Issue 101

I have spoken about the night of UFC 162 and how I’d wrapped both Chris Weidman’s and Anderson Silva’s hands.

But even before the main event got underway, it had already been shaping up to be a memorable night. Boxers, Roy Jones Jr and Mike Tyson, were in the audience, as well as one of my favorite actors, Edward James Olmos, who was there to support ‘The Spider' and promote his upcoming movie; Monday Nights At Seven.

Olmos, who starred in American Me, is one of the most successful Latin actors of all-time, as far as I’m concerned, and I’d always wanted to meet him, so you can imagine my surprise when a UFC employee came into the dressing room and said: “Stitch, Edward James Olmos wants to meet you.”

Thankfully I’d just finished wrapping Weidman, so I walked to the back of the arena where I saw my soon-to-be new friend, Edward James Olmos.

At first we hugged and then laughed about how much we resemble each other, and then he told me that fans had even been calling him Stitch when he’d entered the arena.

But then things got even better, after we’d had some pictures taken together, when he suddenly said to me: “I’m proud of your accomplishments.” That was a really shocking statement coming from a man I respect so highly, and before I went back to wrapping hands I asked him if he’d be so kind as to speak to my 90-year-old mother.“I’d love to,” he said, and chatted to my surprised mom on the phone as though he was her son.

A little later, just before the headline bout started, Olmos came to my location just in front of the Octagon, where we hugged again as if we were best friends. Tito Ortiz, ‘Shogun’ Rua, Urijah Faber, Jon Jones and some other fighters were sat behind me, and Tito, who is also a huge fan, asked if he could have his picture taken with Olmos. Once again, he was only too happy to oblige.

Almost immediately, the music started as Chris Weidman entered the arena and made his way into the Octagon, and that was quickly followed by Anderson Silva’s entrance as he began the long walk to where I was standing.

When he finally reached me I leaned in, so he could hear me over the music and the cheering, and said: “Take your sweats off and hug your team, then I’ll apply the Vaseline.”

He did so and I did my job, and into the Octagon he went. Bruce Buffer then introduced the fighters and Herb Dean gave them the final instructions, before the crowd held its collective breath and the fight got underway.

The first few minutes started with Silva, who was dripping with confidence, showing all the skills that had made him the UFC’s longest reigning champion, and his bobbing and weaving were reminiscent of his fights against Forrest Griffin and Stephan Bonnar.

But it was at this point, strangely enough, that I turned towards Ed Soares – Silva’s manager – and asked him: “Do you still get nervous when your fighters are in action?”“I get sick to my stomach,” he replied.

I then turned back to the fight and saw that Weidman was having a couple of good minutes, but was still having problems getting through to The Spider. I remember thinking to myself that Silva’s bobbing and weaving in the first round was going to distract Weidman. Boy, was I wrong!

Unfortunately Silva continued to defend with his hands by his sides, and like all the other great fighters, he soon found out that nobody is perfect. There’s a saying in baseball that if you swing the bat often enough, eventually you will hit a ball. And that’s exactly what Weidman did when he connected with a hook that hurt Silva, and then finished him off with some classic ground ‘n’ pound.

For some strange reason a lot of people though that Silva had taken a dive, but they couldn’t be further from the truth. Dr. Watson and I were the first to get to Silva and it was my job to tell him the bad news. I looked straight into his eyes and said: “Anderson, you got knocked out!”

Then I saw it finally register in his eyes that he was no longer the champion. Was it being star struck with the likes of Roy Jones Jr, Mike Tyson, and Edward James Olmos in the house, or was it being overconfident that made Anderson Silva think he was invincible? Or was it something else, or a combination of both?

Only Anderson Silva can answer those questions. But I do know one thing: The Spider was back when he met the new champ, Chris Weidman, in their rematch on December 28th, it could be a different ending. After all, nobody is perfect.