Tag: mma fighters heroes

And the MMA Hero of the Day Is…James McSweeney?!

Despite the way he was portrayed during his run on The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights, which is to say, typical British asshole, it turns out that James McSweeney is actually a pretty cool dude in reality. But seriously, if you were to categorize McSweeney scientifically based solely on TUF 10, his name would’ve been Bispingus Douchebaggus. However, I first caught a glimpse of how well-spoken and down to earth McSweeney truly is during a recent interview he had with MiddleEasy, which I’ve posted above. In the video, he and Kit Cope break down everything from Jon Jones’ DUI to Nick Diaz’s suspension for weed, and he comes off sounding like a relatively enlightened individual in the process.

The reason I mention this is not only to try and prove that there are British MMA fighters out there who aren’t complete dicks, but to provide a little backstory that will prevent this news from catching you completely off guard. Because in the long list of MMA fighters who moonlight as vigilante, Bronson-esque heroes, McSweeney has just added his name.

Yesterday night, McSweeney was giving his family, who was visiting from England, a friendly tour of Las Vegas. As things are destined to do in Vegas, the night would inevitably end in them witnessing at least one person trying to stab another.

Despite the way he was portrayed during his run on The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweights, which is to say, typical British asshole, it turns out that James McSweeney is actually a pretty cool dude in reality. But seriously, if you were to categorize McSweeney scientifically based solely on TUF 10, his name would’ve been Bispingus Douchebaggus. However, I first caught a glimpse of how well-spoken and down to earth McSweeney truly is during a recent interview he had with MiddleEasy, which I’ve posted above. In the video, he and Kit Cope break down everything from Jon Jones’ DUI to Nick Diaz’s suspension for weed, and he comes off sounding like a relatively enlightened individual in the process.

The reason I mention this is not only to try and prove that there are British MMA fighters out there who aren’t complete dicks, but to provide a little backstory that will prevent this news from catching you completely off guard. Because in the long list of MMA fighters who moonlight as vigilante, Bronson-esque heroes, McSweeney has just added his name.

Yesterday night, McSweeney was giving his family, who was visiting from England, a friendly tour of Las Vegas. As things are destined to do in Vegas, the night would inevitably end in them witnessing at least one person trying to stab another.

McSweeney recounted the story to MMAWeekly:

My family’s in town right now in Las Vegas, and they wanted to go down to old town Las Vegas last night, down on Fremont street, just check out the big TV screens and stuff down there. So they wanted to get some souvenirs so they went into one of the stores there, and as they walked I saw these two guys that looked like they were drunk, but they wasn’t really, they were just arguing. So the cashier went over to stop them from arguing cause the store was packed full of women and children, people there shopping. 

As they started to break it up one of the guys made a dash for the cash, the box behind the counter, and grabbed a handful of cash out and then pulled a knife out on the lady in front of everybody.

I didn’t want anyone to get hurt, so I just went over and grabbed from the side by his shoulder and his lapel and took the knife from him and swept him to the floor and pinned him to the ground until security came and handcuffed him and took him off. No one got hurt, that was the main thing.

McSweeney credits the confidence that comes with knowing you can whoop most anyone’s ass for his act of bravery.

I knew I had the capabilities to stop it, so I tried to stop it. I mean if they pull a knife, you have to assume they have intentions to use it so that was my reaction, I didn’t want anyone to get hurt. 

We train everyday so we can stop these sort of things and I’m always happy to help if I can.

It just goes to show that even the nicest guy can look like an asshole when he’s edited the right way. And no, I can’t believe I just wrote “nicest guy” and “James McSweeney” in the same sentence.

I didn’t? Whatever, I’m tapped out on this slow ass news day. Here’s a clip of some classic Bronson street justice from Death Wish 3. Good day to yous.

–J. Jones 

Awesome Story of the Day: UFC Lightweight Reza Madadi Saves Infant AND Father From Drowning in Sweden


(Just off camera, The Grim Reaper stared on in shock as Madadi told him right where he could stick his scythe.) 

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you know by now that, while most of us are content to booze or sleep away most of our lives, MMA fighters opt to spend their leisure time foiling robberies, saving women from knife-wielding psychopaths, and teaching Canadian hoodlums a lesson in male dominance…I mean respect.

For some reason, the rule goes double for MMA fighters from foreign countries. We all remember the tale of Goran Reljic saving two men from drowning by smashing through their submerged vehicle’s windshield and pulling them to safety WHILE suffering from a back injury. Or how Kid Yamamoto dove onto a subway track in Japan to help lift a man to safety. Seriously, it’s like the rest of the world operates under Article 223-7 of the Latham County Penal Code or something.

