MMA Fighting - What the Heck: Episode 35 | Joaquin Buckley, Brandon Moreno, MJF & Rob Font

Episode Date: November 26, 2020

On a special Thanksgiving edition of What the Heck, MMA Fighting's Mike Heck chats with Brandon Moreno (5:13) to recap his first-round finish of Brandon Royval at UFC 255, and discuss getting a quick turnaround in less than three weeks to face Deiveson Figueiredo for the flyweight title at UFC 256 on Dec. 12. Joaquin Buckley (25:36) talks his second-round KO win over Jordan Wright at UFC 255, wanting to fight James Krause and everyone at Glory MMA within reach, and his hopes to accomplish one of those things at UFC 257. All Elite Wrestling star Maxwell Jacob Friedman, aka MJF (43:36), gives his thoughts on colleague Jake Hager's recent win at Bellator 250, being a UFC fan, Conor McGregor and Colby Covington's promo skills, how he got into the business and eventually to AEW. Finally, Rob Font (1:08:02) previews his upcoming fight with Marlon Moraes at the UFC's Dec. 19 event in his first appearance since suffering an ACL injury in a December 2019 win over Ricky Simon. 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. This is What the Heck with Mike Heck on MMAfighting.com. Now, here is your host, Mike Heck. What the heck? Well, hello there, everybody, and welcome to a brand new edition of What the Heck here on MMAfighting.com. I am Mike Heck. Thank you all for watching and or listening to the program this week,

a special Thanksgiving edition of the show. As this drops, it will. will be 10 a.m. Eastern Standard Time on Thanksgiving morning. So I want to wish everybody out there celebrating the best Thanksgiving ever of all time because I know things are much different this year than in years past with the pandemic and everything. Like normally we would head to my parents house in the Boston area. They're staying in Florida a little bit longer. So my wife, my son and I we're going to head to my wife's mother's house. We're going to stay here in the beautiful Berkshires. I'm going to just crush Thanksgiving dinner.

like an absolute savage. I love it. I love it so much. I know some people are against turkey. They think it's boring. I don't. I think it's delightful. And I can't wait to eat all of it today. Watch a little football and just crush food. I don't do that all the time, but I'm going to do it today. That is for sure. And one little trick for you all, for your Thanksgiving dinners. If you're dinner for side dishes includes mashed potatoes, corn, it's part of the meal. Just throw that corn right in the mashed potatoes. Pop a little gravy on there. You'll feel like you're five years old all over again.

And I can be a child when it comes to my food from time to time. It is not at all out of the question for me to throw potato chips in the middle of my sandwich. One for flavor. Two, I like the crunch. I like the crunch. I'm a child. What can I say? but I am thankful for all of you checking up the show.

This is a fun one this week. A lot to discuss. We get the aftermath of UFC 255, some of which carries over into UFC 256. We'll talk that ridiculous December 19th card a little bit as well. Plus, we'll dabble into the world of professional wrestling. This show's got a little bit of everything, ladies and gentlemen. It's a fun one.

Let us run down the lineup, and we'll introduce the first guest. We will wrap things up with Rob Funt, my fellow New Englander, Back in action on December 19th, that loaded ridiculous card. He's going to take on Marlon Marius, Rob von, of course, one of the members of the New England cartel, along with Tyson Chartier, the manager of the coach extraordinaire, and Calvin Cater is about to fight Max Holloway on January 16th. Rob's recovered from the ACL's injury that we talked about on the program

the last time he was on. He steps inside the Octagon a little over one year after his win over Ricky Simone at that UFC Washington DC card, excuse me, back, this past December. A lot to kind of digest there. But I'm looking forward to catching up with Rob Font once again. Now the pen has gone to paper. If you are a pro wrestling fan, we are bringing on the man who may very well be the very best talker in the business from All Elite Wrestling, Maxwell Jacob Friedman, otherwise known, more commonly known, as MJF. He is coming on this program. We'll, of course, talk some pro wrestling. We'll talk some AEW. We'll also talk

some mixed martial arts. Jake Hager's recent win for Bellator. He is a UFC fan. He has a bit of a combat sports pedigree as well. So we'll talk all about that. Really enjoyed this conversation. Something a little bit different on this holiday to spice things up a little bit.

Joaquin Buckley will join us once again in around 20 or so minutes to recap his knockout win over Jordan Wright this past Saturday at UFC 255. He cut himself a very fiery promo to Joe Rogan after the victory. It is clear he wants James Krause. In fact, he doubles down on that here. He actually wants to knock off everybody at Glory MMA. So stay tuned for that chat with Joaquin Buckley.

And first, I will be honest, our first guest this week has been one of my absolute favorite fighters to talk to this year. He's always been on that short list in years past. But I have to say, this year, he might be number one. And how can you not just be taken in, taken back, if you will? by this man's energy, this man's positivity. The man is always smiling. And let us not forget, on this program earlier this year, I told him virtually to his face.

You know what? I don't think you should fight for the belt next. I think Alex Perez should be fighting for the flyaway title next. And you know what? He took it. He smiled. He laughed. And we're still doing these interviews, which is amazing.

And guess what? Brandon Moreno is doing everything in his power to prove me wrong. Of course, he doesn't care what I think. but the assassin baby Brandon Moreno has a massive, massive opportunity in front of him on December 12th. Just had a huge win on Saturday, finished Brandon Royval in the first round. You'll hear about this opportunity right now with Brandon Moreno kicking us off this week on what the heck. All right, what a night it was for Brandon Moreno on Saturday night in Las Vegas at UFC 255 and not just because of what happened inside of the octagon,

but what happened after the dust settled on the event. He finishes Brandon Roy Vaugh in the first round. And now, in less than three weeks, the assassin baby is going to fight for the UFC Flyweight Championship of the world against Davis and Figurado in the main event of UFC 256. This is unbelievable, Brandon. Good to see you, man. How are you?

Man, good to see you again. I know. All this situation is so crazy. But I'm trying to enjoy every single minute of this. No? It's amazing. Good grief. There's just so much to talk to you about right now, Brandon. This is unbelievable. First things first, we spoke not long after the fight with Brandon of Roy Val was put together. And you were pretty fired up about how things played out with Alex Perez getting the title played. And to me, I felt like you came into this fight with Roy Val with a huge chip on your shoulder heading into the fight. You wanted to go out there and make a statement and you did exactly that. Is that accurate? Did you feel like you had a little. extra swagger to you heading into that fight with Brandon Royval?

