Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - Here's a for instance - let's say you show up to work as scheduled, the boss pulls you to the side and says you don't have to work today, but here's your check. Go enjoy yourself in the greatest city in the world, which is only 30 minutes away, come back, and then watch some fights on Saturday night.
Pretty cool, eh?
UFC Interview, UFC
Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - "You gotta start growing up and taking things serious."
The words directed at Jacob Volkmann two years ago didn't come from his wife, his parents, or a close friend, but from the owner of a bank in his hometown of Fergus Falls, Minnesota who apparently believed that being a professional fighter wasn't the right path for a family man who was also a practicing chiropractor.
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Martins Denis, UFC - If you had your eyes on nearly every Pride FC event since April of 2002, you would have seen the same tough guy in Mirko Cro Cop's corner - current UFC light heavyweight Igor Pokrajac.
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Chuck Mindenhall, UFC - Right after he fought Evan Dunham on June 12 at UFC 115, Tyson Griffin made the type of request that always plays like music to Dana White's ears: Get me back in there as soon as possible. Having dropped a tough split decision to his Xtreme Couture training partner—yet coming out of the fight healthy—Griffin made the call and volunteered his services should anything open up for him.
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Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - Gone Fishin'. It could have been the sign hung on the door at the Xtreme Couture gym in Las Vegas a couple weeks back, when Martin Kampmann, Tyson Griffin, and Mike Pyle all took a half-day out of training for their UFC 115 bouts this weekend to fish and recharge their batteries before the fight week madness sets in.
UFC Interview, UFC
Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - Rory MacDonald was like any other teenager when he walked into the mixed martial arts gym in Kelowna, British Columbia. When he walked out, he turned into probably the most focused and determined 14-year old you would ever meet.
UFC Interview, UFC
Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - As he left his gym in Mississauga, Ontario earlier this week, Claude Patrick couldn't help but smile. And he had good reason to. After years of toil on the mixed martial arts scene, fighting everywhere but his home province, where the sport is still not legal, Patrick is about to make his UFC debut on June 12th, and in Canada, no less, as UFC 115 touches down in Vancouver.
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Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - "I want to fight in the UFC."
Matt Stansell had heard that line before, more often than usual after The Ultimate Fighter helped put the UFC on the mainstream map in 2005.
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Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - He's won everything there is to win as a UFC lightweight champion, he's erased every question mark when it comes to his desire and conditioning, and has silenced all the doubters who wondered if he would ever fulfill his potential.
So what does BJ Penn, still just 31 years old, do now?
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Elias Cepeda, UFC - Every once in awhile you hear stories of pro fighters who, even as kids, loved to mix it up. John Gunderson, though a born scrapper, wasn't one of those kids. Yeah, he was always in a fight, but the way it felt to him was that he needed to be just to survive.
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Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - Matt Brown's pro MMA record, which currently sits at 13-7, will never strike fear in any opponent. Then he puts his hands on them, and the outlook changes considerably.
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Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - For years before they even made it to the big shows, my buddy and colleague Jason Probst always told me about James Irvin, Scott Smith, and Urijah Faber - a trio of friends and training partners from Northern California that he insisted had the right stuff to make it big in the still growing sport of mixed martial arts.
Irvin, now a UFC mainstay, remembers those days.
UFC Interview, UFC
Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - It may have been the greatest compliment a fighter could receive. When talking about his loss to Eliot Marshall last September, Jason Brilz admitted to being totally surprised at how Marshall went from ground wizard to stick and move artist, leaving the veteran out of sorts as he dropped a three round unanimous decision at UFC 103.
UFC Interview, UFC
Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - When Jason Brilz dropped a three round unanimous decision to Eliot Marshall last September in Dallas, it wasn't losing for the first time since 2001 that baffled the light heavyweight up and comer, it was the way things played out at American Airlines Center, as Marshall, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, kept matters standing throughout the bout.
UFC Interview, UFC
Thomas Gerbasi, UFC - The walk into the Octagon. For some, the trek up those final four steps presents ample time to panic; for others, it's a signal that it's time to perform. For Daniel 'Ninja' Roberts, it's when he flips the switch from nice guy to fighter, and by the time he steps through the doorway, he's not walking into competition - he's jumping in.
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Rhett Butler, UFC - In 1985, the film The Last Dragon debuted to the rare mix of horrible critiques by the movie critics and impressive box office sales. As one of the rare oxymoronic pieces of cinema, it became a cult classic with the timeless tale of naive good versus conscious evil. Lead character Leroy Green, referred to colloquially as Bruce Leroy, sought the ultimate level of martial arts enlightenment embodied by "the glow", which was held by his nemesis Sho'nuff, who possessed the glow and fear of all challengers.
UFC Interview, UFC
Chuck Mindenhall, UFC - There was a time not that long ago when Matthew Riddle was working at The Bon-Ton department store, eating bad freezer foods and wondering what he was going to do in life. That was all the way back in 2006ish. From there he became a video clerk, before taking his "least favorite job of all" as a roofer. He was also watching copious amounts of pro wrestling.
UFC Interview, UFC
Frank Curreri, WEC - To become champion, Brian Bowles upset a legend regarded as one of MMA's most aggressive fighters. To keep the title, he must defeat a 4-to-1 underdog who just might be the most elusive fighter in the game aside from Lyoto Machida.
UFC Interview, UFC
Frank Curreri, WEC - Dominick Cruz stands accused of being a light puncher, a winner but not a finisher. His unbeaten opponent, meanwhile, has dynamite in his fists and has never allowed a fight to go the distance. No doubt that perceived power differential goes a long way toward explaining why Cruz, days before Saturday's showdown with WEC bantamweight champion Brian Bowles, has been branded a 4-to-1 underdog by oddsmakers.
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Frank Curreri, WEC - An excruciating, month-long training camp at the Jersey Shore honed more than Miguel Torres' fight game. The experience also apparently sharpened his tongue.
UFC Interview, UFC
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