At the point Tim Sylvia is at in his MMA career – rebuilding – he is not one to make things too complicated about the fights he gets. That's when he can get fights and the rug doesn't get pulled out from under him.
The former UFC heavyweight champion has had several bookings vanish into thin air, to the point where manager Monte Cox gets half of his purses up front as a "retainer" for services to be rendered.
That retainer was his only pay for a knockout victory over Paul Buentello this past August at "War on the Mainland" in Irvine, Calif.
At this point, though he's just trying to train and fight as much as possible. It doesn't matter too much who's in front of him, as long as his road eventually leads back to a major organization. "Keep it simple" is his current motto.
"As the years go by and you're fighting at this level right now, that's what you've got to do," he told MMAjunkie.com Radio (www.mmajunkie.com/radio) on Wednesday.
A major organization means Strikeforce or the UFC, and he's had sporadic talks with the former. The latter? Maybe not as much.
But he's still hopeful that he'll return to a big stage, and hopefully, win a world title. That's when he'll start tailoring his approach to his opponent.
"As the fights get better, and hopefully, I get back in Strikeforce (or) the UFC, we'll have to prepare each individual fight specifically to the guy I'm fighting," he said. "Like Brock Lesnar, for instance. If I were to fight him, I would work with big wrestlers and defend the takedowns, and keep the fight standing up."
Sylvia, of course, has crushed the dreams of many a grappler who's tried to wrestle him to the ground. Sometimes, they've gotten him to the mat, or they've put him down by force. But right now, he's enjoying a four-fight win streak in regional competition and anticipating a return to pro wrestling after a successful debut this past September in Japan. He's taken quite a liking to the predetermined outcome.
"I loved it over in Japan," Sylvia said. "It was a great time, and we actually signed a multi-(appearance) contract to do it. So we're just waiting for them to put on another show, and we'll be back over there.
"It feels similar to a fight in walking out into the crowd but not so much stress. Me and my opponent, Josh Barnett, were hanging out the whole time we were there."
Sylvia (28-6) won't be doing much hanging out with his next opponent – Abe Wagner, who with him headlines Friday's HDNet-televised Titan Fighting Championships 16 event in Kansas City, Kan. Wagner (7-3) is a 6-foot-4, 265-pound behemoth who's a veteran of "The Ultimate Fighter 10" and knocked out his fourth opponent by first-round TKO in his most recent fight.
"Any heavyweight that size is dangerous if he hits you," Sylvia said.
Other than that, the former champion seems unconcerned. Wagner, of course, hasn't faced anyone close to the level of experience that Sylvia has, nor Wagner faced anyone with his sheer size at 6-foot-8 and 275 plus pounds (after making weight, of course). But just to be safe, it might be wise for him to take down the fight if the ultimate goal is to build a win streak that makes a return to the big leagues undeniable.
This is fighting, though, and Sylvia likes to throw leather. So fans will see what's up his sleeve on Friday. He's ready.
"I think over the years I've finally figured out how to train (and) what works best for me," he said. "Getting with the right trainers and having the right training camps helps."
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