Check out Bloody Elbow’s exclusive interview with former UFC 155 pound champ Sean “The Muscle Shark” Sherk who explains why Conor McGregor needs his help.
On the 12th year anniversary of capturing the UFC lightweight title, the retired 38-4-1 (not 34-4-1) Sean “The Muscle Shark” Sherk gave an exclusive interview to Bloody Elbow where he elaborated on his recent note to Conor McGregor. In Sherk’s note, he offered to coach and share his expertise with the Irishmen following his fourth round loss to Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 229. Also on the chopping block, Sherk discussed what it’s like to retire on a win and laid out some of the ways in which he curbs the constant itch to return to action. Spoiler, there might be some baby muscle sharks doo doo doo doo swimming in the water. The interview is wrapped up with the million dollar question of who would win, primetime Muscle Shark or modern day Khabib! You can listen to the complete interview above and also read the highlights below.
- You walked away from MMA after a unanimous decision victory over Evan Dunham at UFC 119 back in 2010. How hard is it to walk away from the sport on a win?
“Well, ultimately that was the gameplan. I said many many years before I retired, that I was going to retire on a high note. I did not want to retire after a string of losses and be cut by the UFC, or be told by the UFC that it was time to retire. So, my gameplan was to retire on a high note and you know, kind of just ride off into the sunset I guess.”
- I have to ask, do you ever get that itch to get back in there?
“Yeah, I get the itch all the time. I would say initially, it was daily and as time goes on, the itch becomes less and less. I do get the itch, anytime I watch any kind of mixed martial arts fight, I get the itch. Anytime I see anything on the internet, I get the itch. When I’m training with my kids, I get the itch. Me and my youngest boy were downstairs actually this morning training Jiu-Jitsu, because he wants to start learning a lot of submission holds.
So, I can pass that knowledge along to him, so of course I get the itch. It happens a lot. It’s just part of the deal. When you surround your life, when something like that takes such a big toll on your life, you’re never going to be able to just walk away from it and say, ‘okay, I’m done,’ and then not think about it anymore. It’s always going to be on the back of your mind.”
- If your son wanted to pursue a career in MMA, is that something you would get behind or maybe steer him away from it?
“I mean, I would steer him towards it 100%. My youngest, he wants to be a professional fighter some day. Right now, he wrestles a lot and he does very well, and that helps with my itch as well. Just having him and being able to train him and coach him and pass along my knowledge, and still be a part of it even though I’m on the sideline. Having your son out there, watching him compete is pretty darn exciting. So, as of right now, he says he wants to do it. I’m all for it. If that’s what he wants to do, I’d love to be his coach and give him everything I have. Maybe someday we can be the first father-son UFC champions.”
- Some mini-muscle sharks are looming!
“Yep, yep!”
- So recently at UFC 229, Khabib Nurmagomedov submitted Conor McGregor in the fourth round, and then proceeded to jump out of the Octagon to fight McGregor’s teammate Dillon Danis, and a brawl ensued. You had to deal with the likes of B.J. Penn talking all sorts of madness leading up to your matchup, but it never boiled over like it did at UFC 229. You have been in a similar situation before, so I’m curious as to your take on the whole thing?
“In Khabib’s defense, he just was a man that was pushed over the edge. As far as I know, he’s never acted like that in the past. I could be wrong about that, but as far as I know, I don’t think he’s ever lashed out like that in the past. I think he was just a man that was pushed over the edge. when you talk about someone’s father, and their family, and their religion, and their country there’s certain things that go above and beyond trying to build a fight.
Conor McGregor is a master of pushing people over the edge, and that’s part of what makes him successful, because he’s able to push people over the edge to the point where it actually makes them less of a threat in my opinion. When you’re fighting someone angry, it takes away your thought process, it takes away your gameplanning ability, it takes away your ability to evolve as the fight progresses, because you’re fighting with anger, and the anger takes over your better senses, so to speak.
That’s what he’s a master of, and with someone like Khabib, it did not work in his favor. I think it actually pissed him off to where it made him more of a dangerous threat. As far as what took place after that, I can’t say I condone it, but I can’t say I blame him. I’ve been in his situation before, like when I fought B.J. [Penn] I had to put up with a lot of adversity that still to this day digs, gets under my skin, but it wasn’t as bad. I don’t B.J. pushed the same buttons as Conor pushed… If they do have a rematch, I think it’ll be incredible, but Conor McGregor has to make some changes in order to justify that.”
- I saw on Facebook that you had posted a note to Conor McGregor, where you mentioned how your style and Khabib’s style are quite similar, and how you’re the man that can teach him how to defeat said style. Can you elaborate on the ways in which you can take McGregor’s game to the next level?
“In order to justify a rematch, some things would have to take place differently. I would suggest maybe a change in lifestyle. Throw down the antics and get back to the basics. Where did you begin and how did you get to where you are no, you know, that kind of stuff. As far as stylistically, yeah, my style does mimic a lot of Khabib’s, or actually you could say Khabib’s style mimics mine, since it was my style first, haha.”
- Very fair!
“But, you know he’s a grinder. He’s tough as nails. He’s got phenomenal wrestling, conditioning for days, strong, the whole nine yards. So, in order to beat someone like him, you have to be able to have someone in the gym that can mimic that, and you have to feel that on a daily basis. The more you feel that, the more you start to learn how to deal with it and how to counter the kinds of stuff they do.
Just based on my style, I look at the kinds of things that stifled me, the kinds of things that frustrated me, the kind of things that worked against me. Being that me and Khabib are so close in styles, you would probably want to train with someone that not only can mimic his specific style, but then show you this is what worked against me, this was my achilles heel, this is what made it difficult for me to takedown this guy, this guy, and this guy. This is what worked on the feet, this is what worked on the ground, this is what worked as far as escapes and submissions go, so just kind of break it down. Like I said, get back to the basics and just kind of start from scratch and break it down from the beginning and start over, you know.”
- If primetime Sean Sherk faced today’s Khabib Nurmagomedov, who would take it?
“You know what, the fighter in me, I mean realistically, I was trained to believe, when I was the number one guy in the world, the UFC champion, I was trained to believe that I could beat anyone in the world. And I still believe that. So, you take Khabib right now and me in my prime, I believe I’d a won that decision, or maybe not a decision, but I believe I would have won that fight. But that’s just me talking and me being a little biased.”