Demian Maia made an immediate impression upon his entry into the UFC, winning Submission of the Night honors at UFC 77 when he secured a rear naked choke in the first round of his match against Ryan Jensen.

Maia's Jiu-Jitsu skills became something of a fixture at the events he competed in, as he continued to rack up one submission after another, with five straight victories on the mat and no less than four Submission of the Night awards. It came to be something of a foregone conclusion that if the fight hit the mat, the Brazilian native was going to emerge victorious.

Maia's success led him to a status as one of the top contenders in the middleweight division, and a matchup against Nate Marquardt at UFC 102 in a fight that had obvious title challenger implications. Leading up to the bout with Marquardt, many observers questioned how well Maia's relatively untested standup skills would fare against the dangerous striking of his opponent, and their questions seemed to be answered when Maia suffered a swift knockout loss to Marquardt, going down barely 20 seconds into the opening round.

In the time since his first defeat, Maia, whose career record stands at 11-1, has been training hard to ensure that his name remains at the top of the UFC middleweight rankings. Maia took some time away from his busy schedule to share thoughts about his training and upcoming matchup with Dan miller at UFC 109, as well as insight into other fights, with noted Brazilan website, portaldovaletudo.uol.com.br.

You can view the transcribed version of the interview in English below:

How are you preparing for your fight against Miller?

Demian Maia: I've spent an excellent month in Bahia training at boxing with Cigano (Junior dos Santos). I also trained in Jiu-Jitsu daily while I was there, and I was really impressed at the level of ground fighting in Bahia, especially the no-gi training. I already knew the best boxers in Brazil were at Bahia, where you can train against South American champions and Pan-American silver medalists. The level of talent at the academy of Professor Luiz Dorea is very high, and I had a fantastic experience there. I have to thank Cigano, who chose me to train with him every day. He is an incredible person, who deserves everything he has achieved.

Let's talk about the Nogueira brothers. Did they train with you there as well?

Demian Maia: Absolutely. It was actually Rodrigo who took me to Bahia initially, and the first week I was there I stayed in his apartment, although later on I decided to rent my own place. Both Rodrigo and his brother Rogerio were in Bahia training with me. They got there a little bit later than we agreed - they missed some flights (laughs) - but yes, we did have the opportunity to train together.

What do you know about Miller, and what are you expecting from this fight?

Demian Maia: I've watched two of his fights on YouTube, but I'm still waiting for the DVD of his fights I ordered to arrive at the post office!  I want to see all of his fights to be well-prepared. I know that he is a very agile fighter, with good movement, and he is a dangerous finisher. He is probably one of the best ground fighters that I have ever faced in MMA.

You made an earlier statement saying that you were not knocked out by Marquardt,...