Life after fighting will get bad for many mixed martial arts (MMA) legends.
Recently, several former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighters have declared severe health problems because of the ongoing UFC antitrust lawsuit, which recently reached a second settlement to the tune of $375 million. UFC and Pride legend Wanderlei Silva is one of many to have declared he is suffering from chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) symptoms, as well as former UFC Heavyweight Fabricio Werdum.
Dozens of other fighters have also declared.
Recently, former UFC fighter and podcast host Brendan Schaub revealed a very troubling update from his former training partner, former UFC interim Heavyweight Shane Carwin.
“Shane has paid a dear price. You’re talking about one of the smartest guys to ever fight in combat sports,” Schaub said on his podcast. “Shane, you know, can’t even keep a job. He went from being an engineer to he can’t be a bouncer at an f—king bar. He can’t. So that’s what you’re dealing with. Shane’s in the thick of it, man. There’s nothing we can do; we tried to get him help.”
Shauab revealed that UFC flew Carwin out to Las Vegas when they heard the news.
“You know, the UFC did fly him down to the Apex thing, and they tried to do stuff,” Shaub said. “So to Dana [White’s] credit, you know, as soon as Dana found out he – that’s who I called. I went through my contacts and tried to get Shane some help. And as soon as Dana heard that Shane was having some issues, he flew Shane down there, and they tried to help. I don’t know enough about it. I don’t know if anyone does. But he’s the worst of the worst right now.”
Being unable to get a job after fighting in the UFC is sad and shouldn’t be the case, especially for a former UFC champion. Carwin declared this in the UFC antitrust lawsuit, which is very, very grim.
“You’ll hear some guys that say they have CTE, and we blow it off, right? Shane’s a former world champion. It also didn’t have that long of a career overall. Shane didn’t have a ton of fights,” Shaub said. “So he says, ‘While fighting for [UFC], I suffered many severe injuries and concussions. I fear that during my career, I’ve suffered a traumatic brain injury, which has led to depression, mood swings, and irritability.”
“Cognitive tests conducted at the Cleveland Clinic say I’ve suffered damage to my prefrontal cortex and left hemisphere. I spend days in bed suffering from bouts of paranoia and, fear, anxiety. I’ve been hospitalized twice to treat addiction. Despite having a degree in engineering from the Colorado School of Minds, I’ve been unable to maintain adequate focus to hold down my engineering job. I face serious challenges, which mean basic everyday expenses for food and shelter,” Shaub concluded, saying he needed a break from crying.
Shaub would continue and reveal that Carwin’s wife had stage four cancer but doesn’t know if he has passed away.
The former UFC fighter made it a point to say Carwin was not a big dumb fighter and that this would have happened if he had fought in any promotion.
“Here’s what’s going on; we’re talking about a former f—king world champion, one of the best knockout artists ever even though he didn’t have a crazy, long career,” Shaub said. “He can’t afford food, shelter, and transportation to function in life. So I’m not hating on UFC. I’m not hating on Dana. This would have happened if Shane fought in Pride, if you fought in PFL, One Championship, It’s tough, right? So, let’s say they win the lawsuit. Let’s say they win. They send Shane; I don’t know. Let’s play in the crazy world. Let’s say Shane gets $30 million to take care of everything, and food and transportation are not a a worry of his anymore. He still fucked, dude. He has kids.
“I’m a f—king moron. So, if I get any dumber, it’s like whatever. Shane wasn’t dumb. Shane was a very high-functioning human being in this world. Shane is smart amongst smart people. Shame got a degree from the School of Minds. That’s the Harvard of the f—king Midwest. School of Minds is so hard to get into, and he dominated that shit. He can barely tie his f—king shoes.”
Carwin fought six times in UFC and only lost twice, which is pretty remarkable yet puzzling as to why his health is so bad. However, Shaub revealed he and Carwin went to war for years in the gym, knocking each other out.
At the end of Schaub’s episode, he pleaded for his former promotion to step in and help Shane by giving him money because he believes he has little time left and won’t see any of the money coming from the UFC antitrust lawsuit.