Prince Of Persia Brings His Fury To Edmonton

By Frank Curreri

Kamal Shalorus’ dogged pursuit of “The American Dream” runs through Canada and former WEC champion Jamie Varner. And the Iranian-born globetrotter, who now resides in Austin, Tex., is playing mind tricks on himself right before Sunday night’s main event in Edmonton, Alberta.

“I still believe Jamie is a champion,” Shalorus said, effusively heaping praise on his foe to the point of deliberately altering the reality, which is that Varner relinquished his lightweight title earlier this year to Benson Henderson. “I love his fighting style but I’m super ready and I have so many surprises for this fight.”

With a potential title shot at stake, even a predictable Shalorus (6-0-1) figures to be a handful for Varner. The former Olympic wrestler owns some of the stingiest and strongest hips in MMA, and resembles a cheetah on his takedowns, meaning he has a good chance of dictating the ebb and flow of this weekend’s matchup. Varner (16-3, 2 NC), a former collegiate boxer and wrestler, seems to own the crisper and more fluid standup, but the outspoken Arizonan’s finesse will be tested by the maniacal fury of Shalorus, who fights like a man possessed, swarming and overwhelming opponents with his swing-for-the-fences ethos. That ‘take-one-to-give-one’ mentality has worked for Shalorus, and though his defenses seem an afterthought, his durable chin and sturdy frame have thus far made him seem a fairly unstoppable force that is impervious to pain. His raw attitude inside of the cage, if not his technical skill, is eerily reminiscent of a younger Wanderlei Silva.

“I’ve said it a million times: Kamal is the toughest guy you have never heard of,” Varner said, professing equal admiration for the man who will be trying to deal him a second straight loss. “We are very alike in our skills. He is definitely a much more decorated wrestler, and I feel like I am a much more decorated striker. But Kamal is definitely the type of fighter that could expose one mistake with big punches or powerful takedowns. So this is my toughest fight just because the styles are so similar and I have never fought a wrestler as good as Kamal.”

Varner, only 25 years old, has pronounced himself in the best shape of his career and free of distractions, noting that his mother was diagnosed with cervical cancer before his title defense against Henderson. How old is Shalorus? No one knows for sure since he was born at home in a tiny, remote village in northern Iran, a place where there was no running water or electricity and where sick people usually visited the local veterinarian rather than a hospital. His best guess is that he is 29 or 30 years old, and his chiseled body indicates that he may be in his physical prime leading up to the greatest challenge of his career.

“Jamie is a very dangerous fighter and he’s a very good striker and wrestler,” Shalorus said. “I want this fight so much. This is going to be the biggest challenge for me. But I’m not worried about anything. After this fight I’m looking for a title shot. I think I’m ready for that.”

Shalorus, who represents Pat Miletich’s team, trained in Austin along with professional fighters such as Phil Cardella and Tim Kennedy. Nicknamed “The Prince of Persia,” the soft-spoken fighter jumpstarted his WEC debut with an 86-second TKO win over Will Kerr and followed that up with a dominating unanimous decision victory over then-unbeaten Dave Jansen. An Andre Agassi look-alike, Shalorus has finished four opponents by knockout and one by submission. Varner, meanwhile, has never been knocked out and has stopped 14 foes inside the distance (five (T)KO’s, 9 submissions).