Author: Ed Kapp

UFC: Nate Marquardt: "I Just Feel Much Better Overall at 170"

After spending years as one of the sport’s most feared middleweight contenders, in the future, Nate Marquardt will be looking to showcase his talents in the UFC’s welterweight division. Prior to making his UFC debut in 2005, Marquardt, a se…

After spending years as one of the sport’s most feared middleweight contenders, in the future, Nate Marquardt will be looking to showcase his talents in the UFC’s welterweight division.

Prior to making his UFC debut in 2005, Marquardt, a seven-time King of Pancrase middleweight champion, was regarded as one of the sport’s brightest prospects.

Since making the jump to the UFC, however, Marquardt, who holds Octagon-victories over Ivan Salaverry, Joe Doerksen, Crafton Wallace, Dean Lister, Jeremy Horn, Martin Kampmann, Wilson Gouveia, Demian Maia, Rousimar Palhares, and Dan Miller, has firmly established himself as one of the sport’s preeminent contenders.

In what will be his first welterweight match, Marquardt is currently slated to take on Rick Story at UFC Live: Marquardt vs. Story on June 26th in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Nate Marquardt about, among other topics, his first day in a martial arts academy, fighting in the UFC, and his upcoming match with Rick Story.

Were you involved in any martial arts growing up?

I started when I was 15 years old. I started in a school that taught Brazilian jiu-jitsu, karate, and kick-boxing.

Do you remember your first day?

I remember going in and meeting the instructor. I remember I had to have my mom sign a waiver—because I was 15 years old [laughs].

Was your mother at all apprehensive to sign on?

Not really. At that point, I was going to pay for it myself—I had a part-time job—so it was, kind of, my decision. She wasn’t apprehensive, though; I was always athletic and getting involved with rough sports when I was growing up.

What inspired you to start training?

When I saw the first three UFCs, with Royce Gracie; him being the smaller guy beating the bigger guys really intrigued me.

What were your first impressions of the sport?

I loved it—right from the start. I remember training with these two guys that would, basically, manhandle me and it was really cool, because we were using technique. They were bigger than me, of course, but they were beating me solely with technique and it was a lot of fun. You get put into positions where you feel claustrophobic or times when you get that panicked feeling when you get hit in sparring, but it was all good experience.

What were your intentions when you started training?

Honestly, this is what I wanted to do ever since I was a kid; whatever sport I was playing was what I wanted to do for a living. I could never see myself with any type of career where I sit in an office—I wanted to play sports. As soon as I saw that and started training, that’s what I wanted to do.

When did you realize that this was something that you might be able to make a career out of?

When I went over and fought and started training in Japan, I felt that this was something that I could do fulltime. At that time, though, it was barely covering the bills—actually, it wasn’t; I was just able to live very frugally so I could scrape by [laughs]. It wasn’t really until I signed with the UFC, though; that’s when I realized that it could be an actual career.

Do you ever think about where you might be—had you not taken the mixed martial arts-route?

I think about it sometimes. I think I would still be doing something fun. Like I said, I can’t see myself in an office or doing anything indoors—actually. Even if I were a firefighter or police officer—I think that that would be something that I could do.

How did you come into contact with the UFC?

I went to one of the Grappler’s Quest events. I was training with Greg Jackson and his whole team went up to Grappler’s Quest in Las Vegas. I saw Dana White and my wife said, “Oh, you should go talk to him.” And I was like, “Ah, I don’t want to go talk to him—he’s got a million people there that want to talk to him. I don’t want to bother him.” And she said, “No—go talk to him, say, ‘hi’ and go from there.” So, I went up to him and I introduced myself and said ‘hi’ and he knew who I was and he asked me how many more fights I had left and I told him and he, basically, showed that he was interested. I had one more fight in Pancrase and after I finished that, I was able to contact the UFC and I got my first fight booked.

Do you ever think about how long it may have taken you to make it to the UFC—had you not went up and talked with Dana that day?

No—I’ve never really thought about that. It’s hard to say, though, because I think my management at the time wanted to keep me over in Japan, so it could’ve taken a bit longer.

Were you at all apprehensive to sign the contract?

No—not at all.

What does fighting in the UFC mean to you?

It’s been my dream since I started. As far as my career, it means everything to me. They’re a great company and they’ve got the best fighters in the world. You know you’re at the top when you’re fighting the big guys in the UFC.

How much do you feel you’ve improved since first coming to the UFC?

A tonne. From a physical-standpoint, I’ve improved a lot; I’ve improved a lot on my strength, quickness, and explosive power. Technically, I’ve improved a tonne, as well. My striking was always good, but Trevor Wittman has got me to the point where I feel that I’m always dominant in the striking war.

Are you at all tired of being asked questions about your move to 170?

[Long pause] Ah, a little bit. I’m not sure if I’m tired of it, but I think people have been focusing on it a lot. It’s big news for the welterweight division, but, for me, it’s not a huge thing. it’s exciting and new, but the weight-cut isn’t that huge of a deal. My training is much more important than the weight-cut. For me, the weight-cut is, basically, just being hungrier than I was before [laughs]. My training takes up, pretty much, all of my energy, so I’m not focused on the weight-cut.

Do you feel any different at welterweight?

I feel much better; I feel quicker, my stamina has gone way up, and I just feel much better overall at 170. I feel like I have more energy, too.

Had you thought about making the move sooner?

Not really, no. Before my last fight, it was something that my coaches and I talked about and I thought it was a good career move.

Do you regret not making the move to welterweight sooner?

No—not at all. I think I have had some great fights at 185 and I was at the top of the division for years. Like I said; this is new and exciting—there are new guys to fight and there’s a new challenge in making weight.

What do you feel you can accomplish at 170?

My goal is to be the world champion and I definitely want to accomplish that.

Would you have any qualms fighting Georges for the championship?

He was initially the one that, kind of, suggested that I moved to 170. We talked about it and, to be honest, we’re going to talk about that if the time ever comes, but for right now, I’m not even thinking about that.

What type of impact do you think Georges has had on your career?

He’s had a huge impact; he’s helped me so much in so many areas. Right now, he’s helping me with the weight-cut and he’s helped me with training methods. One of the biggest things that he opened my eyes to was the wrestling. I thought that I was at a pretty good level—and I am at a decent level—but he can show you how important wrestling is [laughs]. If you watch any of his fights or spar with him, you automatically realize that that’s something that you need to master to be a great fighter. That’s what I’m trying to do; I’m trying to master everything that it takes to be a great fighter.

So, you look at Georges as a role model?

Yes, for sure. Obviously he’s a little bit younger, so it’s kind of weird to look up to someone that’s younger than me. We all see him just dominate his division; he comes out and performs every night—even if he puts on a bad performance, he still pulls out the win. He’s a very smart kid and he’s definitely someone that you want to mimic.

How are you feeling going into your upcoming match?

I feel great. Fighting in the UFC, this is as good as I’ve ever felt. I’m really excited.

Is it at all challenging to contend with an opponent change midway through your preparations?

It can be, but I’m just keeping everything basic. Like I said; I’ve got a lot of experience, so there won’t be any surprises.

How big of a role do you feel your experience is going to play in this match?

I think it’s huge; it’s going to be one of the deciding factors. I just feel that I have too many tools and too many tricks for him. I think that I’m going to overwhelm Story.

Do you feel Rick has anything to offer that you haven’t seen before?

No.

What do you think his game-plan is going to be—come fight-night?

Well, I think he’s going to try to use his pressure; I think he’s going to come forward with a brawling-style and try to attack the body, get me into a slug-fest, and then either try to take me down or push me against the cage and then try to take me down … Like I said, though; my experience is going to pay off in this fight; I’m going to hit him with shots and he’s going to wonder if he should be in there with me [laughs]. If he gets me up against the cage, I’m going to turn it and if he’s able to get me down, then I’m going to get right back up and it’s going to be wasted energy. I’m going to wear him out and I’m going to put him away.

What would a win next weekend mean to you?

It’s like any win; it’s a sense of accomplishment. That’s what I’m there to do, so it will make me happy to know that I’ve accomplished my goal.