Man, I remember the moment when I was in my, in my room, in training room, I was very, very nervous, you know, I had too much weight on my shoulders in that moment. I had too much help. You know, I had too much support for a lot of people. My mental coach helped me too much with that kind of moments. you know, with a lot of different exercise, mind exercise. You know, my team always support me. My people in my country, my people around, you know, my fans around the world, you know, my family, my daughters.

Man, I was very nervous, but at the same time, I was very excited. And I knew that was my moment. How long have you been working with a mental coach? Oh, I think since I go back to the UFC, you know, I think I start to fight again with the UFC against Ascar, Ascar, I start to work with with her. She's amazing. She helped me too much with this kind of moments, you know, because in this kind of sport, you have a lot of pressure every day and your mind can make some mistakes sometimes.

So it's amazing. I have to have something to work in this area. You and I have talked about this Brandon Moreno 2.0 that has arrived back in the UFC. And now you become like this different person. Like I thought on Saturday night that we didn't see Brandon Moreno 2.0. I thought we saw like especially on the walk to the octagon. I thought we saw like Brandon Moreno 2.5, maybe 3.0. You just had, you just look different in my eyes.

Is that accurate? Did you feel like you kind of expanded upon this sort of alter ego you have in the octagon? Maybe, brother. Maybe yes, because a lot of times I don't remember like specific moments in the moment in the fight, you know, before to go to the octagon. I always remember when I go back to the, you know, to the locker room or I go to the interview after the fight. So maybe some alter ego is coming for the fight.

That's why I don't remember a lot of things, you know, just like specific moments in the fight. Yeah, I mean, the fight was as expected it was going to be. It was as advertised for as long as it lasted. I mean, high-paced, tons of action. You took him down, you took his back, you got that jujitsu in play that you wanted to do. And I remember our conversation before the fight.

You said, listen, Brana Roy Val is great jujitsu. but so do I, and he needs to watch out for it as much, you know, as I will of his. He scrambled out of the back take, but then you pounced back on top. You started landing those shots before the referee stepped in. Once you took him down and took his back, you had to be feeling pretty confident throughout most of that round, right? Like you pretty much nullified, you know, his best ability. Is that accurate? Yes.

I mean, I was trying to stay focusing his spinning elbows, you know. I know the guy is good with that kind of skills, you know, the spinning elbows. I try to stay so far or so close of my opponent. In this moment, was very close, very close, sorry. He threw, I think he threw a kick, then he rolled with the elbow, and then I take his back, you know. Actually, he gave me with the arm, but no, you know, No, with the elbow. I think he gave me with the tricep is, I mean, that is not really powerful.

So I take the back, get the position. And in that moment, everything was about position, you know, because he tried to roll to the other side to stay, to keep the escape, you know, the escape, he's move his hips to the other side. But my position was better. I almost finished the fight there with the real naked joke. And then come, come the, the. injury of

Bob, you know, I can put less attention. I can put more attention on the injury because before that, I was dominating the fight,

you know? Yeah, I mean, can you walk us through the finish and what happened from your perspective? Because like you said, the stoppage was met with a little bit of controversy because of the shoulder injury,

but referee Mark Goddard had told members of the media that shoulder, injury or not, he was going to stop the fight anyways. So could you talk about what the ending was like for you? Did you know that his shoulder was hurt? Like what happened there? Yeah, he tried to get my leg.

And then I defend very well. In some point, I feel like he put less resistance in the position. And then I get his left arm. to take off his base and I'm starting pushing his face. Man, I don't know. I don't know what happened. I started a fight like three times. And I don't know why they, why happened that injury?

Yeah, it was a very strange ending, but it had to feel good knowing that the referee was going to stop the fight anyways. It had nothing to do with the shoulder injury, anything like that. Regardless, he was going to stop it. So that's got to make you feel good at least at the end of the day that there is no controversy. Man, no, I mean, I won every single exchange on the feet. The ground position was always me on top.

So, man, I was dominating the fight. And for me, right now, is the most important thing. So you get the win, you go back. You're starting to remember everything. Because you're going back to talk to Joe Rogan about the fight. And you said essentially, you know what? If I wanted a title, I could go on the UFC. website and buy one, I just want to be the best 125 pounder in the world.

There's a very passionate speech in the moment. What is going through your mind now that you're out of fight mode and now we're starting to think about the next thing? Man, I mean, for me, that is so real, you know? The symbol of the UFC belt is more important for me than, you know, just the belt. I don't need a belt. I mean, what the belt represent is important for me. I want to be the best.

Figuero right now is the best. He looks amazing in every single of his last fight. So I need to beat him to be the best. To be honest, it's real. The belt in the UFC store is $800, I think so. It's cheap. I can buy one. Actually, I can be the BMF.

I can be the prime champion. I don't need that, Bell. I just need to be the best in the world in my division, and that's it. That's amazing. So you're celebrating the victory. Davidson Figurato goes and submits Alex Perez in under two minutes. And then Dana White goes and speaks to the media and he says, you know what? We want to turn Figurato right around and have him fight Brana Moreno next, but not just next,

but do it in December at UFC 256. This is wild brand. So as you're celebrating the victory. and going about your regular Saturday night activities, how did this all happen? Like, when did you know that this title fight was a thing? Man, everything, every single moment was so fast. With all this problem with the pandemic, everything is fast.

All the stuff from UFC graph all our backs or stuff. And then I went to the, to the, media room and get some interviews. Some Cadillac get, you know, a car, get our stuff and then go back to the hotel. We get, went to the hotel, grabbed all our stuff,

and then I went to the house of my manager to eat something. In that moment when my manager is called, is calling Mick Maynard, I'm eating a burger from Shaijak. You know, was crazy. It was amazing.

I mean, it was very weird because he told about the date. And I make the account with my fingers. I was, man, it's three weeks from here. I taught with my head coach. But, you know, he said, man, you are ready. You are ready. You don't have injuries. It's the opportunity of your life.

So enjoy it. Do it. Just do it. And I'm here. I'm here. I'm ready. I'm ready even before to the fight with the Roybal. So let's go. Well, here's an important question here. Did you finish this burger? Did you finish the whole thing? Or did you have to stop eating it because now you're going to cut weight again in three weeks? Man, no, I finished my burger. You need to enjoy every single moment of the fight of the life. You know, so, man, I had like one and a half.

month eating just vegetables and chicken. So I did it. Oh, you hammer that thing. You crush it. French fries, too, the whole nine? Just the burger and one chocolate shake. All right. All right. Well done. You still get some discipline in you have to roll even after the wind. No, right now I'm very light. You know, after after that, I'm starting with my diet. And right now, I'm like 140. So I'm fine. Oh, you're good. So you're okay with this. Like, are you liking the fact that you're turning right around with all this momentum with the chance to make history? Or do you wish perfect world you got a long training camp? I mean, like you said, we're at a very strange time right now.

