{"id":277455,"date":"2018-05-30T09:52:21","date_gmt":"2018-05-30T16:52:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/?p=277455"},"modified":"2018-05-30T09:52:21","modified_gmt":"2018-05-30T16:52:21","slug":"elias-theodorou-explains-why-hes-hoping-to-fight-lyoto-machida","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/mma-news\/elias-theodorou\/elias-theodorou-explains-why-hes-hoping-to-fight-lyoto-machida\/","title":{"rendered":"Elias Theodorou explains why he’s hoping to fight Lyoto Machida"},"content":{"rendered":"

After his exciting UFC Liverpool win over Trevor Smith, which came via unanimous decision, Canadian middleweight Elias Theodorou is hoping for a fight with former UFC light heavyweight champ and long-time middleweight contender Lyoto Machida.<\/a><\/p>\n

Theodorou explained why he’s targeting Machida in a post-fight chat with the media.<\/p>\n

“I’ve said it before, I kind of fancy myself the poor man’s Machida,” Theodorou told the reporters on-scene<\/a> in Liverpool. “I’d love to take on the real one.”<\/p>\n

While Machida, who currently holds the number-nine spot in the UFC rankings, would represent a significant step up in competition for Theodorou, the Canadian feels it’s an opportunity he’s earned. He is, after all, a member of the UFC middleweight top-15 himself.<\/p>\n

“Sure, it’s a step up, but obviously you want to go up, not down,” Theodorou said. “It’s a case of, essentially, if you train hard enough, if you compete long enough, and your idols eventually become your competition. He fought [Eryk Anders], someone that was not ranked, two fights ago, so it makes sense for him to fight somebody that’s at least ranked.”<\/p>\n

Machida, of course, has recently been calling for a fight with fellow legend Michael Bisping. Now that Bisping is retired<\/a>, however, Theodorou believes he’s the man for the job when it comes to Machida’s next dance partner.<\/p>\n

“He’s calling out Bisping,” Theodorou said. “Bisping’s a mate of mine, he called him out. I only want to have a beer with Bisping, so I’m happy to take his spot.”<\/p>\n

With his victory over Smith, Elias Theodorou improved to a fantastic 15-2 overall, with his only losses coming by decision opposite top-15 foes in Thiago Santos and Brad Tavares.<\/p>\n

Does a fight between Elias Theodorou and Lyoto Machida interest you? Join the conversation in the comments section below!<\/p>\n

This article first appeared on\u00a0<\/i>BJPenn.com<\/i><\/span><\/a>\u00a0on 5\/30\/2018. <\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

After his exciting UFC Liverpool win over Trevor Smith, which came via unanimous decision, Canadian middleweight Elias Theodorou is hoping for a fight with former UFC light heavyweight champ and long-time middleweight contender Lyoto Machida. Theodorou explained why he’s targeting Machida in a post-fight chat with the media. “I’ve said it before, I kind of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":54430,"featured_media":277456,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mi_skip_tracking":false},"categories":[18601,10087],"tags":[],"yoast_head":"\nElias Theodorou explains why he's hoping to fight Lyoto Machida | BJPenn.com<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/staging.tcpcharms.com\/bjpenn\/mma-news\/elias-theodorou\/elias-theodorou-explains-why-hes-hoping-to-fight-lyoto-machida\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Elias Theodorou explains why he's hoping to fight Lyoto Machida | BJPenn.com\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"After his exciting UFC Liverpool win over Trevor Smith, which came via unanimous decision, Canadian middleweight Elias Theodorou is hoping for a fight with former UFC light heavyweight champ and long-time middleweight contender Lyoto Machida. 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