Assuming you win, where do you see yourself in the UFC’s welterweight division?

I don’t know. I think I’ll be somewhere at the top, but I don’t really know. It’s not really my place to say where I’m at; it’s my job to go out there and do my best—to fight.

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UFC Live: Matt Grice: "I Just Can’t Wait to Go out There and Get It Done"

In what will be Matt Grice’s first appearance in the Octagon since parting ways with the UFC in July 2009, the man they call “The Real One” will be looking to prove to fight-fans everywhere that he belongs in the sport’s top pro…

In what will be Matt Grice’s first appearance in the Octagon since parting ways with the UFC in July 2009, the man they call “The Real One” will be looking to prove to fight-fans everywhere that he belongs in the sport’s top promotion.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Grice about everything from his early days in wrestling to his first stint in the UFC to his upcoming match on June 26 against UFC-newcomer Ricardo Lamas at UFC Live: Marquardt vs. Story in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

 

Do you remember your first day of wrestling?

Oh, man. No, I sure don’t. I was five or six years old. I don’t really remember—but my mom said that I brought home a flyer for wrestling. They used to have some of their older wrestlers go to the elementary school and put on a demonstration and speak to the kids. She said that, in kindergarten, I brought home a flyer and said that I wanted to wrestle. She took me there and the rest is history [laughs].

 

What were your first impressions of the sport?

I loved it from the get-go. I’ve wrestled since I was five or six; I quit for a few years to play basketball, but realized that I was far too short to do that [laughs]. I still went to wrestling practise—I just didn’t compete—and then came back and took it from there.

When did you realize that wrestling was something that you could excel in?

I think, probably, in the fifth and sixth grades. When I was growing up, I wouldn’t win any tournaments—I would place here and there—but I got beat a lot. In fifth grade, I think, is when I turned that corner; I started beating all the kids that beat me in the past and I started winning a lot.

 

How do you feel about what you were able to accomplish as a wrestler?

Obviously, I wish that I would’ve been able to wrestle more in college—since I was hurt. My record in high-school was 143-3 and right after I graduated high-school, I got in a car accident before I was going into college. It caused a lot of injuries; I had eight surgeries in my first couple years of college and it really interfered with my wrestling. If I could change anything, I would wrestle more in college, but, if I didn’t wrestle in college, I may not be sitting here talking to you today. I think everything happens for a reason and I’m pretty happy with it.

 

Could you please tell me about your car accident?

Me and a couple buddies had went to a swap meet on a Sunday morning and we had some lunch and we were driving back to my friend’s house. We were going down a gravel road and he was driving a little too fast. I had unbuckled to pick something up, so it didn’t spill all over his car and I guess he was paying attention to what I was doing, lost control on the gravel road, and hit a utility pole head-on. I hit the windshield and all that good stuff; I ended up having four or five surgeries on my head, Tommy John surgery on my elbow, and ended up having two shoulder surgeries—it messed me up a little bit. It could’ve been a lot worse, though [laughs].

Did you ever think that you would make it back to competition?

I was young—I was 17, 18—so I didn’t really think about it too much at the time. I thought that I would still compete. I was pretty much sidelined for a year, though—I couldn’t do much of anything—because of the type of injuries that I had sustained. It was really frustrating, but I think I kept on getting hurt because I was young and I thought I was healthy, but I would always come back too soon and I just end up hurting myself even more. I was too anxious and didn’t listen to my body and let it heal. I think that’s the key; listening to your body and doing what it tells you to do.

 

How did you get involved with mixed martial arts?

I took what is called a medical forfeit from wrestling, where you still get to keep your scholarship, but it doesn’t go against the program. I was doing what I was supposed to be doing; I wasn’t getting into trouble and I was getting good grades. We sat down and discussed it and I took a medical forfeit. I had always wanted to compete in MMA, since I saw the first UFC in sixth or seventh grade, and I just loved it. It was kind of frustrating because I still wanted to compete. I met my trainer, Jason Merrill, that year, because I was helping out my old high-school’s wrestling program and he’s a wrestling coach at a place just around the way. I met him and he invited me to come train and we’ve been together ever since. I’ve been with Jason since the beginning. He’s a great guy and he’s done a lot for me.

What were your goals when you started training?

To be the best, man. From the get-go, I wanted to fight in the UFC, but not only that: I wanted to be the best. I think that if you’re fighting in this sport, then your goal should be to be the best. My goal, obviously, is to be the UFC’s featherweight champion. I’m going to put in the work and try to achieve what I want to do.

 

Has that goal—to be the best—ever wavered in your mind?

I’ve always had a lot of self-confidence. The move to 145 from 155 reassured that I’m doing everything that I can do. At 155, I didn’t cut a lot of weight and I also worked full-time, so if I was tired and I didn’t want to get up and work out, I didn’t really have to. But to make 145, it takes everything I’ve got. It makes me do that extra stuff, which, in turn, helps my confidence; to know that I’m 100 percent ready.

 

How did you come into contact with the UFC to begin with?

I really don’t recall the specifics. I guess it was in 2007, I think, and I had been fighting for a year or two. I just stayed active, stayed busy and a couple promoters that I knew sent in videos of some of my fights and said, “Hey, look out for this kid.”

They e-mailed me and asked if I would like to fight at UFC 70 in England. When I got the e-mail, I was still in a cast from a previous fight and I was like, “Well, shoot, yeah!” Who’s going to say no to fighting in the UFC, right [laughs]?

That’s your ticket in and you’ve got to do what you’ve got to do. I got my cast taken off just a few weeks before my UFC fight, but I wasn’t going to turn it down for anything [laughs].

Looking back, do you feel that you were ready for that level of competition at the time?

Yeah—oh, yeah. I feel that I was.

I was winning my fight with Terry Etim and I just didn’t get the right training camp that I needed and I had never been to another country before—no excuses—but I wore myself out and I think I should’ve paced myself more.

In my next fight, I fought Jason Black, who’s one of the best guys that I’ve fought to this day, and I beat him and then took a year and a half off due to the police academy. What I should’ve done was taken a few warm-up fights—Joe Silva offered me that—but I was too stubborn and thought that I would just jump back in there.

With that fight, I was winning it pretty handily, but I hadn’t fought in a while and got clipped, knocked down, and the fight got stopped. The next fight was against Shannon Gugerty and it was just his night; I went out there, made a mistake, got caught, and that was it. I didn’t put the right amount of work that I needed to for that fight; I had a couple things going on and I had wrist surgery because I broke my wrist a month before the fight.

Now, I’m 100 percent healthy and I’m ready to get back in there and prove to everybody—including myself—that I belong in there.

 

Police academy?

I have two little girls. In 2007, I had already had my application in to the police academy and they called and said that I got the job. It was just something that I felt I had to do for my family. That way, no matter what, I can support them. With fighting, you never know. I was in the academy for seven months, so I really couldn’t train too much then and then I trained for another four months. I didn’t train too much for about a year-and-a-half. My schedule is eight days on and six days off, so I’ve got a lot of time to train now, though.

Do you enjoy what you do?

Oh, yeah. If I didn’t enjoy it, I definitely wouldn’t do it, because if you don’t love it, you’re not going to want to do it. When I’m training for a fight, on a workday, I get off work at 7:30 in the morning and I’m at the gym by 8:30 and then I work out until 10:30 and then I’m home by 11:00. I go to sleep for a few hours and I’m back to the gym at 6:00, then back at work at 9:30 that night. There’s not a lot of free time in there for me—or for my family.

 

Is that ever too much?

Sometimes. Like I said earlier; I’ve got to listen to my body and if it gets to the point where I’m feeling run down or tired or anything like that, then I tone it down. But, I’m in great shape and I couldn’t be happier about how my camp has gone.

 

How does it feel to be back in the UFC?

It’s amazing, man. Obviously, I feel that I belong there—and I feel every fighter should want to be there—and it’s amazing. I’m excited and thankful that I get another opportunity and I just can’t wait to go out there and get it done.

 

How much do you feel you’ve improved since we last saw you in the UFC?