In either case, one name you can add to the list of heroic MMA fighters is UFC lightweight Reza Madadi, who recently saved an infant toddler when the child fell from a pier near Hornsberg in his home country of Sweden.

Full story after the jump.


(Just off camera, The Grim Reaper stared on in shock as Madadi told him right where he could stick his scythe.) 

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the past few years, you know by now that, while most of us are content to booze or sleep away most of our lives, MMA fighters opt to spend their leisure time foiling robberies, saving women from knife-wielding psychopaths, and teaching Canadian hoodlums a lesson in male dominance…I mean respect.

For some reason, the rule goes double for MMA fighters from foreign countries. We all remember the tale of Goran Reljic saving two men from drowning by smashing through their submerged vehicle’s windshield and pulling them to safety WHILE suffering from a back injury. Or how Kid Yamamoto dove onto a subway track in Japan to help lift a man to safety. Seriously, it’s like the rest of the world operates under Article 223-7 of the Latham County Penal Code or something.

In either case, one name you can add to the list of heroic MMA fighters is UFC lightweight Reza Madadi, who recently saved an infant toddler when the child fell from a pier near Hornsberg in his home country of Sweden.

Full story after the jump.

As if that weren’t badass enough, apparently Madadi had to help the boy’s father, who dove in after his son, from drowning as well. From Kimura.se:

[Madadi] had been kayaking in the Stockholm Archipelago and was about to buy lunch at a restaurant in Hornsberg, when he witnessed a child of one and a half years old falling from a nearby pier into the sea. The child’s father quickly dove in to help save his son.

Madadi, a former aspiring fireman, immediately jumped into the water and saved both father and child from the turmoil of waves and rapid currents.

A bystander who was very impressed with the performance of the athlete could conclude “If Reza hadn’t been there that boy would have drowned. One person wanted to take pictures of Reza with the father and the son, but Reza humbly declined, with respect to the family’s emotional status. 

It looks like in the battle of cops vs. fireman, we can chalk up another victory for the fireman. Word has it Madadi pulled a train with three waitresses that night, whereas the first cop on the scene went home to find that his wife had left him.

Scheduled to face TUF 15 alum Christiano Marcello at UFC 153 in October, the 12-2 “Mad Dog” picked up his first UFC win in dramatic and dominant fashion by choking out Yoislandy Izquierdo in the second round of their UFC on FUEL 2 throwdown, and is currently riding a seven fight win streak that includes victories over Rich Clementi, Carlo Prater, and Junie Browning.

In other words, he has just earned the name power to fight in the co-main event of UFC 151.

–J. Jones

Story of the Day: Nick Ring Saves Teenage Couple From Savage Attack in Calgary


(Criminals beware: This man will eff you up.) 

Here at CP, we really hate to keep reiterating the same point over and over again, but in this case, we feel the need to make an exception. As you should all know by now, Nick Ring is pretty much the epitome of masculinity. When he’s not making sweet love to a woman bald eagle style, he is more than likely patrolling the Canadian countryside on a horse made of crystal, handing out life lessons to those he happens to pass by. Though they won’t admit it, it is a common understanding that the sons of Ring’s opponents wish that he was their dad. A fun fact about Ring: he once held an opponent’s wife’s hand in a jar of acid at a birthday party. So basically, if you ever find yourself within Ring’s crosshairs, it is already too late.

Unfortunately, a group of ten or so rambunctious Canadian teenagers had never read Lord of the (Promise) Rings before they decided to attack a couple in front of the Calgary native, and boy did they pay for it.

The Calgary Herald has the story:

Calgary’s own UFC fighter, Nick Ring, who had just finished a yoga session and went to Starbucks to get a coffee (Ed note: Like we said, dude’s a BAMF), saw an assault across the street and he wasn’t about to let it go.

Ring – a 33-year-old mixed martial arts fighter who is gearing up for UFC 149 in Calgary next month – was leaving the coffee shop at Mac leod Trail and 94th Avenue when he thought he saw a group of about 10 people beating up a couple to steal the girl’s backpack.

“I did not like what I saw and I wasn’t going to stand around and watch that happen. It was a crime and it was completely wrong,” said Ring.

“I’m not going to let anything like that happen if I’ve got anything to say about it. Not a chance.”

More from this story after the jump.


(Criminals beware: This man will eff you up.) 

Here at CP, we really hate to keep reiterating the same point over and over again, but in this case, we feel the need to make an exception. As you should all know by now, Nick Ring is pretty much the epitome of masculinity. When he’s not making sweet love to a woman bald eagle style, he is more than likely patrolling the Canadian countryside on a horse made of crystal, handing out life lessons to those he happens to pass by. Though they won’t admit it, it is a common understanding that the sons of Ring’s opponents wish that he was their dad. A fun fact about Ring: he once held an opponent’s wife’s hand in a jar of acid at a birthday party. So basically, if you ever find yourself within Ring’s crosshairs, it is already too late.

