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Chael Sonnen and Ronda Rousey Discuss Summer Olympics 2012 in London

Chael Sonnen and Ronda Rousey are two mixed martial artists that had successful amateur sports backgrounds. While Sonnen was never able to achieve his Olympic dreams, Rousey became the first American female to medal in Judo since the sport was added in…

Many know Sonnen for his “Chael P.” persona. However, those who are close to him know that he’s extremely passionate about freestyle and greco wrestling. At UFC 148, I had the opportunity to speak with him about the upcoming summer games in London, England.

“The team is really strong and the process was really hard. They’re down to only seven weight classes. Some sports get to take the top three people,” said Sonnen to Bleacher Report. “We’ll go over there and in some sports the US will win the gold and the silver.”

“In wrestling they take one,” he said.

“So every four years, seven guys get an opportunity. I tremendously respect all of those guys that are chasing that and after that one moment of gratification. I love it. I’m going to London to cheer them on.”

Chael would also address if he would rather be known as “Olympic Medalist Chael Sonnen” or “UFC middleweight champion Chael Sonnen”. His answer was indirect, yet still surprising. Especially on the eve of the biggest fight of his career.

“There’s very few things, if any, that trump the Olympic games. The Olympics is the pinnacle of athletics.”

As stated above, Rousey is the first American female to win a medal in Judo at the Olympics. She has quite the lineage as her mother was also a standout judoka who was the first and only American to win at the World Judo Championships.

Rousey is currently preparing for her first bantamweight title defense, in which she’ll face number one contender Sarah Kaufman next month in San Diego.

During UFC 148 weekend, I had the pleasure of speaking with her about the games and if there is any regret that she was not there supporting her colleagues and friends as they compete for a medal.

“That part of my life is over and I’m very, very happy for my teammates that are going to be going to London,” Rousey told Bleacher Report. “I have the utmost confidence in them but if my teammate Kayla goes and wins the Olympic medal as the first American to even win a gold medal in Judo, I will be nothing but happy for her.”

“Because the success really is the journey and not the destination. I had that problem with judo towards the end where I was so focused on the destination that I didn’t care if I was miserable every day,” she explained. “I’m not willing to be miserable for four years so I can possibly be happy for one day.”

“And what I learned when I won the Olympic medal is that it’s not some fairy tale ending where you get your medal and you go home and it’s just sunshine and lollipops forever.” Rousey would go on to say, “you have real life, and I looked at my past experience—and what I knew would be required of me to be the best in the world in judo—and I know that it’s not for me anymore.”

“There’s no regrets there at all.”

Rousey became the Strikeforce bantamweight champion earlier this year when she defeated Miesha Tate with an armbar. That win cemented her as one of the hottest stars in MMA and the newest face of Women’s MMA.

She began to address which victory meant more to her before getting sidetracked and giving me a deeper look at her love of Judo and her life before MMA.

“They’re both equal but different. The Olympic medal—I feel like I was coming to peace with myself and a lot of torment that was in myself,” said Rousey. “Getting some closure on my judo career and everything that had happened. I had a very unconventional upbringing and a lot of it had to do with judo.”

“At the end of the fight I leaned down and kissed the mat and left. Everyone was thinking ‘that’s so weird, why would she do that? That’s a Middle Eastern thing.’ I just knew that would be the last time I would be there. I really was kissing it goodbye.”

The Summer Olympic Games begin on July 27 and will be airing on the NBC suite of channels. Judo starts on July 28, while wrestling begins August 5.

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Strikeforce Rockhold vs. Kennedy Results: Jason High Gets Jobbed Not on TV

It was one of the funniest jokes on twitter. Adding the hashtag #SinceJasonHighLastFought to tweets about current events of various levels of importance. We did it partly because it was a travesty that Jason waited almost a year for a fight and partly …

I’m one of those people. I make absolutely no bones about being friendly with Jason. He was one of the first professional fighters to truly embrace the medium and use it to interact with fans and media. He’s so good at it that many considered him the all-star of last year’s fighter summit, as he kept us all in the loop about the various Zuffa happenings.