I think I’ve improved a ton. I think my last fight was pretty much two years ago and I’ve pretty much been in the gym nonstop since then. I think I’m a lot stronger from a mental-standpoint. I feel like I’m a completely different fighter; I feel like I’m a lot better.

How are you feeling going to your upcoming fight?

I feel great about it. I think style-wise, Ricardo and I are a lot alike; we both come from a wrestling-background, we’re both strong guys, we both like to strike, we both hit hard—I’m really anxious to see how it goes. Obviously, I feel that I’m a better fighter, but I’ve got respect for Ricardo and his skills and I really think that we’re a lot alike. I think it’s going to make for an exciting fight.

 

Come Fight Night, what do you think Ricardo’s game-plan is going to be?

I don’t know. From the fights that I’ve watched, he’s just a well-rounded fighter; he likes to stand and kick-box, but he likes to go to the ground, too. Like I said: Everyone has a game-plan until you go out there and get hit; sometimes things change and sometimes things don’t. I think it’s a good match and I’m just ready to go out, get it started, and see what happens.

 

Do you make predictions going into your fights?

No. I predict that I’m going to win [laughs], but I don’t predict how it’s going to end. I honestly don’t care how it ends—as long as I’m the winner. I couldn’t care less if it took us 15 minutes or five seconds; as long as I win, I’m happy.

 

What would a win mean to you?

Man, it would mean everything. It would validate that I belong there and that I’m back. Numbers-wise, 135 and 145 are probably the smallest divisions in the UFC, so I think that a win puts us one step closer to being where we want to be: in the mix. I think it’s a great fight for both of us.

 

Assuming you win, what do you feel is the next step in your career?

You know what? I don’t know. That’s up to the UFC. I don’t pick fights; they tell me when and who to fight and I just show up to do what I need to do. That’s the way I look at it.

 

Have you thought about how much longer you’d like to compete?

Just as long as my body allows and as long as I’m still enjoying it. I don’t want to set a timeframe on it, but I would like to continue fighting for as long as I can. Then, as my kids get a little older, I can spend time with them instead of having to work other jobs. If I can make enough money fighting to help us do a few things and not have to work so much, that would be amazing.

 

Have you thought about how you would like to be remembered—when it’s all said and done?

Not really. In the real world, I would obviously like to be remembered as a good father and a good husband and a good police officer, but if you’re talking about the fight-game, then I would like to be remembered as someone that goes out there—someone that the fans enjoyed watching—and just someone that goes out there and puts it all on the line when he fights. I was little more reckless in my previous UFC stint; I think I’ve matured as a fighter—obviously I still want to be exciting, but the main goal is to win. That’s my main goal and that’s what we’re going to go do.  

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Strikeforce: Conor Heun: "To Me, What Is Most Important, Is Finishing People"

Known for his exciting fighting style, Conor Heun, who returns to action this weekend, will be looking to put on another highlight-reel performance—as the American lightweight is slated to take on Magno Almeida—a fast-rising Brazilian prosp…

Known for his exciting fighting style, Conor Heun, who returns to action this weekend, will be looking to put on another highlight-reel performance—as the American lightweight is slated to take on Magno Almeida—a fast-rising Brazilian prospect—on Saturday evening at Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum in Dallas.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Conor Heun about, among other topics, his early days in mixed martial arts, his recent move to Greg Jackson’s camp in New Mexico, and what he hopes to achieve in this sport.

Do you remember your first day of wrestling?

My first day of wrestling? No, I don’t. I remember my first match, though…I got pinned without getting my thumb out of my mouth [laughs].

[Laughs] Did that shape the way that you looked at wrestling?

[Laughs] I don’t know, but it shaped the way that I looked at the ceiling from then on. I never really got comfortable sleeping on my back. Training with Eddie Bravo changed all of that, though; now I’m really comfortable training there.

What inspired you to try your hand at mixed martial arts?

After college, I was out in L.A. and I was looking for a way to feed that competitive fire, so I started training jiu-jitsu with Eddie—on the recommendation of my college roommate. He told me about this guy that was doing jiu-jitsu that was a lot like wrestling; mainly because you didn’t have to wear the gi.

I started training with Eddie and he had some fighters that were training with him at the time; namely Jason Chambers and Amir Rahnavardi. Those guys encouraged me. At the time, I had been in a ton of street-fights, but I had never had a fight with a date set and the idea kind of scared me.

I’ve always been one to conquer my fears, so I figured, “What the hell? Why not give it a shot?” Those guys said that they thought that I had what it takes, so I took my first fight and won by rear naked choke and quit my day job shortly thereafter and started training full-time.

How were you feeling going into your first match?

I was really confident. I was a really small kid growing up, but I didn’t back down and I had, sort of, a mouth on me. I’ve been in more than my fair share of street-fights and that was going against big guys, multiple guys—you never knew what was going to happen.

The idea of fighting someone that was my size with a ref in a ring with rules, made me really confident.

What were your intentions when you started training?

What were my intentions? I just started out training jiu-jitsu as a way to stay in shape and blow off some steam and have something fun to do.

It was pretty much just training jiu-jitsu for that first fight—after that, I realized that I had a future in the sport and I wanted to learn as much as I could. It was really just trying to get as good as I could and to see how far I could take it.

Do you think, had you lost your first match, you would’ve continued on in the sport?

Yeah—I would. I lost my second fight, you know? I like competing and I think martial arts is pretty much the purest form of competition; one man vs. the other ‘til somebody says “uncle.” I really enjoy the competition and I enjoy the sacrifice and the dedication and the lifestyle choices that you need to make if you want to be great.

I was super-stoked going into that second fight—just fired up in the locker room—everyone was looking at me like I was nuts and I ended up losing a split-decision to Brett Cooper. I fought him up at 165 and he broke my nose, knocked a tooth out, and knocked me down a few times.

He hit me harder than I had ever been hit before and afterwards, the commissioner—that had seen me all happy before hand—said, “Oh, so you think you still want to do this?” and I was like, “Hell, yeah! That was the most fun I’ve ever had.”

Has this ever wavered in your mind?

No, no. I think it’s either in your blood or it’s not, you know? I like to fight; I like to test myself and establish my dominance.

Nothing for me is better than seeing the look in that other guy’s eyes when, you know, he already knows that it’s over—he hits you with his best shot and you’re there smiling at him and coming forward. I really enjoy that sense of dominance.

When did you realize that this was something that you could excel in?

I don’t know. I never lost a street-fight growing up and I think, once I found out that I could beat people up for a living, [laughs] it was a pretty natural choice.

Do you ever think about where you might be—had you not come across 10th Planet?

I’m sure I would’ve found some other way to compete; whether it be doing grappling tournaments or wrestling tournaments. My dad played rugby for a long time to fuel his desire for competition and, since I discovered jiu-jitsu, he’s discovered the sport, as well.

He’s a Colorado state white belt jiu-jitsu champion in the old man’s division, so competition is in my blood—I would find some way to compete. My little brother is a professional cyclist, so that desire to compete is in my blood.

I really like fighting and I also ran cross country—I enjoy the individual sports where you don’t have anybody to rely on but yourself. I’m sort of a loner; I don’t have a lot of friends—I like to be by myself and push myself.

I only want myself to rely on; if something happens in the cage and I lose, there’s nobody to blame but myself. I like that sense of responsibility.

Do you feel being introverted helps your mixed martial arts career?

Yeah. Fighting is a selfish sport; you need to focus on yourself and do what you need to do to be in the best place that you can be. If you’re easily distracted and you’ve got a whole bunch of people that are taking up your time and your energy, then you’re not focusing as much on the task at hand.

That’s why I moved to the TapOut Ranch in Edgewood, N.M.; there’s nothing out here and the only other guys that are out here at the ranch are the same guys as myself—they like to fight and train and put their nose to the grindstone and see how far it can take us.

Being up here with a bunch of like-minded individuals pushing is great. I think that selfishness and singular focus is definitely an important characteristic in being a champion.

What inspired your move to New Mexico?

Two losses in a row. I think the definition of stupidity is doing the same thing and expecting different results. I lost a decision to [Jorge] Gurgel in 2009 and then I lost a split-decision to [KJ] Noons last June, so I figured that whatever I was doing, wasn’t working—it was time to change it up.

