MMA Universe

The Ultimate Fighter has helped several fighters gain notoriety among the MMA audience for bad behavior, but all is not to believed by clever Zuffa video editing, one fighter said during an interview.

Gabe “Godzilla” Ruediger participated on The Ultimate Fighter season 5, but was forced off the show after failing to make weight despite a colonic and other catastrophic weight cutting measures. Ruediger is portrayed as a punk who’d rather pig out and relax in favor of training, and that’s something he continues to set straight.

“It’s unfortunate that is how I’m ‘known,’ but I suppose it’s much better than not being known at all. It was a TV show and I don’t dwell on what happened. I was a fighter before the show – I had neck surgery after, battled back from that and still fight. I made an error but I refuse to allow that to define me.”

Best known for a failed stint on TUF, casual MMA fans are still unfamiliar with his past. Ruediger used to train with the famed Team Quest, but left the gym, saying it was “a bad match up” for him.

“My stand up got worse, my jiu jitsu got worse,” he noted. “It just wasn’t the right fit. I still have many friends that train there, but I’m very happy to not be training there any more.”

Instead of representing Team Quest, Ruediger now hops around several locations in southern California. His schedule varies between cross fit, stand up, grappling and MMA training six days per week. Ruediger trains one-to-three times per day, and still he makes room to train in the gi at least once per week

“I train with Mr. Bob Chaney for stand up – BJJ with Rodrigo Medeiros. I also travel to many of the other SoCal gyms. I do all of my strength and conditioning at CrossFit By Overload.”

After years of practicing BJJ, Ruediger received his black belt in late 2009.

He recently traveled to Las Vegas in mid-January to train at the Tapout Training Center and
Marc Laimon’s Cobra Kai BJJ gym.

After the now infamous failed stint on TUF — eliminating his shot at getting back to the UFC for the time — Ruediger looks forward to continuing his run towards a major organization. In fact, he previously has been in discussion with “a couple of the big organizations, but just haven’t come to financial terms.”

The veteran isn’t “asking for a huge amount, but I’ve been doing this for a long time. I want my worth. I want a home with one of the big boys. Just need to be on the right terms.”

Ruediger will return to action on Saturday, Feb. 4 at the Tachi Palace Fights 3 Champions Collide event at the Tachi Palace Hotel & Casino.

“I’m fighting the tough Dominique Robinson. He likes to stand and bang and has good takedown defense, so we will see what happens. I always go for the finish and this fight won’t be any different.”

Is Ruediger going to use the first half of 2010 to solidify a return to a major promotion, or fall even further down the ladder? We’ll find out on Feb. 4.