As we enter the first full week of Movember, your moustache-in-progress may be looking thin, patchy, and unattractive — more befitting a McPoyle than an alpha male. Stay strong and stick with it, because you have greatness in your future.
As we enter the first full week of Movember, your moustache-in-progress may be looking thin, patchy, and unattractive — more befitting a McPoyle than an alpha male. Stay strong and stick with it, because you have greatness in your future.
Franklin def. Le via TKO, 3:02 of round 3, Knockout of the Night or
Le def. Franklin via spilt-decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29), Fight of the Night or
Franklin def. Le via armbar, 4:08 of round 2, no bonus
Submit your predictions in the comments section by Friday at midnight ET. The two closest guesses will win the shirts, and we’ll announce the winners on Monday. Good luck, and keep growing them Mo’s!
(Moustaches: For real men only. / Photo via CombatLifestyle)
Just a quick update for those of you who are participating in the men’s health awareness moustache-a-thon known as Movember: It starts today, so if you haven’t done so already, please shave your bristly face. And make sure to take photos of your moustache progress through the month, because we’ll be awarding a $100 StubHub gift card to the prettiest one at the end of the month.
If you’re not really the participatory type, but still want to help out a good cause, please donate a few bucks to CagePotato’s Mo’tato Nation team page (which you should join if you’re doing this), or Karmaatemycat’s personal page, because that dude keeps it real.
Good luck, Mo’ bros.
(Moustaches: For real men only. / Photo via CombatLifestyle)
Just a quick update for those of you who are participating in the men’s health awareness moustache-a-thon known as Movember: It starts today, so if you haven’t done so already, please shave your bristly face. And make sure to take photos of your moustache progress through the month, because we’ll be awarding a $100 StubHub gift card to the prettiest one at the end of the month.
If you’re not really the participatory type, but still want to help out a good cause, please donate a few bucks to CagePotato’s Mo’tato Nation team page (which you should join if you’re doing this), or Karmaatemycat’s personal page, because that dude keeps it real.
If you’re not already tapped out from donating cash to the Mo’tato Nation, please swing by the Lancaster LTD/Roots of Fight Movember network and consider chipping in a few bucks to the cause. Thanks so much, guys, and start getting your razors ready for Movember 1st!
If you’re not already tapped out from donating cash to the Mo’tato Nation, please swing by the Lancaster LTD/Roots of Fight Movember network and consider chipping in a few bucks to the cause. Thanks so much, guys, and start getting your razors ready for Movember 1st!
Maybe you’re at work right now. Maybe you’re eating lunch, or riding public transportation. No matter where you are or what you’re up to, I’d like you do something for me — reach into your pants and check to see if you have two healthy, fully-functioning testicles. (Yes, even you, angrylittlefeet.) If everything is in order, pat yourself on the back. Unfortunately, not every man is so lucky. I’m not trying to turn this site into BummerPotato.com, but did you know that testicular cancer is the most common cancer in American males between the ages of 15 and 35? And that over 8,500 men will be diagnosed with the disease this year? And that about 360 men will die of it?
Hell, did you know that 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime, and that approximately 242,000 new cases of that disease will be diagnosed in 2012? You probably didn’t know any of this, which is fine, but now you do know, and if you feel like doing something about it, we should talk.
For the second year in a row, CagePotato.com is partnering up with Movember to spread awareness and raise money for testicular cancer, prostate cancer, and other men’s health issues. If you want to help us in this month-long quest, here’s what you need to do:
Maybe you’re at work right now. Maybe you’re eating lunch, or riding public transportation. No matter where you are or what you’re up to, I’d like you do something for me — reach into your pants and check to see if you have two healthy, fully-functioning testicles. (Yes, even you, angrylittlefeet.) If everything is in order, pat yourself on the back. Unfortunately, not every man is so lucky. I’m not trying to turn this site into BummerPotato.com, but did you know that testicular cancer is the most common cancer in American males between the ages of 15 and 35? And that over 8,500 men will be diagnosed with the disease this year? And that about 360 men will die of it?
Hell, did you know that 1 in 6 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in his lifetime, and that approximately 242,000 new cases of that disease will be diagnosed in 2012? You probably didn’t know any of this, which is fine, but now you do know, and if you feel like doing something about it, we should talk.
For the second year in a row, CagePotato.com is partnering up with Movember to spread awareness and raise money for testicular cancer, prostate cancer, and other men’s health issues. If you want to help us in this month-long quest, here’s what you need to do:
Step 3: On November 1st, shave whatever fuzz is hanging around on your upper lip, then don’t shave for the rest of November (henceforth referred to as “Movember.”)
Step 4: Recruit your friends though Facebook, Twitter, G+, and plain old word-of-mouth, directing them to your Movember web page and asking if they could donate a few bucks for the cause — or better yet, join the team. Remember, your mo’ is your membership card, and a sign of your advocacy. Let it be a conversation starter; if anybody asks what the hell you’re trying to do with that creepy thing, tell them what it means and why it’s important to you.
Mo’ do’s and don’ts: Your facial hair shouldn’t connect at the sideburns — that’s a beard. No hair can connect at the chin — that’s a goatee. A patch below the mouth is acceptable, in accordance with the 1974 Flavor Saver Laws.
PRIZES!: We will award the leading fundraiser on Mo’tato Nation a $100 gift card to StubHub, as well as matching an additional $100 to their fundraising total. The most glorious-looking moustache on the Mo’tato Nation team — as selected by CP’s editors — will win a $50 StubHub gift card.
Any questions, let us know in the comments section. In the meantime, please register, join our team, and come back on Movember 1st for opening ceremonies.
(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.
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.
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.
