It can be hard to find a way back out when a person heads down the wrong path in life, especially if they fall into the trap of becoming entrenched in gang culture, where the threat of death or prison always looms large over their heads. Some fighters know this only too well and can […]
It can be hard to find a way back out when a person heads down the wrong path in life, especially if they fall into the trap of becoming entrenched in gang culture, where the threat of death or prison always looms large over their heads.
Some fighters know this only too well and can ruefully speak from first-hand experience, but for them, there was an escape route from the chaotic life they were leading, with mixed martial arts proving to be their salvation.
In this article we’ll look at 10 such cases, exploring the often bleak and tragic circumstances that led to their decision to join a gang in the first place, the trouble it caused them, and how pursuing a career in MMA helped turn their lives around and lead them all the way to the UFC.
Tito Ortiz
UFC Hall of Famer Tito Ortiz rose to become one of the most famous fighters ever to compete in the sport, which is quite an achievement when you consider his childhood.
Both of his parents were heroin addicts, so Ortiz was fending for himself on the streets of Santa Ana, California, from an early age.
As young as five years old, Ortiz had already drunk beer and smoked cigarettes, and by nine he’d joined one of the region’s most notorious gangs, ‘F-Troop,’ after going through their initiation beating which saw him repeatedly sucker-punched by other members to prove his toughness.
According to Ortiz in his biography, ‘This Is Going To Hurt,’ he was soon getting into trouble doing “hoodlum stuff,” and in the years that followed he robbed houses and cars, fought rival gangs, tried “just about every drug there was to do except heroin,” and was “in and out of juvenile hall.”
After one of Ortiz’s friends was shot and killed next to him in a drive-by shooting, his mother moved with him to Huntington Beach, and with the police cracking down on gang culture in that area, Ortiz would turn his attention to wrestling and slowly but surely, he moved away from his troubled past and set out on a new path in mixed martial arts that would lead to him becoming a UFC champion.
The UFC is live in Austin, Texas, tonight with a lineup of crowd-pleasing fighters and a featherweight main event that could maybe produce the next title challenger, particularly if Conor McGregor isn’t available. On tonight’s menu: Frankie Edgar vs. Cub Swanson in the headliner spot, with a side order of Bobby Green vs. Edson Barboza, and a light dusting of Joseph Benavidez, Brad Pickett, and Jared Rosholt. Should be pretty okay.
The UFC Fight Night 57 main card kicks off on FOX Sports 1 at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT, and our old friend Matt Kaplan will be stickin’ round-by-round results after the jump. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and shoot us your own thoughts in the comments section or on twitter @cagepotatomma. Thanks for being here.
The UFC is live in Austin, Texas, tonight with a lineup of crowd-pleasing fighters and a featherweight main event that could maybe produce the next title challenger, particularly if Conor McGregor isn’t available. On tonight’s menu: Frankie Edgar vs. Cub Swanson in the headliner spot, with a side order of Bobby Green vs. Edson Barboza, and a light dusting of Joseph Benavidez, Brad Pickett, and Jared Rosholt. Should be pretty okay.
The UFC Fight Night 57 main card kicks off on FOX Sports 1 at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT, and our old friend Matt Kaplan will be stickin’ round-by-round results after the jump. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and shoot us your own thoughts in the comments section or on twitter @cagepotatomma. Thanks for being here.
UFC Fight Night 57 Preliminary Card Results
– Ruslan Magomedov def. Josh Copeland via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27 x2)
– Roger Narvaez def. Luke Barnatt via split-decision (29-28 x 2, 28-29)
– James Vick def. Nick Hein via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28 x 2)
– Akbarh Arreola def. Yves Edwards via submission (armbar), 1:52 of round 1
– Paige VanZant def. Kailin Curran via TKO, 2:54 of round 3
– Doo Ho Choi def. Juan Manuel Puig via TKO, 0:18 of round 1
MATT WIMAN VS. ISAAC VALLIE-FLAGG
Rd. 1 – Wiman opens it up with a lead leg kick and an overhand right. Vallie-Flagg counters, and Wiman presses him against the cage. They separate and Vallie-Flagg lands a nice uppercut. Vallie-Flagg applies shoulder pressure to Wiman in a clinch against the cage; Wiman lands a few elbows, but it’s Vallie-Flagg who lands the punch combinations that keep Handsome Matt on the fence. More short elbows from Wiman, and now a knee; Vallie-Flaggfires back, keeping the pressure on Wiman. Wiman lands a knee to the body and another strong elbow to the head. Wiman stuffs a takedown attempt and takes Vallie-Flagg’s back. Transition to an armbar…triangle control…that’s the round. Most of that roound was spent against the cage.
