UFC 174: Final fighting words for 'Johnson vs. Bagautinov' in Vancouver

The time for talking will soon be over.

UFC 174: "Johnson vs. Bagautinov" takes place tonight (Sat., June 14, 2014) from inside Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, and in the main event, flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson is back to work against Ali Bagautinov.

"Mighty Mouse" will be looking for a fourth-consecutive title defense, having defeated his three previous opponents while being a marquee fighter broadcast on cable television giant FOX.

"Puncher King" has won all three of his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) bouts, and hasn't tasted defeat in the past three years.

The main card can be seen live on pay-per-view (PPV), while the "Prelims" will air online via UFC Fight Pass, and then immediately switch over to FX.

Now that the fighters who are taking part in this event finished off a week of media appearances and successfully made weight (see the staredown pics here), it's time for their "Last Words," before the time for talking is over and the fists start flying.

MMA Fighting Interviews

SB Nation's Ariel Helwani caught up with the champion to ask him questions about his opponent -- who unfortunately did not have a translator for questioning during media duties in Vancouver -- as well as an old rival he already overcame once before.

On if Bagautinov may not be 100 percent because of personal issues:

"I believe Ali is going to be 100 percent on Saturday. Granted, if he had visa issues or not, pretty sure he was training in Russia. He lives in Russia -- it's not like when he gets a fight booked he's going to sit on his butt until he gets to Greg Jackson. I'm pretty sure he put a lot of time in Russia, (then) comes to Greg Jackson to finish up his camp. So, I'm expecting 100 percent Ali on Saturday."

If a rematch against John Dodson is inevitable if he wins this fight:

"No, absolutely I don't think he's next. He has two wins in the UFC. He beat Darrell Montague who's a newcomer in the UFC. He also beat John Moraga. He already had a win over him. I believe there's other guys in this division that pose challenges."

On what concerns him most about Ali:

"Ali's a great fighter. He comes out with a game plan, he hits harder than everybody says, and he's going to come in shape. He has that Sambo background, so he can wrestle."

Weigh-In Interviews

UFC broadcaster and conspiracy theorist extraordinaire, Joe Rogan, caught up with both main event fighters directly after hitting the scales, asking each fighter a question about their respective fight. The challenger was up first, who had a translator by his side who could either be one of his relatives, or was hired by the promotion at the last minute.

On what he has specifically that will be a challenge for Johnson tomorrow night:

"He's thinking about enjoying the victory by himself and with the city."

Next up was the champion, who provided a better answer to Rogan's question.

On what he thinks of the challenger and what tomorrow night means to him:

"Ali, he's a great fighter. I'm the best in this division. I beat the best of the best, and I'm ready to do it Saturday night ... and I'm excited."

Now, let's get to the fights.

MMAmania.com will provide LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC 174 fight card on fight night, starting with the Fight Pass "Prelims" matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. ET, right on through the FX-televised under card bouts at 8 p.m. ET and then main card PPV, which is slated to begin at 10 p.m. ET.

Enjoy!