Yes. I mean, obviously, I wanted a real training camp for Figirel. But it is what it is. And again, I'm ready. Physically, mentally, I'm ready to this, my skills, my abilities. my boxing, my Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, my wrestling is amazing right now. I'm ready, brother. I'm ready.

I don't like to. I think it's better for me. You know, I don't like to wait too much. It's my third fight in this year. Obviously, I need to make weight again very fast. Maybe that is a problem, a health problem in the future. But right now, I don't care. You're a young man.

Now's the time. I know. What did you think of Figuero's performance against Alex Perez? Were you impressed with it? Did it go the way you expected it? How did you feel about it? Man, I mean, he looks amazing, obviously, you know? I think before the submission, I think Alex Perez will get good punches on Figuero.

But, you know, Figuero is really good. get the submission, get the guillotine in a weird and really, really close position. He looks strong. But, man, I don't care. I don't care, you know. I work too much for this opportunity. I wanted to go to that fight and don't respect his abilities. Obviously, I respect Figaro like an athlete.

But in the moment when he and I stay, in the octagon, I don't want to respect his abilities. I want to go and take everything on my, on my, on my, on my hands. I did, I did want to ask you about something because at the post-fight press conference, figurato, maybe it was more as manager, Waleed Ishmael, said that, Figurato's got a bit of a personal issue with you. He said that you said a lot of bad things about him and that because of that he's going to destroy you on December 12th.

Do you know what he's talking about? Like, where is this bad blood coming from? man I don't know what the fuck is happening with he's lying brother and it's weird

and I understand because he he doesn't speak English so he needs I mean I know I know Walid not too much

but I know it's a good person just when I when he tried to be the translator of Pigiredo start to talk too much I mean

I think even you even the other guys can know while it put more words of Figuel. So I don't know, it's weird. For me, it's not personal. I think he's lying. You know, he's trying to sell tickets for the boss. And it's fine.

It's fine. You know, he's trying to be a trust talker. But I don't care. It's never personal for me. All right. So there's no story. There's no, you didn't say anything. bad about him, nothing like that. It's just, we're trying to sell some, some paper views here.

I think, I mean, maybe the, the, he thinks that, I mean, when he beat Benadis the first time, I say something like, I don't like that guy because he doesn't want very respectful, he doesn't make weight and they start to celebrate very, very badly about, about how it pulls the face of Joe. So I just say that. And that's it. Are you, you feel like you're, you'll make the weight fine. He's had issues in the past like you just mentioned. Are you concerns that he might not make the weight on December 12th?

It's a possibility. And I understand, you know, it's a very close date for him, you know. Try to make weight two times in one month will be really hard for him. I don't know. I'm trying to do much about about. that just in my weight, in my own weight. And we'll see what happened in the, in the ways, you know. So this is a big night for Mexican MMA because you're in the main event.

Tony Ferguson is in the co-main event against Charles Olivera. It's like Mexico versus Brazil in the main and the co-bane. Like this could be a very big night for Mexican M.A. I mean, do you look at it that way? Like if you and Tony both win, this could be a huge night. One of the biggest nights in the history of the sport for Mexican M.A. And the fans would just go crazy, would they not? Man, right now, all the people here in Mexico are, you know,

like I are so happy about my fight against Figuerreiro. Obviously, you do add the fight between Tony Ferguson and Charles Bolivia. All the people are so happy here in Mexico. Man, it's history. It's just history. Just to get the fight for the title right now is history for my country. Everybody's so happy. I mean, I think a lot of young boys of this sport here in my country are so happy to watch a really good example of success in this sport.

So, man, it's amazing. Of course, the million dollar question, we're less than three weeks away. How do we get this thing done? How does this thing end so that Dana White can potentially wrap that UFC title around your waist? How does this thing, how does the papers you go off the air on December 12? Man, that when I'm, I'm started, I'm started this sport like a professional almost 10 years ago. So when I get, when I get the belt will be awesome. Like, you know, my goal of all my professional career.

After that, I need to get more different goals, you know, like different targets. But in that moment, I will try to enjoy to enjoy. every single moment, stay with my family. Now I stay with my family, go to some vacations, you know, because after this fight, I say I need to go to some place with my family. I can't right now because, you know, I have the fight for the title. But after that, I need to go with my family to some nice place. Man, I will be the happiest man in the world.

Yeah, I think after two fights and three weeks, one for a world title. I think you deserve a vacation, Brandon, regardless of what happens. Well, listen, congratulations on the victory. Congratulations on getting the title fight, Brandon. What a story this is and what a story it would be. If you can go in there on three weeks notice and become a world champion, this is the shortest turnaround for a UFC title challenger ever and champion, too, in UFC history. So both of you guys, before you step foot of the octagon, you guys are going to make some history. So, but I cannot wait to see this fight, and all the best to you by man, well deserved,

and we'll see you on December 12. Man, thank you so much. We need to make a movie after that, after this movie. I agree, man. Thank you so much, man. Enjoy it. Man, I am really excited for that fight. It is a fascinating matchup between the champ Davis and Figurato,

a man that many people feel could be the 125-pound champion for a long time. Demetius Johnson on the show last week said, I think Davidson figure out could be a very, very long-reigning champion, and that is possible. But he's got himself a tough test in front of him against Brandon Moreno for the strap. Main event of UFC 256 on December 12th. Short notice for both guys. Interesting to see how that kind of plays out in this whole scenario. But I'm really looking forward to that fight.

Of course, co-made event, Tony Ferguson versus Charles Olivera. That is an outstanding fight as well. It should be a fun card to wrap up the 2020. pay-per-view calendar year for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Another fighter who had himself a great night at the office this past Saturday at UFC 255. Waukeen Buckley, one of the breakout stars of the year, Numanza himself, second round K-O win over Jordan Wright. Let us talk all about it with the man himself. Waukeen Buckley. All right, we are being joined once again by one of the big stars of UFC 255 this past Saturday,

another 50 Gs in his pocket, another big win on his resume over Jordan. right, finish the fight with the second round knockout, excited to have. Joaquin Buckley back on the program. How are you, sir? Man, I'm blessed and highly favored, man, so feeling good. It's got to feel good. So we're just, I have to bring this up because we were just talking about it before you hit record.