How did you choose New Mexico?

[Greg] Jackson’s camp. The fact that he’s trained more champions in the history of the sport, the level of sparring partners here, the amount of guys in my weight-class; in the gym, you’ve got Cub Swanson, Clay Guida, Joe Stevenson, Diego Sanchez, [Donald Cerrone], Leonard Garcia, and a whole host of guys that you’ve never heard of, but would probably beat the shit out 90 percent of the name-fighters out there.

This is where you come if you want to be a champion and that’s my only goal.

How much of an impact do you think the camp has had on you so far?

I think it’s been pretty phenomenal; I don’t think people are even going to recognize me. My cardio is going to be absolutely unparalleled and I’ve been fighting with the top-contenders in the UFC—the best lightweights in the world—every day. Stepping into the cage with my opponent—he’s obviously an extremely tough guy—but I’m sure he’s no “Cowboy” Cerrone.

Do you regret not making the transition earlier?

No—I don’t really have any regrets; I believe everything happens for a reason. I got a lot out of being in L.A. and I’m just happy to be where I am now.

How are you feeling going into your upcoming match?

I feel great. My little brother saw me gassing in the Noons fight and came to me and offered his expertise—like I said before; he’s a professional cyclist, graduated with an engineering degree.

He’s got me doing new workouts based on my heart rate and maximum output to really dial it in and make sure that I’m getting the most of my time.

Anything can happen in a fight; you can get caught in a submission or something like that, but the only thing that you can control going into a fight is how big your gas-tank is and I guarantee that I’ve got the biggest tank that I’ve ever fought with before. It’s going to be really exciting for the fans.

Do you think—in light of the changes that you’ve been making recently—that those two straight losses could have a positive effect on your career?

Yeah; anything that doesn’t kill us makes us stronger. That was a rough period in my career—I haven’t had a win since October 2008—and that weighs heavily on me, but I believe that I’ve done everything in my power to rectify the situation. I’m really looking forward to showing my improvements on Saturday.

Do you try to predict the outcome of your matches?

I predict I’m going to win [laughs]. I predict that you’re going to see a war. I’ve lost my last two bouts, but Strikeforce renewed my contract—obviously not for my record or because I’m winning—but for how I fight. I predict the fans are going to love it; it’s going to be a scrap.

I think that’s what people want to see. If people have never seen a Conor Heun fight, be sure to watch, because if you like guys going out there to finish, that’s what I do. I’m free to take any risk at any time to win the fight and I don’t hold back; I don’t believe in winning by points.

I’ve gone to decisions, but you’ll notice that I was always taking risks, trying to finish. Some people say that I fight recklessly—giving up positions to attack submissions—but that’s not going to change. I am the fighter that I am and that’s a fighter that wants to go out and dominate.

When someone signs on the dotted line across from me, they’re saying that they’re better than me and that’s disrespect to me; I feel like they’re disrespecting me, my training camp, and my father—who’s trained me since I was five years old. So, when someone signs on the dotted line across from me, my sole intention is to punish them for that decision.

Have you always had this outlook?

I remember being a little kid and having dreams of standing over the broken bodies of my opponents, you know, I wanted to be the champion.

I wanted to be a high-school state wrestling champion and I fell short—I lost by a point in the state finals—and that hurt. I had been training for that forever and I’ve just never given up on that goal of standing on the top of the heap.

Is it more important for you to win or to put on a good show?

I think my fight-style is entertaining, but I don’t go out there thinking, “Oh, I’m going to put on a good show.” To me, what is most important, is finishing people; making them tap, knocking them out—letting them know that I’m the best.

What would a win this weekend mean to you?

It means an extra $4,000 in my pocket and, hopefully, a step closer to fighting for that belt. That’s the goal; standing on top of that heap.

What do you feel is the next step in your career?

Whoever they put in front of me. There are a lot of great guys in Strikeforce, and I just want them to keep putting them in front of me.  I want to stay healthy and fight a lot.

In 2007, I fought seven times—that was a great year—and I want another year like that; where I’m able to fight and to continue to show people what I’m capable of and Saturday is the next step.

Being in a cage is when I’m the freest, it’s when I’m the happiest, it’s when nothing else matters—there are no worries or outside thoughts—just being in the zone and living in the moment; being present.

I’m never more present than when I’m in the cage and that’s something that I work with daily; I meditate for an hour a day and I do an hour of yoga every day—all of these things to help me live in the moment—but never is that moment as intense and profound as it is when that door closes behind me in that cage.

Is there anything that you can compare it to?

No.

Have you thought about how much longer you’d like to compete?

Until they strap that belt around me [laughs]. Then I’ll start thinking about something else—maybe—but I’m pretty singular in my focus; I’ve dedicated everything to this and I’ve lost lots of things in pursuit of this sport.

I want to stand on the top of the heap; I want that belt [laughs]. I want to be remembered; I want my name to live on. I want my kids to say, “One time, my daddy was the champ.”

What would that championship belt mean to you?

Just that; immortality.

How would you like to be remembered when it’s all said and done?

As somebody who never backed down; someone that never gave up and always gave it their all—that’s the most important thing to me.

I’ve coached wrestling, and I don’t care if the kid wins or loses—as long as he gave it his all—and I just want everybody that ever saw me fight to think, “Man, that kid’s got a ton of heart. He always gave it his all and he never held back—100 percent.” That’s all you can really ask for; to give the maximum effort.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Abe Wagner: "If My Fighting Spirit Was Remembered, Then I’ll Be Satisfied"

A veteran of ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ in the future, Abe Wagner will be looking to work his way back to the Octagon. A professional mixed martial artist since mid-2006, Wagner established a 6-2 record before being invited to compete on &lsqu…

A veteran of ‘The Ultimate Fighter,’ in the future, Abe Wagner will be looking to work his way back to the Octagon.

A professional mixed martial artist since mid-2006, Wagner established a 6-2 record before being invited to compete on ‘The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights’ in 2010.

Unfortunately for the man they call “The Hurricane,” Wagner lost to current UFC contender Jon Madsen in the preliminary round of the competition and was subsequently eliminated from the tournament.  

Since his time on the show, Wagner has won a pair of bouts—including a 32-second TKO victory over former UFC champion Tim Sylvia—and dropped a pair of contests—including his most recent match; a second-round submission loss at the hands of Aaron Rosa in late-March.

Currently, in what can fairly be described as a grudge match, Wagner is slated to take on Justin Grizzard on July 23 under the Victory Fighting Championships banner.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Abe Wagner about his early days in the sport, his time in the ‘TUF house,’ and his upcoming match.

What inspired you to try your hand at mixed martial arts?

I don’t know. I guess I used to get in a lot of fights when I was growing up, and I always thought that I was pretty good at it. I played football in college and after my football career was over, I took up mixed martial arts, because it was a good meshing between my younger days and still being a big guy with a competitive itch.

What were your first impressions of the sport?

I think, up until the first time that I saw it, I thought that people fighting was just people throwing hay-makers—I guess I watched too many tough-man competitions [laughs]. The first MMA fight that I saw, the one guy came out and threw a big hay-maker and then the guy he was fighting ducked under it, took him down, and choked him out; I thought, “Wow. I know very little about fighting.” It was kind of humbling at that point for me.

When did you start training?

I started in June of 2005.

Did you ever think that you would be able to turn your passion into a career?

When I first started—I think it’s typical of most people; you set small goals and then set more as you achieve your smaller goals. I didn’t want to be a 50- or a 60-year-old guy, talking about how I could’ve done that when I was younger. I just wanted to do it and see how it went.

Were you passionate about the sport right from the start?

Yeah. I remember when ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ first came on—and it was on late at night; not on primetime—and I wouldn’t be able to fall asleep for two or three hours after that, because I was so excited just from watching that one fight. Obviously, as you get more experienced, you start to get a little more desensitized to it, but I was very excited about the sport from the first time that I saw it.

Is having ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ as your first impression of the sport what inspired you to try out for the show?