Rd. 2 – Vallie-Flagg strikes first with an uppercut-cross combo to Wiman’s jaw. Big punches in the clinch from Vallie-Flagg follow, and again Vallie-Flagg has Wiman ‘s back against the fence. More of the same, though: Wiman gets off some inside elbows. Ooh, both exchange elbows inside the clinch. Big uppercut from Wiman on the inside. Wiman lands an overhand right in the center of the cage. Vallie-Flagg pushes him back on the fence. Wiman reverses position and again scores with the ‘bows. Big right hand exchange program in the center of the cage. Uppercut from Vallie-Flagg. His takedown attaempt is again thwarted, his back is again taken, and it’s Wiman working for the RNC. Vallie-Flagg escapes and has Wiman on the fence again. Vallie-Flagg punches the body. Wiman elbows the jaw. Vallie-Flagg hits with elbows of his own. Wiman knees the body. The horn sounds as Wiman lands a big overhand right.
Rd. 3 – A lead uppercut from Vallie-Flagg opens the final round. Just seconds into the third, both are again up against the cage, this time with Wiman pressing the action. Yamasaki separates them, and it’s Vallie-Flagg again landing uppercut-friendly punch combos. Vallie-Flagg knees from inside the clinch. Wiman lands a good left hook to end a brief punch exchange. Vallie-Flagg has Wiman on the fence and wants that single leg. Wiman stuffs it and has Vallie-Flagg’s back for a third time, again searching for the RNC. Wiman punches away as he wants to finish the RNC with a minute left. Vallie-Flagg can’t go anywhere with the hooks in and is taking the short punches. Time. And that’s the fight. Ooh, they’re still shit talking one another. That was a close, competitive opening fight.
”Handsome” Matt Wiman wins the unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27 x2).
(Damn it, TJ. You’re supposed to hold the imaginary title belt above your head.)
UFC 173 may not be heavy on star power, but it presents some interesting opportunities for the MMA fan with a crippling gambling addiction looking to make a few bucks this weekend. Join staff writers Jared Jonesand Seth Falvo as they break down their favorite fights, underdogs and the most creative ways to flush your hard earned cash down the crapper in a “versus” style edition of the gambling addiction enabler. Will Renan Barao extend his winning streak? Is Daniel Cormier a lock against the aging Dan Henderson? Read on for our picks – with odds courtesy of 5Dimes.eu– and may the winnings be yours.
The Good Dogs
Jared: I’d like to start by preemptively shaming you, Seth, as well as the Potato Nation, and truly, every last so-called “MMA fan” who isn’t giving Dan Henderson a smidgen of hope against Daniel Cormier tomorrow night. Seriously, you guys are the worst.
I don’t care if he’s fighting Fedor on Zeus’ shoulders and both can punch but only Zeus can kick, Dan Henderson should *never* be listed at anything worse than even odds. He’s defeated heavyweights, light heavyweights, middleweights, supposed Emperors, and more legends of the sport than pugilistic dementia. That he’s currently hovering around the +600 mark is not only an insult to the man, the myth, the psuedo-Native American that is “Hollywood,” but a disgrace to this sport on par with YAMMA Pit Fighting. TRT, SchmeeRT, Dan Henderson will walk through Cormier’s punches before delivering his greatest H-Bomb to date, at 2:03 of the second round, amen. Say it with me, folks: Dan. F*cking. Henderson.
(Damn it, TJ. You’re supposed to hold the imaginary title belt above your head.)
UFC 173 may not be heavy on star power, but it presents some interesting opportunities for the MMA fan with a crippling gambling addiction looking to make a few bucks this weekend. Join staff writers Jared Jonesand Seth Falvo as they break down their favorite fights, underdogs and the most creative ways to flush your hard earned cash down the crapper in a “versus” style edition of the gambling addiction enabler. Will Renan Barao extend his winning streak? Is Daniel Cormier a lock against the aging Dan Henderson? Read on for our picks – with odds courtesy of 5Dimes.eu– and may the winnings be yours.
The Good Dogs
Jared: I’d like to start by preemptively shaming you, Seth, as well as the Potato Nation, and truly, every last so-called “MMA fan” who isn’t giving Dan Henderson a smidgen of hope against Daniel Cormier tomorrow night. Seriously, you guys are the worst.
