MMA Fighting - We Got Next | Robert Soldic, Ronnie Lawrence, Jay Perrin, Isaac Dulgarian & Josh Fremd

Episode Date: February 17, 2022

KSW two-division champion Roberto Soldic seems to be at an interesting crossroads in regards to his fighting future. Soldic (7:58) kicks off this week's edition of We Got Next to recap his incredible KO win over Mamed Khalidov to add the middleweight championship to his collection at KSW 65 in December, having one fight left on his KSW deal — which has an expiration date — his team preparing to meet with KSW officials this weekend to discuss what he would need to stick around, his thoughts on fighting in the UFC, what other promotions have stood out should he hit free agency, and why his dream fight would be against Conor McGregor. New UFC featherweight Isaac Dulgarian (36:38) talks earning a contract at FAC 12: Dana White's Lookin' For a Fight earlier this month, his reaction to Eduardo Dantas' incredible head kick KO in the co-main event before making the walk, how he found out about earning the spot on the UFC roster, wanting to take his time before making his octagon debut, possibly moving down to 135, and having a hobby as a beekeeper. New UFC middleweight Josh Fremd (54:35) recaps his second-round submission win at FAC 12: Dana White Lookin' For a Fight to earn a contract, talks getting to meet the UFC president and The Nelk Boys, what his thought process was watching the rest of the card following his win, when he wants to make his first octagon walk, and his thoughts on the Super Bowl this past Sunday. In addition, Jay Perrin (1:09:25) discusses getting the call for a short notice UFC debut against Mario Bautista this Saturday at UFC Vegas 48 and how he got the call, and Ronnie Lawrence (1:32:24) recaps his unanimous decision win over Mana Martinez at UFC 271. Follow Mike Heck: @MikeHeck_JR Subscribe: http://goo.gl/dYpsgH Check out our full video catalog: http://goo.gl/u8VvLi Visit our playlists: http://goo.gl/eFhsvM Like MMAF on Facebook: http://goo.gl/uhdg7Z Follow on Twitter: http://goo.gl/nOATUI Read More: http://www.mmafighting.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You're listening to the Vox Media Podcast Network. Hello there, everybody, and welcome to a brand new edition of We Got Next here on MMAFighting.com, on the MMA Fighting Podcasting Network, and wherever you find your favorite podcast, we appreciate it very much. I am Mike Heck. I hope you're having a wonderful week, a lot going on, of course, in the world of mixed martial arts. And this show covers.

The up-and-comers, fighters trying to make a name for themselves, fighters trying to take the next step in their careers. And I feel like this particular episode encompasses all of that, right? Because not only is this the most loaded show we've had in terms of number of guests, but I think the theme of the program meshes in very well with the guests that we have. So we're coming off of UFC 271. Pretty good event this past Saturday in Houston, Texas. crowd was on fire. Israel

Adasania successfully defended his middleweight title against Robert Whitaker. Very competitive fight in my opinion. Bigwood for Jared Cananir, huge win for Tai Tui Vasa. We will talk a little bit more about UFC 271 and one of the big winners from that event. We'll join us on the program this week. Of course, a lot going on in combat sports this Saturday. It's triple header, if you will. We got BKFC Knucklemania 2.

going down. Mike Perry versus Julian Lane in the main event. Britain Hart versus Christine Faria. That one's going down for the... I think that the... Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's the inaugural Women's Flyway title. Chad Mendez is going to make his BKFC debut,

so a lot to be excited about there. Bellator is back with a card headlined by Neiman Gracie versus Logan Storley. That should be fun. And then the UFC is back as well on Saturday. UFC Vegas 48. That one headlined by Johnny Walker versus Jamal Hill because we were supposed to get

Hafiel Dosanjos versus Raphael Fazeve. That fight is now a five-round co-main event of UFC 272 going down next month, the event headlined by Colby Covington versus Jorge Mazadol. So we get a main event, five rounds, non-title, and we have a co-main event, five rounds, non-title. And I dig it.

I dig it quite a bit. So a lot to look forward to if you are a combat sports fan. and I am looking forward to this episode of the show. So let us run down the lineup. We'll get to our first guest. And then you're not going to hear me talk without actually asking questions to a fighter for the rest of this file, for the rest of this show.

So we're going to wrap things up, excuse me, with Ronnie Lawrence. What a win. He approved a 2-0 inside the octagon. What a crazy fight. UFC 240, not 247. That's Houston, too. but UFC 271, which is also used to this past Saturday.

Ronnie Lawrence defeated Manna Martinez via unanimous decision. It was the Ronnie Lawrence show for the first 10 or so minutes of the fight. Third round, Manna Martinez turned things around, almost pulled off an incredible comeback. That was kind of the theme of the night. And Ronnie Lawrence hung on, gets the win. He was dealing with some health issues in the buildup to the fight, staff infection, some problems with the rehydration process. So we'll talk about all of that when he wants to come back and much more on the show.

Jay Perrin will join us. He has been on the show before. In fact, I believe he's the very first fighter to appear on an episode of the show as a regional fighter and a regional champion who came back on the show not long later, a couple months or so, and talking about his UFC debut. Jay Perrin coming in on short notice, we found out on Monday that Perrin's going to be stepping in for. Khalid Taha, who was forced out of UFC Vegas 48 for undisclosed reasons. Jay Perrin, a former Cage Titans and CES BANamite Champion, gets the call. One of New England MMA's best fighters, pound for pound, especially right now. He's made a lot of change in his life out in Las Vegas, training at Syndicate MMA.

He gets the opportunity to step in against Mario Batista, so we'll discuss that and so much more. I was also curious because we had Joe Penetheal on the show last week. and I was curious as to why his recent win, four Caged Titans was for the vacant Bannamoy title. We'll get J. Parrons side of that as well. And I don't know, you can kind of make your judgments on all of that. We will talk to Josh Friend, the newest member of the UFC roster who earned a contract

on Dana White's looking for a fight at FAC 12 earlier this month. Got a submission win in the second round. got himself a UFC contract and he's looking to get back in there and make his UFC debut relatively quickly. So we'll talk to Josh about that. We'll talk about the Super Bowl. Half-time show. He's a big football fan.

Really enjoy that conversation. Another fighter from that card who got a UFC contract, Isaac Dolgarian, I mean, the rise of this individual is just incredible. 5 and 0 is a pro. All these fights took place within an 11-month span

and he's now a U.S. FC fighter. Incredible performance in the main event of FAC12. First round TKO took him a little over a minute to do it. And he had to follow up that crazy knockout by Eduardo Dantus that happened the fight before that, which is absolutely ridiculous. And dealing with all that pressure, trying to perform in front of Dana White and the Nalk Boys and Matt Sarah and Dean Thomas and all that stuff to go out there and have the performance he had pretty impressive at a young age. A guy so so new to the sport. It's pretty fascinating.

So we'll talk about his career. And while Josh Frames wanted to get in there, ASAP, Isaac is looking at things from a little bit of a different perspective. Perhaps maybe a drop to 135 from 145. Very interesting guy. You'll hear that conversation coming up in around 20 minutes or so.

But first, we're going to kick things off with one of the best fighters in the world that, especially fans here, the United States and North America may not be familiar with, but this guy is just incredible. And there's a chance that maybe those American fans, maybe those North American fans will get to see him and access his fights a little more easily.

His name is Roberto Soldic. He is the KSW welterweight champion. He is the KSW middleweight champion. And he is at a very interesting crossroads in his career at 27 years old. Because this guy is unbelievable. You ask any hardcore fan about Roberto Sildek. They will all say the same thing.

You ask, I talk to Gagar Musassi, who is going to be on the show next week. He sang his praises. A lot of people talking about this guy. And I'm not going to give away too much of this interview, but there's a lot going on. And it's something that could be solved as early as this Sunday. So we'll see where his future lies. Will he stay in Kist?

Will he do what a lot of global fans want to see in fighting the UFC? Will he fight for the PFL? Will we fight for Bellator? Will you fight for one championship? We'll see and we'll get his perspective on everything coming up next to kick us off on We Got Next. Thanks for listening to everybody. All right, let us say hello to the reigning KSW welterweight champion and KSW Midway champion. Roberto Saldig.

We last saw him compete in December at KSW 65. to capture his second title, the 185 pounds strap, brutal second round KEO of promotional legend Mahmad Khaledov. Roberto, good to see you, man. I'm glad we caught you on a day off from training. How are you? Hello, hello. Glad to see you.

I'm fine. I'm fine. And you're good? I'm great, man. And thank you for asking because I don't get that very often. But what did that moment mean to you, capturing that second title, doing it the way that you did the way that you did that moment mean to you? I made history for my city.

In Bosnia, also, for Croatian people. And for me, for me, I reach some goal, you know, but I keep going. I keep forward. It's just, I just start. I feeling like I just start and I'm hungry. And Mahmette is very, very, very, dangerous opponent. We took him very serious. I was really, really ready for everything. And yeah, I won the fight, very important fight. I won now. I'm double champion,

KSW. And yeah, it's mean a lot, but I just keep going. I'm very hungry for more. And I don't, I don't think to stop. Yeah, that's a really good point that you make, because a lot of fighters, when they accomplish what you accomplished, they might sort of rest on their laurels and be like, I did it. Like, I've hit the top of the mountain. But for you, this is just a step along the way, so to speak. That's true. Yeah. Just, just, I, it was on my way. I took the belt. I keep going and that's it. I, yeah, how to say, I want to stay the humble. I don't want to, I don't want to do some some crazy things, you know, go outside. And I just focus on my training.

And I know that I can more. The knocko went viral, Roberto. I'm sure you jumped on social media and saw that thing everywhere. It was such a crazy moment. It was a big fight. And he was down. He was badly hurt for a while. And while it's great to get a win and get a big finish and have that moment,

how tough was that to finish a guy in that manner that you have so much respect? for. Was it kind of tough? Did you feel a little bit bad? Yeah, after fight, yeah, a little bit. But in the cage, when the cage closed, when he came inside the cage, I lose everything. I see him like opponent. And after fight, of course, I didn't celebrate because I don't know what happening to him. And, you know,

I really respect him. And as every opponent, I don't want to hurt, but not some crazy things, you know, like he was. That's why I didn't celebrate. I don't give to my people, to my corner. I say stop after when he stand up, we can celebrate. And, yeah, he attacked me very, very, how to say, very aggressive. He was very aggressive. And, you know, in the cage, you cannot be aggressive, like this way.

