Issue 167

May 2018

Why you need to do more than just fight to find success in MMA.

I get it. Coming from a wrestling background, in my head, it should be, ‘you win and you move here because you have a higher number.’ MMA doesn’t work that way. It’s a business. You have to make adjustments.

You have to make a commitment to build a brand. My manager and I said we wanted to stay relevant without having a fight. Conor McGregor does a very good job of doing that.

It’s not how good of a fighter you are in the UFC that are getting these big fights sometimes – it’s more about who wants to see you.

Brock Lesnar has a huge following in the WWE. People want to see him fight. I thought of some other things and I spoke with my sponsor, Gamma Labs, and they have been very helpful in getting me the right equipment and stuff like that.

I started my Menace Tube YouTube channel to build something outside of fighting.

It’s definitely trial and error. I tried to do a little segment where I would predict fights called Styles Make Fights. I would give them my opinion and offer points if I trained with the guy or offer background stuff. I didn’t get the traction I would have hoped, so I dropped it.

Menace Tube as a whole has been pretty stagnant. The main thing is editing. It takes a long time to put all those videos together. I have two little boys and I’m training and trying to keep a house moving. It’s tough, you know? It’s one of those things that you have to put the time in to get it, but when you aren’t seeing results it’s hard to stay consistent with it.

I am looking to get back into it. I really enjoy it. I recently spoke to one of my sponsors, GuardLab, the UFC sponsor for mouthpieces. I am good friends with the CEO. I asked for his help. They will edit my content and put their stamp on it – a scratch-my-back-I-scratch-yours thing. We’ll take a run at it and get it going again.

One thing that did get me some attention outside fighting was when I broke the lemon juice drinking world record when I was with Gamma Labs doing some promo work.

YouTube sensation Furious Pete reached out to Guinness to do the challenge. All eyes were on him, but they asked everyone else to give it a try, too.

I figured it would be funny. I decided to give the thing hell. I was going to let out all my air and chug as fast as I could. Then I won! I had done it but at the bottom of the Solo cup, there was a little left in that rim at the bottom. They told me it didn’t count.

You have to be kidding me. Knowing I could do it and knowing they had the plaque there, they asked if I wanted to give it another shot. I thought about throwing up, but I toughed it out and got it done in 22 seconds.

To get the Guinness World Records people there to record a record attempt is big deal.

I think it costs 10 grand to get them to come out unless they know you are going to break the record.

They reached out to me a few months ago. They wanted me to come in the studio and break my own record live on their show or take a shot at another record. There is a ketchup record, a mustard record and few that I have my eye on but I haven’t gotten around to trying those.

When I fight, I am very focused on what I am trying to get accomplished. None of my personality breaks through.

I think I am a pretty funny and charismatic guy. I am just trying to let people see who ‘The Menace’ really is. He’s a pretty funny guy who likes to have a good time and will do anything for laugh – whether that means letting someone hit me or drinking a litre of lemon juice, let’s do it! Hopefully, that will create other opportunities for me in the future.