The following is an excerpt from a www.MMANews.com interview conducted with Keith Jardine on October 11, 2006:
MMANews.com: Coming off fights with Bonnar and Gouveia, do you feel this might be a little bit of a step backwards for you?
Keith Jardine: That was my first thought when I got the call. I was kind of let down. I don't mean any disrespect, but I wanted to fight a contender but nah it's a chance to come back from this injury that I had against Wilson [Gouveia]. It's a chance for me to polish up a little bit and put myself on the right track. I haven't finished a fight since I was a Heavyweight so I definitely want to try to finish this fight and get on that track.
MMANews.com: What goes through your mind leading up to one of your fights? The weeks, the days, the hours. What goes on in your head, what do you do to prepare mentally for this game?
Keith Jardine: Mentally I just try to remember what I've done. Try to remember who I am and who I trained with. And that's the big thing my camp and who I train with. I train with one of the biggest camps in the world that has some of the best fighters in the world. Real contenders Nate Marquardt, Rashad Evans, Diego [Sanchez] and so forth. So, yeah I just think I go to wars with those guys every single day, this fight on Saturday isn't that big a deal compared to my training.
MMANews.com: Any pre-fight rituals to get in a zone or whatever?
Keith Jardine: Nah, I try to stay real calm and relax. I try and not get into too many rituals because one thing about the fight game is when you're back there ready to fight and you're doing all that at one point you hear "you're on in thirty minutes" and when you're done you hear "you're on in ten minutes" and you think to yourself "what?!" [laughs]. So it's good not to have too many rituals. Just go there, get your luggage unpacked and get ready for business no matter who you're fighting whether it's Chuck, or anyone.
MMANews.com: Now what can fans expect in this fight?
Keith Jardine: Hopefully my striking and fighting is a lot more crisp and cleaner than my last fight. I hope they expect another real exciting fight that ends with me winning in the first or second round.
MMANews.com: Alright if you come out of this with a win what do you hope is next for you?
Keith Jardine: You know actually I was thinking about that today and yesterday. I hope I get a good contender and someone that will set me on the path towards the top.
MMANews.com: Maybe like a top three fighter?
Keith Jardine: Of course, absolutely.
To read Jardine's thoughts on himself fighting Chuck Liddell, thoughts on Rashad Evans joining his fight team, his UFC 64 fight in depth broken down, his recent controversial bouts with Bonnar and Gouveia, his thoughts on his friend Seth Petruzelli's loss at UFN last night, and much more - read the full interview at:
http://www.mmanews.com/ufc/Keith-Jardine-Talks-To-MMANews.com-About-UFC-64-Fight.html