He went to throw the punches with me. And I know that I will catch him. And I just believe in my hands. I just believe in myself. And the way I punch him, it's not the first time. They know my left hand, but nobody can protect it. So it's nothing new for me. I'm not surprised.

I keep going. I say that before. And yeah, let's see new challenges. And I'm very happy that I can still go. It's good to be part of this event. I was very happy because it's very rare thing that from my country, someone go in the Poland where people all the world around they watched the main event, you know, like this. And I was happy that I'm part of this event. Yeah, it was a very big deal,

Roberto. A lot of people were excited for the fight. And I'm sure for you, this was a much more relaxing fight week because I'm sure it was a much easier weight cut to get to 185. How much did you actually have to cut to get there? I'm sure, I mean, much easier than 170. I'm sure. Yeah, I cut like five kilograms. It's nothing. Like I don't know how much about 10 pounds like this. Yeah, something like that. Yeah. It was easy when I train really hard and then I stopped the training and I still can drink the water and can still eat. And also Thursday night, I can't sleep. And after Wayne, I do in the night, Friday night, I do some pilot session that I see when I throw the punches. It's crazy. I see the power is there and everything is there, you know.

So, yeah, I was really, this feeling I cannot explain this feeling if you, the fighters still understand, you know. So I feel really strong. And then Saturday in the morning, I had also good breakfast. For me, food is everything. I just think about food, what we can eat, what today. Yeah, it's really easy, middleweight easy. But we will see in the future I need to go to welterweight. And maybe title defense, I will see what is next to know.

So again, to be very disciplined. I need to be very disciplined on 170. Yeah, and I'm glad you brought that up because there's been a lot of chatter around the interwebs about your future, Roberto. You're the champ champ. You're one of the big stars in KSW in that global scene. You're a guy that here, even in America, the hardcore MMA fans are very excited about. And you're not a free agent yet, right? Like you still have one fight left on your deal?

Is that accurate? Yeah, one fight. And the experience date is July 17, something like that. Okay, so if you don't get, so if there's not a fight booked by then, you're a free agent. Yeah. Now we will know after this, this KSW event in next Saturday. Sunday, we will have a meeting with, I mean, my manager will have a meeting with, Mr. Lewandowski, the boss of KSW, and we have some packet to offer.

How to say I have some what I want, and we will see if they accept this or not. So, man, the people and fans, Instagram, Facebook, everyone on the street, hey, when you go UFC, this many, many times. And then this makes me crazy. Every day, every day, when you go UFC, why you don't go UFC, UFC? And then this put me in my mind that, really, man, I need to test myself there.

From the beginning was my dream to go there, to see someone like John St. Pierre, I train with him and some of the guys, you know, I watched it before in YouTube. YouTube and television, I had time that I train with these guys. And it's a really good feeling and also another motivation for me. But KSW pay me really good. And now I don't know what to do.

A little bit confused, but yeah, we will see after Sunday what they want, what they offer, how much they give. What we will ask, will they give? But fans, media, every day, when you go, you reach top top, we have seen, we see top 10. I say, wait, first contract, we will see what they thought. Take easy, you know. I don't want to fly.

I kill everybody this, this, you know. I believe in myself, and I know what I can do, you know. And, yeah, it's make me really. little bit excited, you know. I'm really excited about UFC and everything and the media. And yeah, high, high level. This UFC is top leg. For Europe, KSW is really number one. I can, for the show, for the media, for the events, for the, I'm really famous in Poland and everywhere. In Germany, I'm coming Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, everywhere.

So soon we will know what future brings. At this stage in your career, you're 27, you're about to start getting into your athletic prime, and you're in this interesting spot in your career. So I'm curious as you await this decision, and I know contracts and conversations need to happen. What do you value the most? What's the most important thing to you for this next move?

Is it money? Is it competition? Is it building a legacy in front of the most amount of people? Like what's the thing you're looking for the most as you get ready to make this decision? Well, everything. All together. As a sport, as a sport man, like UFC is number one. Other business, you can see the MMA against B.

boxers, they had a lot of money also, 20 millions, 30 minutes also. They really did good job about this fight. In KSW, they pay me really good money that I can just relax. But it's not only UFC, the NFL also offer me a contract, one FC, everybody. You know, when you winning the way I win, you know, like knockouts, they want everyone watch you. So for me, important is everything, money, you know, it's, yeah. For the sport, like sport, UFC is number one for sure. But end of the career, they ask you how much you have money.

This is also the thing, you know, what you have for, If I now, U.S.C. champion, I don't have money. I go to a restaurant. I cannot pay with my belt what I eat. You know, this also. Now I really comfort. And I put in my mind that I keep going every day to train, you know, hard train. This is really tough, tough sport.

But I enjoy every moment in this sport, you know, in the trainings. and yeah, it's all about money today, but I want to competition with the best guys. And this gives me motivation to go in the training, you know. Like I know when somebody dangerous, I know somebody front of me is very dangerous and I'm very focused, you know. I don't, some guy, this easy guy, you know, I don't have nothing from you. I want big names. Like, Mamet Khalid, Mikhail Matala, Boris Mavoski, they are all famous in Poland, and when they bring, I'm focused, you know. Now, in KSW, I want to also want to go for third belt, but now I don't have wait for this. And, uh,

This is also one motivation is, but we will see after Sunday. I cannot wait what they want for offer and we will see. Oh, you've talked about how fans come up to you all the time and say, when are you going to the UFC, when are you going to the UFC? And I'm sure it's been like that for a while, right? This isn't something that's brand new to you. So how would you describe your mentality right now? Are you excited for all this because all these offers coming in, all these decisions to weigh?

It's for you, you're in a pretty good spot. Like you have all these different potential options heading your way. But I think at the same time, and this is just me kind of looking at you and trying to read the situation, you just want to, you just probably want to get this over with, right? Like, let's just figure out where I'm fighting, who I'm fighting, how this is all going to work because you probably want to get back in there as soon as possible. but now you get all these decisions to make. Are you just ready to just get this over with and make that decision? I know you're going to wait until Sunday to have that conversation, but are you just ready to just get this weight off of your shoulders

and have your next move in place? Yeah, I'm ready for everything. I open. I talk with my manager that he say also, same thing. We're ready for everything. And also, I'm a little bit confused, you know, what you say before. So many offers, I don't know which decision.

This good, maybe this good. The other one, other one. A little bit too much, but I try to be calm. I will calm and give the time. You know, I cannot, in the one night, from one day, I say, okay, I want this, you know, it's a serious, serious job. So I'm ready for everything and open for everything. It's just I want to fight.

And I'm very guilty and ready and I'm in good shape now. And yeah, every day is the same day, you know, the training, home, eat, sleep, repeat, you know. So I'm ready for everything. And I give this job to my manager. he will fix it. I believe in him and I know that we have always good deals and good decision in the end. Yeah, because like in your sake, it's your job is to be a guy, you know, you sit there and you got to be

disciplined, you get to eat the right things, you get to train, you got to fight and then rinse repeat, right? You go back and forth. You don't really prepare yourself for the type of scenario that you're in right now, like to have all these options and to be kind of confused about. your future. Like, it's, it's good to have good management, right? To kind of walk you through the process and make things a little bit easier for you, right? Yeah, they're like, they're like family, you know, I believe in that I give everything, everything, like from also from the sponsors,

when they, they give everything to my manager. I just train, I just calm and I'm focused on my training, on my skills to bring some new people to, to spar with good guys, to travel everywhere. know, to take some experience. And, you know, so this decision I give to my manager. And he, of course, he always asks me, what do you want? And, you know, so we talk always. And in the future, we'll be a good decision. And I believe this.

I don't even know if you can answer this, but I'd kick myself if I didn't ask you this question. let's just say Sunday happens and the offer is what you want and they put you in a room and they weigh all these options out. You're like this, this, this, this, this is this.

All these are in play right now. What are you picking? What are you picking? Like if you had to choose right now, what do you pick in? I pick this offer what we give to KSW for sure. So if KSW accepts the offer that you're given, that's where you're going with.

100% we will stay. Okay. 100%. But BFL also give good offering. So really, you give me good question, though. Yeah. If KSW accept what we want,

for sure, 100% I will stay. 100%. And doesn't matter what happened, who is front of me, This is also another motivation. But we will see. I cannot wait, really. I want to know, you know, I don't want to only train, train, train, and nothing.

I want a competition. I want to fight. I want to stay, how to say, stay in shape for the fights to feel this. Last time, last 12 months I had three fights in the, in the, 12 months, 30 months like this. In one year, three fights. It's good. They stay all the time fresh, you know, in the shape.

All this media fans, you know. Okay, first fight in November 2020 was in studio. There was no fans. But last time I had really big fans and different, different feeling. And I don't want to lose these feelings, you know. So I want to stay all the time in the moment. and this keep me

like keep me fresh, guilty I'm happy I need competition that's why I need as soon as possible to see what brings future which contract and will they accept this offer

or not what they want and I feel like you know the fans are going to keep asking you about the UFC and then if you end up resigning with KSW they're going to be like why didn't you go to the UFC see, what they don't understand is 27, you got time.

Like, you get time. You could sign a new deal with KSW, fight that contract out, and still have time to do other things too. So it's not like your career is going to end at KSW. I mean, it could. Maybe you end up being happy and they just keep resigning you and you stay there. But you're 27.

You have time to do all these other things. Is that part of your thought process as well? Yes. Some people say this, you are young, but I don't know, I feel I'm in good way now. Because all my experience, all my traveling and sparring with the fighters and everything, I think the time is now. And Sean Shelby also say to my manager, don't bring him when he, to have too much injury when his body is finished,

from the trainings, from everything. So this also, I know that that is true. I had broke the right hand. Still, it's metal dream, iron. You know, but now it's good. I don't know what will happen 30, 31. As you say, you have time, you know. So now I feel good.

I feel ready, fresh. young, a lot of experience. I'm 20 and 3. So I know how to fight in the rounds. I mean, I mean, like I know the feelings on third round. And I feel like who give me pressure and wrestling and jiu-jitsu and punches, you know. So I think the time is now, but still waiting for decisions. Yeah.

And you got to make that money, man. I understand exactly what you're coming from. Like you said, you can't pay for meals with title belts. and you're going to just keep accumulating them probably over the year. So with this decision, I know it's all hypothetical because you don't have a contract or anything. We haven't made this decision yet. But you got guys like Camaro and many believe that right the second he's the pound for pound best fighter on the planet right now. Not just the best welterweight in the world, but the best pound for pound fighter on planet earth.

