERA: In Houston, Santa Fe’s Jerome Rivera suffered the first defeat of his MMA career, falling victim to a Roberto Sanchez arm bar in the third round of a Legacy Fighting Alliance flyweight title fight.
Rivera is now 7-1 as a pro. Sanchez, of Houston, is 7-0.
In the decisive third round, Sanchez took Rivera down and worked toward his specialty, the rear naked choke. Rivera fended off the choke hold, only to have Sanchez secure the arm bar. Rivera was forced to tap out at the 3-minute, 41-second mark.
Sanchez, the shorter, more compact fighter, used his strength to good advantage throughout the fight. But the taller Rivera scored repeatedly with fists and elbows, drawing blood, whether from the top or the bottom.