Well, I was just trying to make the best career move possible when I was trying out for the show. It was definitely a surreal experience; having watched my first MMA fight on ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ four years earlier and then being on ‘The Ultimate Fighter.’

Did you ever think that you would make it onto the show?

No. When I first started fighting, it never occurred to me that I would.

Realistically, when you tried out, did you think that you would make it through?

I thought there was a good chance, but it was more of a shot in the dark.

What was going through your mind during the tryouts?

Actually, I didn’t physically go to the tryouts; I made an audition DVD and just sent in that. After that, they brought me out for the second round of casting.

What was going through your mind on the trip out to Vegas?

I knew that it could be a life-changing experience if I did well and, if I did poorly, I realized that it would probably set me back in my career—and I was right [laughs]. I was very aware of how momentous a moment it was.

How do you feel about your performance on the show?

I was disappointed, because I think—stylistically—I got the worst match-up that I could’ve gotten. I didn’t really have an opportunity to showcase any of my skills. I wouldn’t have been as disappointed had I had a fight where I performed well—but I didn’t do much in my fight.

Do you think, had you been selected to Team Rashad, your experience would’ve been any different?

Yeah—I think that’s pretty fair to say.

What were your initial thoughts when you were selected by Quinton?

In retrospect, it probably would’ve been better for me to be on the other team—from a coaching standpoint—but at the time of the actual selection, I was just happy that I was selected as one of the first guys; that gave me a little bit of confidence.

How would you describe Quinton as a coach?

He’ll be the first one to tell you this; he’s not a very good coach. He brings other guys who are coaches. He’s a great guy and he’s a super-awesome guy to hang out with, but as far as coaching-decision and whatnot, he’ll be the first one to tell you that that’s why he brought coaches with him.

Do you think, had you been selected to Team Rashad, your experience would’ve been more beneficial?

I think both coaching staffs have a wealth of information, but I think Rashad’s coaching staff definitely had a better strategy for the format of the show.

How so?

Well, I think when Team Rashad was picking match-ups, they picked match-ups that would be best for their guys. It’s pretty well documented that Greg Jackson is the mad-scientist of MMA [laughs], so he ended up picking winners in all but one of the matches he picked.

In contrast, “Rampage” picked the first two match-ups—and we lost both of them. “Rampage” went 0-2 while Team Rashad went 5-1 with their picks—I think that’s a pretty good delineation.

Did you have any say in who you’d be fighting?

I had indicated that I didn’t think that it would be a very good match-up; on account of his strong wrestling skills and my weaker skills as a wrestler, but “Rampage” said that he wasn’t too concerned about that. At some point, I just had to suck it up and say, “Well, you’ve got to trust your coaches at some point.”

Did you trust the coaches on the show?

Not to the same level that I would with the same coaches that I’ve been working with every day for the last five years, but at some point, you have to trust that they’re there for your benefit.

Was there anything that surprised you during your time on the show?

Fighting in a gym with 20 people and a ton of cameras is a weird experience [laughs]. It’s weird from that standpoint and it’s weird that fights took place throughout the day—as opposed to in the evening.

Were you aware of Kimbo before the show?

Nope.

You didn’t know who he was?

No—I knew who he was; I just didn’t know that he was going to be on the show.

What was going through your mind when you found out that he would be on your season?

I don’t know; I guess I didn’t really have too many thoughts—one way or the other—on it. I wouldn’t say that I was excited or anything; he was just another guy there.

Do you feel that there are any misconceptions of Kimbo?

I think the misconceptions of Kimbo are probably the same misconceptions of most fighters—only to a caricature scale. I think they probably think the same thing about most fighters—only on a bigger scale.

Was there anything that surprised you about Kimbo during your experience with him?

No. He’s a pretty normal guy. I don’t know if I had any expectations to be surprised against; he’s just a normal guy.

Was there anyone that left a particularly lasting impression on you during your time on the show?

Scott Junk and I became pretty good friends. Aside from that, I don’t know; there were a lot of boring days.

Was that ever overwhelming?

It’s like intellectual sensory deprivation for six weeks; you don’t do anything except train, eat, sleep, and stare at the wall. There is no correspondence, there’s no TV, there’s no music or reading materials of any kind. Everybody gets a little stir-crazy.

Do you feel that you were prepared for that environment?

As much as anyone can be. I don’t know how one would go about preparing for that—other than doing those shitty things in your real life, but why would you ever do that on purpose [laughs]?

Good point. Would you do anything differently if you had the opportunity?

If I had to do it again, I think that I would be a little more vocal about the match-up that was chosen for me, so that—win or lose—I could’ve shown more of my skills.

What did you take away from your experience on the show?

I learned a lot about the business aspect of the sport; at the end of the day, it’s an entertainment business—if you’re boring, then nobody is going to want to watch you fight. At the same time, if you have an average record but are a lot of fun to watch, then there will still be a spot for you in the business.

How do you feel about what you’ve been able to accomplish since leaving the show?

I feel pretty good about what I’ve been able to accomplish. I lost a fight to Travis Browne—who’s currently undefeated in the UFC—and then I knocked out Tim Sylvia—you might have heard of him. I kind of felt that the Sylvia fight was redemption for what happened on ‘The Ultimate Fighter’; because nobody thought I had any skills to speak of. I think I was a five-to-one underdog.

What did being such a big underdog mean to you?

To be honest, it wasn’t unexpected, so I wasn’t offended or pissed off. I wasn’t particularly motivated on that basis, but it definitely felt good to demonstrate what I’m capable of doing.

Did you feel, going into your bout, that you were capable of finishing Tim? Especially so quickly?

I knew I was capable, but I certainly didn’t picture it going that fast. I really thought that I was going to knock him out that night.

How did that feel?

It felt pretty awesome. I had a lot of joyful expletives to say right after, so I’m glad that they didn’t give me the microphone right away [laughs].

At the time of the first ‘Ultimate Fighter’, I think Tim would’ve been a champion in the UFC. When you started, did you ever think that you would have the opportunity to take on the then-UFC heavyweight champion?

No—yet another surreal moment for me. I believe he was the champion; it was at the time when him and Arlovski were going back and forth with the title. It was really weird to be in a fight with him, but it was definitely a highlight moment of my career.

How do you feel about your performance against Aaron Rosa?

I think it was a back-and-forth fight—he clipped me—and I wasn’t necessarily thinking the clearest of thoughts. I personally feel that I came out a bit flat that night—I’m sure that a lot of people would say that. I felt mentally ready, but I know that I didn’t fight up to my potential in that fight.

Aaron, after beating you, went straight to the UFC. What does that mean to you?

Well, it’s kind of frustrating. The last two people that have beaten me have went straight to the UFC right after, so I almost feel like I’m relegated to gatekeeper status. I know that I’m good enough to compete with those guys; I just need to get over that hump and break back into the UFC.

Do you feel that you belong in the UFC?

Yes—I do.

What do you feel is the next step in your career?

I think I’m going to win a couple fights here and get back into my winning ways.

Do you have any fights lined up right now?

I’m supposed to be fighting in Victory Fighting Championships in Iowa on July 23…his name is Justin Grizzard.

Do you know much about Justin?

Well, he’s from Omaha as well—and his record isn’t too spectacular—but he’s from a rival gym in Omaha. I’ve been wanting to fight this guy for a while, and I don’t know if fighting someone with a lesser-record does all that much for my career, but it’s more personal; I just want to fight the guy. It just worked out that way.

So you would say that this is more personal than professional?

Yeah.

Have you ever trained with him before?

I’ve sparred with two or three times about two years ago.

Do you think Justin poses any specific problems to you?

Honestly, I don’t see any way that he can beat me in a fight … I feel pretty confident; I feel pretty good about the fight.

What would a win mean to you?

Most directly, he likes to talk a lot of trash, so it would shut his mouth. In the bigger scheme of things, a win is obviously more momentum and it just brings me closer to that final goal.

Does the trash-talking ever get under your skin?

I try to keep everything professional—because it’s not personal—but Omaha is not that big of a place, so I sometimes just get sick of hearing people run their mouth. I’ll just be glad when I don’t have to hear it anymore.

