Tag: Ask Dan

“Ask Dan” #4: Worked Fights, Steroids, the Death Penalty, and Chuck Norris


(Yep. Just a couple of total badasses, right there.)

Do you know what today is, gentlemen? It’s the last day of Movember, which means that tomorrow you can finally shave your upper lip and return to a somewhat normal life. To celebrate, we’re proud to present the fourth and final installment of Dan Severn’s mailbag column, in which the famously-moustached UFC Hall of Famer shares his wisdom on worked fights, steroids, the death penalty, Chuck Norris’s beard, getting buck-ass naked in a parking lot, and more hot-button issues. Our deepest gratitude goes to Dan for gracing this website with his sense of humor and weird stories for the last month. Show him some love at DanSevern.com and his Facebook page.

But before we get into that, a couple parting notes about Movember. If you grew out an impressive mo’ this year, we encourage you to enter Break.com’s Show Off Your Mo contest for a chance to win a Samsung HD camera, and feel free to post a moustache pic on CagePotato’s Facebook wall. And if you still have some money left to donate, please consider doing it on KarmaAteMyCat’s CagePotato Mo Bro page. Karma’s tireless efforts have already raised $664 at the time of this writing — amazing work, bro — and he’s trying to break the $800 mark by the end of the day. Need more incentive than helping to fight testicular and prostate cancer? How ’bout this: Today’s biggest donor will receive a CagePotato t-shirt and, if you want it, a chance to write your own contributor column on CagePotato.

And now, the stunning conclusion of “Ask Dan”…

RwilsonR asks: Have you ever seen/been involved in/know anyone involved in any worked fights? Was this ever common practice with any promotions you have fought for?


(Yep. Just a couple of total badasses, right there.)

Do you know what today is, gentlemen? It’s the last day of Movember, which means that tomorrow you can finally shave your upper lip and return to a somewhat normal life. To celebrate, we’re proud to present the fourth and final installment of Dan Severn’s mailbag column, in which the famously-moustached UFC Hall of Famer shares his wisdom on worked fights, steroids, capital punishment, Chuck Norris’s beard, getting buck-ass naked in a parking lot, and more hot-button issues. Our deepest gratitude goes to Dan for gracing this website with his sense of humor and weird stories for the last month. Show him some love at DanSevern.com and his Facebook page.

But before we get into that, a couple parting notes about Movember. If you grew out an impressive mo’ this year, we encourage you to enter Break.com’s Show Off Your Mo contest for a chance to win a Samsung HD camera, and feel free to post a moustache pic on CagePotato’s Facebook wall. And if you still have some money left to donate, please consider doing it on KarmaAteMyCat’s CagePotato Mo Bro page. Karma’s tireless efforts have already raised $664 at the time of this writing — amazing work, bro — and he’s trying to break the $800 mark by the end of the day. Need more incentive than helping to fight testicular and prostate cancer? How ’bout this: Today’s biggest donor will receive a CagePotato t-shirt and, if you want it, a chance to write your own contributor column on CagePotato.

And now, the stunning conclusion of “Ask Dan”…

RwilsonR asks: Have you ever seen/been involved in/know anyone involved in any worked fights? Was this ever common practice with any promotions you have fought for?

DAN SEVERN: I’ve certainly been approached about being involved in an MMA “work.” I also have matches that people have called “works” for a variety of reasons, that weren’t at all. Sometimes I’ve toyed with my opponents instead of just going for the kill, which has maybe looked a little suspect. I’ve been involved with promotions in which I would carry an opponent into the second round before finishing them because it would make a better show. Now those were situations I decided on my own; my opponent had no idea that was happening. I’ve also had opponents hug me at the end of a match to thank me for not killing them. Sometimes when you outclass your opponent, there is a way to win that might not fit with what the viewer expects but it saves your opponent some embarrassment and makes for a better show.

intercept 440 asks: Hey Dan, what do you make of Chael Sonnen testing positive for steroids? Do you believe Chael is a better wrestler than you?
[Ed. note: To be fair, Sonnen tested positive for an elevated level of testosterone that was never conclusively linked to steroid use.]