And then the UFC also has guys like Colby and Leon Edwards and Mazudal and even Hamzat Shamaif is on the come up. and many feel that he's ready to fight for a title. How do you feel you match up with those guys and other guys in this Walterweight division? I feel like you're comfortable no matter where you end up, but I think most people will point to those specific fighters when wondering where you stack up with those guys. I say this before when they match for against Mamet, you know,

I see when I'm ready and he'll the, every people is from the skin and blood you know so I know they have also fear I know they have also the space where can punch go you know so everybody can go down so I believe in this

and not many fighters in MMA they undefeated respect to Habib and John Jones you know so but In this sport, you know, I believe in myself, I guess, everyone. I know that Geklar Mosasi told me 100% you will be a UFC champion. He gave me, you know, some board.

But I say, first contract we will see. He said, you, I see your evolution and good, you know. And Gleysson Thibau also. He said, I never feel some power like you and Habib when I fight. It's same, but you are in the world. striking you know so everyone is good everyone is champion but on the time when they need to show on the lights they they need just you know just be ready and i'm ready for everyone i see i'm ready for everyone i spar also with uh with kemeli was there all every guy no problem it's all

So when I'm ready, I'm a big trouble. I believe in this. I'm big trouble when I'm ready. I mean, when I have good time. And of course, not bad weight cut. Like before I had, you know, with 22 years old, I do really big, big mistake now. I have experience and ready to go with everyone.

I'm believing this. I believe also in myself. in my condition, it's good to be comfort, you know, it's good to be, how to say, like, it's good to believe in yourself, but not too much, you know. It's, you know, I know my feelings, you know, so those guys respect, I give respect, but we will see decision, and I know that I'm ready for everyone in the world. one guy that you feel you have to fight before your career is over? Just, I mean, money aside, just the competitive side of Roberto Soldique, who's one guy you just, who's the dream fight for you,

that you just, you feel like your career is not completely fulfilled until you fight this person? Like everyone, Conor McGregor is the best. Oh, the red panty, the red panty night. I want to see this type of, you know. I want to, I want to, I want to test that I can flip it, you know. At one said, he's more of a lightweight, though. I mean, it would be a huge fight and you'd get a lot of money on it. He was also like better than it. Yeah, a couple of fights.

I hear you. All right. I mean, that would be a fun one. You and Connor? I mean, that'd be a striking bonanza right there. I know. He has also now experience from boxing, you know, with the Floyd, maybe there are movies.

But I know. that when I punch nobody can stay. It's better. Don't take punch from me, the clean punch. Like, I don't know. I believe in myself. Connor, yeah, Conner is Dreamfight, of course. You know, this is really the guy he made MMA another level.

UFC is bigger because of, I know, not big like, I have to say it's like I don't know he he made this sport big yeah 100% well you're in a really interesting spot my man and no matter when you fight or who you end up fighting for there's a lot of fans that are going to be excited to see it roberto and if you don't sign with the ufc yeah there's going to be some people are going to be disappointed but it is what it is it is your life it is your decision and you can do whatever you want so don't worry about anybody else thinks I appreciate your time

Congratulations for all of your success. Yeah, thank you. Sorry, but I want to make my fans happy because I do this because of my fans. You know, they buy a paper view. They support me. And then I know everywhere where I go, I will have six countries, Poland, first, Croatia, second, Bosnia, third, Serbia, Germany, Austria, and also creations in America, in Australia.

I know that I will sell always good people because they want to see my fights. This is good, you know. They're excited about fights. So excited of my fights. And I will bring army, big army. I have really good people behind me. I hope all of you promotions are watching this right now.

And we'll see what happens on Sunday, my man. And I'm really, I got to tell you, after this conversation, this might be outside of the Francis and Ghanau situation, this might be my most intriguing storyline for all of 2022. Where will Roberto Soljeech end up having his next fight? I don't, I don't, I'm so excited, man. I mean, I know it's a little nerve-wracking, but this is very interesting stuff. And hopefully this all gets resolved soon. And we can see you back in the cage doing what you. do best, man. And that's fighting and throwing those hands.

Yeah, we will see. Thank you. Thank you very much, man. I appreciate your time. All right, let us say hello to the newest member of the UFC's featherweight division. Isaac Dalgarian capped off FAC 12. Dana White's looking for a fight with a nasty first round TKO. Took him a little over a minute to get it done. And now his next fight will be in the hallowed UFC Octagon. Isaac, how are you, sir? Doing all right, brother. Just got them trained. and, you know, I'm already back in the gym.

Just chilling out today. Well, congratulations on everything. I mean, what's crazy about this whole thing is that you turned pro less than a year ago. Your first pro fight was in March of 2021. And 11 months later, you are in the UFC. This is not a story that is told all that often. I'm sure you saw this coming at some point. But 11 months after you turned pro, this is amazing.

Did you ever see it happening this way? Man, it definitely came fast. I've taken every opportunity that's been presented to me. I'm always in the gym. I'm always training. I'm always ready to fight. So it's really no surprise that I'm here as fast as possible. I've been blessed to be like injury-free and everything like that.

So I'm just getting started in my career, but I'm going to make waves in the UFC. I already know. When you're on these types of cards, like looking for a fight or the contender series and what have you, and you're fighting in front of Dana White. There's a lot of pressure already, but I constantly think,

about the psychology of it all because you know what you have to do, right? And the pressure is there. So I always wonder if it's better to fight early and kind of get it out of the way and let everybody else chase you or in your case, be in the main event. You already know what happened on the rest of the card. You saw some big finishes. You're following the insane head kick KO from Eduardo Dantes. What are you thinking headed in? Did you think like, damn, I got to go out there and do something ridiculous right now? Yeah, yeah. So, like, right?

Well, early in the night, my buddy Gage young, he had a nasty knockout early. And I was like super happy for him. But I was like, dang, that kid just stole the show. You know, he's a young up-and-comer as well. And I was like, he stole the show early from us. And then, uh, Dantus, while I was warming up, he's a fight before me. He had that nasty head kick. And I was just like, my heart kind of sunk.

I was like, man, now it doesn't really matter what I do. It's going to be tough to top that. But I just told myself once they loaded me in the shoot, I was like, man, you got to do something special to change your life tonight. And lo and behold, I went out there and that's what happened. You know, I've been doing combat sports since I was eight years old. I sacrificed so many like friendships and relationships and everything like that for my sport. So really, I just feel like that's the moment where everything kind of came together for me. and I was no longer, no longer just myself.

It was just everything put together, all the, all the train sessions, everything. It kind of just, that's just kind of how it went down. So it was like my moment, my time, you know what I'm saying? It's crazy being on social media, watching the card and seeing everything going on and how people are reacting. When Dantus lands a headkick, everyone's like, welcome to the UFC. He's a former Bellator champion. There's no doubt they're going to sign this guy. But then you go out there and do what you did.

is there a part of you in like this strange way that's kind of grateful to Dantus for finishing the fight the way that he did because that gave you that extra boost a little bit in the shoot. Like you knew what you needed to do, but having to follow that, that almost like kind of instilled you having to do something special. Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean, kind of, kind of for sure. I mean, I was blessed to be fighting above Dantus in the first place. You know, he has so much more experience in me.

So just then giving me the opportunity to headline that. card was amazing in itself. And then Dantus obviously did that and I had to, I had to do something special. But like I had the opportunity early in the fight to take the rear naked choke. And, you know, like I didn't take it because I knew I had to top that. So I definitely wanted to go out there and show Dana and everyone else on the looking for a fight cast and the no voice exactly what I'm about. And that's what I did. Another thing about fighting in the main event of a card like this is, you know, the whole training camp, all the hard work, everything you did heading into this fight was all about the fight, right? It's about you and another man. You're getting in there and you're

trying to do the same thing, fight for the same goal. And when you win a fight like that, it's an emotional thing. You want to enjoy it and you want to kind of smell the roses for a moment and celebrate the win. And with this situation, you can't really do that right away, right? Like you win and now it's like, okay, did I do enough? When will I know? And I imagine you leave the cage and before you can even think about the fight and the performance that you just had, you're thinking about the decision that needs to be made. You're about to find out if your life's about to change. What were those moments like for you walking out of the cage and heading to the back to finding out you got the contract? Because I'm sure you found out not long after that.

Yeah, man, it was absolutely insane because I finished my fight, got my hand raised, you know, did my interview and stuff like that. And then I walked down the runway. I'm dabbing all my, all my fans and stuff up. They literally take me right to the back. I still have my wraps on. I have my belt on me, everything. My shirt's still off. I'm sweating, breathing hard.

And they just took me right back into the room with Dana and them. And they told me I'm a UFC fighter now. So it all happened so fast. There was all a blur. I honestly didn't know what to say when they first gave me that because I was still trying to process everything that I just did in my fight and all the emotions that come with that. So you're definitely right.

say that. Yeah, it was all a blur, man. I always take a couple minutes after my fights and kind of just go in the back and sit by myself and just like try to take in what just happened and everything. And this time they just threw me right in with the wolf. So it was pretty crazy. Were the Nelk boys back there with Dana when you got offered the deal? There's the Malk Boys, Dana, Dean Thomas, Matt Sarah, and a wall with like 50 cameras. That's crazy, man. I was in there like halfway about to cry, halfway. Like, I don't know. Like, it was just insane. What was more memorable? The fight, the awarding of the contract are just a fully suited up and dapper Jeff Molina giving you the

post-fight interview because he is so good at that role. Is he not? He's amazing at that. And it was awesome to share that moment with him after such a big victory for me. I mean, the biggest thing for me was winning that fight as dominantly as I did, T.J. Britton, he's a tough opponent. You know, he definitely has a huge height advantage on me, huge reach advantage. So it was an awkward matchup from the beginning. And just to be able to go out there in a five-round fight, my first five-round fight and get it done with another first round finish, you know, that just speaks wonders on my training and how hard I actually train.

I couldn't believe how many people were there. You couldn't really, you couldn't really grasp it all on the broadcast. Like you could hear it and it was loud and it was ruckus. but I saw on Twitter when someone videoed Don Chainess walking out down the ramp and it was like an overhead shot. And I was just like, holy crap, there's like, there's a ton of people in here. Is that the most amount of people you fought in front of? Yeah, that's the most I fought in front of for sure. Really, the craziest part about it was, was that there was like three times as many people as the other shows.

And most regional shows, they don't have anywhere near that many people, you know. So that was like a, that was a big deal. I love competing in front of people. I love competing in front of my fans and everything. I don't really get any more nerves than I would if nobody was there. So I enjoy that aspect of it. I enjoy seeing all the familiar faces out there after I win, just going crazy and sane for me.