Unfortunately, a group of ten or so rambunctious Canadian teenagers had never read Lord of the (Promise) Rings before they decided to attack a couple in front of the Calgary native, and boy did they pay for it.

The Calgary Herald has the story:

Calgary’s own UFC fighter, Nick Ring, who had just finished a yoga session and went to Starbucks to get a coffee (Ed note: Like we said, dude’s a BAMF), saw an assault across the street and he wasn’t about to let it go.

Ring – a 33-year-old mixed martial arts fighter who is gearing up for UFC 149 in Calgary next month – was leaving the coffee shop at Mac leod Trail and 94th Avenue when he thought he saw a group of about 10 people beating up a couple to steal the girl’s backpack.

“I did not like what I saw and I wasn’t going to stand around and watch that happen. It was a crime and it was completely wrong,” said Ring.

“I’m not going to let anything like that happen if I’ve got anything to say about it. Not a chance.”

Ring described the scene as “like something out of a movie.”

He continued, “They were holding [the boyfriend] back and beating him up, as well. It was a really horrible thing to see.” According to the article, the girl was “getting her hair pulled and being kneed in the face” while this was occurring. And to think, all this came as a result of the female victim giving one of the female assailants “a dirty look.” Who knew that Canadians were capable of such lowly acts of mischief?

Anyway, after breaking things up, Ring and a bystander proceeded to chase down a couple of the assailants while calling the police, who managed to round up five or six more people. All of the assailants were between 15 and 17, so none of their names were released.

So there you have it. As has been proved many times before, MMA fighters are basically the superheroes of modern society, which explains why New York is still the cesspool of crime and injustice that it truly is. As Ring explained, it was only because of his extensive training/fighting background that he intervened in the first place:

It puts me in the position that I have the ability to help others when they need it. I was glad to be able to put my skills to use to help these people out.

I think that would be a scary position to be in if you’re witnessing that and feeling powerless. With all my training, I think I’m in a unique position to be able to handle myself against these kind of cowards.

A tip of the hat is in order, Mr. Ring, for your act of heroism. Those punks, on the other hand, should just be thankful that a certain Canadian welterweight champion wasn’t around at the time of the assault, because we all know how he feels about bullies, and we’d hate to see one of our sport’s greatest ambassadors maim an entire group of teenagers in broad view of a couple dozen people.

–J. Jones

Oregon-Based 10th Planet-Trained MMA Fighters Foil Hotel Robbery

(Video courtesy of YouTube/Hollywood2NY)

A would-be thief picked the wrong hotel to rob last week.

According to the LA Times, 31-year-old Luis Rosales walked into a hotel in Los Angeles’ Koreatown around midnight on Wednesday and pointed a gun at the night manager, telling him to fill his duffle bag with cash. When he attempted to flee the scene, the manager grabbed the suspect in a bear hug and managed to keep him from grabbing the gun he had put back in the bag and yelled for help from a pair of guests who had exited the elevator in the hotel lobby.

The men, who happened to be competitors in last weekend’s World Jiu-Jitsue No-Gi Championship in Long Beach, quickly sprang into action.


(Video courtesy of YouTube/Hollywood2NY)

A would-be thief picked the wrong hotel to rob last week.

According to the LA Times, 31-year-old Luis Rosales walked into a hotel in Los Angeles’ Koreatown around midnight on Wednesday and pointed a gun at the night manager, telling him to fill his duffle bag with cash. When he attempted to flee the scene, the manager grabbed the suspect in a bear hug and managed to keep him from grabbing the gun he had put back in the bag and yelled for help from a pair of guests who had exited the elevator in the hotel lobby.

The men, who happened to be competitors in last weekend’s World Jiu-Jitsue No-Gi Championship in Long Beach, quickly sprang into action.


(Video courtesy LAPDOnline)

Brent Alvarez, 33, who owns Twisted Web MMA, a 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu affiliate in Eugene, Oregon and Billy Denney, 28, who is one of his students, subdued the struggling assailant and Alvarez used a body lock and rear naked choke to hold the man until police arrived. Apparently he thought a Twister would be too flashy.

Throughout the incident, the pair tried to reassure the thief, who was begging them to let him go so he could see his young daughter who he claimed was the motivating factor in the robbery, that he had simply made a bad decision that will do his family more harm than good.

“He wasn’t trying to punch us; he just seemed like someone who had run out of options,” Alvarez said Friday evening. “I think back now and wonder what the hell was I doing? I should have hit him and knocked him out.”

We predict an influx of hotel workers from around the country will start smoking weed and training without the gi in the coming weeks.