I actually did not know that Chael Sonnen tested positive for steroids but it’s unfortunate. I do believe that wrestlers have the upper hand in MMA because of their understanding of body control, which is more important than striking and submissions. When people test positive for steroids, I see that as a sign that they do not believe in their own capabilities. I’ve seen a number of chemically-enhanced fighters from my time-period, especially because there wasn’t any testing taking place. In fact, most of my losses — not all of them — came at the hands of people who were chemically-enhanced. If people get busted for steroids they likely don’t believe in their own abilities so they should probably move onto other things. You’re not a true champion if you have to take steroids in order to give you a physical or psychological edge.

flyingogoplata asks: Your stache versus Chuck Norris’s beard…who wins and how?

Actually, I think I just sent Chuck Norris a tweet recently. Believe it or not, I’ve had a Chuck Norris poster up in one of my weight rooms for a few years now. Truth be told though, Chuck Norris has so many cooler one liners attached to his name then Dan Severn has. For example, to my knowledge, no one has made a poster dedicated to the impressiveness of my mustache yet like they have for Chuck Norris. Maybe one day a poster will be made that gives my mustache the win but right now it’s Chuck’s world.

BuckWild asks: Being a world famous fighter has to provide some interesting and unusual moments. Please share one or two with us.

Back when it was still the No Holds Barred-era I was took part in match located in a remote rock quarry. The weather was terribly stormy and there was a serious threat of lightning. The “locker room” for the fighters was literally the parking lot so I had to change and get buck-ass naked in between two cars. There I was putting on my cup and shorts while people were walking to and from their cars. I had to put my hoodie up for at least a little sense of privacy. When the match was finally getting ready to start I remember having to smack myself just to try and kill some of the mosquitoes that had started swarming around. The promotion didn’t even have any facilities to even go to the bathroom; however, the most pressing concern was resolved for most of the audience when the beer finally arrived.

Jesus Frijoles asks: Who is your favorite author?

There was a time when I was really into reading Alfred Hitchcock books — that would have been in my high school and collegiate years. After that, I started getting really into self-improvement books like the ones written by Anthony Robbins. I’m a big believer that the mind is the greatest asset that we have as humans. My professional life just became so complicated and I had taken on so much responsibility that self-improvement books were one of the ways that I learned to be more efficient at completing tasks and setting goals.

I’ve been setting goals since my freshmen year in highschool when I read my first amateur wrestling magazine. The first magazine I read really opened up my mind because there were a lot of things that I had never been exposed to before as an amateur wrestler. The magazine talked about the psychological aspects such as game planning and other important elements such as cardiovascular training and nutrition. I was blown away at how much knowledge there was to the sport that I hadn’t known before. When I started learning to ask “why” certain techniques were used in different situations, that’s really when my ability as a wrestler flourished. There are little nuances that I am able to add to many moves; the only way I’ve been able to create my own effective style is by understanding the “why.”

DangadaDang asks: Do you believe in Hammurabi’s philosophy of “an eye for an eye” or are you more of a Bas Rutten “two eyes for an eye” kind of guy?

Well I do believe that there are always repercussions for the things that we decide to do, whether they are positive or negative. For instance, I believe in capital punishment in many cases. Right now in the United States we have an excess of a million people incarcerated, costing just shy of 30,000 a person. When you look at what they are contributing to society, it is absolutely nothing. People may say that capital punishment is inhumane but one needs to look at the inhumane act that was committed in the first place. I am a true believer that the world would be a better place if certain people were not here.

Speaking of which, intercept440 asks: How long do you think Joe Son will last in prison? and will he die from strangulation, shank, or a broken neck?

I think he will last in the sense that he will survive but there’s a good chance that he ends up as somebody’s bi-atch.

RwilsonR asks: What advice would you give to young aspiring athletes who would like to begin a professional career in MMA?

Don’t put all of your eggs in one basket. Make sure you have a plan A, B, C and D to go along with it. Everybody starting in the game wants to become a champion and a superhero. However, the reality is, so does your opponent and someone’s going to come out on the short end of the stick. I’ve always looked at my MMA career as a hobby. Sometimes it’s become more than a hobby but that’s still how I’ve always tried to look at it. I had other things that were my mainstays; MMA was a diversion. If you do think that you stand a chance at being a champion or serious contender, you need to surround yourself with the right people to motivate you. A lot of young athletes have goals and aspirations but without the right help around you it’s going to be a hard road.

“Ask Dan” #2: Fighting Royce, Body Paint, Ping Pong, and Drunks


(Beast-Mode: He invented it.)

