Issue 111
February 2014
‘The baddest man on the planet’ and revitalized Bellator featherweight title contender shares all his best bits
Q. WHAT IS THE BEST THING NOBODY KNOWS ABOUT YOU?
A. “My hands. I have violent hands that I haven’t truly been able to showcase yet. I’m excited about that.”
Q. BEST ADVICE YOU COULD GIVE TO A YOUNGER YOU?
A. “You are the baddest man on the planet and always believe in yourself. That’s what’s gotten me this far.”
Q. BEST INSPIRATION TO FIGHT?
A. “My inspiration, every single fight, is my babies at home. I have a five-year-old son and a daughter who is three years old. My family is my inspiration every single time I get into that cage.”
Q. BEST MEMORY FROM YOUR FIRST FIGHT?
A. “It was against Chase Beebe in front of 40,000 people in Japan for Dream. I remember it like it was yesterday. I’d never put a cup on or wrapped my hands, ever. I was ready to walk out to the cage and I didn’t have a cup on or have my hands wrapped! I didn’t know you had to do that. I’d only fought for a few weeks leading up to that!”
Q. BEST THING ABOUT MMA?
A. “It is the most unpredictable sport there is. You never know what’s going to happen inside the cage. In nine out of 10 sports you can put two teams together and talk about who is going to win but it’s a whole different animal when you lock two guys in a cage.”
Q. WHAT FEELS BEST, A KNOCKOUT OR A SUBMISSION?
A. “Probably the knockout. Winning a belt in front of everyone (against Joe Soto) was great. That had everyone talking. I’ll go with the knockout.”
Q. BEST OPPONENT?
A. “There are two guys. The hardest fights I’ve been in were against Eric Marriott and Georgi Karakhanyan. They were crazy oversized, and I mean relly big, and I was taking a lot of punishment in both those fights before I pulled out the win.”
Q. BEST CAREER MOMENT?
A. “The win against Nick Kirk. I was able to show myself there is a whole other side to MMA that I am just beginning to figure out.”
Q. BEST WAY TO GET PUMPED BEFORE A FIGHT?
A. “I can flip the switch, going from being a nice guy to being a killer. I have a little inner dialogue of, ‘I’m the baddest man on the planet. No one can touch me.’ It’s unstoppable. I’m the king of flipping the switch.”
Q. BEST JOB BEFORE BECOMING A FIGHTER?
A. “I never really had a job. I have been a pro athlete my whole life. I went from wrestling at the University of Michigan as an All American to the US Olympic Training Center and trained there; and from there I went straight to fighting professionally. I think my best job would be color commentating or speaking on television for Viacom/Bellator. I’m made for television and for pay-per-view.”
Q. BEST CARTOON CHARACTER RESEMBLANCE?
A. “I’m more like Captain America than anyone else. I bleed red, white and blue, baby.”
Q. BEST DINNER GUEST? THREE PEOPLE, PAST OR PRESENT, WHO WOULD THEY BE?
A. “I would have someone historical, a movie star and athlete. I don’t know who specifically but we would have good conversation.”
Q. BEST GUILTY PLEASURE?
A. “Chocolate chip cookies and movies. I like my massage chair, chocolate chip cookies and a good movie on my DVR.”
Q. BEST LESSON LIFE HAS HANDED YOU?
A. “You have opportunities. When one gets put in your hands you need to take full advantage of it. You only have one chance to change your life in certain situations. It’s about taking control of your own destiny.”
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