Fan Reaction to Story Win Blew Brenneman Away

Charlie Brenneman scored the biggest win of his career in June when he stepped in at the last minute and won a unanimous decision over Rick Story at UFC Live 4.

He’s back in action Saturday at UFC Live 6 in what could be another pivotal moment in his career. Ahead of his bout against Anthony Johnson, Brenneman joined the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Beatdown” show to discuss strategy, the UFC welterweight division and how his life has changed since his upset win over Story.

On whether fans recognize him now: “When I went to the UFC in Philly a couple of months ago, it blew my mind how many people knew me. When I fought out in Oakland or North Carolina, I would fight and then I would go get a beer or something and nobody even knew who I was. Here, it was as soon as I walked into the weigh-ins or in the lobby, it was, ‘Hey, can I get an autographed picture?’ I love it. That’s part of what fuels me to do what I do.”

On how he views the Story win: “I don’t rest on my laurels with that. It’s one of those things that it was neat that it happened. I’m fortunate that everything came together, but the business works like this: You’re as big as your next fight. It’s like, if I don’t do well against Anthony Johnson, then I’m a has-been, I got lucky, et cetera, et cetera. I really need to prove myself with this fight.”

On how he’ll approach the fight with Johnson: “I’m just going to keep moving. If he wants to strike with me, I’m not afraid to strike with him. Is it the smartest thing? Probably not, but I’ll do what I can to use that to my advantage.”

On Johnson’s performance against Dan Hardy: “Nothing against Dan Hardy -- he's a good guy -- but [Johnson] outwrestled Dan Hardy. Dan Hardy is not known to have very good wrestling. I think the reason that Johnson looked so good was because he dictated the fight. Whenever you can [choose] the path that you’re going to take and it goes accordingly, that’s a lot easier on your body. Had Hardy stopped those takedowns, had he made Anthony really fight for that stuff, then that puts a different twist on it. But to simply outwrestle Dan Hardy, no, that doesn’t intimidate me very much.”

On the size advantage Johnson will have and how much weight he cuts: “It definitely dictates what I’m going to try to do and how I try to do it. If I go punch for punch with him, it’s probably not going to be the smartest thing for me. I have to utilize my other skills as well.”

On whether a win puts him in the title hunt: “I agree with the people that I need to prove more than just beating Rick Story. But yeah, if I can beat Anthony Johnson, back to back, him and Story, then absolutely: I think I deserve to be in that mix. I don’t really think anyone would disagree with that argument.”

On who will win the upcoming bout between Johny Hendricks and Jon Fitch: “Hendricks and Fitch is an interesting fight. It’s one of those things where I definitely think Hendricks has the ability to beat him. I don’t think he will. I think Fitch will come out on top in this one, but a lot of people look at Fitch and Koscheck in the same realm that as long GSP is the champ, they’re not really going to get a crack at the title. That just depends on the bosses.”

On who will win between Georges St. Pierre and Carlos Condit: “I think GSP. I don’t want to say it’s going to be an easy fight. I just don’t see Condit having anything for GSP that he hasn’t seen before. With GSP’s wrestling-heavy game [and] Condit’s lack of wrestling, I see [GSP] taking it pretty decisively.”

Listen to the full interview (beginning at 41:33).