Thanks to everybody who submitted questions to Dan Severn last week! Today’s installment of Dan’s no-holds-barred Q&A column is loaded with classic stories and grown-man wisdom, so get comfortable and read on. You can support the MMA living legend by visiting DanSevern.com and Dan’s Facebook page, and you can support us by kicking in a few bucks to CagePotato’s Movember Team Page. Keep growing them mo’s, and post your latest moustache photos on our Facebook wall…

skeletor asks: Did you ever feel bad during the no holds barred/no weight classes days destroying guys that were so much smaller then you?

Dan Severn: I never felt bad because of size difference but I did sort of feel bad in general because it was not in my nature to be violent. For example, when I had Oleg Taktarov in the cage and was dropping knees on him, and he couldn’t defend himself. The match wasn’t being halted and he didn’t have the rational mindset to tap out. Even my first loss against Royce Gracie, I was staring right into a man’s soul realizing what crude submissions that I knew weren’t working and recognizing that I was going to have to strike this guy. So I struggled more with my conscience then I ever did with an opponent. I think I am cut from a different cloth than a lot of different fighters who came from checkered pasts and were used to getting into fights. I wasn’t used to that. For instance, if you look at the fight between me and Ken Shamrock, he was adopted and grew up on the mean streets fighting. My upbringing was completely different. I don’t really understand that mentality.

When I was inside Royce’s guard, from my perspective I was in the dominant position because as a wrestler, I was used to being on top. As I am fighting I can see Royce looking over to his father in his corner, and I could see exactly what was going through his mind. His mind was saying, “Hey dad, I’m hanging in here but if you want to throw in the towel, I wouldn’t hold it against you.” Helio actually had the towel in his hand and lifted his arm up a little bit and then shook his head no. I remember thinking, you old bastard…you would sacrifice your kid for Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.


(Beast-Mode: He invented it.)

Thanks to everybody who submitted questions to Dan Severn last week! Today’s installment of Dan’s no-holds-barred Q&A column is loaded with classic stories and grown-man wisdom, so get comfortable and read on. You can support the MMA living legend by visiting DanSevern.com and Dan’s Facebook page, and you can support us by kicking in a few bucks to CagePotato’s Movember Team Page. Keep growing them mo’s, and post your latest moustache photos on our Facebook wall…

skeletor asks: Did you ever feel bad during the no holds barred/no weight classes days destroying guys that were so much smaller then you?

Dan Severn: I never felt bad because of size difference but I did sort of feel bad in general because it was not in my nature to be violent. For example, when I had Oleg Taktarov in the cage and was dropping knees on him, and he couldn’t defend himself. The match wasn’t being halted and he didn’t have the rational mindset to tap out. Even my first loss against Royce Gracie, I was staring right into a man’s soul realizing what crude submissions that I knew weren’t working and recognizing that I was going to have to strike this guy. So I struggled more with my conscience then I ever did with an opponent. I think I am cut from a different cloth than a lot of different fighters who came from checkered pasts and were used to getting into fights. I wasn’t used to that. For instance, if you look at the fight between me and Ken Shamrock, he was adopted and grew up on the mean streets fighting. My upbringing was completely different. I don’t really understand that mentality.

When I was inside Royce’s guard, from my perspective I was in the dominant position because as a wrestler, I was used to being on top. As I am fighting I can see Royce looking over to his father in his corner, and I could see exactly what was going through his mind. His mind was saying, “Hey dad, I’m hanging in here but if you want to throw in the towel, I wouldn’t hold it against you.” Helio actually had the towel in his hand and lifted his arm up a little bit and then shook his head no. I remember thinking, you old bastard…you would sacrifice your kid for Gracie Jiu-Jitsu.

bgoldstein asks: Can you please explain what you’re wearing in this picture? 

This was for the Arnold Shwarzenegger Classic. That is actually body paint, as I was dressed up as one of the Predators. There was something going on in which they were honoring Arnold and they had the different characters that he had gone up against and I was in this tanning salon supplies booth and they asked if they could airbrush me to be the Predator. It was probably one of the kookier things that I’ve been involved with in terms of standing there in my trunks and letting someone airbrush paint me in front of everyone. Later in the evening, there was an event in which they brought up the various Predators on stage as a tribute to Arnold. It was kind of cool because they did such a good job — it looks like I’m actually wearing a costume.