Realistically, how far do you think you are from getting back in the Octagon?

I think that I’m two—maybe three—solid wins away. I think three wins over average opponents or two wins over good opponents.

What would fighting in the UFC mean to you?

It would be the fruition of a goal that I’ve pursued for six years now, so it would mean a lot to me to be able to compete at the highest level.

What are your goals in the sport at this point?

Most directly; it’s to fight in the UFC. It’s one fight at a time, but that’s the goal that I’m working towards.

When it’s all said and done, what would you be satisfied with in this sport?

Truthfully, I’d just like to be remembered as a great competitor. I don’t think my career will be deemed a success or not based on world championships—and I’m not saying that I’m ruling that out—but I would just like to be remembered as a great competitor. If my fighting spirit was remembered, then I’ll be satisfied with my career.

Where do you see yourself in five years?

I don’t know. I’ll probably be retired from the sport at that point; I’ll be pretty old. I think my MMA career will probably be done in four or five years.

Have you thought about that a lot?

I don’t have any kids right now—and not to take away from fighters that do—but don’t feel comfortable coming home with black eyes and bloody noses. I wouldn’t want them to see that on a regular basis.

When I’m 34, 35, it will probably be time for me to start settling down. Then I’ll move onto some other challenge; something else to do with my time.

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Strikeforce: Chad Griggs: "I Don’t See It Going Past the Second Round"

With only one loss as a professional mixed martial artist, Chad Griggs will be looking to add to his nearly unblemished record this weekend, as the Tucson, Arizona native is slated to take on Valentijn Overeem at Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum in Dall…

With only one loss as a professional mixed martial artist, Chad Griggs will be looking to add to his nearly unblemished record this weekend, as the Tucson, Arizona native is slated to take on Valentijn Overeem at Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum in Dallas, Texas on Saturday evening.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Chad Griggs about, among other topics, the prospect of being a full-time fighter, his upcoming match, and the power of sideburns.

 Outside of fighting, I read that you’re a firefighter and a paramedic.

That is true. I have been doing it for 10 years.

Do you enjoy it?

I do—it’s a great job. It’s something that I do enjoy and that’s part of the reason why I haven’t given it up and just gone right into fighting—it’s something that I enjoy doing.

You’ve thought about shifting gears and fighting fulltime?

Yeah—absolutely. I don’t know if there are very many people at this level that aren’t doing it full-time. Not yet, though; I need to make a little bit more money. I don’t want to have to ever find anything else [laughs]. With a couple more wins, I’ll be making some good money, and then we’ll re-evaluate.

Is your schedule ever too much?

It’s busy—I’ll say that much. It’s definitely a balancing act—making sure that you get everything done—but it’s doable.

Is it ever difficult to balance everything?

Sure; life is a problem, right? But it’s all attitude. There’s no question that it gets very hectic—you work and you’re up all night and you only get two hours of sleep, but you’ve got to train twice the next day—there’s no question about that. I think everybody has good days and bad days, but, like I said; I think it’s all about attitude and the way you look at it. I’m happy, though; life is good for me—I’ve been very blessed.

What inspired you to try your hand at mixed martial arts?

I’ve always been interested in it—I grew up watching it. What inspired me was going into a gym where Don Frye was training, getting ready to fight Mark Coleman and he needed a big-body. He beat on me for a while and I just really enjoyed it; I thought it was neat to be training with someone at that level. I ended up going and cornering him in Japan and travelling around a bit with him and training with him a lot—it got to the point where I thought I could do this. I had a couple good fights and the rest is history—here we are.

Have you been passionate about the sport from the beginning?

Absolutely. Like I said; I grew up watching it and I’ve always loved it. It’s the one sport that I can sit down and watch and not get bored with. I’m definitely passionate about it. You never learn everything; you’re always growing and learning and the sport is always evolving. It can be addicting. It’s something that keeps you in great shape and it’s a very enjoyable one-one-one competition.

What were your goals when you started in the sport?

That’s a good question [laughs]. I think, in the beginning, it was just getting in there and proving that I could compete—just proving it to myself. I did well for my first few fights and I just started getting in there against tougher competition and getting in with some bigger shows and here we are. I’ve started to make a little money and, hey; who doesn’t want to be here and make some good money, right?

When you first started, did you think that you would have the opportunity to make the kind of money that you’re bringing home now?

No. This is definitely the biggest opportunity that I’ve had to make good money fighting. For most people, that’s how it goes; you’ve got to work your way up—there are always exceptions—but I think for most people, you’ve got to work your way up. You’ve got to have your fights at the bottom and get paid peanuts to do it. Later, as people start to realize that you’re legit, you’ll have the opportunity to compete in some bigger shows and the pay certainly elevates. It takes time.

 How did you come into contact with Strikeforce?

We had been talking to them a little bit and we had had a couple fights that we thought we might be taking with them, but Bobby Lashley came around. They looked at me, like, I more-or-less had a good record, but I hadn’t been that active in the past couple years; they were looking for someone with some pretty good numbers that they could use to help build Lashley’s career up. I think they used me for that and, you know, I obviously ended up being able to take him out and win that fight. That was the beginning—when I was able to get my foot in the door and get a good win on national television—and here we are; my third one on Showtime and we’re going to try to get another hi-light reel.

So you feel that you were, in essence, brought in to lose?

Yup—absolutely. It isn’t really a secret; they had a lot of money invested in Lashley and were working on bringing him up and he was supposed to be the ‘Brock Lesnar of Strikeforce’—it’s not a big secret that I was brought in to get pounded on by him.

How did it feel to throw a wrench in their plans?

[Laughs] It felt pretty good. I had never went in there thinking that I was going to lose—I wouldn’t have gone in to lose. I think anybody has a chance to win at any particular time and I went in there to bang and fight my way through. I know that he is a big, huge guy that’s super-strong, but I knew that he was going to get tired—and he did.

How do you feel about what you’ve been able to accomplish in Strikeforce?

I’m extremely happy with the way that things are going; I can honestly look back and be happy with the experience that I’ve had. I’m happy and I think things are going really well. I think that there are a lot of fights left in me, but if I stopped right now or if my last fight was on Saturday, I’d be happy. I don’t think that it will be [laughs]; I think I’ve got a long way to go, but if it’s one year or five years, it’s been a great run and a great experience. It’s been a good time.

Do you have any regrets?

I guess I could say that I regret making some of the mistakes in my one loss, but I’ve learned a lot from that loss—I learned a whole lot that I wouldn’t have learned had I not gotten it. Everybody makes mistakes, you know? There are stupid things that we do that we wish we wouldn’t have; we create injuries or hurt other people or we just make bad choices. Absolutely I have regrets, but I try to learn from them and continue to grow.

How are you feeling going into your upcoming match?

I feel really good. I’ve had a couple of injuries that pushed us back a little bit, but this last week has been really good. I think we’ve got a good game-plan; I think we know his weaknesses. This guy is extremely tough and has a lot of talent and trains with a really good team and I’m excited to get the chance to fight him and I think I have a really good chance of taking him out. I feel great—I’m excited about it.

Do you feel that Valentijn is your biggest challenge to date?

He’s got a ton of experience and he’s pretty well-rounded. I think that I’ve fought some tougher guys, but I think that he’s very well-rounded. I think he is going to be the biggest challenge—in that sense—but I don’t see it going past the second round. I think, whatever the outcome, we’re both brawlers. He only has two fights that have ever gone past the first round, so I think there’s going to be a good brawl.

Do you think Valentijn offers you anything that you haven’t seen before?

I really don’t. In fighting, every once in a while you’ll see a crazy submission, but I really don’t see that happening. I think that it’s going to be a fast-paced brawl. He has lots of submissions, but I’ve watched a lot of his videos and trained with really good guys that have seen quite a few different aspects of the game. I’m not expecting him to pull a big, huge trick out of his hat.

What are you expecting?

I’m expecting him to come in and we’ll do a little bit of stand-up—I think he’s going to try to stand up for a while—but we’ll see how it plays out. Momentum has been the big thing for his entire career; if he can get some momentum, then he can put things together, but if the momentum starts to go the other way, he gets frustrated and crumbles. Our goal is to keep the momentum going our way and not let him push me around and set things up. I’m going to stay in his face and keep him guessing.

