[matshark]

Hey guys, got a fight coming up at the Roanoke Civic Center on April 12th.

Tickets on sale at www.ruckusinthecage.com

Down here in FL training with my buddy Rich Crunkilton (20-2 pro fighter in the WEC). Got to train with Hermes Franca (one of the top 155-ers in the world - lost a UFC title shot last summer) two nights ago - that was freakin SWEET!!!

Should be a rockin good time come fight time : )

[4everfsu]

Good luck in your fight, stay safe

[blwall1416]

I'll sign up to "wrestle" Ashley, Jenny, Mary, or Hanna. I'm not picky.

[matshark]

hahaha...u better be careful with jenny... she actually trains, and should be fighting here sometime in the semi-near future...

now if you like a girl that can kick ur butt...lol

[blwall1416]

hahaha...u better be careful with jenny... she actually trains, and should be fighting here sometime in the semi-near future...

now if you like a girl that can kick ur butt...lol

Well, since my wife's name is Jenniffer...its kinda close. That's gotta count for something, right?

[TDDance234]

Better yet...let's put them up against each other and add some jell----wait, nevermind.

[ToTheLeft]

Better yet...let's put them up against each other and add some jell----wait, nevermind.

[JDUB]

Better yet...let's put them up against each other and add some jell----wait, nevermind.

is that an old school reference?

[givemethemic]

You're my boy BLUE!!!!!

[matshark]

jello is SOOOOO out...

chocolate pudding is in

[DasBeast]

Down here in FL training with my buddy Rich Crunkilton (20-2 pro fighter in the WEC). Got to train with Hermes Franca (one of the top 155-ers in the world - lost a UFC title shot last summer) two nights ago - that was freakin SWEET!!!

GL Matshark!

BTW, how is Hermes doing? Haven't seen much of him since that Sherk fight..for his sake, I hope he is staying clean and looking
to rebound in a big way.

[Cider Jim]

That's a tough call, Flame Fans: should we go watch Sharky fight or Bryson dance?
or

[ATrain]

That's a tough call, Flame Fans: should we go watch Sharky fight or Bryson dance?
or

Neither...y'all should watch our tennis teams beat up on UNC-Asheville

Note: That was sarcasm...go see Matshark fight

[AZjonz]

Matshark,

I have some questions if you have the time to answer.

What are your goals with the MMA fighting (its MMA right?). Are looking to get to the highest level? What is the highest level and how would you go about doing that? Is MMA big enough where you could make a decent living at it alone? Were you into boxing, wrestling or other martial arts before you got involved in MMA?

I ask because I’m slowly getting more interested in watching this sport and here in Tucson, AZ there is a great MMA following. We have some pretty good matches here (along with boxing). I’m curious to hear a perspective from someone who is involved with the sport.

Thanks and good luck.

[Sly Fox]

Michael Carbajal ...

Seriously MMA is fast becoming the contact sport of choice for much of America (for better or worse). I am trying to enjoy it but once they hit the ground it becomes boring/uneasy to watch for me.

[LUconn]

really? the ground is my favorite part. Unless you kind of get a ground stalemate going. That is pretty boring.

[matshark]

Down here in FL training with my buddy Rich Crunkilton (20-2 pro fighter in the WEC). Got to train with Hermes Franca (one of the top 155-ers in the world - lost a UFC title shot last summer) two nights ago - that was freakin SWEET!!!

GL Matshark!

BTW, how is Hermes doing? Haven't seen much of him since that Sherk fight..for his sake, I hope he is staying clean and looking
to rebound in a big way.

Hermes is doin great. I think he's clean. He took the 'roids to help heal his ankle. The guy is freaking PHENOMENAL on the ground. WOW!

My buddy Chita (2005 125lb World Cup Champ - video on youtube - google "ricardo barros"), Hermes and Robson Moura are putting on a 10 day camp in Forteliza Brasil in May for only 10 people. Got invited to go but can't because im going to Montana. DOH!!

[matshark]

Matshark,

I have some questions if you have the time to answer.

What are your goals with the MMA fighting (its MMA right?). Are looking to get to the highest level? What is the highest level and how would you go about doing that? Is MMA big enough where you could make a decent living at it alone? Were you into boxing, wrestling or other martial arts before you got involved in MMA?

I ask because I’m slowly getting more interested in watching this sport and here in Tucson, AZ there is a great MMA following. We have some pretty good matches here (along with boxing). I’m curious to hear a perspective from someone who is involved with the sport.

Thanks and good luck.

Thanks AZJ. Not sure what my goals are with MMA long term. I def want to have some more amateur fights because those help reveal the flaws in my game. My buddy Rich wants me to come down to Daytona for a while and get some good training for a few months or so. I think he'd like to see me go pro. (2x NCWA All-American and 2nd Degree BB in Judo, getting ready to pick up his Brown belt in BJJ, and 20-2 - so his opinion carries a lot of weight, IMO) Not sure I want to get beat on for a living, but we'll see. I do know I want to keep promoting shows because I know the sport well and I'm pretty confident I can be VERY successful giving fighters a place to do their thing and give fans the chance to watch great fights.

