An interesting tidbit from an interview with John Hackelman over at FightHype.com. When asked about Machida calling out Liddell, he had this to say:
"He's one of the least guys I want Chuck to fight. Not for his toughness or anything, its that his style is hardest to prepare for. I knew he would beat Sokoudjou. He was 2-1 underdog and so was chuck. Glover beat Soko before and I knew he was hype. He's #4 in the world, they had him 4 places before Chuck. My guy that KO'd him is not even in the top20. You know what Machida is like? he is so boring, like the Larry Holmes of MMA. He'll fucking beat everyone. Jimmy Young was like that too, Jimmy is the reason that Foreman retired and went to Jesus. (...) Machida is like Jimmy Young, he's a scary guy. Going to be a hard guy to beat"
This is a very interesting quote for a few reasons. First and foremost, it definitely hints at what many fans expected from a matchup between Liddell and Machida matchup... a nightmare for Liddell. Hackelman knows it, and most of the MMA community knows it. It's hard to prepare for Machida for the simple fact that he sits back and waits for the aggression from his opponent. He's elusive, and his main attack relies on straight counterattacks and range attacks. It may be a boring style for many fans of the sport, but it usually pays off later in the fight when his opponent becomes frustrated. It's interesting how his style and recent fights have begun to discourage even the men who train these fighters.
Another comment regarding Soukoudjou that I don't understand entirely. Glover isn't top 20, but Soukoudjou was fighting in only his 3rd MMA fight. The Glover fight really wasn't a tactical fight at all either. It was mostly Glover throwing huge bombs at will and hoping he'd land one, which he did. To be perfectly fair to Soukoudjou's ranking, that was a fight that could be chalked up to "anything can happen in MMA". Glover threw huge shots and caught Soukoudjou. Glover went nowhere, Soukoudjou went on to beat Arona and "Little Nog".
Lastly, and on a personal note, the "Machida is boring" routine is rather old. Not only did he defeat a heavy striking and very strong Soukoudjou, but he did so in impressive fashion. His counter punching has the precision of a cruise missile. If you actually watch the fight and watch Machida's brilliant countering, it's really a work of art. He throws with full force so quickly to counter a rush that his opponents are devastated by the incoming blows. Easily, Machida has become one of my favorite fighters, and I encourage other fans to check him out.
As for Hackelman, he's right. It is a bad matchup for Chuck. But guess what? He's on the way back to the top, so either way, Chuck should be weary that the fight is a possibility.