UFC fighters youve met

[Luke Glasshold]

i met Megan Anderson last year in Illinois, she made me look like a lil bitch

 

[sweetviolenturg]

Being from the pro boxing & kickboxing worlds I've only had the opportunity to meet a couple of UFC fighters. The first of whom, Kevin Rosier, I knew long before the UFC existed. We're both from Buffalo & we fought on some of the same cards as amateurs & trained at some of the same gyms. We were pretty good friends. In fact, the very first time that I ever heard about the UFC was when he called me up in October of 1993 to tell me about this crazy "War of the Worlds" tournament that he was fighting in a few weeks later. Which he was absolutely certain that he was going to win because he was just sure of himself like that. But, he had reason to be confident because he was a multiple-time WKA super heavyweight champion & a pro boxer who won all his fights by KO at that point. So, I told him I'd order the PPV just to see him fight & in the process got totally hooked on it.
The second UFC fighter I met was Harold Howard, another old school tournament fighter who runs his martial arts school in Niagara Falls, Ontario right across the border from where I used to live. He & some of his students used to come to my gym to cross-train in boxing & kickboxing occasionally before he fought in the UFC.
Then there was Sam Stout who used to come to my gym's fight promotions & box & kickbox on our cards frequent;y in the early 2000s. In fact, his trainer, Shawn Tompkins fought one of my good friends, future WKA cruiserweight champion, Amer Abdallah in his pro debut.
The only other MMA fighter of note that I've met is Ray Mercer who fought Kimbo & KO'd Tim Sylvia in his two forays into the cage. I almost fought on the undercard of a Mercer fight in Rochester, NY as a replacement opponent for the then 4-1 Bernard Hopkins but I only weighed in at 156 & Hopkins was about ten pounds heavier so they fought another, heavier fighter for him & I was left watching from ringside as he destroyed the guy. Which, made me realize how outmanned I would have been in there. But damn, do I regret not fighting him now. I would love for my name to be on a legend's record.
Anyhow, my wife is the one who worked with all the UFC fighters.
She was a physical therapist & medical tech for Bill Kessler, "The OC Fight Doc" & she used to have an office at coach Colin Oyama's Training Center in Irvine, CA. And, many of the top UFC fighters would go there to train & receive treatment for their various injuries including Michael Bisping, the Diaz brothers, Ronda Rousey, Tito Ortiz, Rampage, Diego Sanchez & many more. Her closest friends though were Carla Esparza & the late Shane del Rosario.

 

[Ether13]

Jake Shields taught a grappling class at a gym I used to train at; he was super chill. There was a kids BJJ class scheduled after and all these eleventeen year old girls wanted selfies with him. He took pics with all of them.

 

[puppybird]

Seeing as I fought in the UFC to many to name.

Thank you for your service!!

 

[GoshiShun17]

The only MMA fighter I ever met was Michael Johnson a couple years ago in Mexico. It was kinda awkward because I didn't want to impose on him and come off like a groupie but I felt like a groupie on the inside.

Also my cab driver at this time told me his cousin was training with a guy who was about to fight Anderson Silva. That guy was Kelvin Gastelum.

 

[Rob-G]

At UFC 42 I met Tim Sylvia. He was really cool. I met Tank Abbott at UFC 42 also. I asked him to sign my event program and he just took it and never gave it back lol. If you watch the live broadcast of UFC 42 they show Tank in the audience sitting next to the Undertaker and he was holding it in his hand. Man I was butthurt

At UFC 43 I met Marco Ruas, Pedro Rizzo, and Carlos Newton. All were awesome

I met a ton fighters that fought on Tito/Ken 3 and a couple UFC Fight Nights in South Florida from 2006-2007. Talked to Anthony Johnson for like 10 minutes after he won his UFC Debut. He was super cool.

Got a picture with Anderson Silva at Kimbo Slice vs. Tank Abbott

Hung out with Din Thomas and King Mo at ATT in 2016. King Mo needed to spar a pro boxer in the cage for the upcoming Phil Davis fight. I was good friends with that pro boxer and he didn’t drive so I gave him a ride lol. Shockingly I got it on video and no one said anything

At the IFL where Ben Rothwell fought Roy Nelson I met pretty much everyone that fought on that card. Got a picture with Bas Rutten. Actually talked to Denis Kang and Marcus Aurelies for a bit. During that time they were both popular so it was a pretty big deal to me then

I haven’t been to an MMA show in 10 years sadly.

I met some very famous boxers. Have pictures with Floyd Mayweather, Evander Holyfield, Miguel Cotto, Jermain Taylor, Riddick Bowe, many others. Met Wladimir Klitschko and talked to him for like 20 Minutes. He was so cool. One of the biggest regrets of my life is not asking him for a picture.