He’s currently on a seven fight win streak and has been undefeated in almost two years. In that time frame he’s defeated Japanese MMA legend Hayato “Mach” Sakurai and Jordan Mein. Yes, the same Jordan Mein whose fight was aired last night on Showtime.

He’s now 3-0 in Strikeforce yet I’m not sure there’s actually any video evidence to support this. I’m pretty positive I remember him fighting Quinn Mulhern on television, but I couldn’t actually say this with 100 percent confidence.

It’s obvious that Jason’s annoyed at this as well. He’s everything a promoter asks for in a fighter. He’s great with fans and won’t ever make a rape joke. He’ll interact with anyone who tweets at him and drop some next level knowledge whenever asked. And they’ll never have to worry about a failed drug test as Jason is outspoken when discussing PED usage in sports (he’s against it).

So back to the original point, if Jason High fights and no one sees it, did it really happen?

I’d like to think it did. He apparently won his fight in 26 seconds by what he calls a “gullytine“. It’s a guillotine that’s just mad gully. For those that need a definition, gully means either hood or real.

And here’s the realness: Jason got jobbed last night.

Showtime apparently didn’t even bother recording the choke. I’m only guessing but with it only going 26 seconds, you’d figure they’d at least have time to add it to a video package or montage. I’m upset about that but the biggest travesty is that they couldn’t even mention him in the graphics.

That’s dirty and Jason has every right to be upset. I hope this was just an honest mistake where all the cameramen left the lens caps on their cameras totally by accident. And then the graphics guy at Showtime Sports forgot to add him to the list of wins from the broadcast. And then Pat, Mauro, and Frank also all happened to miss the fight so they couldn’t mention it at any point during the broadcast.

It’s plausible. Right?

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Strikeforce Rockhold vs. Kennedy Results: Live Reaction and Play-by-Play

Strikeforce is back! Yep! It’s back! There’s an event totally happening tonight live in Portland.In the main event, Luke Rockhold looks to defend his middleweight title against No. 1 contender Tim Kennedy. The two are considered the cornerstones of Str…

Strikeforce is back! Yep! It’s back! There’s an event totally happening tonight live in Portland.

In the main event, Luke Rockhold looks to defend his middleweight title against No. 1 contender Tim Kennedy. The two are considered the cornerstones of Strikeforce’s middleweight division and will likely be transitioned over to the UFC when that time finally arrives.

In the co-main event, Tyron Woodley and Nate Marquardt square off for the now vacant welterweight title. The belt has been without a champion since Nick Diaz made his way over to the UFC. This fight pits a very strong and dominant wrestler in Woodley against one of the most well-rounded veterans of the sport in Marquardt.

The nine-fight card kicks off at 8 p.m. on Showtime Extreme and continues to 10 p.m. on Showtime. Sorry West Coast, you won’t be seeing it live.

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Alliance Training Center: The Big Secret of San Diego’s MMA Scene

“It was all a dream, I used to read ‘Word Up’ magazine…”Brandon Vera starts quoting Notorious B.I.G. and I know that I will be enjoying this interview. As an East Coast native, Biggie Smalls is just part of my DNA so anyone who knows the words to ‘Ju…

“It was all a dream, I used to read ‘Word Up’ magazine…”

Brandon Vera starts quoting Notorious B.I.G. and I know that I will be enjoying this interview. As an East Coast native, Biggie Smalls is just part of my DNA so anyone who knows the words to ‘Juicy’ is a-okay by me.

Sorry, I’m getting ahead of myself.

Following UFC 148 I drove out to San Diego with the goal of speaking with Vera and other fighters about the Alliance Training Center. Home to guys such as Dominick Cruz, Phil Davis, Alex Gufstafsson, and Vera, it’s one of the best gyms in the country, yet also one of the least known. I had nothing scheduled in advance, I just hoped that if I gave them a call they would welcome me with opened arms.

It worked.