And yeah, it's just an awesome experience to be in front of that many people. Five fights in the last 11 months, eight fights since 2020, and that includes your last three amateur fights. Did this fight, this situation, do you feel like it came at like the perfect time for you? Because you check the next box off, but this isn't something you necessarily need to rush and fight next month, right?

Like, or maybe you do because you're such an active guy. No, I don't need to fight. I actually want to take a little bit of time and develop. And I think the guys of the UFC will see that I'm still young and I've only been a pro for a year. So I hope they allow me to have that time to actually get better and focus on training with actual UFC fighters. We got like David Onama and a bunch of people at the gym, Kevin Kroom, all these guys my size that are great partners for me.

And I'd love to just sit down and actually, actually focus on training with these guys the most. Yeah, what was the last time you had like this full on like actually time to just work without having to prepare for a fight? Because I feel like you probably haven't really been able to do that. I mean, yeah, in between, I think it was like my second and third pro fight. We took a few months off, but really I was just, I was constantly in the gym, you know, the whole time preparing for my next outing. I'd love to just be able to do skill work and just try to try to focus on my skills to get better. So that's the biggest thing for me. I've just been so active, man, like I haven't had any time to rest or recover anything like that.

Like even after this fight, I was back in the gym on Monday watching and training on Tuesday. We fought on Sunday. So I'm already back in the gym doing everything that I was. So it's just my lifestyle. If I miss, if I miss like a training session, my body doesn't feel right at all. But speaking on the timing, the timing of this fight honestly wasn't the best because I've been going through some like actual life things that have been bothering me a lot and kind of taking my mind off of the fight. But I was still able to lock in and do the things that I needed to do and come prepared. you know what I'm saying.

I didn't use that as an excuse. I came prepared and was ready to fight, win or die. You know what I'm saying? Are you allowed to, like, what were you dealing with if you don't mind me asking? I don't really want to get into it. Just a bunch of emotional stuff going on with me and, yeah, the situation that I'm in. So really, really that's the extent of that, man. But I just came prepared, put that stuff to the side and kept training.

when I didn't want to, kept doing everything that I normally do when I didn't want to, when I'm sitting in here not wanting to train and stuff like that. So, you know, just keep it pushing, keep it moving no matter what's going on in your life and good things will come, you know, like this opportunity, if I wanted to be a baby and not go train and not do anything, this fight could have went completely different and I wouldn't be sitting here today where I am. So I'm just grateful for my mental toughness that was instilled in me from my grandfather, always pushing me to keep going,

no matter what circumstance we are in in life. So that's the biggest thing for me, man. So with everything going on, you want to evolve and everything. If you had your druthers, if we're up to you, I mean, when the UFC calls it about,

obviously things might change, but if it was up to you, when do you want to make this debut? Like end of the year or sooner? What do you think? I'd love to debut at the end of the year. I felt that would be best for me. If they tell me I need to go before, I'll be ready.

But if they want to see a new fighter, like an evolved young athlete, an evolved young man, I feel like they'll allow me to wait until October, November, around there. I feel like I'll be a completely different fighter in six-day months. And it's just been an unbelievable quick rise for you. What else is pretty unbelievable about you? I watched some of the interview you do with James Lynch. Did I hear correctly that you're a beekeeper? Yeah, yeah, I keep some bees.

It's a hobby. It's not like a full-time job or anything. But yeah, it's one of the hobbies of mine. I keep bees, garden. Pretty much can do anything crafty, man. I'm very diverse in what I can do. I have a lot of knowledge outside of just fighting, which I think a lot of people don't have. And I was never great at school. So I kind of filled my time with other things like building, like woodwork, all this other type of stuff. just to show that like I'm not stupid like I'm smart. I know how to do things. I just don't like the school stuff. So that's really where my head was at with that when I was young. And it's kind of just carried over into my adult life.

You're at the right gym, right? You get James Krauss there. I mean, talk about a guy who is about as smart as it gets when it comes to being a fighter and finding other avenues to succeed. This guy is like the leader in the clubhouse when it comes to that stuff. He's a genius, man. I look up to him a lot. I can't wait to start working with him on some projects and stuff like that here eventually.

There you go. As someone who was allergic to bee stings, it got me thinking a certain way here and about that because, man, I get stung in like wherever I get stung in the hole, if I get stung in the, like in the finger, my whole hand will blow up like 10 times the size. It's like disgusting, dude. EpiPen. Yeah, no, I swore. I swore up that I don't have any like bad allergic reactions, but I got stung on my face.

and I got stung like on my face and everyone at practice was like, did you start dipping? They're like looking at me like, I was chewing tobacco and stuff. I was like, no, man, I got stung by a bee. And then like I got stung on my thumb. It's weird because I've been stung, like I probably got stung. I'd say nine to ten times last year. Just me being overconfident, not wearing my B suit when I probably should.

And I'm just like, I don't really care. But I got stung on my thumb and my thumb. and my thumbs swole up. It, like, got me with my, I was holding a frame, so I'm holding like a B frame, and it stung me on my knuckle, and it got like all the way down in there, man. And my hands swore up so big

that I couldn't even put my M&A glove on anymore. It was weird. Oh, man, those things are vicious creatures, but they serve a purpose. And I feel like you probably, and I heard you're talking to James about this, you're probably just so fascinated by how the sausage is made, so to speak. Like once you, I think you said,

Once you started reading one thing, you just dove into a rabbit hole and it becomes like such a fascinating. What was the most interesting thing you learned? Like what was the one thing that sort of stood out there? You're like, oh, man, I got to keep reading about this. I don't remember exactly what it was, but it probably had to do with like, it had to do with the inner workings of the hive, like, how like the queen has like an entourage that like follows her around. And like it's almost crazy to watch. I've seen it happen. Like the bees literally push all the other bees out of the way for the queen.

and they clean her, they feed her. They do everything for the queen, and it's just insane to watch. The queen goes and lays, like, I think it's like 2,000 eggs a day. So, I mean, do the math on that. That's 14,000 eggs in a week. That's a lot of bees that's going on. Yeah, man, it's just, it's insane. Like, the nurse bees, the, the nurse bees feed the babies, like the larvae and stuff.

They feed them thousands of times a day. It's like, how do you even feed something a thousand times a day? that's insane, but they do. So they're just on top of their game at all times. They all work in synchrony so well. And this is amazing to watch, especially when you get to watch it in person. What's the I made it fight for you in the UFC?

Like if you get matched up with this, with this individual fighter, you're just like, all right, we're on to something. Like, I'm close. I'm there. I'm where I want to be. Is there a guy that stands out? Not in a trash talk kind of way,

but even I just respect. Like, if I make it to this guy, like we're cooking with fire here. I don't think in any specific person. I just think I belong in the top 10, top 15. You know, I think I belong there. I'm willing to earn my spot. And I don't even know if I'm going to be fighting it.

By the way, I might be down at 135 because I make 145 super easily. So I might be going to band-in-weight. That's what I was saying. If they'll allow me to take the time to run a tester and make sure I can get down there healthily, you know, I already know I can compete in the top 10 at 135. So it's just me skill building, getting better eyes on me so I can see everything coming. And I feel like I'm going to cause trouble at that division for sure.

Have you fought a 35 before? I haven't, man. But like I said, I cut the 145 for all my vocal fights really just because it's super easy on my body. I'm like, I'm not cutting the 35 for $1,000, like $12,000. I'm good. It's going to cost me that much to get down there. you know what I'm saying so now that I have like the resources and stuff and I can go up to the PI and they can check out my body and make sure that I can actually get down to 35s which shouldn't

be hard because I walk around light in the first place I'm not that big so I think I think that's the weight for me I'm kind of an in-betweener but I feel like that's a weight that I can jump right into the mix right away what do you walk around at normally depends on what I'm eating man I'd say normally around 60, 63, really just depends. Yeah. So, I mean, I mean, and you're relative a young guy. So, I mean, if you're going to do it, now is probably the time to do it, right? Yeah, I mean, if I'm eating clean, I'll drop down lower than that.

If I'm eating whatever I want, I can get a little heavier, you know. So it's all whatever. It's all dependent on what I'm doing. Well done. Congratulations, man. I mean, what a rocket ship ride it has been over the last three or so years for you. This is just unbelievable stuff. So well done.

Looking forward to that eventual debut, maybe at 45, maybe at 35. We'll see what happens. But I appreciate your time, man. Congratulations again. And don't get stung too much on the way to the Octagon. Yes, sir. I got you. All right, we go from one brand new UFC sign E to another.

And that's actually going to be a theme on the show this week. As Josh Frem joins us, he too earned himself a UFC contract at FAC 12 earlier this month with a second round submission win over Joel Bauman. Josh, how are you, sir? I'm doing well, doing well. It's a beautiful day out here in Colorado. Can't complain. UFC Sini.

How does that sound? Is that like music to your ears at this point? It sounds great. I'm not going to lie to you. It sounds amazing. It's starting to wear off a little bit because I can't wait to be able to call myself a UFC fight winner. UFC fight sinee is amazing. all the congratulations is amazing but when it comes down to brass tacks i just want to get my

first win in the ufc that's that's my first goal is that when it'll kind of feel real for you just making that walk having that whole experience and uh coming away with your hand raised that's when it'll like fully sink in for you yeah yeah i've had a couple buddies ask me that and uh that's that's how i feel about it once i put the gloves on once i make that walk Once everything starts setting in, that's when it's going to really feel real. Right now it's all just hearsay. And I know that the future is what that's going to be. But that's when it'll finally set in for me.

A checkmark at this point. Oh, there you are. So it's more of a checkmark than anything? More of a check mark. Yeah, just on the list of goals that I have with this whole fighting game, that's a big one to check off. So before we talk about the fight and the next step and what this all means, I understand you are a big football fan.

I understand you are a Steelers fan. I am a Patriots fan having lived in Massachusetts for over three decades. But we both watched the Super Bowl on Sunday as neutral fans. We just wanted to see a darn good game. And I think we got that won by the Rams. I enjoyed it. What did you think of the game? I thought it was a great game.

Obviously, it's a little hard to cheer for the Bengals because they're in the north. but how can you hate Joe Burrow? The kid, you know, Jamar Chase is fantastic. And the Rams star-studded team, they played a lot better than, they played a lot worse than I expected. But once they started using Cooper Cup in the end,

they finally started doing well. So I'm curious, did you think Cooper Cup should have been the MVP? There's been two big debates coming out of Sunday, and one was that, was the halftime show, whether you thought it was great or you thought it sucked. So we'll start with the MVP voting. I definitely think that the MVP should have went to Cooper Cup. It just showed you that on that last drive, every single play, like, they finally started hitting him.