Rich fights in the WEC. Honestly, you've got to be a VERY good fighter to be able to pay your bills from fighting alone. The guy Rich beat last Wed in Vegas (if any of you guys saw the fight) was on a 3k/3k contract. 3k to show, 3k to win. that guys lost, but because they had the fight o the night, they got a $7500 bonus. Rich made a lot more than the other guy did (Sergio Gomez) so Rich probably could pay all of his bills from fighting - he's one of the few fortunate high level pros that can say that.

He did say that the pay was getting better as the sport gets more popular, which is good. For a lot of guys, once they pay their bills, there's not really any left for them, which is really unfortunate. That's why most guys work 20-40hrs a week.

The shows to fight in to get paid well are UFC, WEC (owned by Zuffa, the parent company of UFC), HDNet, Bodog, IFL. But everyone wants to get there, and if you lose two fights in a row, all of a sudden you are in danger of getting kicked to a smaller show. Just gotta train your butt off and get as good as you can.

Most guys start off amateur. I think many make the jump to pro to quickly and end up picking up a couple losses which hurts their attractiveness to bigger shows. For a first pro fight you might make 250/250 for a whopping total of $500 if you win. Not much after you get done with medicals, blood tests, licensing fees, paying trainers and gym fees, and God help you if you get hurt, then you can't work either.

I started wrestling in HS at LCA. Did that for 4 years. Got into MMA as an afterthought, mostly because of BJJ and no opportunity to wrestle in college. 7 years later... here i am.

I'm actually pretty familiar with the AZ MMA scene. Def some good shows out there.

If any of you guys are watching The Ultimate Fighter this season (btw, i LOVE how they bring 32 guys and make em fight their way onto the show) the guy from Richmond, Amir Sadollah, I've seen him fight several times in local shows up in Richmond. Hope he does really well.

[matshark]

Michael Carbajal ...

Seriously MMA is fast becoming the contact sport of choice for much of America (for better or worse). I am trying to enjoy it but once they hit the ground it becomes boring/uneasy to watch for me.

I think it's becoming the sport of choice in America because it's pure in an athletic sense. There's no teammates to help you. What you have when you're out there is you, and you only. You can't hide behind anything, and if you lose, well, it happens, but even the loser does something that 99% of every one watching will never do, and I think there's a certain respect and admiration for that.

MMA is basically the olympic combat sports combined. (Wrestling, Judo, TKD and Boxing) Now TKD isn't exactly the most efective striking art as far as kicks go - boxing is for the hands obviously - so guys take out TKD and put in a type of kick boxing, usually Muay Thai. MT (along with wrestling) are two of the oldest combat sports in the world.

As far as violence goes, the ref will stop it if someone is unable to intelligently defend themselves. that right there saves a TON of injuries from happening. Boxing on the other hand is rediculously brutal.

"I'm going to punch you in the head until you fall down, and then once you drop and cant defend yourself, i'll give you till the count of 10 to get back up so i can do it again. On top of that I'm going to put big pads on my hands to protect my hands from breaking, so i can hit your harder and longer, and they will take just enough off the blows so that i don't really deal one decisive blow, I kind of have to beat you into semi-consciousness with a succession of blows." You get multiple repetitive concussions like that. VERY bad for the brain. An avg. of 10 boxers a year die in the ring, and thats a major reason why.

Also, MMA has so much involved with it in the striking, clinching and grappling, that you can win without ever hitting the guy. That's unique. And unlike boxing, where you are done if you say "no mas," there's no shame in tapping in MMA. In fact, tapping is designed to prevent serious injury. The most common injuries in MMA are bruising, maybe a black eye, sometimes some cuts, or a broken hand, messed up ankle or something. usually stuff that's sore for a couple days and then its good.

the NFL on the other hand is much worse in terms of violence and catastrophic collisions. look at how many injuries they recieve, and the effect that sport has on the quality of life (and even lifespan) that they have after they leave the sport.

as far as the ground game goes, it's pretty technical, and the audience is still pretty uneducated when it comes to knowing exactly whats going on there. i'd suggest checking out a local BJJ school and learning a little bit o the ground game so you ahve a better understanding of whats going on. its like high speed chess. if they're doing absolutely nothing on the ground, it's the ref's job to stand them up.

[matshark]

really? the ground is my favorite part. Unless you kind of get a ground stalemate going. That is pretty boring.

mine too : )

yeah, stalemates are no fun, but with everybody learning every part of the game, sometimes you get guys that are really evenly matched on the ground and it happens. hopefully the ref stands em back up pretty quick if there's a stalemate. although the line between stalemate and carefully working your way out of a potentially dangerous spot can be pretty fine, so he's gotta take that into account too.