Assuming you win, what do you feel is the next step in your career?

I have no idea—that’s for Zuffa to decide. It’s one fight at a time, for me. The fights are getting bigger against tougher opponents, but as for a name, I have no idea.

How did you react when you learnt that Zuffa had purchased Strikeforce?

I don’t know that we knew what was going to happen. Zuffa has tonnes of money and obviously knows  what they’re doing, so I think it’s going to be great.

Is it safe to say that the UFC is where you want to be?

Sure—yeah. But, to be honest, I’m happy with both of them; I’m happy to be fighting in either show. I’m just happy to be with Zuffa—no matter where I end up.

Have you thought about how much longer you’d like to compete?

I’m just going to go until my body can’t do it anymore. Obviously I’m on a roll right now and things are going really well, so we’re just going to keep on rolling with it and see what happens, you know? I don’t want to do it to the point that I’m broke and crippled for the rest of my life. There are people that are doing that and I don’t want to be one of them. Hopefully I’ll be smart enough to know when enough is enough, but we’re not there, yet.

Do you think it will be difficult to walk away from the sport?

Yeah—absolutely. I think you get that rush of adrenaline and you start to miss that and miss the competition, but I don’t think that I’ll ever be entirely away from it. Eventually, I’ll stop competing, but I’m pretty sure that I’ll continue to go in and practise and help other guys. It’s a sport that becomes a way of life; going in and rolling with guys and growing in your technique and your game, so I’m not sure if I’ll ever completely let it go.

Is there anything that you’d like to say to your fans while you have this opportunity?

Well, obviously we wouldn’t be here without them, so the fans are what keeps the ball rolling—you’ve got to appreciate that. My fan-base is growing as I evolve and move up the rankings, and I just want to say that they’ve got to grow sideburns if they want to find success in life [laughs].

Is that what did it for you?

That’s it; I started having a lot of success after I started to grow the sideburns.

What inspired the sideburns?

I don’t know. I just woke up one day and decided to let them grow and they kept on growing and growing and here we are—they’ve evolved [laughs].

[Laughs] Just like you.

[Laughs] Just like me.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

UFC: Jason Reinhardt: UFC Bantamweight Sits Down for an Exclusive Interview

Coming off a heartbreaking loss in Sydney, Australia, Jason Reinhardt, who is scheduled to return to the Octagon this summer, is determined to produce a more favourable outcome in his upcoming match. Boasting a résumé that consists of 16 …

Coming off a heartbreaking loss in Sydney, Australia, Jason Reinhardt, who is scheduled to return to the Octagon this summer, is determined to produce a more favourable outcome in his upcoming match.

Boasting a résumé that consists of 16 wins by way of submission, Reinhardt admits that he is known more for his losses against Joe Lauzon at UFC 78 and Zhang Tiequan at UFC 127 than his other 20 professional victories.

Currently, in what Reinhardt says will be an opportunity for redemption, the Decatur, Illinois native is slated to take on Edwin Figueroa at UFC Live: Hardy vs. Lytle on August 14th in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Jason Reinhardt about, among other topics, opening a new training facility, karate-turned-mixed martial arts academies, and his upcoming bout with Edwin Figueroa.

I read that you plan on opening an academy.

Yes. I’m definitely going to be opening my academy after my fight. I was going to do it before my fight and have a few of my coaches run it for me—and I still may—but there’s a lot on my plate, so I’m debating whether I should do that before my fight or wait until things settle down.

Why do you want to open a new academy?

Mixed martial arts is my life and martial arts has always been a part of my life since I was a child and I just want to give back; I want to share the martial arts and help the younger fighters. I want to teach and coach—I definitely want to have my own team someday.

What do you feel you can offer your students?

A lot of experience; this is my life and this is all I do. I feel like I can offer them a different perspective of the martial arts; I have the traditional aspect and I have the mixed martial arts—the non-traditional—aspect.

What first drew you to martial arts?

I was always a small kid and I was too small to play football, so my mom enrolled me in Tae Kwon Do when I was nine years old.

Do you remember your first day?

[Laughs] Yeah, actually I do. Yup, I sure do.

What were your first impressions of Tae Kwon Do?

A lot of discipline and a lot of respect. For my whole childhood, I was taught by Koreans and it was all about discipline and respect. Perseverance was also very important.

Do you feel that that is lacking these days?

I do—definitely. That’s what I can offer my students; I can offer my students a side of martial arts that I believe is lacking—the honour and the respect. I feel, at times, that that is missing in mixed martial arts. I still bow in and off the mat when I go to the gym—I always show respect to the mat—and I’m not saying, you know, “Yes, sir,” and “No, sir,” but there has to be a level of respect inside a martial arts academy.

Have you always had this outlook?

I’ve always had this outlook—100 per cent.

What inspired you to try your hand at mixed martial arts?

I’m like everybody back in the day—my story is no different. I saw Royce Gracie [laughs] at the first UFC and I was running a Tae Kwon Do school at the time. After I watched the first UFC, I realized that I was screwed if somebody took me to the ground; I realized that this Tae Kwon Do isn’t going to work. Right then and there, it ruined me; I couldn’t go on teaching Tae Kwon Do [laughs].

I just couldn’t do it anymore, because I didn’t believe, in my heart, that what I was teaching my students would work on the street. It took a while—it was a process—for me to break away from my old academy and I found a Jiu-Jitsu school and that was it. It was because I wanted to know that what I was teaching would actually work if my students got attacked.

What were your first impressions of mixed martial arts?

I was just blown away by how well the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu works for self-defence. Now you see the sport and you see two athletes in the cage and everyone knows the same thing—pretty much—but in the street, Gracie Jiu-Jitsu is what is the best for self-defense.

Do you think that you’re Tae Kwon Do experience helped your mixed martial arts career?

Absolutely—I do. If it wasn’t for my Tae Kwon Do and my parents’ enrolling me in the classes, I wouldn’t be where I’m at today. The Tae Kwon Do set the foundation; I’m here today because of my Tae Kwon Do and the martial arts that started when I was very young.

Did you ever think that you would be fighting for a living?

No—I didn’t, man. I can’t believe it [laughs]; all I wanted to do was get in that cage one time—just to prove to my students that I was putting my money where my mouth is. I wanted to get in the cage once—and here we are today [laughs].

Did you ever think that the sport would be this big?

Yeah—I always knew that it was going to be huge. I used to tell everybody that it was going to take over boxing. I always said it was the next big thing, but nobody believed me. Now, what’s funny is; you’ve got these karate schools that used to bad-mouth what I do starting to call themselves MMA-gyms. I was the second affiliate gym under the legendary Pat Miletich; he awarded me my black-belt in 2004 and I opened up an MMA gym.

Back then, nobody really knew what the sport was about, so you had these karate schools down the street that would, you know, put videotapes of the UFC’s Greatest Knockouts on and tell the parents, you know, “You don’t want to sign Johnny up at Jason Reinhardt’s gym—this is what he’s going to be teaching.” And it would scare the heck out of them. When I had a Tae Kwon Do school, my kids program had over 100 students and when I tried to open my MMA gym, it was hard to get 10 kids to join.

Now, you have these karate schools that used to bad-mouth our sport—especially in the area that I live—but now, you see them taking down their karate signs and replacing them with MMA signs and these guys are jokes. They’ve never had any credentials; they’re self-promoted people and they’re doing it just for the money. It’s disgusting—it actually disgusts me.

I was going to ask how you really feel, but I think you’ve pretty much summed it up there.

Yeah—I really think it’s terrible…It just shows me how phony and how fake these people are; you go to their websites and you see these fake credentials and all these guys are is a bunch of karate guys—they just know that they can exploit people. They don’t know a damn thing about MMA; it would be like me telling somebody that I’m going to teach them to fly a plane, but I’m going to be on the ground where it’s nice and safe—“You go ahead and fly, but I’m going to stay down here where it’s nice and safe.” That’s about what it’s like.

So it all just comes down to money?