And honestly, to cap off such a great year, why not be the MVP? The guy won offensive player the year, he broke so many records. It's like cap off a star-studded year for that guy for sure. Which had a halftime show debate were you on? Did you dig it? I mean, that was in my wheelhouse. I'm a little bit older than you are, but what did you think of the whole thing? Hey, you might be a little bit older than I am, but that is the music I was raised on.

And that Mary Jay coming out was amazing for me. I was a little heartbroken. You know, I'm a huge Pock fan. I'm probably, that's probably my number one artist is Tupac. they didn't even have the show for them. They didn't do any tribute, no holograph, no hologram, no nothing. That was a little sad. But other than that, it was a great performance for the halftime show.

We'll see how our team's fair next season. Hopefully we get to see each other and sometime in the playoffs, you know, for both of our sake after some sad exits. Patriots are going to be good for next couple of years. I got a lot of faith in Mack Jones. and he's going to be a really good fit for that team. Yeah, I think so. And it was good seeing him miced up at the pro ball.

You got to see his personality shine a little bit. And he's just a fun loving guy. Fets right into that Belichick culture, right? Fun loving guy, that never happens. Let's talk about your victory, FAC 12, which at this point in your career, that was kind of like your Super Bowl. Great win, great finish, great showing. Certainly impressed the powers that be.

It was a hell of a knife for you. What was going through your mind when the ref stopped the fight? Were you thinking? I'm in the UFC or do the nerves kind of kick in wondering, did I do enough? It's always like that. I always have that type of money. Why would they pick me?

I don't know if I did enough. I don't know if it was good enough. Because as you saw, the guys after me went out and just did amazing things. So, yeah, I was a little nervous. I was a little nervous at the end. But to get the win, to be able to deal with all the adversity I was dealing with before the fight and taking it on such short notice. And, you know, just having my coaches believe in me,

honestly more than I believed in myself, to go out and get the win. That was a huge accomplishment for myself. And, yeah, sitting in the back waiting, that was nerve-wracking. Oh, so you didn't find out until the end of the card? Yeah, yeah, I had to wait until the end of the card. And then, like, half an hour went by. Everybody, all the fighters who won are standing in the back with their significant others. and their teammates and everything,

just Dana White and the Nelf Boys in the back with the contract discussions. We weren't allowed to do anything. So I'm just trying to, you know, relax. I had a couple cups of whiskey with my coach. We're just sipping on them, just waiting like, whatever happens happens, you know? Yeah, because I always wonder on events like this

and shows like this, because I just talked to Isaac Delgary, who got a contract as well, wondering if it's better to fight earlier and make everybody chase you and have to wait through the rest of the card. You can watch it and you can kind of judge it. Or is it better to fight in the main event and see how the rest of the night worked itself out to see kind of the bar that you have to sort of leap over.

So hindsight is what it is. The fight in the night went the way that it did. But in hindsight, if you could do it again, would you be happy fighting in the same spot or would you be happy fighting later in the night? You know, it was kind of, it was different not fighting closer to the end or at the very end, because once you get used to that spot, it's kind of hard. But I definitely say towards the end, because, you know, especially with casuals and MMA fans and everything, it's recency bias.

What was more exciting the last thing I've seen, you know? And yeah, I put on an exciting performance. It was a little bit of a back and forth more than that. I wanted. But, you know, the guys that came right after me, like, back to back, crazy knockouts. Like, it definitely pays to be a little bit later on the card. Yeah. And then, I mean, Dantus lands that head kick from outer space. And you're just like, oh, come on. I mean, he's a former ballot. There's no way that I'm going to sign this guy. And then he didn't get a contract.

Oh, yeah, it was shocking because I know in Denver, when they came out here for the Dana White's looking for a fight, they gave away two contracts. So in my head, I was like, okay, two contracts. I'll get one. Dantus will definitely get the other one. And then Isaac goes out and just demolish, like in such a cool fashion, just goes out there and does this thing in the main event. And I was like, well, he'll definitely get one.

I don't really know if I'm going to get one now. And then finding out you got it. I mean, you've probably been on their radar anyways, I'm sure, for a little while. But to finally check that box off to finally get that contract in your hand, what was that moment like for you? it was it was great i mean i didn't get the contract in my inbox until obviously like two or three days later but you can ask my girl i was like a little kid on christmas i i didn't have to but i printed it out you know and i was shown i was look like that says ufc like those are the numbers those are the

letters that i've been chasing for almost 10 years now so it's pretty cool it's a great feeling so what did you do after you printed it out did you did you frame it up is it on the wall now or is it No, it's in a folder in my little, I have a little compartment in my apartment that I like to keep all the fighting memoirs that I like to keep, just little bits and pieces from each fight. Had you met Dana White before, or was this the first time you met him? No, I was, I was going to go up and say hi to him in Denver when he came out here for his, for Dan White's looking for a fight that episode. But my teammates were fighting and I had a little too much to drink. I didn't want to go embarrass myself. And I, I, maybe it's just because I'm a little bit older.

I know the Nelk boys are a very big deal, but I didn't, I don't really know much about them. Did you, were you fans of them? Did you know much about them heading into this card? Yeah, I'm a pretty big fan of those guys. Steve will do it is absolutely hilarious. I know going through college, like my buddies and I would always watch their videos and joke around about it. I didn't really put too much pressure about myself for the Nelk boy contractor.

anything because that's a bonus, like a cherry on top, you know, but it was really cool to be able to go say hi to him after the fight. That was super cool. How are you now approaching things from a UFC signy perspective, Josh? Like, do you want to get in there right away? Or do you want to take your time, work with the squad at Factor Yax for a little bit, improve evolve before you make that first walk? Like if the UFC called you or your manager right now and said, hey man we're so excited to have you on board we're going to let you choose when you want to fight what are you going to tell them oh well i train every day like this is this is a lifestyle for me and it's it's just something that i've always wanted to do so it's an everyday thing for me if they

gave me the option i would like to have at least yeah a little bit of time you know i would like to fight in april probably uh end of april would be ideal perfect for me but hey if they want me to get back in there in March and fight with my teammate cody brundage we can get the smash brothers going you know i'm i'm down to fight whenever i want to i want to make my ufc debut i want it to be you know i want to have the time to do the things that we're going to build my skills but just like this last fight i had a little bit of nerves you know like am i ready is this a good career move and then i just went out and fought At the end of the day, it's just fighting.

If I go out there and I fight, I'm going to show the true martial artist that I am, and it's going to be good. So if they did ask me, yeah, I'd like a little bit of time, but I'm not picky. I love how you said I would like a little bit of time, and then you said April, which is less than two months away. Yeah, to me, I love to fight every couple months, you know.

People keep telling me, oh, you got this contract. Like, you're rich. Is your life changed? I'm like, nah, like, I have a, I got a, fight to earn this money. I can't, I, nothing's changed yet. Like, everything is still the same for me. I'm at home with my dogs most of the time playing around. I'll go hiking. But, like, there's really nothing that's changed yet until I get a couple wins until I get my name out there. Same on me. How is, uh, how is Cody doing? How is the other Bash brother doing? Because I've been,

I've been interviewing Cody since he was, uh, on the regional scene before he's on the contender series. really good guy and you know he dominated the michigan scene for a while so him getting ufc contract at this time in his career was not surprising at all so how's he doing getting ready for his next fight dude he's doing amazing you know uh him like myself we're really hard on ourselves personally but i was just in the gym watching him and it sparring last week like the kid is a monster and i can't wait for him to come out and show what he's truly potential all of his potential and him moving here has been a huge positive for me. Towards the, I want to say towards the latter part of me moving out here,

a couple of the bigger guys were kind of like either retiring or moving. And I wasn't really sure what my space would be here at Factory X at the time. And Cody came out and visited and did a couple training sessions and decided to move out here. And that's been huge for me because, like you said, the guy's hilarious. The guy's a great dude. He's the kind of guy you want to go. have a beer with, want to hang out with. He's just funny and positive all the time. Great person to be around. How much training do you do with Dustin Chacobi? Because that's another

fun loving guy who's just a savage too. What is it like having him on the team? Oh, dude. Dustin Jacoby has brought my striking up to another level. Something that I've always wanted to do is be a high level striker being lanky like him. And he's done nothing but teach me the ropes, show me the way. And he's another one of those just, he's a dude's dude. You want to hang out with them. He's tough his nails, just gritty blue collar kind of guy. And yeah, he's the type of guy that when he walks in the room, like, that's the, that's the life of the party. That dude's funny. He's always down to joke around. Great dude. Have you played golf with them yet? I played golf one time, but it wasn't directly with him. He was in our group, but I did way more

drinking than I did swinging the golf club. So I'm not the greatest golfer, but I know he is. Yeah, I was just going to ask because he tells he's a very good golfer. I hear rumblings that he's a very good golfer, but I figure you may have seen him play golf. So is he as good as advertised? Yeah. Yeah. Anything that requires skill, any ball sport, basketball, football, golf, like anything like that, the dude's just smooth. He's just really athletic. I'm so pumped for his next fight with Alexeach. That is going to be such a beggar. That's going to be such a good plan. So, yeah.

So Cody's got a fight. Jacobi's got a fight. And then soon you'll have a fight as well. And I can't wait to see it, man. Congratulations on everything. Well done. And maybe you get your April fight. Maybe you get on the same card as Cody.

But I'm sure whenever that phone rings, you'll be ready to go. So congratulations again. Thank you for the time. And we'll see you in that Octagon, man. Hey, appreciate the time. My man. Thank you. Well, holy crap, Jay Perrin.

or should I say UFC Banimate, Jay Perrin, stepping in on short notice this Saturday at UFC Vegas 48th against Mario Batista. Congratulations, my man. I'd ask how you're doing, but I think I know how you're doing. I'm actually doing great, dude. You know what I mean? Like people put weight cut pressure on,

I mean, like short notice shit like that on themselves too much. Look, man, my dream is at the end of the road of this. So there's like no amount of misery that I can feel that will supersede the excitement and the joy that I have. So, like, yeah, I'm getting skinny and, like, it's always that way. So, you know what I mean? Like, I'm good, though. I feel great.