One embarrassing moment for me. Kurt Angle was at a UFC event and I mistook him for Frank Trigg lol. He was cool about it though and actually said it wasn’t the first time it happened lol

I saved the most memorable for last. The day after UFC 43 I met Kevin Randleman at the airport. Nicest man ever. Actually took one of his shirts out of his suitcase and signed it and gave it to me. I still have it in storage somewhere. Man he was so friendly. I remember when he beat Mirko Cro Cop I jumped for joy. Ever since that day I always rooted for Kevin Randleman. Greatest man ever

I’m sure I’m missing a few. That’s most of it though

 

[Rob-G]

My dad fought Ron Van Clief numerous times in the 1960’s/1970’s. Karate tournaments in New York. My dad said he was matched with Ron Van Clief all the time. I remember as a kid renting UFC 4 at Blockbuster. The part where Royce Gracie took him down my dad would rewind it over and over. “Why did he try throwing a kick!? Why a kick!? Why that type of kick!?” Lol. I doubt it mattered what Ron Van Clief would’ve thrown. I’m sure he was screwed no matter what. But my dad was not happy about that weird front kick or whatever it was he threw that got him taken down lol

 

[Tyr XIII]

Being from the pro boxing & kickboxing worlds I've only had the opportunity to meet a couple of UFC fighters. The first of whom, Kevin Rosier, I knew long before the UFC existed. We're both from Buffalo & we fought on some of the same cards as amateurs & trained at some of the same gyms. We were pretty good friends. In fact, the very first time that I ever heard about the UFC was when he called me up in October of 1993 to tell me about this crazy "War of the Worlds" tournament that he was fighting in a few weeks later. Which he was absolutely certain that he was going to win because he was just sure of himself like that. But, he had reason to be confident because he was a multiple-time WKA super heavyweight champion & a pro boxer who won all his fights by KO at that point. So, I told him I'd order the PPV just to see him fight & in the process got totally hooked on it.
The second UFC fighter I met was Harold Howard, another old school tournament fighter who runs his martial arts school in Niagara Falls, Ontario right across the border from where I used to live. He & some of his students used to come to my gym to cross-train in boxing & kickboxing occasionally before he fought in the UFC.
Then there was Sam Stout who used to come to my gym's fight promotions & box & kickbox on our cards frequent;y in the early 2000s. In fact, his trainer, Shawn Tompkins fought one of my good friends, future WKA cruiserweight champion, Amer Abdallah in his pro debut.
The only other MMA fighter of note that I've met is Ray Mercer who fought Kimbo & KO'd Tim Sylvia in his two forays into the cage. I almost fought on the undercard of a Mercer fight in Rochester, NY as a replacement opponent for the then 4-1 Bernard Hopkins but I only weighed in at 156 & Hopkins was about ten pounds heavier so they fought another, heavier fighter for him & I was left watching from ringside as he destroyed the guy. Which, made me realize how outmanned I would have been in there. But damn, do I regret not fighting him now. I would love for my name to be on a legend's record.
Anyhow, my wife is the one who worked with all the UFC fighters.
She was a physical therapist & medical tech for Bill Kessler, "The OC Fight Doc" & she used to have an office at coach Colin Oyama's Training Center in Irvine, CA. And, many of the top UFC fighters would go there to train & receive treatment for their various injuries including Michael Bisping, the Diaz brothers, Ronda Rousey, Tito Ortiz, Rampage, Diego Sanchez & many more. Her closest friends though were Carla Esparza & the late Shane del Rosario.

Awesome reading this especially thr b hop part as hes one of my favorite athletes ever

 

[Codpiece]

@Codpiece met Conor McGregor you should all check out his thread about it

You should link the thread at least. Frankly it’s easily the beat thread in the Heavies this year. I re-read it fortnightly, minimum and each time I feel it’s even better than I remember.



Conor was great. Very pleased with his whiskey, couldn’t wipe the smile from his face. He is absolutely tiny though, nowhere near 5 feet 9. Honestly I was lucky I caught him in a good mood as otherwise he may have hit me after I turned away.

 

[DanaWhitesButler]

I was using a urinal next to Woodly and pissed on his shoes.

 

[conorg.o.a.t]

I met Miesha Tate once, she was undressing herself as she was about to get onto my bed but then..... I woke up

 

[Zodd]

I met Lyoto at my first ufc event in Vegas and was super drunk and high and big bodied my way through a bunch of people to rush and hug him and call him the real life “Ryu” which he laughed and took a photo with him. His gf/fiance at that time was a complete B and was screaming at fans and him for taking so long, smh.

 

[KID Yamamoto]

Outside of guys i've trained with I met Todd Duffee at a Dragon house MMA event for a friend of mines fight. Cool dude. Wish he stayed at AKA.

 

[Shaquitas EBT]

Kurt Pellegrino,absolutely the coolest guy ever.

 

[560ti]

Tito Ortiz: Hella cool and nice. He gets alot of heat for his persona but he probably has the top 5 best reputations of any MMA fighter ever (the amount of students, fans, and former training partners that praise him is literally insane).

Guy Mezger: Use to train at his gym. Nice but a little arrogant. His female student who helps run the gym is the same way. Both always have resting bitch face and whenever you have a question or concern they kinda get this arrogant tone to where they take your question/concern as you trying to challenge there pride and honor (kinda like those cocky armenians like Karo Parisyan and Manny Gamburyan but unlike the armenians they won't try to street fight you on the spot).

