Al Turk: I couldn't really cut weight. I'm one of those heavyweights who is kind of middle of the road. I'm not one of the heavier ones and I'm not one of the lighter ones. I walk around at around 112 (kgs) or 224-pounds, so for me to cut weight would be difficult. But yeah, it is tough with all these giants.

5K: How do you feel now about the eye poke? I heard that you contested the decision?

Al Turk: Yeah my management contested it you know. But that was at the time. My eye is still not completely right. I went to see a specialist and he said my pupil won't constrict properly so it is still a little blurry. When it happened I panicked, because it's your eye. I kind of felt it pop, so I panicked and turned and I shouldn't have done that. I wouldn't ever turn in training so that was a mistake. I lost that fight but I panicked and at the time the fight wasn't more important than potentially losing an eye.

5K: What do you make of the British heavyweight division? We have a lot of guys coming through at lower weight classes in the UFC, is there anyone we should look out for in the heavyweight division?

Al Turk: Well Karlos Vermola is doing really well, he's a tough kid and he's improving all the time. Then there's (James) Thompson, he's no joke man, that guy is serious.

5K: Can you tell us a little about your background, about how you got into MMA?

Al Turk: It's actually very strange really. I come from a real middle-class background. My father was a doctor and I worked in the pharmaceutical industry. I was working and training, I have always trained, and you only regret what you never do, so I thought I'd give it a go.

5K: I hear you had an accomplished grappling career?

Al Turk: Yeah I used to do about three or four tournaments a year. I kept winning so I went to Abu Dhabi, but I lost on points to Gabriel Gonzaga in the final. It was only three points and it was a real eye opener.

5K: It is not something we have seen a lot of in your fights, could that be a tactic against Madsen, to put him on his back?

Al Turk: Like I said, whatever comes, comes. You have to be open minded in this sport. If I am given the opportunity then you can't rule anything out.

5K: Did you have many amateur fights? If so how did they prepare you for a professional career in MMA?

Al Turk: Yeah, I had a couple of amateur fights. I also had a few amateur boxing and submission wrestling. They were very good preparation, but I have always seemed to go in at the deep end.

5K: You started your professional career with two defeats, how did you cope with that at the time?

Al Turk: Well the first one was extremely hard, I don't mind if you put in one hundred percent and get caught. But I wasn't mentally ready. I didn't have my family or my work on my side, they didn't agree with what I was doing. MMA was really...

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