So here I am, sitting in on the professional fighter practice, watching Brandon Vera and Phil Davis clinch fight in the cage. To say I feel fortunate would be a massive understatement. Most gyms are very protective about their pro practices, yet Vera is fine with me watching them train.

The gym will never be mistaken for a high society health club. It’s a where fighters come to train and be the best that they can possibly be. Photographs and magazine covers adorn the walls and the entrance is set up so you walk right into TRX stations.

The gym is Vera’s brain child.

It all started back in 2002 when he’d jump from gym to gym trying to learn as much as possible to become a great fighter. While that doesn’t seem like a huge deal, in Jiu Jitsu circles it is, and he was labeled a “creonte” or traitor.

He was a student of Lloyd Irvin and a plan started to formulate in his head after discussions with his teacher. He envisioned a gym where anyone could come to train without there being drama or hard feelings.

It finally became a reality one day when the Noguiera brothers, Junior Dos Santos, Travis Browne, as well as all the members of the Alliance team were training together. He remembers it vividly as if it were yesterday.

“They were just looking around. We’re not all on the same team but everybody was here training together. They said ‘damn shorty, you did it. A lot of people talk about their dreams but you made this one happen.’ That’s how it all happened man, it was all a dream.”

Listening and watching him speak, I can tell that he is truly proud of what he was able to put together. Running a business is difficult in itself, but being able to balance it while also being a full-time fighter, it’s obvious that Brandon has found his calling.

It works because everyone leaves their egos at the door and everyone is willing to help out. UFC Bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz is currently rehabilitating a knee injury, yet he was still at practice giving advice to Jeremy Stephens.

“With my knee, I’m here to coach these guys and make them better. When I fight, all these guys gather around to help me become a better fighter as a team. When you’re fighting everyone is helping you. When you’re not, you’re helping everybody else,” Cruz explains. “That’s what keeps the team mentality because we’re always in here.”

Besides the camaraderie, a big reason for their success is head coach Eric Del Fierro. His name may not be as recognizable as Greg Jackson’s but he’s every bit as important to the development of his fighters and their success.

Jeremy Stephens is one of the newest members of the team and spoke about how much training at Alliance has improved him in such a short period of time.

“The MMA coaching here with Eric Del Fierro and my boxing coach Adrian Melendez, has definitely put a whole different perspective on my game and how I work. I’m just getting started with these guys and now I get time to work with them and get a lot better at what I’m good at.”

Stephens isn’t the only one with praise for the coaching stylings of Del Fierro. Cruz is one of his oldest students and attributes a lot of his success to his coach.

“Working with Eric, I kind of don’t know how it’s improved me just because I started making improvements when I started working with Eric and that was four or five years ago. That being said, it’s just been progressive between the two of us.”

He added, “he’s become a better coach I think through the years, learning the process of going through a training camp. Together we made it all the way up to the top.”

While the family atmosphere and coaching are both major aspects to the gym’s success, it’s the opinion of the author that the most unique part of the gym is that everyone is willing to fight anyone for a shot at the gold.

Last week I posted an exclusive interview with Dominick Cruz who explained that he was willing to fight a teammate for a title. Brandon Vera explained in more detail about the gym’s mentality of teammates fighting teammates.

“Everybody here understands and knows that there is and can come a day when we will be fighting each other. Everybody is just fine with that sh*t. Every body knows. Me, Phil, Alex, everybody,” Vera said. “Everybody knows they could end up fighting each other, we don’t care.”

“We even go so far as to talk about how long we’re gonna train together before the fight,” he added. “Are we going to train together all the way to the fight or are we going to train four weeks together and then four weeks apart? Are we going to train all the way to weight cutting? We’ve gone into detail.”

This stuck with me. It’s refreshing to hear that not only is a gym’s attitude supporting training partners fighting each other, but it’s also nice to hear that they all have plans in place in case they are faced with that situation.

Walking around the gym, I couldn’t help but feel motivated. Watching such high level fighters work together to improve showed me that MMA can be a team sport. You just need to have the right mindset to do it properly.