Yeah, I figured you'd be good. I didn't think, I didn't even really think about the weight cut. I mean, I'm sure that's something, but. Some people have asked me about it. That's all. Yeah, I mean, but you were already preparing for a fight. So it's not like, it's not like you're rolling off the couch at 170 right now. Dude, I was, I was like 152, like when they called me.

And I'm like, I'm like, dude, water cut right now. I'll get it done immediately. So like it's like I'm just two weeks ahead of schedule. So like if I were to have fought a chic or fought for CES, I would have fucking woke up on weight. So like, you know what I mean? Like they told me to be prepared. I was and here we are. So when did this happen?

When did you find out this is a possibility? And then when did you find out that that year ago, man? So they told me like a week and a half. ago. I got a text from Jason House who was like, hey, man, you know, there might be an opening on the 19th. Nothing really like set in stone yet. But what's going to happen is that they're going to ask roster members first, right, because they get first dibs. And then if they can't find anybody to fight on the roster, then you're probably top of the list right there. So as soon as I got that call, I went, oh, word, because I don't know, I just had this feeling in the pit of my

stomach. I'm like, I'm going to get this call at some point. So, like, as soon as that happened, I got off the phone and I started fucking going after it because like I said, you know, you trust your intuition. And so basically a week and a half I had like to prepare for the call and because I was already prepping, you know what I mean? I did 14 days of just train. I didn't rest for 14 days. I took one and then like the day after the rest day, I got the call. So like I did 10 double sessions and then like a couple of like light ones. And then I'll It was like, all right, I need a break. I don't think I'm getting this.

And then the next day I get the call. So it was good. It's cool. A week and a half, it's a possibility. When did you know for sure that this is a done deal? Like Saturday or Sunday? Two days ago, yeah. Okay.

And how did you react? I mean, go ahead. Yeah, two days ago. Two days ago. I was, you know, it was back and forth between me and one other guy, but I had seen that guy that day and like the same day. And they were like, can he make wait? And I'm like, not on his life. could this man make weight in the time and nothing against him.

Like it's just, you know, some people are just too far out and it's dangerous. And I looked at him like, nope, this is mine. I'm going to get this. So that's pretty much how I went down. You've been waiting for this for so long, man. Like a couple of years you felt you were ready. I mean, you were on the contender series. And even after that, you thought maybe a win, another two,

you're back in the dance and then COVID hits and all this stuff's going on. And, you know, there's probably like some self-doubted at different points. You're like, you're seeing all these guys get called. you're, you're booking big fights, just hoping that you'll get there. And I'm sure you have to tell yourself, like, it's going to happen at some point. But, you know, sometimes you get a little frustrated. Like, where were you at with that before you got this call and that this opportunity was there was there just like keep plugging away or was there a part of you that's like,

when is this, when is this phone going to ring for me? Because like, what else do I have to do? Absolutely. You know what I mean? Like to say that there's no self-doubt in the sport that we're in is just fucking silly. You know what I mean? That's stupid. like and I work hard man so like working as hard as I do and not getting the the call as far and like winning the way that I do it sucks you know what I mean but like again going back to what I've said before having expectations of things before they come about often sets you up for disappointment so like my contender series fight really really put that in perspective for me you know I thought I should have won I thought the world owed me something and it didn't

And so, like, yeah, like, in the last, like, two years, I've been like, what the fuck am I doing, man? Because I came to Vegas and I've been broke. You know what I mean? Like, you just broke, man. And it's just how it is. And there's times where you look back and like, damn, I left home. I was making, you know, two, three thousand dollars every other week. I was making good money back when I was home.

I worked two jobs. I could have had my own place by now. I wouldn't be in someone else's house. You know what I mean? Like, so obviously, yeah, it sucks. But, like, there's something deep down that says, you know what? like I always think of those things like, what if I quit? And then it's, it was right there in front of me.

You know what if I was? So I gave myself like a cutoff time to make it to the UFC. I'm like, if I'm not in the UFC by 31, I'm done. So like that was pretty much it for me. It was that was the deciding factor. I was like, if I don't make it into the UFC by 31, you know what I mean? The likelihood of me getting in goes down incredibly. So like that was it.

That was really what kept me in the game was like, I love to do this. This is everything that I want to do. if I can't make it to the UFC, maybe I'll make it somewhere else and build my name enough. Because at the end of my career, man, I want to open my own gym. I want to have my own, like my own team that I just want to be surrounded by martial arts. This would save my life. So like, you know, if I wasn't in the UFC by 31 or anything like that, I'd retire and then become a coach. And then that would be my life.

But yeah, man, it's a doubt is certainly a part of it. It's just how you like work through it. You know what I mean? I work hard. That's why I'm not. I don't doubt myself that much. I work really, really hard. So, like, it's hard for me to doubt myself for too long.

You had to think something might have been coming because sometimes in life, weird things happen, and it leads to, like, better things. Because a couple weeks ago, Cage Titans puts on an event and the Bannonweight titles on the line, which I didn't even know was going to be on the line. I talked to, I mean, I talked to Panapheal after the win, just like I hadn't talked to him before. But up until the night of the fight, I know. idea that the title was even vacated. And I know, did, did you even know that like the title was

vacant? I saw your, I saw your post on Facebook saying that there was a fight for a title of some kind, but like, what was your reaction to that whole thing? Yes. So basically, um, I don't know how that came about, to be honest. After I won my CES belt, I didn't hear from Cage Titans. They gave me a very begrudging congratulations. And that was really like I didn't hear anything from them. My manager talked to them more often than not. And it was like, hey, man, well, we want to, well, the idea that I heard originally was that they were going to have an interim title, which is silly. Because, in my opinion, they wanted to sell Benafil as their next guy. And that's fine. But like, you know, the whole interim belt thing is crazy to me. And, you know, I didn't really even hear until like the night before that it wasn't for an interim title. They had vacated my title and given into this guy. And again, dude, that whole thing is a sham. Like, not, not Cage-Ditens itself. Because, again, like, despite my disagreement about what went down with this, I still have a lot of

love and respect for Mike Polver. And he helped me a lot. And I wouldn't be where I am without that guy. So, like, I'm not trying to shit on him, but like the whole concept of you want a belt beat in a guy that's 10 and 18. You know what I mean? It's just, it's like, come on, dude, that's a joke. So, like, you know, I didn't hear about it until after. it didn't really matter to me because it's like belts are a means to an end i i won the belt i defended it nobody beat me for it so you know what i mean at the end of the day i'm still the king so it doesn't matter to me um pen-ofield can do whatever the fuck he wants he ducked me twice and uh he won't ever fight me so you know what i mean like i i've spent too much energy and time

fucking talking about this guy and for a guy that's just not going to fight me he's just not he's gonna he'd rather tell go on fucking instagram and talk about how him and his team and his team are going to jump me, but he won't sign a contract to actually fistfight me himself. So it's like, I got no more time for that. You know what I mean? He can be the champion in a regional promotion and a place that he's not even from, have fun. His big point is that he's more popular than me in New England. Okay, cool for you, dude.

Like, that's, I mean, I'm just over it. All my love and respect to Caged Titans, but you beat a guy with a losing record that's near 40 years old and missed weight by nine pounds or some shit. like that. It's hard for me to appreciate the legitimacy of that. Fair enough. Wait a minute. I have to go back. He said there's talks about his team jumping you? What? Where did that come from? So basically, you know, it's been on Instagram and stuff like that. Me and him have chirped back and forth.

And all I do is state facts. I don't talk shit. That's not true. I say things that are real. And I just started saying things to him that were real. The fact that he did, in fact, to duck me twice. Doesn't even deny that he said no to fighting me two times. And then it becomes, you know, when I was going to fight for the CES belt, he said because his teammate Diego, another person that I beat,

was going to be there for the main event. He said that at the way in, that him and his team are going to jump me or basically attack me on the stage. And I'm like, dude, you're kind of a bitch for that because you wouldn't fight me yourself, but you have to wait until all your friends are around to get brave.

that's nuts so that's basically that is what happened it is something that he said and then dude whatever go ahead jump me i'm from a place where people get jumped so have fun because it's going to be a fuck it's gonna and you're gonna come to my whole base like no matter what you say dude i was the champion of that promotion so like you think you're gonna come to c s and attack me and nobody around me's gonna help me you're dumb that's stupid so i don't know he's an idiot he's all he did really at this point that guy lived off of me for his own like gain like he you used the beef between me and him to get more clicks and like that's it that's how i know that he's not real he's about clicks and shit like that he's never going to fight like a top tier guy he cherry picks

um it's really over you know what i mean like the guy's kind of pathetic to me at this point you know and that that comment just kind of proved it's like dude you've already said no to me twice and now you're threatening to jump me only because your team is going to be around so it's like you know dude you're a bum get the fuck out of my face i got no more time for it now you are getting ready for your UFC debut. What has the reaction been like? Because you, I mean, you knew more than anybody, especially from the New England area, it's like it's hit or miss.

They either love you or there's no gray area with you, Jay. So what has the reaction been like on social media and stuff like that? I've gotten a tremendous amount of support, honestly, over the last two days. It's like almost overwhelming. You know what I mean? To see how many people wanted this to happen and believe that like this was long overdue. and not just people in my life, but strangers. You know what I mean?

Like people that are from different parts of the country are like, this guy should have been in here for a while. You know what I mean? Like diehard fans that are just into the sport. And I think I had one troll. I'd won. And I'm pretty sure he's from South Shore. So, you know, nobody's really said anything bad

other than like, who is this guy? Which is understanding. Like, I get it. I get that. I'm the guy that had chicken pox on fucking, on the contenders series. So I mean, everybody's been really cool, man. Like, I come in there, I do what I do.

And like, this is a good matchup between me and another skilled fighter. I'm actually, I'm more excited about this one than the one I was already in. To be honest, because I think it's a good display of skill between two guys. And I don't got to build the fight. The fight will build itself. So, you know, I just get to, like, there's no pressure on me at all. And, like, the support is overwhelming. So, like, it's kind of almost, like, foreign to me.

Because like you said, either people really like me or they really don't. You know what I mean? And that's cool. But like there's way more people that like me than I thought. So I'm like, damn, I might not get booed. That's sick. I mean, you're probably not going to get booed anyways. It's like it's going to be like a regional fight anyways.

I remember talking to Cater about this after his last fight. He was like, he was like fighting in combat zone when I was a when I was on the way up because there's 150 people in there. And I flew like all my, my family and friends out there. and they were all wearing catermania t-shirts. Yeah. Those t-shirts are fucking amazing. I did fight for Calvin at combat zone.