You are a big fan of Friends, King of Queens, and you said Friends was better than Seinfeld. I find that kind of surprising. I would disagree with you, but I can understand where you're coming from. Why do you feel Friends is better? I might have to binge watch on Seinfeld, but like I said, ever since I was, you know, a little book watching the show, I just never really got into it like I got into Friends. So it's kind of weird.

It's kind of weird to like put context on Seinfeld now in 2020, almost 2021. Because like it's about everyday life. It's about like it's just about nothing. It's just about like what a day is in your life. But a day in your life in 1995, much different than a day in your life in 2020. And definitely in 2020 right now. I mean, and friends was the same way, just the day-to-day, just, like, regular stuff. Had no, like, plot, like, to it necessarily.

Like, the episodes didn't link up as much together unless you had, like, the special little episodes with, you know, Ross getting married and stuff like that. But besides that, you know what I mean, like, it was just a regular day, like, you know, a group of friends staying in one apartment together, you know. So, go downstairs, get coffee, and then none to the next day. Thank you, sir. Oh, man. Well, congratulations on the win.

One thing I want to say more than anything is that I appreciate your honesty. in regards to the pressures of trying to one up the impicassang and I knock out, because not a lot of fighters would admit that, but you did. Was that like a constant pressure that you felt from like the moment you signed the boat agreement for UFC 255, or is that something you felt like just on Fight Week? I just felt it like, you know, I mean, during Fight Weekend, just, you know, like I said, I let people get to me like just by reading the comments and stuff like that because I really didn't think it would change anything when I got in there, but it kind of did, like, once I

got into the cage and, you know, in that first round, because, in my opinion, like, I should have beat Jordan Wright in the first 30 seconds of the fight. That's just what's going on in my head. But, you know, with me just going in a fight, you know, he's throwing, he's firing, whatever. I'm just, like, in my head, like, man, I hope I don't get caught.

And usually I don't think like that. You know what I mean? I just go forward and I just put the pressure on dudes, you know what I mean? So it really did kind of get to me, but, you know, it didn't hurt me at the end of the day. I still got the finish. So that's the cool part. Is it, like, a massive relief that the fight is over now?

Like you get the win, you got the finish, you got the 50 Gs. All those thoughts are creeping into your head. But it must feel like a weight has been lifted off your shoulders because now we can move on a little bit from the Kisaganai knockout. You know what I mean? Yeah, a little bit, you know, but, you know, they always going to have something to say so the pressures are always going to beat her, you know, as it should be.

But this time I just won't allow it to affect me as much as it did in that last fight. So you're right, yeah. You were swinging for the fences. Like you said, Wright was doing his best to kind of stay at range. He was throwing big shots too. but eventually you caught him with a really hard shot at the end of the first round, and you dropped him, and you're so close to get in the finish. He was in big, big trouble.

Were you surprised he was able to survive that and make it to round two? Yes, sir, I was because I kind of hit him. Like I knocked him off his feet. Like, I knocked him down pretty heavy, and I thought the fight was going to be over there. But then he got to scramble and he reached for my legs and started wrestling. You know what I mean? So that kind of did shock me right there. And I tried to, you know, get in the guillotine, whatever.

I should never try to do that. I should have just kept raining down. But, you know, it is what it is. it would have been cool to get my first submission right there. What was the, what was the car? Yeah, how crazy would that have been after the Casagina? I know, you drop a submission. That would have been crazy.

Right, right. I'm sure it's going to be coming soon, though, you know. Might use that jihisos. I got good jiu jihitsu too, low key. What was the, what was the conversation like in the corner between the first and second round? Like, it was it basically, dude, you got him, you got him hurt real bad?

Let's just put them away. Or was it more like, don't get too crazy out there? Right, right. Controlled aggression. That's what Wauking Martian, told me just like, you know, keep them punches straight, you know, stop, you know, swinging for the fences, you know, trying to look for the finish, you know, just go out there,

punch straight, you know, and set it up. And I did. I slipped my head off to the right and I threw my left a straight punch. And then I came back with a hook where he ducked. And then I came back with a looping punch because he was expecting another straight punch. But, you know, that's what we end up getting the knockout right after that. At 26 years of age, I mean, do you feel like,

do you feel like you're hitting your stride right now? or do you feel like we haven't even gotten to that point yet? This is just the beginning. We haven't even hit that market, you know, so. But, you know, it is what it is. I mean, no telling you know, how good or how great we're going to become, but we're just going to keep doing what we're doing, you know, and keep riding the momentum.

So you're training with chaos now with KAS Williams? Yeah, yeah, that's a killer right there, man. I'm talking about 30-second knockout, one punch, hit a quitter type stuff. Like, that's what I'm, that's my motivation right there. I need one of those. one of those quick bonuses. Yeah. So you work with Mercy Lago, right?

Is that the team? In Lansing, Michigan. How long have you been working with them? This is my first fight camp that I had with them before the Jordan Wright camp. So I was just working out there for, I think, at least a week. But, you know, me and Joaquin, we got the same first name. But Marshalago, we've been standing in test for about like a year. You know, and with everything that was going on, me not.

having a camp, you know, he was telling me to come down to Michigan, but I ain't had the money to, you know, but we always just kept in good contact. And when I had that Emphoconsagina fight, I knew that one of his boys was fighting at Fight Island. So I was asking, could he cornered me since I didn't have anybody with a passport at the time in order to go down there with me. So, you know, he said, you know, it was tough for him that get his passport renewed because of COVID-19, but he had two assistant coaches and Justin and Mike to help me out that day. So that was pretty cool, that they came out there and, you know, was a lot of. You know, it was a lot of able to help me secure that win back in the fight.

So, I mean, that's just, just meant to be to have those two guys in your corner, drop almost pretty much drop everything to come out and corner you. So what was having like a full camp with these guys, you know, you knew this is obviously the place to be since they were willing to drop everything like that. What was that like kind of getting back into that team swing of things? It was, it was cool, man, to get back into that environment, you know, of just like, just like real fighters and just like real people and just be a part of a.

real culture that's really trying to succeed and just is hungry for the goal, you know, because all the guys I was training with are looking to be champions one day, you know, and everybody in different camps, whatever, don't have that type of mentality. You know, they just want to be a part of the sport, but they don't want to actually put, you know, a certain pedestal or like, you know, create a certain ladder of that sport and create an impact, you know. Do you feel like you and chaos could just kind of feed off of each other for the foreseeable future? Oh, we're doing that right now, you know?