Luiz Alexandre asks: When you are not fighting/coaching/giving seminars, what do you do to chill out?

I play a mean game of ping pong. It seems that at all the different wrestling camps that I attended, there would always be ping pong tables set up. So once training was done and you were just sitting around trying to kill time, there was always ping pong to play. We’d always set up tournaments with the other campers. Actually my kids are pretty good ping pong players as well. That comedy movie Balls of Fury that came out a few years ago is one of my favorites. I’m more of a physical type of game player than a video gamer. I do like the new version of the Wii games because it gets people moving instead of being sedentary — something that I have against the boob tube, computers, and hand-held devices which have literally helped contribute to the U.S.A. becoming one of the most obese countries on the planet. We are the land of plenty, which is good, but at some point you’ve got to learn to say no.

bgoldstein (again) asks: How did you feel when Tom Lawlor came out dressed as you for the UFC 113 weigh-ins?

I laughed and thought it was really funny. It’s cool to know that people respect me and impersonation is a part of that. The fact that he chose to wear the small shorts and the mustache and do that signature scream that I do, I thought it was great. I actually had quite a few friends send me the link to this when it happened.

BuckWild asks: Was there ever someone you were afraid of that you had to fight? Even a little?

I was probably more afraid in my younger days but fear was never really something I struggled with. I was calm…perhaps too calm. Big John McCarthy refereed some of my early matches and before the fights he would always go over the rules with each of the fighters backstage. So when he asked us in the cage if there were any questions, he usually didn’t expect fighters to have any last-minute questions. However, when he asked me I would always try and say something corny like, “Where did all that money go that my parents paid for piano lessons?” He said that when he heard it, he looked back but he could not believe that it was me who said it because I had my game face on.

The next time I came up I said, “You know I wouldn’t need to do something like this if you’d just give me the winning lottery numbers.” Each time, I had my one liner in there which was one of the ways that helped to keep me relaxed. I got to know Big John and his wife Elaine McCarthy pretty well — she was the travel agent for the UFC back when Art Davie and Rorian Gracie owned it — and during one of the matches I actually started having a conversation with Big John. He told me later that I was one of the scariest guys he’d ever met because I was carrying on like it was no big deal. There are referees and rules and regulations so there really isn’t a lot to worry about.

Situations outside of competitive sports can be scarier sometimes. I’ve actually been in more confrontations in the last 17 years or so than I had in the previous 17 years. That’s because I do a lot of appearances at sports bars and they tend to have a patron there who may have had too much to drink and they start being ignorant. There were probably three occasions where a drunken person was being rude enough that a fight could’ve actually happened. However, what I did to either defuse the situation or let them know my intentions, I would whip out my business card, write down the number to the UFC and hand it to them. I’d simply tell them that I’d never fought for free and I didn’t plan on starting any bad habits now. I’d say the nice thing about fighting me in the UFC is that there are rules, a referee and you won’t be more than 40 feet away from a medical practitioner at any time. I’d tell them that if this was going to go down right now without a referee and rules, you are going to want to make sure you at least have medical attention. Luckily, I never had to fight anybody because I guess that they could see I was a man of my word!

Brad Falk asks: What’s the best way to kill a bear?

I don’t think a person is going to be able to kill a bear using their bare hands. So either it has a heart attack in the process of it killing you or it chokes and dies as its eating. One way or another, it’ll get you. I’ve never heard of a human being victorious over a bear in hand-to-hand combat. My advice to you, Brad, is to stick to the city, don’t wander into the woods.

“Ask Dan” #1: Dan Severn Still Wants Coleman and Shamrock, Will Likely Retire Next Year

dan severn photos mma ufc ken shamrock
(Severn and Shamrock: They were like the Michael Jackson and Prince of big, white grapplers who competed in early ’90s no-holds-barred matches.)

Happy Movember, everybody! In honor of the hairiest month of the year, we convinced UFC Hall of Famer Dan Severn to write a weekly column for CagePotato.com. For the first installment, he plucked some topics from our Facebook page, but he’s up for answering anything about his life, career, and moustache, so drop your own suggestions in the comments section. Visit DanSevern.com and Dan’s Facebook page for more Beast-related updates, and join the CagePotato Movember team if you want to help support a good cause!

