From there, I transitioned to trapping his arm with my leg, getting him in the crucifix position. Now I had his arm and head pinned so I could use two hands to submit him, or so I thought. I was trying to transition, looking for a Kimura, but he almost actually threw me off of him. I managed to maintain position in the side mount. He was trying to push my head with his inner hand against my jaw, and I figured that maybe I could get an arm bar; but, before I could collect my thoughts, my instincts took over and I put his hand across his face, placed my weight on it, clasped my hands around his trapped hand and head, and squeezed. I had him in the head & arm triangle. I squeezed as hard as my weakened muscles could and with only one minute left in the five-minute round, he tapped. I felt a surge of emotions, followed by complete fatigue, coupled with happiness. I had finally done it, and against some tough seasoned competition.
The next morning, I made my way to the Carling Heights Community Centre with a sense of anxiety of what was to come. Once in the building, which was a newer, modern center for almost any sport imaginable, there was a long line waiting to enter the gymnasium for a seminar. Over 200 spectators and practitioners filled the oversized area, with mats in the center and large bleacher-style seats surrounding the area. I bought a Suffer System long-sleeve shirt from the merchandise table, as did most people there, and awaited the champ. Matt Hughes walked in from a side room, with a half-smile and wearing a Suffer System shirt himself. He walked with confidence, his stocky image mirroring what I was used to seeing on television.
We started with warmups, running around the mats, changing directions, and incorporating jumps and stretches; nothing too taxing, but enough to get the muscles warmed up and the heart pumping. Next, we got paired up and the seminar started with Matt Hughes showing us some of the techniques that helped him attain—and keep for an impressive period—the UFC belt. I learned how to properly perform a single-leg takedown, how to stuffone, different variations of takedowns, punches, and jiu-jitsu moves. To be honest, I cannot remember most of them now, as seminars tend to be that way. You are bombarded with so many moves and detailed descriptions that by the next day you only really retain ten to twenty percent. It was a long seminar, so we had a lunch break, during which we could get pictures and autographs with Matt, or we could opt to wait until the end of the seminar. The line was short, so I decided to meet the real-life UFC champ for the first time ever.
As I waited in line, I had no idea what to expect. I thought it was a cool experience. When I was fourth in line, a guy in his mid-twenties was amped as he spoke to Matt and asked him if his picture could be of Matt choking him out. Matt seemed laid back, but at the same time a complex guy. He menacingly smiled and said “Sure, let’s do it.” As Matt put his hand around this guy, you could tell there was a mismatch between a kid off the streets with a small belly and this machine of a man—a world champion. Everyone in line was laughing, and just as my first calculated thought processed, the guy went to sleep; he got choked out by Matt Hughes. To be honest, Matt did not actually try to choke him out, and he seemed perplexed as he prevented this guy from slamming to the floor and slowly laid him on the gym floor. Seconds later, he came to, smiled as he got up, and asked his buddy if he got the picture. His friend was put on-the-spot and turned red, and said “Man, I don’t know how to use your camera.” It was like a comedy sketch done live, absolutely everyone in line started laughing and clapping. You just cannot make this stuff up.
It was finally my turn to have my picture with Matt, I shook his hand firmly and asked if I could get a picture with him, to which he replied “ I don’t know, can you?” I just smiled and stood there while he laughed out loud to himself, and then a weird silence ensued. I honestly did not know what to say or even if I should say anything to that as he just stood there. But I got my picture with Matt, thanked him for coming to our city, and wished him luck in his upcoming fight. I did get to hold the UFC belt that he brought with him for the pictures, which to my surprise was much heavier than I had imagined and quite shiny, too. My first meeting with a UFC champ was a bit lackluster. Maybe I just built up the day more than I should have.
The second half of the seminar was faster paced. Milton and the guys did a great job organizing the event. Matt was a really good instructor, as he was very detailed and knew how to put things together to make us understand the moves and techniques.
Then, just like that, it was over. I guess the old adage is right; “time flies when you’re having fun.” The training was over, but we still had a question & answer period with Matt. He was more outspoken than on television and opened up about his training, diet, and thoughts about the UFC and other organizations. It was really refreshing. I tried to take everything in, from his runs he did every morning at 6:00 a.m. to the whey proteins he took after training. He spoke to us about his amateur wrestling career and that it was a natural transition to MMA fighting. He was a true farmboy, and that was evident as he could not leave that subject out, speaking about how he still farmed on a daily basis and how his father instilled that hard-working mentality in him as a young boy, which easily translated to his MMA training. He was even contemplating buying more farm acreage at the time, which I believe he ended up doing.
It seemed easier to go to the club each day to train after that, as I felt my game getting better, especially the jiu-jitsu portion. When it came to striking, my leg kicks were accelerating at a steady rate. They had good power and snap. I was starting to contemplate competition, but there was a lot that needed work, from my non-existent conditioning to technique and speed, but I was definitely getting the itch to compete. One of the trainers, Rob Haynes, was doing well in his MMA fights. He was a monster of a man, standing 6' 3" with a muscular build as a successful heavyweight. He had a European face, lanky hair, and a world of experience as a judo and jiu-jitsu champion. I would also learn the hard way that he had very heavy hands. I was lucky that in a sense he took me under his wing when we trained at the same times. He pushed me to my limits, and I have always been thankful for that.
He had the warrior mentality in the gym. “Train hard, wear your heart on your sleeve, and never give up.” This was beginning to be the only way I knew how to train, thanks to guys like Rob. Every time I came home after training with Rob, I knew I had just come back from war, which was really toughening me up mentally and physically. I guess the grind from work coupled with the rigorous training was good for my mind.
Mentally, I felt good, but as for my conditioning, I honestly did not know what to expect. With some of the other amateurs I felt I could hold my own, while with some of the more experienced fighters I would get dazed and roughed up. I spoke to Milton, and he said that I might as well give competition a try, and just as casually as that, I had a fight to prepare for against an unknown opponent at a card that would take place in Grand Bend, Ontario, forty-five minutes from London, and a hotspot in the summer because of its beautiful beaches. I remember going home that day and thinking ”What the hell did I get myself into?” I figured that everyone starts somewhere just like this, and then I started visualizing the fight in my head, and it felt great. My partner ended up dropping out due to a back injury, which I later learned was a common occurrence in the fight business; to have cards change at the drop of a dime.
I would get my chance a short time later, and yet again I had no idea what I was doing when preparing or what I was getting myself into. I did the same thing leading up to the fights, only by now I had lost some weight, and I was feeling good at 216 pounds as a heavyweight. This time, my fight would be at the MAS Thai Boxing gym, and it would be unsanctioned, unlike the previous event where my bout was canceled. There would be a referee, but they just dubbed it as “hard-sparring.” Some of the coaches were showing me moves that I was trying to integrate into my technique so that they would become natural reflexes instead of having to think so much during the fight.
Some of the coaches were not always around, and we had a rotation of some new trainers in the gym. They all had different styles and techniques, and I did not notice that I was beginning to get overloaded with all of the information. So, instead of working and building my fundamentals, I was good at nothing and working on everything. I still felt confident; I thought that I was unbreakable, and all I needed was that opening in a fight and I would get my knockout through my natural power.