Yes, sir. So, you know, like I said, I got to catch up with chaos, though, man. I need a 30 second or at least 20 second knockout. Yeah, he's got a big one coming up with Michelle Perhead. I can't wait for that fight. Oh, most of them, man. Yeah, I definitely got to expect fireworks, you know. And if Pierre comes out doing what he's doing, it's going to be another quick finish for chaos. Life's been changing pretty quick for you, hasn't? I mean, you get the UFC call, three fights already this year, knockout of the year, no doubt about it, two bonuses. You got a baby in the house. Like how 2020 is. just been a crazy year for everybody, very successful and for you. How are you enjoying fatherhood? Because obviously there's a lot to keep you motivated right now. Is there not?

Yeah, I mean, I'm only around them when I can be, you know, just with my training, schedule and everything back home. You know, I only have to let him stay with his grandparents and stay with my girlfriend right now. But whenever I'm around, I'll just play with him. And, you know, it's not like he can do much right now being three months old. So, you know, I just play with him and whatnot and just try to. to read to them and just try to keep that brain stimulated.

And that's about it, though. But fatherhood is fun. You know, it's great, you know. And how great is it to have somebody in your life that just kind of understands what you're trying to do? Like having the girlfriend around, you guys just had a baby. She's pretty much like taking the rain so you can go after what you're trying to do right now, which is awesome.

That is not easy to find, especially in this sport, but you seem to have found it. I mean, well, I've been with her for about 10 plus years now. So she knew what the goal was. and we always prepped for this moment. We didn't know when it was going to come, but we knew it was going to come eventually. And we're just having a baby and stuff like that, you know. It's actually helped motivate both of us to just even grind harder.

So that's the cool part about it, you know. But she, you know, she's been ready for this moment for a long time as well because she's been a part of hustling the ground with me. So let us address the elephant in the room. Let's talk about what happened after the win on Saturday because you were asked what you want next. Everybody already knew what you wanted next. if they've been surfing the internet.

Even Joe Rogan knew. It's James Krause. And it all began on this show, Joaquin. We spoke. I asked you what you wanted after the Impa Kasag and I win. And you said, I want James Krause. There were some DMs. You were going to leave it at that.

And then, yeah, you didn't want to break the guy code, so to speak. So Krause has asked about you after his win on Fight Island. And he just unloaded on this crazy promo. And then he jumped on this show after the win. And he explained things even further. So I do want to touch on some of those things just to get your side of it, but you were fired up during that moment. Like right after the fight, you were fired up.

You were getting loud. You were angry. You were ready to fight crows right there and then. Right, right, right. And that's the thing, you know, if he was speaking the truth, it would be what it is. But, like, my man is just out of preaching lies and just talking about stuff that he has no clue about. My man never met me a day in his life, but he's talking like he knows me, you know, I mean, or talking about me like he knows me.

And, you know, he's just spreading rumors that other people are probably, sharing with him at his gym. But, you know, it is what it is. You know, I'm helping him build up his name even more. He didn't gain some followers off of this as well, you know. And, you know, but at the end of the day, we got to see each other, whether the UFC signs that fight up or not. Yeah, because one of the things that stuck out,

as Krause said you have a bit of a reputation in the area. He said, you've been kicked out of every gym in St. Louis. Never heard a good word said about you. False. When I had my relationship with the guy that I had my relationship with and it broke off, I left the gym. I never got kicked out of any gym. When I started working with other gyms, whatever, you know,

they wanted me to sign up with the team. I didn't want to do that, so I had to leave the gym. Never got kicked out of any gym for any type of, you know, bad relationship, whatever. I just felt like I had to move on to something different. But, you know, the more that people were saying I was trying to do things on my own, and I was just trying to get spawn working, not trying to hurt dudes, but get spawn working with some of their best guys, whatever,

they felt like, all right, well, if you ain't with the gym, type thing, which, you know, that's your own thing, right? If you're not with the gym, whatever, then we can't have you just coming in and out, you know, and that was their little rules to it. But, you know, I was like, it is what it is at the end of the day. Yeah, because he said you wanted to go in there and just basically, part of my friends just beat the shit out of his team, really.

Like, he wasn't interested in that, like Krause said. But, you know, now that his side is out there, I mean, was there more to that conversation? He also said there was something about you calling out Trey Ogden, who was a 155er. I was saying like that too much. I mean, I didn't call out Tray Arden. Trey Arden had put itself in the conversation.

And that's the thing. I do my homework on all fighters. And when I was calling out Jason Witt, who was one of the regional guys, he was like number one in like, you know, the Midwest. Or actually like in the nation, I'm sorry. He was like number one in the nation, Jason Witt, at 170. And I was trying to get back down to 170 for sure just on the regional level. And Jason Witt would not reply.

He wouldn't say nothing, you know what I mean? Because I used to always stay on his head. on social media. And then Trey Arden was like, hey, man, get off my bro, da, da, da, da, da, da, and all this other stuff. And then I looked up Trey Ogden. I said, oh, you didn't have two fights

at 1710 as well. So I was like, hey, you can get it too if your boy don't want it. You know what I mean? So it's just, it's just been, I'm trying to fight. I didn't have a fight for a whole year. You know what I mean?

So I'm trying to look for the best guys in general, you know what I mean, just to get back there out in the field. But, you know, things happen for a reason. I'm glad I set out for that time to get better for myself. and, you know, history speaks for itself. You know, now we're in a place where they want to be, but they'll never be.

And now Jason Witt's in the UFC. James Krause is in the UFC. All of them. And every person from Gloria M.M.A. can get it, you know what I mean? So anybody that work with anybody that's on the team with them, they can get it. Yeah, because I saw Julian Marquez, who's one of the newer members of the team. He called you out, and then you went on your IG stories, and you responded that the UFC had already offered them the fight and he turned it down.

