Phil Baroni anticipates "friendly environment" for CBS debut

Originally Posted by John Morgan on May 18, 2008 at 12:30 pm ET

Although several fighters from EliteXC's May 31 card have discussed the added pressures surrounding the event, at least one combatant feels it's just another day at the office.

"The New York Bad Ass," Phil Baroni (10-9), doesn't care about the size of the audience that may view the fight on CBS. The UFC and PRIDE veteran just wants to revive a career that has seen the 32-year-old lose two straight and four of his past six bouts.

Baroni discussed his mentality regarding the upcoming match-up with "Smoking" Joe Villasenor (25-6) while a guest on Friday's edition of TAGG Radio (www.taggradio.com), a content partner of MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com).

"It's cool," Baroni said about the network television audience. "But to be honest, I didn't get into fighting to be a rock star, to be on TV or any of that [expletive]. ... For me it's not about seeing how famous I'm going to be, the limelight. If that was the case, I would have done something else. I would have joined the drama club."

The Newark, N.J. venue, less than 15 miles from Baroni's native Long Island, N.Y., has caused Baroni additional distractions.

"I got a whole bunch of friends I haven't heard from in a long time that are asking me for tickets," Baroni said. "And I say, 'I ain't [expletive] Ticketmaster.'"

But when the bell rings, Baroni feels those friends will work to his advantage.

"It's going to be great to fight and not have a hostile crowd," Baroni explained. "I've had a lot of hostile [expletive] crowds the last couple of fights. It'll be nice fighting in a friendly environment. I'm looking at it as a coming-home party."

So while some competitors may find themselves struggling with the levity of such a historic moment for MMA, the eight-year-veteran feels he is mentally prepared for the challenge.

"A fight's a fight," Baroni said. "The pressure is that I want to win the fight. I want to further my career. I've had some stupid raw decisions, some stupid fights. It'll be a chance to resurrect my career. I'm taking full advantage of it. ... A lot of people are going to watch it, and that's nice, but it's not the point. The point is to win the fight."

And as for Baroni's opponent?

"Smoking Joe is getting knocked out," Baroni said. "Smoking Joe is not my caliber of athlete. He already made his gameplan. He's going to run and try to get me tired. Well I ain't getting tired. I'm going to be ready to go 100 percent for three rounds, and he's not going to be able to survive."