Everyone was helping Vera get ready for his fight against Shogun, including Jake Shields, who was in helping him with his Jiu Jitsu. While it may not be the most recognizable gym currently, in the next couple of years it could be home to multiple champions. I can’t wait to see what future champions they can develop.

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Ross Pearson and George Sotiropoulos Announced as TUF: UK vs Australia Coaches

The UFC continues its international expansion with their next installment of The Ultimate Fighter. This upcoming season will pit the best prospects from the United Kingdom against the best that Australia has to offer. In a surprising move, the UFC…

The UFC continues its international expansion with their next installment of The Ultimate Fighter. This upcoming season will pit the best prospects from the United Kingdom against the best that Australia has to offer.

In a surprising move, the UFC has named Georges Sotiropoulus and Ross Pearson as the coaches for this upcoming season, as confirmed by UFC President Dana White.

Both fighters actually made their way to the UFC by the competing on the show, and Pearson won his season which saw the UK compete against the United States.

It is expected that the two coaches will compete at the end of the season. It will mark a return to lightweight for Pearson, who was unable to find the same success at featherweight.

George Sotiropoulos was a contestant on the sixth season of the Ultimate Fighter as a member of Matt Serra’s team. He was one of the favorites to win the season but was upset in the semifinals in his bout against Tommy Spear.

He’s been floundering in the lightweight division ever since, putting together a string of wins before suffering back to back losses to Dennis Siver and Rafael Dos Anjos.

Pearson has had a similar run in the UFC. He was able to put together a string of wins at lightweight before trying to reinvent himself at featherweight. He suffered a knockout loss at the hands of Cub Swanson at UFC on FX 4 in Atlantic City in June.

The season is expected to begin filming this week in Australia. There has been no update on when it will air in the United States or which of the Fox suite of channels it will be be broadcast on.

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Dominick Cruz Exclusive Interview: "I Want That Belt More Than Anything"

Dominick Cruz was expected to face his longtime rival Urijah Faber at UFC 148 in a rubber match for his bantamweight title. Unfortunately, he suffered a knee injury and was unable to compete on the card. While Cruz is on the sidelines, his teammate Mik…

After his win over Ivan Menjivar, Easton spoke with Bleacher Report’s Jeremy Botter. He spoke about how Ivan Menjivar was apparently up for a title shot—had he won—and believes that he’s now earned that shot at the belt.

Teammates fighting teammates has been one of the most discussed topics in MMA. Camps such as Greg Jackson’s apparently have fighters agree to not fight their teammates, no matter what is at stake. Cruz doesn’t understand what the big fuss is about.

“To me, and me and Mike have talked about this, I really don’t understand the mentality of ‘I don’t want to fight my teammates,’ especially if it’s for a belt. For a belt, definitely, no question. That’s what we do this for,” Cruz told Bleacher Report in an exclusive interview.

“But really, if I’m chasing the belt in any part of this division and if I really want to be a world champion, you’ve gotta understand that the people you’re training with are probably trying to be as good as you are. You might run into them,” he said.

He makes a fantastic point—fighters aren’t getting into this sport to not be the best. They want that belt as much as everyone else they train with, and there will likely be a time when both are fighting for the top spot in the division.

We’ve seen it happen with Jon Jones and Rashad Evans, as well as currently with Georges St. Pierre and Carlos Condit. Both train with Greg Jackson.

“There’s only a top-five in the division that you end up getting to that you have to fight to get your chance at the belt,” Cruz said. “Well, after awhile your friends might work into the top five. Once you work into the top five, you have to understand that I want that belt more than anything.”

“We beat the crap out of each other in practice anyways. We beat the hell out of each other. The only difference is now there’s a stage for it to be on. In any situation, I feel that friends set that aside to fight for business.

“If you want to be that world champion, you have to be willing to beat anybody on this planet—no strings attached,” Cruz said.

That last line strikes me to the core. If you want to be the best in the world, you have to be willing to prove it by fighting the best in the world.

Friendships will last beyond that 25 minutes in a cage. Leave the ego at the door and see what happens.

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