Matthew Poulin asks: How many fights do you still want?

Dan Severn: It’s not so much how many fights I want to have. I want specific fights right now. I’ve had some verbal offers but haven’t had the opportunity to bring some of these matches to life. Two particular matches I’m still interested are ones with Mark Coleman and Ken Shamrock. Realistically, I think that 2012 will be my final year as an MMA competitor. So whatever gets done gets done; whatever doesn’t, I’ll have to learn to live with I guess.

dan severn photos mma ufc ken shamrock
(Severn and Shamrock: They were like the Michael Jackson and Prince of big, white grapplers who competed in early ’90s no-holds-barred matches.)

Happy Movember, everybody! In honor of the hairiest month of the year, we convinced UFC Hall of Famer Dan Severn to write a weekly column for CagePotato.com. For the first installment, he plucked some topics from our Facebook page, but he’s up for answering anything about his life, career, and moustache, so drop your own suggestions in the comments section. Visit DanSevern.com and Dan’s Facebook page for more Beast-related updates, and join the CagePotato Movember team if you want to help support a good cause!

Matthew Poulin asks: How many fights do you still want?

Dan Severn: It’s not so much how many fights I want to have. I want specific fights right now. I’ve had some verbal offers but haven’t had the opportunity to bring some of these matches to life. Two particular matches I’m still interested are ones with Mark Coleman and Ken Shamrock. Realistically, I think that 2012 will be my final year as an MMA competitor. So whatever gets done gets done; whatever doesn’t, I’ll have to learn to live with I guess.

Matthew Gingerfunky Hoggart asks: Do you regret taking your last fight?

I can’t regret taking the fight but it didn’t happen at the best time in my career. What the fans see is one aspect but they don’t have a clue as to what I endured for 3 ½ to 4 months before the fight in terms of taking care of my father. Prior to my last fight, my siblings and I were providing home hospice-type care for my father and since I have the most flexible schedule, I was the primary caregiver during the normal working day times. On weekends I would leave late Friday and would be back late Sunday to resume my duties. And I would not change that for the world.

Todd Levin asks: How did you come up with “The Severn”? It’s a very useful wrestling move that is not widely known.

Todd, I don’t even know what you’re asking me. If it’s a technique that you think I created, I’m not sure what you’re referring to specifically. I apologize. I do so many seminars and people are blown away by the mechanics of what I show. The unfortunate thing about a lot of the things I do is it’s not fan friendly because the spectators cannot see my opponent’s pain. But trust me; most people are blown away by the amount of pain that I can inflict. And there will come a day when they will realize what a 53 year old guy can really do.

Ben Silverfox Latham asks: I’d like to know what you think about the way the UFC has changed since you were in it all those years ago, and while you were in it did you ever think it could become so huge?

Okay well Ben, it had to change or else we would be thinking about it in past tense. There was a lot pressure that was coming down from athletic commissions, legislators and politicians who were looking to change the “No Holds Barred” style. The concessions that were made have created the byproduct that is mixed martial arts. As far as the excitement level and the potential for greatness…after watching the first two UFCs on VHS, as I watched other friends inside my living room react to what they were watching, I knew that there was something there. In some ways our society has advanced, but when it boils right down to it, there is a primal, prehistoric captivation about violent acts for people. For example, why does everybody slow down when they see an accident? Nobody admits that they want to see anything – even to themselves — but they do.

When I was watching in the beginning, I was able to view the pain. So as I was watching, I wasn’t watching as a fan to see what kind of outfit the fighters were coming out in or what their walkout music was. I was looking at the actual mechanics. What were the competitors actually bringing to the table…are they strikers? Are they grapplers? I think that fighters see things totally different. You study weakness and strengths of the competitors compared to your own set of skills.

Mike Skytte asks: What do you think of the development of today’s fighters?

Fighters will always develop according to the rules. For example, if they were to make any rule change – regardless of what it may be – you would see the athletes evolve in a different direction. Take the example of time limits. If there was unlimited time or if there were stalemates, that would change how athletes would prepare. The rules really dictate what the fighters are able to do and train for. Certain things that I teach right now are that you are able to exploit some of the rules in the way that you attack or counter-attack in the heat of the action, if the way that you apply the attack is disguised. There is black and white in the sport but there is also a lot of gray.