Sylvia, who trains in Iowa, grew up in Eastbrook, Maine, and is excited about fighting his first pro fight in New England. But that’s not the only thing on his mind.
"I'm looking forward to getting some good lobster while I'm up here," he said. "Can't get that kind of stuff in Iowa."
After he is done with his lobster, the heavy-handed former champion will be facing off against five-time World's Strongest Man, Mariusz Pudzianowski (2-0). Pudzianowski, who has only been on the MMA scene for two fights, is taking quite a step up in competition. He will now be stepping in with an experienced champion, something that Sylvia welcomes, but wouldn’t have advised.
"I think it’s a dumb move," Sylvia said. "He doesn’t have any fight experience at all."
Perhaps the Dominator's people think the Maine native is past his prime. Sylvia did, after all, lose two of his last three fights, one by vicious knockout. If you look closer at those two losses, however, you will see one was at the hands of the current best in the business, Fedor Emelianenko, and the other former heavyweight champion and Olympic gold medal-wining boxer Ray Mercer. On the other hand, Mercer was 48 years old and had been beaten by YouTube celebrity Kimbo Slice.
Sylvia, however, isn’t focusing on the losses. He just wants a win that can get him back on track.
"I got a great knockout in my last fight, back in September," he said. "I believe I'm on a roll right now and I want to keep that rolling, continue with victories and fashionable knockouts, like my last one."
"The Maine-iac" says he's a had a solid training camp and is ready to rattle off a few good wins in hopes of getting some bigger fights.
"I actually got three knockouts in my training camp with 16-ounce gloves and head gear, so I think I'm back and in good shape."
Looking at Pudzianowski at the news conference, you would think he was put together by Marvel Comics. To put it simply, he’s built like a brick house. Sylvia, however, laughed when Pudzianowski's size was mentioned, simply saying, "I like beating up guys like this."
Sylvia paused and smiled as if relishing the idea. "Buff guys are fun to beat up. They look good on the beach, that's it."