I don’t care if he’s fighting Fedor on Zeus’ shoulders and both can punch but only Zeus can kick, Dan Henderson should *never* be listed at anything worse than even odds. He’s defeated heavyweights, light heavyweights, middleweights, supposed Emperors, and more legends of the sport than pugilistic dementia. That he’s currently hovering around the +600 mark is not only an insult to the man, the myth, the psuedo-Native American that is “Hollywood,” but a disgrace to this sport on par with YAMMA Pit Fighting. TRT, SchmeeRT, Dan Henderson will walk through Cormier’s punches before delivering his greatest H-Bomb to date, at 2:03 of the second round, amen. Say it with me, folks: Dan. F*cking. Henderson.
(Also, Francisco Rivera at +150 isn’t a bad pick, and Chico Camus is a proven UFC-level fighter with a wealth of experience over TUF 18 winner Chris Holdsworth, who at just 5-0, is being slightly overvalued as a 3-to-1 favorite.)
Seth: I won’t argue that I don’t deserve shame and all, but let’s not act like Henderson wasn’t getting a “$5 for Shiggles” bet out of my wallet this weekend. As for the other good dogs, Rivera upsetting Mizugaki is as safe of an underdog bet as you’ll find on this card, and far be it from me not to wager on a gritty sumbitch like Chico Camus – who holds two upset victories in his 3-1 UFC run, mind you – bullying a 5-0 TUF winner for three rounds. And since I’ve never been one to let pesky little details like “never having seen either guy fight before” stop me from throwing money at my bookie, I’ll pick Li “The Leech” JingLiang to upset the TUF washout fighting on short notice who can’t even spell “bulldog” correctly. Becuz propper spelleng, yoll.
Stay the Hell Away From
Jared: Varner vs. Krause. Becuz inconcistensee. I put good money down on Varner to beat Abel Trujillo at UFC 169, and for most of the fight, Varner was kicking “Killa’s” ass all over the octagon. Then he got cocky/tired and walked straight into a haymaker from Hell. I just so happened to fall out of moving van that night, if you know what I mean.
Anyway, the former WEC lightweight champ has been consistent in the entertainment department since unretiring, but inconsistent everywhere else. And I’m not sure whether Krause was faking, confused, or just plain hurt by Bobby Green’s body kicks in his last bout, but I do know that I’m not placing money on either of these dudes because I can’t medically suffer another “accidental” concussion in the next 30 days.
Seth: Robbie Lawler vs. Jake Ellenberger is going to make for a great fight. And that’s the only prediction I’m willing to stake my all but nonexistent reputation on. Just sit back and enjoy this one, okay?
The Main Event
Seth: I think this will sum up the main event nicely…
Jared: Good point, Seth, but I’m thinking something more along the lines of…
As for my prediction…here’s some footage of TJ Dillashaw training on an airplane. It will not help him. I am done speaking on this subject.
Other Fights Worth Investing In
Anthony Njokuani (-225) vs. Vinc Pichel (+205)
Sam Sicilia (-140) vs. Aaron Phillips (+130)
Tony Ferguson (-280) vs. Katsunori Kikuno (+255)
Jared: UFC 173 doesn’t present a ton of interesting gambling opportunities in my eyes, truth be told, but Anthony Njokuani at just -225 against Vinc Pichel, a.k.a Rustam Khabilov’s ragdoll, seems like a steal to me. I don’t even know who A-A-ron Phillips is, so TUF 15 alum Sam Sicilia at -150 seems like a safe parlay bet, even though he’s dropped 3 out of 5 in the UFC. Sicilia’s likely fighting for his UFC career at this point, and will hopefully use that extra motivation to TKO this newbie in the first.
Seth: Not so fast, Jared. Aaron Phillips is part of Tim Creuder’s stable of roughneck brawlers from South Louisiana; he should be a tough opponent for Sicilia. Ain’t no way I’m betting on Sicilia to win this one, but Phillips at +130 doesn’t provide an attractive enough ROI to wager on a guy making his UFC debut. So instead I’ll advise everyone that Tony Ferguson is a safe bet against Katsunori Kikuno. “Japanese veteran on American soil” usually doesn’t end well, and Ferguson has proven to be far more competent at fighting than he is at picking out back tattoos (I mean seriously…).
Suggested Stakes for a $50 Wager Jared: $30 on a Njokuani + Sicilia + Ferguson parlay (nets $69.48)
$10 on Dan F*cking Henderson (nets $57.50)
$10 on Camus (nets $28)
Seth: $30 on Ferguson + Rivera + Njokuani parlay (nets $116.23)
$10 on Camus + Barao parlay (nets $33.35)
$5 on Dan Henderson (nets $28.75)
$5 on Jingliang + Camus + Rivera + Ferguson + Barao + Njokuani #YOLO parlay (nets $243.29)