What happened there? Offered a fight, and he turned it down real quick because he didn't think he was really going get it. You know what I mean? He was just trying to put his name out there, trying to get a couple follows, but you got to realize sometimes that, you know, that comes with a price, you know, and now like, hey, you said that you put it out there in the earth, you said you wanted to fight,

let's make it happen if your boy don't want to make it happen. So January 23rd, that's the plan, ideal situation. You want to fight on that UFC 257 card, correct? Yep, 257, the Cona McGregor and Dustin 482 card. That's a big card, man. Massive card. Yeah. It's a big one. So do you think

do you think you'll fight James Krause on that card? Do you think that's an option right now? It's whatever. Like I told you, I mean, as long as I get a fight, that's perfect. But the ideal person would be him. I want him to catch this work. But, you know, he probably going to blame, you know what I'm saying, his knee injury. He probably going to say, oh, man, I don't really fight at 185. Let's do it at 170. I ain't trying to hear none of that noise. Because when you was talking heavy, you wouldn't worry about all that. So let's do it at 185 and let's do it January 23rd, you know. But if you want to have your boys take the work for you, I do that too. So Julian Marquez, he can get it.

Who else? Zach Cummins, he can get it. Jason Witt, he can get it. Anybody that work with you can get it, period. I want the whole glory in the day camp. I want everybody. So you want to run the glory gauntlet here. Yes, sir.

Not even a dream, but easy work. What do you say? Easy work. Yeah. Easy money. Wow. Yeah. That was wild.

I was surprised to see you like that. And I want to thank you for saying Google, me and James Krause because everybody went back to those old articles and it kind of took off. You set the tone for us and we appreciate that, Joaquin. No, most of them. But, you know, I'm just speaking from truth. You know, like I said, he's doing something that's just real unnecessary. You know what I mean? And like I said, though, like just spreading lies and doing the most.

But at the end of the day, like, you know what I'm saying? You got to pay that price. You know, you got to pay the pipe. That's it. Well, there you go. So if on a scale 1 to 10, how much would you rate your chance? is that whether it's Krauss or anybody, that you're going to fight January 23rd. Are you pretty confident that we're going to see you on that card?

Yeah, I rank it real high. You know what I mean? I couldn't tell you exactly 10 and 1. It don't matter. But I think it's very high that I get on that card, period. You know, they're going to find me somebody. Somebody willing to fight. That's all I know.

There you go. Just look at this. You get to call your shots now. Did you think when you got into the UFC, you'd be calling your shots, calling your cards? No, not at all. But, you know, now that we have this, you know, this leverage, we're going to use it, for sure. Yes, sir. So have you gotten a new contract yet?

Are you still on the first one? We're still working on it. You know what I'm saying? You know, I ain't got to tell everybody anything. Okay. It's something's happening, though. I got family members watching this. They're like, oh, okay, because we got a contract.

I'm like, hey. You know, but it is what it is. Working in. That's it. That's all I'm looking forward to. That's a bonus. Fair enough. Yes, sir.

But awesome. So listen, Thanksgiving coming up tomorrow as we record. This is going to drop on Thanksgiving. So real quick, I asked Rob Font about this. He's getting ready to fight on that December 19th card. But, you know, obviously you have a lot to be thankful for right now. So tell the world what Joachim Buckley is thankful for in 2020. I'm thankful just to still be breathing.

That's it, man. Still happy to be here. You know what I'm saying? Blessing this world, you know, a lot of people losing their lives. So I'm just thankful to still be here, you know, and able to just enjoy the moment. So that's it. Yeah, that's what I think for 2020.

With Instacard, you get groceries that over-deliver, so you can over-share your preferences. Want russet potatoes with no brown spots? You got it. Want turnips that look light but feel heavy? Easy. Want honey-crisp apples that are firm green and definitely not Macintosh like last year

when you lost the fall bake-off to perfect Penelopee Johnson. Okay, a bit TMI, but we're here for it. So download the app today and get zero delivery fees on your first three orders. Instacard, groceries that over-delaport. deliver. Service-based exclusions and terms apply. Great stuff right there from a fiery Joaquin Buckley. We're having a great conversation before we hit record. You heard some of what we were talking about, at least the context of it. We're talking about old sitcoms from back in the day before we hit record. And I mean, you heard the

Friends, Seinfeld stuff that's like the go-to that everybody talks about, Friends versus Seinfeld. What is better? But he's busting out, throwing out names like everybody loves Raymond. he throw out King of Queens, and that's when I knew. He's speaking my language, because I have often stated, in many of conversation, that King of Queens is one of the most underrated comedy sitcoms ever on television. It is. It just is. But that one doesn't get enough love.

It doesn't get enough love. Big thank you to Joaquin Buckley for talking sitcoms with me, off air, and talking face punching and fist fighting on the air. Appreciate that. very much. Now, we're going to do something a little bit different here. We're going to go from the cage to the squared circle, to the world of professional wrestling. It is Thanksgiving. Let us mix things up a little bit with one of the rising stars in the world of professional wrestling, in my opinion. He's the best, definitely, in-ring wrestling performer on the microphone. When it

comes to promos and stuff, I still, maybe it's just me, still think Paul Heyman is the best talker in the wrestling business right now. But this gentleman is not far behind, if not right there with him. Very excited for this. From All Elite Wrestling, let us say hello to MJF. All right, something a little different

on the program this week is we have our second member of the All Elite Wrestling roster joining us. We spoke with Jake Hager following the way-ins before his recent win for Bellator MMA, and now are being joined by fellow member of the Inner Circle, which you can check out Wednesday nights

on AEW Dynamite on the T-H N-T Network. Happy to be joined by one of the best in the business, in my opinion, in the ring and on the mic, none other, than Mr. MJF. How are you, sir? I don't know. One of the best, let's keep it real here. Ladies and gentlemen, you're listening to the youngest and fastest rising star in the history of professional wrestling, the best talker, the best wrestler. I am indeed a part of the greatest faction and all of professional wrestling in the inner circle. Jake Hager is my boy. He's undefeated, as am I, and I am very excited for this interview. How are you doing today, buddy? I'm doing great.

I'm just kidding. I couldn't get less of a shit. Just fire away the question so I can get in and get out of here. Well, I will say this is a real tree for me, sir. I'm sure there's a million other things you'd rather be doing than talk to me, but I do appreciate the time nonetheless. That number was very accurate. Okay.

Well, I mean, first of all, I mentioned Jake Hager, as did you, and when he and I spoke before his last fight for Bellator, it was about a week after you and Chris Jericho had the epic performance on Dynamite while in the midst of a steak dinner. He puts you over in a big way, he shined a light on all of your talents in and out of the ring, the work you've been doing in AEW.

