UFC ON FOX 5'S NAM PHAN OUTLINES A FIGHTER'S STRUGGLE AS WEIGH-IN DAY APPROACHES
BY STEVEN MARROCCO ON DEC 05, 2012 AT 4:00 PM ET

There isn't much Nam Phan looks forward to in the last few days before a UFC fight.

Not the taking of promotional pictures in the fighter hotel or the collegial atmosphere among like-minded professionals or the packs of fans hanging around for an autograph. He tries to relax and not think about food.

Maybe it's just this fight. The always-sunny Phan (18-10 MMA, 2-3 UFC) is noticeably less than so four days from his meeting with Dennis Siver (20-8 MMA, 9-5 UFC) at UFC on FOX 5, which takes place at KeyArena in Seattle. They clash on the first FX-televised prelim prior to the FOX-televised main card.

Phan's easy laugh is still there. But he's tired and starving as he shrinks on his way to the 146-pound limit required of the featherweight bout. The depth of his hunger became apparent a few days ago when he checked his Facebook timeline and ran across a picture of people eating sushi off a naked woman.

"I was more interested in what kind of sushi was being eaten," he today told MMAjunkie.com(www.mmajunkie.com).

Phan said he doesn't cut a tremendous amount of weight, but it's enough to treat his post-weigh-in meal as a joyous event on par with fighting. Every time, he eats the same meal: steak and mashed potatoes. Not enough of it to overburden his digestive system but enough to feel the feeling of being full, which has eluded him since he stepped in to replace Eddie Yagin.

Yagin, as it turns out, was scratched from the bout when he suffered a brain injury in training. Such severe circumstances underscore the difficulty of being a fighter. But for Phan, his suffering is paired with the anticipation of Saturday's bout, which is his first in four months.

Phan admits he hasn't fought as much he would like. A UFC on FOX 4 bout in August with Cole Miller, which he won via split decision, is his only previous trip to the octagon this year after a rumored bout at February's UFC 144 didn't materialize. He went 1-3 in the previous 12 months, and despite earning enough to live, he wants more work. He immediately volunteered to take on Siver, who makes his second appearance at featherweight following a win over standout Diego Nunes.

"Once one Asian brother goes down, another one takes his spot," Phan joked.

A win over Siver could help to pack his 2012 calendar, though he isn't sure of where it would put him in the division. It would be closer to a title shot than before, so that's alright with him. Fighting on the local circuit, where he fought more regularly, doesn't even cross his mind. He said he'd probably retire if he was cut from the UFC.

Yet facing guys such as Siver, who is "buff and built like a Ninja Turtle," is a reminder that the competition isn't getting any easier. He estimates he has between five and six years of competition left.

That's a lot of days going without. Even four days feel like a decade when you're depriving yourself of sustenance. So forgive Phan if he runs away from you – maybe you're holding a club sandwich.