Rich Franklin: One of the top 5 coolest and most humble dudes i've ever meet in my life. He's essentially your next door neighbor that teaches math and keeps his home clean with nice curb appeal

 

[Kingz]

Joe Benavidez. He was hanging out at my brothers apartment with some chick. I believe it was still the WEC days. He was extremely laid back and even smaller than I thought he’d look in person. Nice guy

Nate Diaz at Aftershock Festival a few years ago. I was already smashed and recognized him and loudly addressed him possibly opening up the floodgates to others recognizing him or atleast asking him who he is. So in retrospect, I would understand if he got pissed but he gave me a shake followed by a fist bump and thanked me. Then we had a brief exchange about a couple bands and that was it. Nice guy.

Faber at his post fight party for the first Pulver fight. Nice guy

Gilbert Melendez at a BJJ academy I trained at briefly. He was just visiting the owner. Nice guy

Several others who have professional MMA fights as well but not UFC

 

[sweetviolenturg]

Awesome reading this especially thr b hop part as hes one of my favorite athletes ever

Thank you, sir. Much appreciated.
Yeah, the fight was so close to happening because I was set to fight a fighter by the name of Chad Riesel but he pulled out sick then Hopkins' opponent pulled a no show at the weigh-in so the matchmaker asked me to fight Hopkins for twice my agreed upon purse which I jumped at. But then we got on the scale & the NYSAC immediately said no way because he came in at 168 to my 156. So, they found a guy by the name of Jouvin Mercado to fight Hopkins & I was the odd man out. I'd be la liar if I said that I wasn't a wee bit relieved once I saw Hopkins in the ring. He looked huge to me & it was obvious from my short look at him ( he KO'd Mercado quickly ) that he was one dangerous fighter. But, now, years later I'd have gladly taken a loss to a legend like him. Now I wish I'd had a couple of milkshakes & a big breakfast before the weigh-in. LOL.

Ray Mercer & I at the weigh-in:

 

[Ronin13]

Met meisha Tate briefly. Hot.

Met Chris Leben back in his UF days and then years later drank with him at his VIP table. That was back in his substance abuse days. Nicest guy to chat with.

Mike Chiesa at a bar. Good dude.

Ivan salavarry - trained at his school for a year.

Maurice Smith - met training at Ivan’s place and in Los Angeles before that. Super nice guy that gives great advice to anybody trying to improve their kick boxing skills. Funny too.

 

[Tyler Durden]

Being from the pro boxing & kickboxing worlds I've only had the opportunity to meet a couple of UFC fighters. The first of whom, Kevin Rosier, I knew long before the UFC existed. We're both from Buffalo & we fought on some of the same cards as amateurs & trained at some of the same gyms. We were pretty good friends. In fact, the very first time that I ever heard about the UFC was when he called me up in October of 1993 to tell me about this crazy "War of the Worlds" tournament that he was fighting in a few weeks later. Which he was absolutely certain that he was going to win because he was just sure of himself like that. But, he had reason to be confident because he was a multiple-time WKA super heavyweight champion & a pro boxer who won all his fights by KO at that point. So, I told him I'd order the PPV just to see him fight & in the process got totally hooked on it.
The second UFC fighter I met was Harold Howard, another old school tournament fighter who runs his martial arts school in Niagara Falls, Ontario right across the border from where I used to live. He & some of his students used to come to my gym to cross-train in boxing & kickboxing occasionally before he fought in the UFC.
Then there was Sam Stout who used to come to my gym's fight promotions & box & kickbox on our cards frequent;y in the early 2000s. In fact, his trainer, Shawn Tompkins fought one of my good friends, future WKA cruiserweight champion, Amer Abdallah in his pro debut.
The only other MMA fighter of note that I've met is Ray Mercer who fought Kimbo & KO'd Tim Sylvia in his two forays into the cage. I almost fought on the undercard of a Mercer fight in Rochester, NY as a replacement opponent for the then 4-1 Bernard Hopkins but I only weighed in at 156 & Hopkins was about ten pounds heavier so they fought another, heavier fighter for him & I was left watching from ringside as he destroyed the guy. Which, made me realize how outmanned I would have been in there. But damn, do I regret not fighting him now. I would love for my name to be on a legend's record.
Anyhow, my wife is the one who worked with all the UFC fighters.
She was a physical therapist & medical tech for Bill Kessler, "The OC Fight Doc" & she used to have an office at coach Colin Oyama's Training Center in Irvine, CA. And, many of the top UFC fighters would go there to train & receive treatment for their various injuries including Michael Bisping, the Diaz brothers, Ronda Rousey, Tito Ortiz, Rampage, Diego Sanchez & many more. Her closest friends though were Carla Esparza & the late Shane del Rosario.

Great stories.
I grew up in Lovejoy about 4 houses down from Kevin (rip) Kevin was a great guy and would do anything for you.

 

[MrSteelYoGurl]

Met Paul Daley in Amsterdam

We trained together at Mikes and then went and got high and spit roasted a hoe

Great night, good memories




For anyone wondering, yes the balls did touch