And, you know, Jake's been in the game for a while now. What has it been like being able to work with and now be in the inner circle with the guy like Jake Hager? Oh, man, Jake's my big buddy, dude. I love that guy. I'm sure he appreciates this incredible addition

to the inner circle that is me. And I appreciate him. He's big. He's brooding. He might seem scary to other people, but to me, he's just my big buddy. and I love paling around with him. The man remains undefeated as a mixed martial artist,

got tested in a big way in his last fight by Brandon Colton, but he got the victory, really fun fight, and those two guys just went in the cage and beat the hell out of each other, MJF. Did you watch the fight? And if so, what did you make of Jake's performance and his ability to overcome a little bit of adversity in there? First of all, how dare you, if you've been asking that?

Of course, I watch the fight. Of course, I'm going to back up my friends, right? I'm part of the inner circle. I got to see that fight. It was an incredible fight. It was halacious. Very back and forth. But at the end of the day, the greatest man in the bout prevailed.

He looked bruised and bloodied, but that's what the art of war is, man. It's not pretty, but he got the job done. And that's what the inner circle does. We always get the job done. Are you typically an M.A fan? I know you're a very busy man. It takes a lot to get invested into the sport with all the things going on in your life, I'm sure. But do you partake in the world of mixed martial arts when you can,

whether or not Jake's fighting or not? I actually enjoy the UFC very much. And actually, when I was much younger, I was big into Brazilian jiu-jitsu and boxing. I was actually really big into boxing. I would train with a guy by the name of Randy Gordon. He's out of the New York area. I don't know if you're aware of who Randy is.

I believe he has a show on Sirius XM. And I honestly, in the words of one of my favorite movies of all time, I most certainly could have been a contender. But the reality of the matter was, is I knew what I wanted to be, and that was a pro wrestler. But yeah, I was a very good boxer at a young age. So I've always followed MMA.

I've always found it very interesting. I always thought it might be something I want to dip my toe into later on. And if I'm going to do it, I can assure you I'm not going to, you know, lose because that's honestly very embarrassing and it's not something I ever plan on doing ever in any sport. But as of right now, my mind, my heart, my soul is completely focused in and honed in on the sport of professional wrestling, and I intend on becoming, honestly, the greatest world champion

in the history of that great sport. But is MMA something I'm interested in? Absolutely. Is it something I watch? Absolutely. I enjoy it very much. Did you have any, like, amateur boxing bouts? So I never had an amateur boxing bout

because what it occurred was is I would just, I would spar in my gym. I'd knock guys out, but it sparring my gym. And I never got to do a bout because I was doing it from, let's see, from 12 to pretty much 16, but I had to stop strictly because of football. I don't know if you know my background story,

but my coach made me stop doing amateur wrestling and any other sports in general just because he didn't want me to get injured. I had numerous full-ride offers and scholarships. I got one for middle lineback position out of Plainview, Long Island, New York. And I went to that college, and after a week, I just decided to leave

because, again, I wanted to be in the sport of pro wrestling. That was the only sport I was interested in. One of the things that sticks out to me about you, you know, and you sort of mention is you fell in love with the wrestling with pro wrestling, but you're also a giant student of the game. Like I've watched some old interviews. And while a lot of wrestling fans growing up, I mean, I'm like 13 or 14 years older than you, you know, we're watching WWF at the time, WCW.

And, you know, you're the kind of guy that you just got so immersed into it. You watched everything you can find. And clearly, the MMA world, the UFC in particular, a lot of what, has made them successful is taking a lot of the roots that professional wrestling has brought into the world and they use that to promote big fights, build stories, et cetera, clearly comes from the world of professional wrestling. When you do get to watch the UFC, is that something that you notice and take away from it as well? Well, the word I'd use is stealing. That is exactly what MMA has done, and they've done it very well. Don't get me wrong. I believe Bellator and UFC and all of these

companies should be very proud of themselves, pride back in the day. I genuinely love what they're doing. At the same time, I feel that's what AEW is doing. I believe that when we're doing it right, we're presenting professional wrestling as sport. Even though sometimes when we are on screen, I like to have a little bit of fun. I do whatever the fuck I want if I'm being completely blunt because I can. But at the end of the day, when it's go time, it's sport-based professional wrestling, and that's because pro wrestling is a sport and it's meant to be a sport. And, you know, I might be singing dancing one week, but the next week if I want to,

I can bite somebody's nose off and absolutely break them in a half in a wrestling ring. So you being, as you said, the best talker in the sport of professional wrestling, what do you make of the promo skills of guys like Connor McGregor, Colby Covington, guys like that? Because, you know, they both have admitted that they pull a lot of their personalities

and their traits in promoting fights in that way from the proclamation. wrestling world. So when you hear these guys talk and promote fights, how would you grade their delivery and what they bring to the table in that aspect? I think it's cute in comparison to me. You know, it's laughable, but I think they're great in the world of MMA. If either of those two guys came into the world of AEW, they would be in a lot of trouble. They'd get absolutely verbally bent over, if you know what I mean. But for what they do, I really enjoy what Connor McGregor did in the UFC. Kobe Covington, somebody who understands how to get a reaction out of a crowd,

whether positive or negative. And yeah, I enjoy what both of them did. But could they spar with me? No, absolutely not. That would not be good. I don't think that'd be good for anybody, honestly. It would be uncomfortable. I think I would have to agree with you on that.

But I want to talk about you and kind of your story into the world wrestling. Like I know that you can watch a lot of interviews, but like I said, I'm a bit older than you are. But I remember becoming a wrestling fan at four years old. My older brother bought WrestleMania 3. I watched the Can Am connection against Calvoy Bob Orton and the magnificent Morocco, the opening match of that card,

93,000 fans, and I immediately was just hooked, even at four years old. Do you remember match, event, maybe a wrestler that you saw for the first time that hooked you and that made you just think, man, like, this is freaking awesome? Well, the first match I ever watched, I was at Hollywood videos with my father at the time, and I stopped and I saw this dude who looks like a zombie

on the front of a cover. And I was like, who is this? What is this? And I brought it home. I popped it in my TV. And I skipped all the way to the match on the back of the DVD disc. It said, hell in a cell. And the first match in full I ever watched was Mankind versus Undertaker in a Hell

in a Cell match. So it was the first match I ever watched. So instantly, I was hooked. And the first match I ever went to where I was like, oh, I'm going to do this, was the first ever elimination chamber in Madison Square Garden. I remember Sean Michaels won the match. He was a bloody mess with his weird Dutch boy haircut, and he hit the pose. And I just looked to my left, looked to my right.