[Sly Fox]

Unfortunately my exposure to BJJ is what makes me feel uneasy. I had a boss in Austin who was gay and even he felt uneasy about the video in a story I did several years ago as being too homoerotic for local television. Seriously.

I realize boxing has gone to pot in general as a sport but I still enjoy it far more than MMA.

[AZjonz]

Matshark,

I have some questions if you have the time to answer.

What are your goals with the MMA fighting (its MMA right?). Are looking to get to the highest level? What is the highest level and how would you go about doing that? Is MMA big enough where you could make a decent living at it alone? Were you into boxing, wrestling or other martial arts before you got involved in MMA?

I ask because I’m slowly getting more interested in watching this sport and here in Tucson, AZ there is a great MMA following. We have some pretty good matches here (along with boxing). I’m curious to hear a perspective from someone who is involved with the sport.

Thanks and good luck.

Thanks AZJ. Not sure what my goals are with MMA long term. I def want to have some more amateur fights because those help reveal the flaws in my game. My buddy Rich wants me to come down to Daytona for a while and get some good training for a few months or so. I think he'd like to see me go pro. (2x NCWA All-American and 2nd Degree BB in Judo, getting ready to pick up his Brown belt in BJJ, and 20-2 - so his opinion carries a lot of weight, IMO) Not sure I want to get beat on for a living, but we'll see. I do know I want to keep promoting shows because I know the sport well and I'm pretty confident I can be VERY successful giving fighters a place to do their thing and give fans the chance to watch great fights.

Rich fights in the WEC. Honestly, you've got to be a VERY good fighter to be able to pay your bills from fighting alone. The guy Rich beat last Wed in Vegas (if any of you guys saw the fight) was on a 3k/3k contract. 3k to show, 3k to win. that guys lost, but because they had the fight o the night, they got a $7500 bonus. Rich made a lot more than the other guy did (Sergio Gomez) so Rich probably could pay all of his bills from fighting - he's one of the few fortunate high level pros that can say that.

He did say that the pay was getting better as the sport gets more popular, which is good. For a lot of guys, once they pay their bills, there's not really any left for them, which is really unfortunate. That's why most guys work 20-40hrs a week.

The shows to fight in to get paid well are UFC, WEC (owned by Zuffa, the parent company of UFC), HDNet, Bodog, IFL. But everyone wants to get there, and if you lose two fights in a row, all of a sudden you are in danger of getting kicked to a smaller show. Just gotta train your butt off and get as good as you can.

Most guys start off amateur. I think many make the jump to pro to quickly and end up picking up a couple losses which hurts their attractiveness to bigger shows. For a first pro fight you might make 250/250 for a whopping total of $500 if you win. Not much after you get done with medicals, blood tests, licensing fees, paying trainers and gym fees, and God help you if you get hurt, then you can't work either.

I started wrestling in HS at LCA. Did that for 4 years. Got into MMA as an afterthought, mostly because of BJJ and no opportunity to wrestle in college. 7 years later... here i am.

I'm actually pretty familiar with the AZ MMA scene. Def some good shows out there.

If any of you guys are watching The Ultimate Fighter this season (btw, i LOVE how they bring 32 guys and make em fight their way onto the show) the guy from Richmond, Amir Sadollah, I've seen him fight several times in local shows up in Richmond. Hope he does really well.

Good stuff Matshark. I’m trying to watch more, but I got the wife trying to limit my sports watching.

Here’s some training advice. If you need that extra edge I suggest you train to the song “You’re the Best” by Joe “Bean” Esposito from the Karate Kid soundtrack. You saw that crane kick! How can you deny it?

All the best. Keep us updated.

[AZjonz]

Unfortunately my exposure to BJJ is what makes me feel uneasy. I had a boss in Austin who was gay and even he felt uneasy about the video in a story I did several years ago as being too homoerotic for local television. Seriously.

I realize boxing has gone to pot in general as a sport but I still enjoy it far more than MMA.

Sly, most of your posts are usually spot-on, but I’m not getting this one…

Wait, I just Googled it. It is a bit...strange.... I'm laughing at the fact you validate your opinion by using your former gay boss.

[ATrain]

Unfortunately my exposure to BJJ is what makes me feel uneasy. I had a boss in Austin who was gay and even he felt uneasy about the video in a story I did several years ago as being too homoerotic for local television. Seriously.

I realize boxing has gone to pot in general as a sport but I still enjoy it far more than MMA.

This is the first time I've heard anything about the sport in that direction...sorry, but unless the guys are making out while they're fighting, I don't see how anyone can view it that way.

[Sly Fox]

Frankly it didn't occur to me until my ex-boss pointed it out. Now everytime I watch I find it disturbing.