"I think I'm the better fighter," he wrote to About.com's Robert Rousseau. "I've got way more experience and in a big fight that can be huge. I have never been finished (and) both my losses have been decisions out of my weight class, so I don't see how Warren walks out of the cage a winner."
It's not that Marriott isn't aware of his opponent's stellar wrestling background, noting that he was "glad this is a MMA fight and not a wrestling match." But he also made a point of noting that he possesses a significant size advantage, which eventually led to his thoughts on dropping more weight than ever before in his career.
"Cutting weight always sucks. But with this proper training camp and the dedication I've put into planning for this fight, making 145 won't be a problem."
In the end, Marriott feels that it would be premature to come anywhere close to counting him out in this first round match up. "In a few of his (Warren's) interviews, it seems he is already targeting a match up with Soto (current champ)," he notes, "but he's got to get by me first."
"Favored or not, the MMA world will see the best Eric Marriott on April 8th."