And like I remember, and you know what is kind of cool about this fight? Is that like last time I fought at the Apex was the Contender Series. And I now get my chance to rectify that. You know what I mean? To prove that that wasn't, you know what I mean? Like it was a controversial decision,

but I got to finish. And so I'm going to go in there and search for that finish and prove to everybody that. you know, they were wrong. They were wrong to overlook me two years ago. I'm going to go. Like I said, dude, there's no pressure on me. The only pressure I got to do is make weight and be a professional.

Other than that, I get to go do what I love to do at the highest stage, not like the contender series, not at, you know what I mean? Not at like some show that gets you in. I'm in. You know what I mean? Like I get to do that on like the prelims, not the early ones, according to ESPN, which is kind of cool. Like I thought that I would be like one P.

yeah, you know what I mean? I'm like, damn, I'm going to go get lunch after. But, you know, like, I'm very, very grateful, and I'm very, very humbled by the opportunity, obviously. And, like, the moment is, like, when you get, I don't know how to describe this, like when you're, when this happens and this call comes in and all the support and all this, you're like, damn,

I'm a UFC fighter, but at the same time, you have to keep yourself grounded because it's really not about getting there. You know what I mean? It's about staying and having the ability to prove that you belong on this roster of the best fighters in the world. You know what I mean? And so that's kind of my motivation going into this is, yes, I took yesterday to be proud of myself. But today, tomorrow, the next day, Friday, and Saturday are all about proving that this wasn't a fluke, that this isn't a mistake, that I'm not just some guy that came in to get killed. I'm nobody stepping stone.

And I'm going to prove that. that I belong in the top 20 of this division, at least right now, and that'll continue. I will continue to rise the way that I always have. Mike, every single shot that I've called, I've made, I've made that happen, and I'm going to continue to do that. And as much as the moment is so overwhelming and, like, wonderful, that's what gets people else. That's how you get an L, is that you take too much time basking in the glory of what you have,

and then you lose, and then that's gone. And I don't want to live. I'm not here to lose. You know what I mean? I've never been here to lose. So it's a great opportunity and it's everything I've ever worked for, but it doesn't matter if I lose. So that's kind of where I'm at.

Nothing to lose. But in the end, in the overall J. Perrin story, this is a check mark off the old list, but there's still a whole bunch more checks you got to do. Yep. Once one goal is achieved, you have to start making other ones. You know, you start aiming at higher. And I've been aiming at this one for years now.

And so I have, you know what, now that I'm here, you know what I mean? I'm going to win this fight. That's the next checkmark. And then the next is to just continue to rise and prove to everybody that I'm one of the best in the world. And I'm going to continue to do that. And where I am at Syndicate with John Wood and all of them has elevated my game 10fold, you know, just being around everybody. And I'm really, really excited to be able to show how much I've not just like improved, but I've matured as a fighter. I take my time.

I understand how to get to a finish. I'm not just throwing things. There's a lot more purpose in the things that I'm doing. So, yeah, I think the next goal is win this fight and then go from there, you know what I mean? Then I'm a UFC fighter. Then I can say to myself, at least,

I'm a UFC fighter. If you go in there and you go, oh, and four, it's hard to say that. You know what I mean? It's hard to say that you were won when you were, you know what I mean? So I need the win. I need the win for myself

to be able to say that, hey, I did this. Not only did I do it, I did it successfully. What about this matchup excite you so much? You said this one's a more, I mean, obviously, the stage is bigger, but you said stylistically and just fighter to fighter, this matchup with Mario excites you more than the CES title fight, which was also a really good fight. What about Mario's style and what he brings to the table is so exciting to you?

Ari's got good footwork. He's aggressive. He's going to meet me in the middle, and it's going to be a war of who's going to take the back step first. I think the matchup is better for me than Ashik was. I think Ashik's got some skills that are harder for me to deal with than Mario. I've watched a lot of his tape. And again, like, nothing, no disrespect to this man.

You know what I mean? I've nothing but good things to say about him, and thank you for accepting the fight. But I just think that my skill set is better prepared or better honed for this person. You know, I can make all my notes. You know what I mean? I have them all in my head and I've watched him for days. Like before we even got the fight, I was at home all weekend. Every fight that I could watch is I was watching.

And I just think my skill set really, really matches up well with his. Like I said, I don't think it's going to be a walk in the park. But I think that it'll be a good scratch. This could be, you know what I mean, best prelim fight of the night because we're very, I feel like we're very evenly matched. We're on different parts of our career. I'm coming seven out of eight and he's coming off a year layoff. off and like a big knockout loss.

So I think that, you know, he's fast. He's aggressive. He's going to bring the fight to me. And I like that. I like the challenge. I like the to be able to say that I got into a war. Yeah, it's, I like the stylistic matchup because both you guys,

both you guys like to take the first round and sort of feel things out a little bit. Like you're both competitive in that first round, but it seems like the second round, that's when the juice turns for both of you guys. And we saw it in your last fight too. And we saw it in Mario's knockout win against Miles Johns. a super competitive fun first round, but at the same time, it's almost like he was mentally taking notes,

and then he landed the flying knee and put him away. And I feel it was very similar to your last fight, too. Yeah, we download information on the first round, and then the second round we go for the kill. You know, you got five minutes to see what he's got. Because in the first round, dude, that's the best you got. You know what I mean? The best you got is the first round.

The second round, you know, now you're tired. Now we've got a little bit more blood in our muscles. I can start, you're going to start making mistakes. Mario makes good reads. He's actually really good. good at flying knees. You know what I mean? He's not going to fucking fly knee me.

I'm going to tell you, Mario, if you watch this, absolutely not. No shot. So, you know, I think that he's an intelligent fighter. He makes good reads and, you know, like I said, we're going to come to bring it. You only, you know, I'm very excited to touch his, touch gloves with them and then, and then get to war and then see where the finish comes because it's coming. You know, 15 minutes isn't a long time, so we got to get to work.

So you predict a finish. and that'd be a huge moment for you. It would be a huge moment for syndicate, but I'd be remiss if I didn't ask you about this past Saturday because an OG, a legend, Roxanne Montefari, made the walk in Houston, Texas to a ruckus crowd for the final time in her career. And that fight with Casey O'Neill was a banger. That fight was super fun. I enjoyed it very much. It was classic Roxy and just no better way for her to go out. I mean, Casey was a big favorite. Roxy was touching her up. She busted her up. And it was just a really fun fight to watch. What was a lot? that like for you? Because I'm sure you spent some time with Roxanne and to see her go out the way

that she did and go out with just such a martial arts mentality. What was that like for you? Roxanne was one of the first, when I first came here to Las Vegas a few years ago for the contender series and filmed all my stuff, Roxy was the first person to come up and say hello to me and be friendly. We were both wearing the same Dragon Ball Z rash guard. And she made me feel right at home. You know, Roxy's been a real good friend of mine for a few years now. And I'm, I'm so proud of her you know what i mean nothing against casey because i train with casey on sundays at uh 10th planet and um casey's a dog man like that's a that's a future championship caliber fighter no doubt about it i absolutely 100% believe that because i watch i've watched her train

and with grown men like big men much bigger than her and she's as competitive as they come but for roxy to go out in her shield like that and even perform the way that she did against somebody like that. It's just so, like, it's so impressive, and I'm so, I'm so proud of her for how she handled everything, and she is nothing short of a legend. And absolutely, not just for women, but for all of us, you know, she was fighting before half of the stars now even started. You know what I mean? So, like, I don't know, man, I just, I feel an immense amount of pride for her, and I'm really happy for her, and I hope that the next part of her life is better than the first. So Roxy has a special place in my heart, and it felt great. I cried a little bit.

I'm not going to lie to you. I teared up at the end when she said, you know, I'm okay with that fight, and I'm all right with this. And you know what I mean? She's a true inspiration. And I wish her all the best in her future endeavors and in her future marriage to Chris Roman. Absolutely. Well said. And we're all very happy for you as well, Jay. Congratulations. Like you said and like other people have told you this call is something that has been eluding you. And it should have been here a little while ago in a lot of people's eyes. And, you know, you and I have talked behind the scenes. And I told you this day was coming and you knew it was coming.

And now it's finally here. And it's crazy, man. It's, it's, it's, I think you're the first person on this show who I talked to as a regional fighter and then has, and then in the second interview, now they're getting ready for their first UFC fight. So we're making history here, Jay. And this is going to want to make history with. Let's go.

Oh, I fucking love it. I love it. All the best to you this week, man. And in the fight on Saturday, remember? Thank you, man. When I win on Saturday, we got to get another interview. Done and done. You got my word.

My man. Thank you, man. Thank you. All right, let us say hello to our final guest this week. Big win for Ronnie Lawrence over a super tough manna Martinez at UFC 271 this past Saturday in Houston, crazy fight, crazy atmosphere. And now he is 2 and O in the UFC. Ronnie, how are you, sir?

doing pretty good doing pretty good there you go I know after the fight you were pretty critical the performance most specifically the third round when you were dropped

and you were able to recover and secure the win but you said you needed to go back and watch it before you could accurately assess the performance so I'm curious if you have gone back and watched it

and if so how do you assess it now um so like in the fight uh I was holding back the whole time because I walked in filling so like since I was having stomach problems and stuff I wasn't able to eat a lot of food so I didn't have very much energy I woke up and felt like

lethargic heavy just the way I woke up like feeling the way you don't want to feel before a fight so uh I mean you know I think I did pretty well for how I felt yeah I would say so you I mean you looked like a murderer in the first two rounds everyone was like oh my God pay attention of this guy. And to find out that you weren't feeling that well is just ridiculous, man. So I'm curious, all things considered, how would you grade your performance? I know fighters are the most self-critical people on the face of the planet, but I'm just curious how you grade your performance overall. There's a lot of different. There's a lot, I had a lot more things I wanted to do in the fight. I was holding back and I made some errors like on like against a fence

when I got up and stuff. So I mean, striking wise, I guess like a like a B grappling like a C. you know a sea for grappling yeah i i definitely uh had some errors in the grappling but you know that's what it is we made some notes and we'll we'll go drill it yeah i mean like you said and maybe it's just my eyes and other people's eyes there's a lot of good to take away from because you did get to display a lot more of your striking in this fight and people are well aware of the grappling and the takedowns and how you string them together so so beautifully but you drop mannais several times in the fight. And most people have viewed the fight on paper heading in that it was going to be wrestler versus striker and that he would outstrike you, you would out wrestle him,

and you won the striking battle for most of the fight? So are you at least happy to be able to show a little bit more of that side of your game that people outside of your regional fights and watching you on the come up haven't really seen a lot of? Yeah, everyone thanks for a wrestler. And like, we all laugh. Everyone that knows me laughs. I got my buddy. staying with me right now from Nashville. He found in the contenders series a few years back in his Chris Okon. And like, he was just

we were just laughing about it last night. He was like, I think you're a wrestler, bro, this is hilarious because he's been training with me for years. Like, I can wrestle, but I'm for sure like usually one of the better strikers in the room. So it definitely is pretty funny.

