Issue 061
April 2010
Who is this Deividas guy, the WEC featherweight fighter whose name Frank Mir just can’t seem to get straight? A Lithuanian rugby player, that’s who – with just three losses in 16 fights (two of which came after three full rounds with Frank Edgar and Ryan Schultz).
Fighting out of Copiague, NY, the 32-year-old scrapper is two fights up in the WEC, and ready to make a name for himself in the 145lb division.
What’s it like fighting for the WEC?
It’s a great organization. They are doing a good job of bringing in the best fighters to that league. I think it’s a strong league with the best 145lb’ers in the world. I signed a five-fight deal with them and I don’t see any reason to go anywhere else.
The 145lb division is very deep, where do you think you rank among guys such as Mike Brown, Urijah Faber and Jose Aldo?
You’d have to check the WEC rankings. I think I’m number eight right now, but of course I’d fight any one of those guys. Bottom line, it’s up to WEC management. Whoever they put in front of me, I’ll fight.
What’s the hardest part about being a professional fighter?
Nothing. You got to love it or you got to hate it. I like what I’m doing. I don’t think there’s anything else for me. When I’m training hard, preparing for a fight – after a win I see that all the hard work has paid off. That’s what it is all about.
Have you ever had to fight through an injury?
I’ve been injured while fighting before, but nothing serious. When I fought Bart Palaszewski in the IFL Finals, I broke my wrist in the beginning of the fight but was able to submit him in the second round. It was not a big deal. I had to have surgery on it later, but of course I was not feeling anything in the heat of the moment.
What’s the hardest you think you’ve ever hit somebody in a fight?
I hit Jay Isip with a kick to win the Reality Fighting lightweight title. It was a knockout in 12 seconds. I finished the fight by guillotine, because at the time I didn’t know he was out. When I kicked him, he started falling forward and I thought he was dazed or in shock, so I grabbed his head and pulled in for a guillotine. When I hit the ground the ref was yelling, “He’s out! He’s Out!” That’s when I saw he wasn’t moving and knew I knocked him out with the kick.
What is it about your training that keeps you so fast and strong in the later rounds of your fights?
I use conditioning exercises that I learned at rugby camp, when I played for my national team in Lithuania. It’s a lot of different routines, but the main thing is you just have to put in the hard work. Train harder than you fight – it’s no magic thing.
No one has ever knocked you out or submitted you. What’s the closest someone has ever gotten you to tapping?
I’m a fourth-degree brown belt – there’s nothing I think I would tap from, nothing. I’m never really in that position.
Frank Edgar is one of the best lightweights competing today. You went the distance with him in 2006. What do you remember about that fight?
It was a good fight. It went five rounds and I was defending my title. It was a tough fight that he won by decision. I had him a couple times, like in the second round I almost submitted him with a guillotine, but the bell rang. It was a good fight.
How do you want to be remembered as a fighter?
A good fighter who sets the pace. But the main thing I want to be remembered for is being well rounded. A good all-around fighter, that’s the thing. I can fight everyone, everywhere; standing, ground, up, down, with good pace and good conditioning. That’s how I want people to remember me.
Deividas Taurosevicius spoke with Derek Constable
