Issue 159

November -0001

Questions on fantasy fights, great grapplers and Thai training for four top MMA pros.

THE PROS


David Rickels Bellator 170lb scrapper

Joey Beltran Middleweight Bellator banger

Chase Sherman ‘Vanilla Gorilla’ UFC heavyweight

Cody Stamann Hot new UFC prospect

Q) Who would have won a Pride lightweight GP in 2007?

Rickels:

  • Gilbert Melendez has more tools than the other guys, although Gomi, throwing fireballs, could have wound up champion by KO every round. 

Beltran:

  • From the list of possible fighters in the tournament, I would say that Matt Hughes takes it.

Sherman:

  • The name that stood out to me the most was Matt Hughes.

Stamann:

  • Probably Matt Hughes. He was killing everybody in that era. I was a big fan of him when I was young. 

Q) Who’s the best wrestler you’ve seen in MMA?

Rickels:

  • Easy. There’s no doubt it’s Ben Askren. That dude makes great fighters look incompetent in wrestling.

Beltran:

  • Hands down it’s Ben Askren. 

Sherman:

  • Khabib Nurmagomedov, I would say. His ground and pound is really good. 

Cody Stamann:

  • Dominick Cruz. He’s so underrated. TJ Dillashaw had never been taken down in MMA, and Dominick did it three times. 

Q) How much better would you be competing at your natural weight?

Rickels:

  • I moved up from 155 to 170 and I’ve never felt better. The weight cut, mentally and physically, can destroy you. It’s hit and miss how much it actually helps you. 

Beltran:

  • I have won at the highest levels at middle, light heavy and heavyweight. I would say I perform best as a small heavyweight, right at 230lb. 

Sherman:

  • I just fight at my normal weight. I’ve always been trying to put weight on. I played football growing up and had to make sure I was as big as I could be. 

Stamann:

  • I hate cutting weight. I think everybody does. Fighting a ’35lb’er at ’45 was really nice. I wish we could all adopt the not-cutting- weight concept.

Q) Have you ever trained Muay Thai in Thailand?

Rickels:

  • No, but I’ve really wanted to go train Muay Thai with Dan Hooker. “Hard work is easy work. Easy work is hard work!” 

Beltran:

  • I have never been to Thailand, but it’s definitely on the bucket list. 

Sherman:

  • A couple of my teammates have, and I’ve always wanted to go to Phuket and train with those guys and be around the beautiful beaches. One day I’ll go.

Stamann:

  • I’ve never been, but I’ve heard a lot of people talk about how awesome it is and how cheap it is to live and train. That’s definitely a bucket- list trip. 


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