Evan Dunham, will be fighting Marcus Aurelio at UFC 102 Saturday, August 29th in Portland's Rose Garden Arena. This is the second trip to the Octagon for the 155 lb Dunham, having registered a highlight reel knockout win over Per Eklund at UFC 95 in London February 21st. In early April, Dunham signed the contract to fight on the UFC 102 card against Matt Veach, but when Veach was forced to withdraw due to injury, the UFC filled the slot with the veteran Marcus Aurelio. NW Fightscene correspondent, Steve "Spaniard" Valentine, spoke with Evan in the week leading up about his new opponent, his preparations for the fight, and more...

NWFS: You are facing Marcus "Maximus" Aurelio, former Pride/UFC fighter from American Top Team. How do you deal with that late switch? You had a wrestler in Veach and now you are fighting a guy that is a real experienced Jiu-Jitsu guy...
Dunham: I just go about it the exact same way I have been. I've just been training hard. I try not to switch my training too much to my opponent. So it really doesn't make too much of a difference in the switch. But it's kind of nice because they both like to throw you to the ground... and that aspect of getting my wrestling defense up and my hands developed, it's still pretty much the same. So it's not too bad of a change. I haven't had to switch very much besides just watching more videos.

NWFS: Maximus fought Gomi, Clay Guida.. has way more experience than your former opponent. You think that's going to be more of a problem?
Dunham: I think it's more of a challenge, not more of a problem. But definitely you got a lot of experience. He's a veteran in the game. So it's nice because it's going to test me and kind of show me where I'm at right now. And I'm looking forward to it. In my opinion, it's going to be a bigger win for me to take out somebody like Aurelio as opposed to Veach, even though Veach does have a good record.

NWFS: So what has your training camp been like?
Dunham: Well I've been down here in Vegas for about 8 weeks just training hard with the guys that are here. Certain days been working on my wrestling in the mornings and other days standup in the morning. Then at night I'm going down to the Pro practice down here at Randy's gym and just putting it all together. Just two a days, and three a days, everyday for the last 8 weeks.

NWFS: Who have been your main training partners in this camp?
Dunham: My main training partners have definitely been Jay Hieron, Mike Pyle, Martin Kampmann, Gray Maynard, Tyson Griffin, Sam Stout. Those are pretty much the main ones.

NWFS: So you feel pretty ready for this no matter which opponent?
Dunham: Yes, I'm ready for it at this point. The switch makes no difference to me. I'm just happy to be in Oregon fighting in front of my home state. So I'm really looking forward to it and I'm ready.

NWFS: Now speaking of Oregon, it's the first ever UFC in your home turf, your backyard. What's going through your mind leading up to the fight?
Dunham: Same thing as always. My big thing is not playing the head games. It is an honor to be part of the first UFC in Oregon. I consider that a privilege, but I'm not trying to think too much about it. It's another fight against a tough opponent, so I'm just going with the punches and just getting ready for it like I would any other fight. But yeah, I am super excited. It makes running at night a lot easier because you have that motivation that it's in your hometown, your home state.

NWFS: So you feel you're going to be pretty pumped with the fans, and all your family and everybody behind you?
Dunham: Oh yeah. It's always an emotional thing when you get to fight in front of your friends and family because you want to do your best. I know I've trained hard enough, so I know I'm ready to perform at my best.

NWFS: So how do you deal with the added pressure having all your friends and family in a big stage like that?
Dunham: I try not to think about it. Your friends and family for a reason, they'll love you no matter what. So all I have to really do is go out there and do my job and that's to win... It's not pressure, it's enjoyment knowing that they are going to be able to watch it live.

NWFS: Speaking of winning, you've stopped 7 straight guys. In your opinion, do you think that this fight's going to end in a stoppage or in a decision?
Dunham: I know its a really good likelihood that it could go the distance because I don't believe Aurelio's been stopped before... There's a good chance it could go the distance, but I'm going into this fight expecting to finish the fight because I know that's what I want and I know it's what the fans want. So I'm planning on finishing the fight.

NWFS: If you don't, and say it does go to decision. Do you feel comfortable being that you haven't gone to a decision in a while?
Dunham: Yeah, that's fine. I'll take a win any way I can get it. And my cardio is great right now. That's one thing I'm always sure to work on. I expect every fight to go the distance, however I don't try to fight that way. I try to finish fights. But here in the back of my mind, I prepared for a 15 minute fight. And that's what I'm ready to do.

NWFS: Have you picked out your entrance song or is Dana hooking you up?
Dunham: I actually have a superstition about that. I usually don't ever pick my songs. I usually just tell the DJ, they're DJ's for a reason, hey you have good taste and this is kind of what I like, go ahead and do that. I don't like to think about other things besides the fight. I'm just superstitious like that. It's worked well for me so far and that's just what I'm going to do, I'm just going to put it in their hands.

NWFS: Going back to your last win, what's life like for you change-wise after getting a win in the UFC?
Dunham: Life hasn't changed really at all, just more motivation to train hard and train every day. Life hasn't really changed to a certain degree. I just spend a lot more time down here in Vegas. I haven't been home for more than 3 weeks since the fight. I go home for 2 weeks, and then I come down here for 3... I've been a lot busier, just developing all my skills and becoming a better fighter. That's the only thing that has really changed, just more training and more dedication.

NWFS: Now you've been really active, fighting a lot. Are you planning on taking a vacation after this fight?
Dunham: It doesn't matter to me. If they want to stick me back in there after a couple of months, I'm more than cool with that. I like to stay active. However, with the UFC, it's kind of the way it works. You usually have quite a bit time off in between. Which if that happens, I'm more than willing to take a rest. But I'm happy to fight again too. That's fine with me.

NWFS: After this fight, do you have anybody that you would like to fight?
Dunham: There's nobody in particular that I really want to fight. I just want to fight the best guys that I can. After this win, I think that would put me in a good position to put me up against other really good names. So nobody in particular, I just want somebody that everybody knows.

NWFS: Thank you again for taking the time to do this interview with us.  Do you have any one you'd like to thank?
Dunham: I just want to thank all the fans in Oregon. They are some of the best fans in the world in my opinion. It's just a great honor to be able to come back and fight in the show for everybody. So I want to thank the fans first, & everybody at Extreme Couture for treating me so well and helping me get ready for the fight. As well as Team Megaton in Eugene and Legion Jiu-jitsu in Las Vegas