Issue 193

August 2020

The Bellator lightweight on his passion for all things comic book and superhero-related.

You are a major superhero fan. You are also a big comic book collector. How did superheroes capture your imagination as a kid and when did you start collecting comic books?

First of all, my son says you talk like Tony Stark. For me, it was when I was younger, maybe 11 or 12, when other kids started going out more and doing more. I got hooked going to a local library. I started reading comic books and hanging out there. I am a dork. I was a geek when I was younger. From there it morphed into an interest in more science fiction and fantasy novels. That was when I was in high school. When I got to college, I didn’t quite have the money to buy comic books, so I went away from it for a little bit. After college, I got back into it. Then I had kids and I got out of it for a while. I got preoccupied taking care of babies. Now, my oldest son is into comics, so it’s kind of cool. Now I can start collecting again. 

What is your favorite series?

I am a little late to it but the one I am reading right now is Saga. It has been around for three or four years now. It’s not even Marvel. I am usually a big Marvel guy but Saga is an independent one. I started reading that one and its freaking great. It’s amazing. I am one or two behind but I have been digging on that for the past few years.

What is the top wish-list comic book that you would like to add to your collection?

I am a huge fan of X-Force and Cable, aka Nathan Summers. I don’t even know which one I would choose. I guess would go with either the Nubians number one, X-Force number one or maybe Cable's first appearance.

The UFC broke into the sports card and collectibles industry nearly a decade ago now. Being a former UFC champion and future Hall of Famer, you were a key figure in many of the sets over the years. What was it like to see yourself on a trading card for the first time?

Oh, it was definitely surreal. I’m not one of those guys that ever dreamed about being a professional athlete. I guess when I was really little I thought of playing in the NFL, NBA or MLB, but I never truly thought that one day I would be on a video game or on sports cards. It was surreal seeing myself on a card for the first time. It was pretty trippy. My personality is such that I feel it's super cool but I don’t really care too much. It’s nice but now when my four-year-old recognizes stuff it’s a big deal. He will recognize me on the video game or on a trading card. That is the bee's knees right there! That is the cool stuff right there!

Topps has made fight memorabilia cards and autographed cards in your likeness. What was the experience like when you sat down and autographed your own trading cards?

It was pretty cool. One thing that definitely tripped me out was seeing the memorabilia cards and all of the memories that the moment brought out.

Can you share a behind-the-scenes story from your time spent signing those cards?

The coolest thing for me with signing those cards was the legacy angle. I was talking to the guy who I was signing the cards with and he was telling me about how some of the older baseball players have it down to a science. He was telling me about how much they get paid per signature and how long some of them have been doing it. I was in my mid-twenties when I did this for the first time. It’s crazy how some seventeen-year-old kid will already be used to the process because he has been doing it for a few years. The legacy stuff is where it’s at for me. We were talking about all of the Hall of Famers and how special it is when you get to that level. It was pretty cool thinking that hopefully one day I will get to that point where they are talking about my signed cards the way they talk about Cal Ripken, Jr, or Ken Griffey, Jr signed cards now. That would be really cool.