Absolutely—it’s all about money for these frauds; that’s what they’re about. They get their parents to sign a big contract and they charge you for belts and they play it off like it’s MMA—because everyone sees it on TV, now. These are the same people that used to bad-mouth our sport and now they’re trying to capitalize on it because it’s the new thing; it’s the popular thing.

What are your motives as a coach?

My motive as a coach is to share what I’ve learned from some of the best in the world. I’ve been very fortunate to train with some of the best in the world and I’ve done a lot of sacrificing over the years and I just want to give back. Sure, everyone has to make money—it’s nice to make a living—but that’s not my main goal. I also run an insurance agency—I don’t need this to make a living. I’m in a little different situation; I can open up my gym and not need it as an income and be real with people and be honest with people and teach them the right way to do things—as opposed to being fake like most of the guys out here in these karate gyms.

What does fighting in the UFC mean to you?

It’s everything, man. It makes all of that hard-work—all of the years of driving back-and-forth to Iowa—and sacrifice that I’ve put into the sport seem worth it. To get in there and to fight against the best fighters in the world is a huge honour for me and it means everything.

Did you ever think that you would have the opportunity to compete in the UFC?

I knew that if I kept persevering and if I kept training hard, something would happen. I started to lose a little faith after 10 years of trying to get into the UFC. I started to lose hope and then they called, so my point is; don’t ever give up. If you’re smart about your career and you don’t take stupid fights, you’ll make it. Get somebody that’s a good manager and, obviously, a good coach and you’ll make it—for sure.

How do you feel about your last performance?

It was horrible, man. I’m still not over it—it was awful. To train all of those hours and to be away from my family for all of those months and to train so hard only to lose in 48 seconds—it haunts me to this day. It’s one of the first things that I think about when I wake up and it’s the last thing that I think about when I go to bed. This is my life, man; this isn’t just something I do for a hobby. I have my insurance agency, but that’s only a part-time deal—that’s always something that I can fall back on—but this is my life. I just don’t know how that happened; I still don’t know how I got caught like that, you know?

After a tough loss like that, do you ever think, you know, ‘Why am I doing this?’?

I’d be lying to you if I said it doesn’t—absolutely it does. Dana White once said—I cut this out and I keep it in my wallet with me—he said, “There are a lot of fighters out there, that, when things are going great, they’re great. But you never know what a fighter is made of until things start going bad,” whether that’s two losses in a row or whatever it is.  I’ve always kept that in my mind and you go in there, man, and it’s a 50/50 shot; you’ve got a 50 per cent chance of winning and a 50 per cent chance of losing.

This next time, I’m going in there and have some fun, man; I’m not going to put so much pressure on myself. It sucks because I didn’t get a chance to show the world what I’m capable of—I know what I’m capable of doing—and nobody remembers the 21 fights that I won; they only remember the two fights that I lost in the UFC—that’s a tough pill to swallow, but I’m going to keep on persevering and not give up—no matter how bad things get. That’s a message for everybody, man; don’t give up on life and keep on persevering.

Do you think the pressure of fighting on the big-stage got to you?

No, I don’t—not at all. I was relaxed and I wasn’t nervous at all; I was happy and I was excited. I could’ve sworn that I was going to win that fight and I’ve never trained harder or been in better shape, but before I knew it, it was over. That’s the hard part; to try to analyze what happened, but I’ve just got to let it go and move forward. I’ve got my next fight and I’ve got to keep focused on that.

Did you think that you would be invited back to the UFC?

No—I did not. I thought it was over, but right after the fight, Sean Shelby came up to me and he said, “We’re having you back.” And I was like, “For what?” I couldn’t believe it. I’m just honoured and very, very grateful. I’m extremely grateful that they’re having me back, because I know what I’m capable of—especially at my normal weight-class; 135. This will be the third weight-class that I’ve fought in in the UFC, so Sean Shelby thanked me for stepping up and fighting whoever they’ve asked me to fight—maybe that has something to do with it.

What inspired the move back to bantamweight?

That’s where I’ve always fought; my entire career has been at 135. I should say, though, I’ve fought when there were no commissions and there were barely weigh-ins, so I’ve always fought bigger guys throughout my career. I don’t even know if I’ve ever fought anybody at 135, but I know that that is my natural body-weight; I’ve got to do everything I can possibly do to even maintain 155 walking around, so 135 is where I belong. I hope that I’m going to have better luck there against the best fighters in the world.

How are you feeling going into your upcoming match?

I’m just pushing forward, you know? I’m keeping positive and making sure I don’t make any injuries worse and I’m just keeping my faith and still training hard.

Is your schedule ever too much?

Yeah, man; sometimes I think it is. I just tell myself that I’m not the only one going through this, though; all of the other fighters go through the same thing. I’m not alone, so you kind of gain comfort from the fact that you’re not alone; that’s why they call us “fighters”—because we fight. I’m no different than anyone else, though; everyone goes through different things in their life and we just keep pushing forward.

Do you envy full-time fighters—guys that devote all of their time to training?

Do I envy it? Well, I don’t know if “envy” is the right word, but I respect it; I respect all fighters that are humble and respectful. I respect other fighters—especially guys in the UFC—because we all know what each of us goes through. When we see other UFC-fighters, we know what they went through, so there’s an automatic respect there.

Is it at all difficult to fight a guy that you respect?

You know what? No, it isn’t—it’s not at all. We’re both in this to make a living and to better our futures, so it’s business. Afterwards, we’re friends and that’s it.

Do you think Edwin has anything to offer that you haven’t seen before?

Shoot—I don’t know. I know he’s a tough guy and I know he’s a really good striker. I’ve got a lot of respect for him, but I don’t think he has anything that I haven’t seen before—but we’re about to find out [laughs].

What do you think his game-plan is going to be?

To knock me out, man [laughs]—to knock me out. He’s going to stand and trade. If you look at his last fight, man; he got Fight of the Night—he’s a young stud and I’m looking forward to it. I think our styles are similar; we’re both aggressive, we both swing hard, and I’m excited about it.

Do you think that this is one of the biggest opportunities of your career?

No—I think my last opportunity was my biggest opportunity and I blew it. I think my last opportunity in the UFC—because he had so much hype around him—and I had an opportunity to win, but I blew it. Every fight is a big opportunity, though, but I think I blew my biggest opportunity. However, I’m moving past that one and moving forward. You’re only as good as your last fight, right? So, really, every fight—every opportunity—is the biggest. I feel, in my heart, that my true opportunity was my last fight in the UFC in Australia.

Do you feel that a win in August would offer you some type of redemption?

Yeah—absolutely it would. It would offer me a form of redemption and that’s what I’m looking forward to.

What else would a win mean to you?

It’s to keep your job; I’m fighting to keep my job and I want to keep this going—you want to keep it going as long as possible. There’s a small window of opportunity for us fighters and Dana White always talks about that—and it’s very true—so, obviously, I have to win this next fight or it’s over.

Have you thought about how much longer you’d like to compete?

Randy competed until he was 47 and I want to compete ‘til I’m 48 [laughs]. I’ve had it in my mind that I want to compete until I’m 48 years old. I know that I’ve got some injuries, but every fighter does. I keep on improving, so that’s the exciting part.

What do you feel you can accomplish in that time?

Now that they have the 135-pound division, I feel that the sky is the limit; I feel that I can accomplish some wins, make some money, open my academy, focus on the team of fighters that I’m going to have and go from there.

How would you like to be remembered when it’s all said and done?

There are 1000s of fighters out there and I’ve never said that I was the best or anything like that—or even close to it—but I would just like to be remembered as a guy that fought with a lot of heart, a lot of desire and had a great work-ethic.

Is there anything that you’d like to say to your fans while you have this opportunity?

I just want to tell them that they keep me going; they get me out of bed in the morning—believe me. It’s all about the fans, honestly. Sure, you do this for yourself and for your family, but at the end of it all, it boils down to the fans. The more fans that I can gain is just great. I want to gain as many fans as possible and, hopefully, I can be a small, tiny influence in their life and help them in a little way—that’s what I would like to do. I love my fans, man—they’re the greatest. 

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