After Seven Years, UFC on FOX 6's Clay Guida Finally Gets Home Fight in Chicago

AFTER SEVEN YEARS, UFC ON FOX 6'S CLAY GUIDA FINALLY GETS HOME FIGHT IN CHICAGO
BY MATT ERICKSON ON NOV 28, 2012 AT 7:30 PM ET

Ask all you want about what Clay Guida's going to use for his walkout song in a couple months. He's not talking.

"Home Sweet Home" by Motley Crue? "Mama, I'm Coming Home" by Ozzy? If you're in a Guida Walkout Song pool, those might not be bad picks. But you'd still have to wait till Jan. 26 for the big reveal.

"I think about it all the time," Guida on Wednesday told MMAjunkie.com – though he wouldn't take the bait on letting the cat out of the bag.

When Guida (29-13 MMA, 9-7 UFC) returns to the octagon to face Hatsu Hioki (26-5-2 MMA, 2-1 UFC) at UFC on FOX 6 in Chicago, he'll be fighting in his home state of Illinois for the first time in more than seven years.

UFC on FOX 6, the promotion's first network-televised event of 2013, takes place Jan. 26 at United Center in Chicago with a main event flyweight title fight between champion Demetrious Johnson and top contender John Dodson. The four-fight main card airs on FOX, and FX and Facebook are expected to carry the prelims.

Also on the card, former champion Quinton "Rampage" Jackson meets Glover Teixeira and Donald Cerrone takes on former WEC champ Anthony Pettis in what is expected to be a lightweight title eliminator.

Tickets for UFC on FOX 6 went on sale to UFC Fight Club members today, are available to UFC e-newsletter subscribers on Thursday and go on sale to the general public Friday.

Guida, who grew up an hour north of Chicago near the Illinois-Wisconsin border, last fought in Illinois in February 2006, a loss to Tristan Yunker that snapped a 15-fight win streak. Three weeks later, he won Strikeforce's lightweight title and has been fighting around the world since then – but never back home. And never closer than about 500 miles from his old stomping grounds.

Guida doesn't regret the opportunity to travel, of course. He said since his last fight, a split-decision five-round loss to Gray Maynard in June, he's been traveling nearly every weekend for fishing trips, concerts, helping teach seminars. He's always on the go, so traveling suits him.

But so, too, will the chance to fight in front of his home fans again.

"I haven't really been around here (for my fights)," Guida said. "It's been East Coast, West Coast, Ireland – when I fought in Shooto, I was in Tokyo. It's been a fun road, but it'll be cool to be back home in the Chicago winter."

Guida's fight against Hioki will be his first at featherweight after a long run at 155 pounds that more than once had him on the cusp of a possible title shot – but he never quite got over that hump. He believes a move down to 145 pounds could be the right recipe to make a title run.

And what better place to start than in Chicago?

"To be able to compete at the house that (Michael) Jordan built is incredible," Guida said. "It's really going to be a very successful evening, to have my family here and people from the Midwest. Chicago's a great place – thousands of fans are going to pack this place. They're going to drive in from all over. You're going to get fans from Missouri, Illinois, Iowa, Indiana, Minnesota, Wisconsin. I'm very excited to get out there and fight in sweet home Chicago.

"They call it 'The Madhouse' when the Blackhawks and Bulls play there, but (fans) are going to see the true definition of madhouse. Once those lights go down, it's going to come unglued."

And depending on Guida's walkout song choice, he just might be right.