Miller looks to avenge recent loss with win at UFC 86

Cole Miller will be looking to rebound from his first loss in the Ultimate Fighting Championship on Saturday night when he takes on Jorge Gurgel at UFC 86. Miller, who is a veteran of "The Ultimate Fighter 5," trains out of American Top Team with fighters like Gesias "JZ" Calvancante, Mike Brown, Marcus Aurelio and Thiago Alves.

Excited to finally get in the ring, Miller explained on MMAWeekly Radio recently how he can barely wait for Saturday night. "The training camp was going a little slow," he said. "Things are going great. I'm in really good shape. I feel very technically proficient in every aspect, so I'm pretty happy."

At American Top Team, Miller teaches students in mixed martial arts. He enjoys teaching immensely, although he prefers training. "I like it a lot. I like training better. Training people is a lot of fun," he stated. "It's good for me because I can get all the stuff that's on my mind and release it on them. I have a good time with it."

At UFC 86, Miller won't be the only representative of American Top Team. Fellow fighters Gleison Tibau and Marcus Aurelio will also be on the card, which is just the way Miller likes it. "I really like fighting when we have several guys on the card. I think when I fought Jeremy Stephens, it was just me out there. I really enjoy that atmosphere much more than when it's just me out there. It will be more confident to have all my coaches out there."

Gurgel is a tough match-up for any fighter. He has elite level Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu skills and is quick on his feet. However, considering the training partners that Miller has at ATT, he believes he has plenty of training partners to mimic Gurgel's style. "There's no shortage of training partners," he explained. "Most people have a medium body type. That's the type of body Jorge has. I had a lot of people to train with that has his body type. Everybody I sparred with helps me with my fights. I just go with whatever I'm paired up with."

Miller hasn't focused on only one area of his fighting, considering that Gurgel is well rounded. "I've just been training everything non-stop. The only thing I did different for this fight was train more Muay Thai instead of just kickboxing. Other than that, everything else stayed the same."

Gurgel and Miller get along well outside the cage and they prefer to keep it that way. There won't be any serious trash talking involved in this fight. Miller prefers to like his opponent, rather than trash talk anyway. "I like having mutual respect. I think it's good for the sport. I like Jorge. I think he's awesome. I always liked his fighting style. We have a good relationship with him, so there won't be any animosity."

Miller is coming off a TKO loss to Stephens at UFC Fight Night 12. Some fighters let that bother them for a long time, however, Miller plans to let that go and concentrate on his present opponent. "I'm pretty motivated. It's like I don't really feel too good that I lost that last fight to him. I should have got the job done, but I didn't. That fight's over and done with. I'm just going to concentrate on the future. I got to go out there and win so it's pretty motivating."

He'll need motivation with a guy like Jorge Gurgel. Gurgel is a very tough, seasoned veteran who is coming off of a win against John Halverson at UFC 82.

Miller is prepared though and was already at a healthy 165 pounds a week out from the fight. With all of the fighters who have missed weight recently, he isn't worried about cutting the weight at all. "No, I never had that problem," explained Miller. "I think I could actually make 145 actually."

But that's not a concern when he steps into the Octagon with Gurgel at UFC 86 on Saturday. He just has to go in, fight his fight, and hopes to come out with a win.