I mean, now the secrets out a little bit after that performance on Saturday. So now people may be able to respect the striking a little bit more and maybe make things a little more interesting for you in these fights. If they don't respect it, they're going to get punched in the face. Did you enjoy fighting in front of such a big crowd after fighting in the apex the last couple of times? Obviously, a bit of a different energy. I know you're probably blocking out the noise because you got a job to do, but definitely a different energy was it not, especially

fighting one of Houston's own. Well, I didn't really know how I was going to feel about it. I was wondering if I was going to be like nervous. And like my coach before I walked out looks at me and goes, listen, this is your walk to the cage. Soaking in, look around. And I really did. And I loved it. The crowd wasn't as full as I would like it to be.

But we still had a decent amount of people for the early prelims. You know, the crowd was loud enough to feel the, the screams for Manum before we started. I could like feel it like vibrating off me. I was like, I was like, I know they're not cheering for me, but this is dope. It was pretty cool. So I obviously I heard it on the broadcast and I had known

that you started training at Sanford MMA. You're in South Florida and getting some work down there. I know ATC sunrise is a place you've trained it a few times. When did you start? When did you make the move down there? When did that happen? So I moved down to South Florida towards the end of, my wife's first pregnancy with our firstborn daughter.

She's originally from Guyana, South America, so the only family she had in the United States was New York and South Florida. So South Florida is where we moved, and it happened to be in Deerfield Beach, which, you know, you got all kinds of gyms down here. So I got the contenders service call, and since the pandemic was going on, I didn't have anywhere to train, actually.

So that was a tough training camp for that fight. But I ended up going to Sanford about, I fought in September of the Continuous Series. I went to Sanford like towards the end of November. So I've been training at Sanford for a little over a year now. All right. Yeah, there's another fight. I know Randy Costa for a while was,

did the same thing. He moved to Florida from Massachusetts because he was having, he couldn't get, find a gym to train in because everything was closed because of the pandemic. In Florida, there's no COVID in Florida. Great. it's open, no masks. You know, everything about this place is pretty solid right now.

How much trouble were you in in that third round when he landed that shot? You seemed to recover quickly. It was just a, you were like a ninja because you get dropped, but immediately you shrugging into a grappling exchange to thwart off any additional damage. I was just like, wow, how did he do that in one fell swoop? But you did it. What was going through your mind when he landed that shot? So during the camp, more towards end of the camp,

we had like a couple of sequences that we drilled. Like obviously it's hard to drill it and know that you're actually going to do it. But we had a couple of sequences that we drilled like in the chances of me getting dropped. So like if he would have like got into my guard, I would have done like I would probably try to go into K guard so I could hide my head and do like a leg lock entanglement so I can get my head underneath him. and I'm not taking any more damage. The other sequences were to get to single legs,

get my elbow high so I can guard my head and recover. I tried to get to the single. He backed up and kept swinging, so I was able to hit the cross-side double. And then I wasn't really thinking. I was pretty rocked. That's the most rock I've ever been in my career. Were you surprised?

I mean, he's, man is such a dog anyways, but were you surprised at how tough he was? Because you, I mean, you drilled him with some big shots and floored him a couple of times. And it felt like the fight was getting close, and he just kept surviving. Were you surprised that he was able to outlast and go to the distance?

At the time, I wasn't surprised. Now I'm like, damn. But at the same time, I think, I'm pretty sure he's Hawaiian, right? Yeah, he's a monster. He's the second Hawaiian I fought in the UFC out of both my fight. So both of those guys were pretty tough. I couldn't hit autopilot in a sense. So when I heard him, I was, like, worried about, like, if I didn't finish him, like, gassing out.

Because I was getting tired during, like, my warmup, like, my body was physically, like, you know, you just know when, like, you're getting more tired than you should. Like, during the warm up and during my shakeout, before the fight, I was, like, getting a little worn out and tired. My arms felt a little heavy. So I was, like, trying to finish him without, like, if I don't finish him, I'll be like, oh, man, I don't have much left. Yeah, you talked about it. You've been dealing with some different things in the builds to these last two scheduled fights. We know what happened the last time before you could even step on the scale.

And then this one in particular, you said you were dealing with staff infections on the build. The hydration process is a little tough, the diarrhea. Do you take solace at least knowing that you go in there, you get a win against a tough guy, but you weren't your best self that maybe you're winning without showing your best yet? You know what I mean? You know what I mean by that? is there is there there's no i know there's not a ton of moral victories in mama but do you take some sols knowing that you're winning these fights without being able to to be at your very best

you know i'm just i'm honestly at the end of they just like i mean that's a good way look at it i'm just happy i got the w because like at the end of this end of the day in this game it's all about the w's um you know even if you have a great fight but i have four great fights and i get fight of the night every time but i lost every one of them probably a good chance you're going to cut so uh You know, yeah, maybe. Like, that's a stretch. But, you know, you get what I'm saying.

Like, it's all about the Ws. Yeah. So I'm just super happy. I was able to go out there, win, get my show and win money for my family, and get on to the next one. Have you been, like, have you been able to pinpoint the issue specifically with,

with everything with the cuts and the rehydration process and such? Like, is this something that could be easily fixed in your mind? I think the rehydration process can be fixed. pretty easily. There's a couple scenarios. The diarrhea we think we accidentally just added too much salt to my last drink. It was

just a measurement issue and then it caused my body to try to like get rid of the salt because it was too much right after a weight cut. And then the UFC gives that like probiotics and I think the probiotic caused me to like have trouble keeping like food down, caused me to get a little nauseous.

Got like a kind of like an allergic reaction. Then the other scenario could be one of the restaurants. Maybe I had like a slow, but like I was already having diarrhea before I ate any solids. So, you know, it's got to be one of those. But the diarrhea was definitely from like the accidental mess up of the salt. And then I think the probiotic made it to where like I felt nauseous

and couldn't eat much cards before the fight. Did at any point before you walked out, did you start to feel any better at all? well the the diarrhea stopped like i woke up that morning and like it was still there but it was like i wasn't it wasn't like an uncontrollable amount you know what i mean it wasn't like oh man i don't know if i can fight i kept when i was warm up in the back getting the sensation that i was going to poop and i went to the bathroom and i would fart or it really happened like it was just like a like i had the feeling of using the restroom but but i you know i was like listen And if I shit my pants out there, it is what it is.

I was like, nothing much is going to come out at this point because I'm not using the bathroom on the toilet. I was like, I was like, well, listen, we got to get it done. I got a few layers on. You said after the fight that you don't want to take too much time off. I know you want to sort of figure this all out, but you don't want to spend too much time on the sidelines. If you add your druthers, when do you want to get back in there and do it again?

Do you have sort of a time frame laid out for yourself? I would hope between like June and August would be pretty awesome. I'm going to go see a skin disease specialist and see why I've had staff in like this specific spot this last few times because, you know, I tried shaving my beard off and then like that didn't work. I'm just going to try to see if I can figure that one because that's really the only issue I'm having right now is I get an ingrown hair in my beard. And then at this point, when one pops up, I just don't go to practice. I just go ride the bike at the gym and my watch practice. And I hate that because I want to, you know, I want to be on the mat. So if I could get that out, then I don't really have any reason at all.

I should be ready to go. The staff infections are on your face? Yeah, I got a few like bald patches in my beard. I don't know if you can see them but I got a few... Yeah, I can see him. It's happened like three times in like the last like

year and the last like before my last fight it was an infecting grown hair but it showed up like a week before the fight and I was just like you know I didn't know much about staff at the time but it was I had it like a few I got like right at the beginning of the camp

before the last before my way cut went bad on the last one. And so I didn't know, I've never really had staff in the whole career, so I don't know much about it. So, you know, I went in a fight week and then obviously everything happened and I didn't make weight. Well, I made weight, but didn't make weight. Went to the hospital.

So I would like to figure that out because I, I've never had a problem with staff. And yeah, I'm getting it only on my face or my chin or whatever you want to call it. What does it feel like? Is it like, is it super? I know it's, it weighs you down a little bit and affects you a little bit, but what does it feel like? Is it, does it hurt? Is it staying?

Is it super annoying? Well, at this point, like, I don't know. When I get an ingrown hair and it gets like kind of bothered, I can't tell if it's going to turn into staff at this point or if it's just like sensitive because it's an ingrown hair. So, you know, and all of a sudden, like, it's staff because it, you know, it usually what happens is like it gets all pussy and then like it'll spread throughout my face. Like another one will pop up and another one will pop up.

And I'm like, what is happening right now? The life of a fighter, right? Life of a fighter. Yeah, it's a problem to have. Like, it's such a stupid reason to not be able to take fights or train. Like, because of my face is dirty. Like, what? When you put it like that, it's very strange.

I scrub it. I exfoliate. it. I like, why I try to like be extra careful and I, and it still happened. I was like, I don't know what to do anymore. That's crazy. I know after the fight, you said you, you, you got hit and you didn't want to talk about who you might want to fight next. You wanted to sort of take some time and figure that out out. But does anybody stand out now? I mean, this division is ridiculously wild. There's so many fun options for you and so many fights that would be super fun for the fans. Is there anything that that makes sense to you? I think my manager had a few ideas. I had,

haven't ran through the names yet. But honestly, I just, I personally don't care. You know, I get a name. I'm just going to say yes. But I'm sure my management, my coaches have a certain route they would like to go. As of right now, I don't have a name set in my brain. You want to try to get like two more in this year, one more in, or just whatever you can do at this point?

Is there a sort of a goal? but two would be freaking awesome. There you go. That would great. Well, listen, it was a hell of a performance, especially hearing everything that you've had to deal with heading into this fight. But I think a lot of people are very excited about your future.

As you climb the ranks, you make me look like a genius and all these preview shows when I talk about how much of a freaking animal you are in there. So kudos to you. Congratulations on the performance. And thank you for the time, man. Hopefully we see you back in there soon and 100% healthy. Definitely. I appreciate it.

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