Everybody was standing and screaming and yelling and crying. And I just remember tugging my dad on the arm and being like, yeah, I could do that. So that's where we're at now. And I was right. And how did your dad react to that? Did he, was he like, you're deaf? I believe you could do this? Or was he doubting it at first?

And then you kind of built that upon him? Like, what was that conversation like? Well, I don't think a lot of people. had an idea that the little Jewish kid from Long Island was going to be a professional wrestler and a megastar. But that came with a territory. I was born with a chip on my shoulder. I still have a chip on my shoulder.

I will have that chip on my shoulder until everybody worldwide understands that I'm the biggest star living and breathing in the world today. And trust me, it's coming up soon. But yeah, I mean, a lot of people, when I'd bring it up, they'd be like, that's a ridiculous thing, but okay. especially a football coach that spent all that time, money, and effort to get me to the college. He wasn't too happy about it. But now I'm sure he's watching me on TV.

And it is what it is. You were born as the wrestling world began at sort of resurges. I mean, it was booming in the 80s, you know, mid to late 90s. That's when it really took off attitude era, Monday Night Wars. Got such a buzz. Like Monday night was automatic. It was the night to sit down to watch pro wrestling. ECW was doing this thing as well.

But being the kind of guy, you are, student of the game, to be in the spot. out at AEW in the midst of your own sort of ratings war on Wednesday nights. You have, you know, guys like Jim Ross and Tony Chivani calling your matches. It's kind of like a nice mix of nostalgia on top of the evolution of the wrestling business over the last five to 10 years, is it not? Yeah, I can't agree more with that. Now Wednesdays is the night to watch wrestling. And now the star to watch is me, MJ.

Yeah. I think it's awesome that we get to sprinkle my rise, my legendary rise, with guys like Taz and Jim Ross and shit. shitty Tony Chivani. Yeah, it's great. But realistically, every Wednesday, the reason why people tune in, and it shows if you look at the ratings quarterly and minute for minute, the reason they're tuning is because they want to know what I'm doing the next week. What is MJF doing? What is he going to do next? That's because unlike everybody else in our roster, I have it and I have an abundance of it. And I love, love, love, love, love making people lay down in bed at night, put their

head on their pillow and go, God, I hate that guy. Better tune in next week. And that's that. I think we're in a beautiful, and people are going to look back at this era of professional wrestling as the golden era of professional wrestling, a new one, if you will. To me, my favorite version of professional wrestling was world class and global and, you know, that's more me, Memphis, mid-Atlantic. To me, the territory days is what I love to watch the most. But now I feel like we're almost in a resurgence of you have a lot of these journeymen who, you know, 10 years ago, now I don't even know why I'm saying 10 years ago, our company's only been around for what a year and a half. So let's just call a spade a spade here. A year and a quarter ago, these guys,

these incredible professional wrestlers who might not have been used properly by, let's face it, the monopolized company that was WWB at the time, they had nowhere to go. And now they do. And now the people can be showcased properly. And it's sink or something. swim. And if you don't make it in AEW, the only person you have to blame is the person you see in the mirror. You're not being held back in AEW. Nobody's handing me a script in AEW because they know if they did, I'd chew it up and I'd spit in their face. That's what all elite wrestling is. We're all going out there and we're doing our thing. We're doing our version of what we feel the sport and professional wrestling is supposed to be. And what I feel the sport of professional wrestling is supposed to be

is just me, my face, 24-7. And if we can be honest here, it's working out for all-le- wrestling, which is why they signed me to a five-year deal. Do you feel like that's the secret to AEW success right now, the freedom, the ability to kind of, in a way, be your own boss. Like you get to do, you get to do whatever you want. You get to do your own thing. No one's holding you back. And I feel like there's a camaraderie amongst the men and the women in the locker room

that feel the same way. Do you feel, and the in-ring product is great too, but do you feel like that attitude, that's been the biggest secret to the success of AEW thus far? I don't know about the camaraderie thing. I stay in my own trailer. Everybody else kind of smells. But as far as the belief system there, yeah, absolutely. I came in as a preliminary guy. They handed me a microphone while Brett Harden hangman Adam Page were in the ring and they said go. And I smiled and said gladly. It's that simple. And that's all it took for me to become a star overnight. And that can happen to any given person on any given night. You know, even schmucks like Marco Stunt, if he figures it out one day, maybe he can be a star.

Probably not, probably not as big as me. It'll probably never happen. But you never know. That is the opportunity with AEW. Anybody is going out there in any given night, and they're given the opportunity to give it 110%. And if they got it, they got it. Like I said, it's sink or swim, baby.

That's what All Elite Wrestling is all about. In my line of work, you know, I'm glad I'm talking to you, kind of mixes up things a little bit for me, because, you know, we're immersed of what's going on in MMA, and we write about Dana White and Scott Coker and other promoters. and, you know, there's some good and some bad to each of those guys, depending on who you talk to. What has it been like working for somebody like Tony Khan? Tony Khan's my best friend. We talk every day. We hang out on his yacht a lot, eat a lot of Kaviar.

Talk about the business. Tony Kahn's a great guy. He understands what he has. And by what he has, I mean me. And he understands that, you know, he's got to treat me properly. And he does. He most certainly does as he treats all of his talent properly. But let's face it, you know, you want to treat the ace, which is me. Let's be honest. I know Cody Rhodes is walking around pretending he's the ace, but it's me to the best of your abilities. But that's what Tony Khan does. He's an incredible boss. At the end of the day, there's no leash on me.

There's no leash on anybody. And I couldn't ask for a better boss to work for. The guy understands who's got it and who doesn't. He understands how to emphasize people's strengths and weaknesses. It's a lot easier to deal with me because I have no weaknesses, but still, he's just an incredible, incredible boss. I couldn't put him over anymore. And also an incredible person, incredible person. And now you're getting to do a lot on television with a guy like Chris Jericho, a guy that I have always felt throughout my pro wrestling. Oh, yeah. Go on,

go on. Yeah, I feel like he is, has always been extremely underrated as a talent. He definitely was in WCW, definitely was early on in his WWE career. And he's just, just continue to evolve throughout this 30-year career. And it really has been. If you really look back in the history of wrestling, which I know you do often, it's been an incredible run. What has it been like to work with Chris and even get in the ring with him at full gear? He's the king of reinvention. And also, we have so much mutual respect for one of another. And I believe the mutual respects there is because Chris always refers to me as an old soul. And I'd have to agree with that. I mean, I love everything old school.

and I understand this business. But nobody understands this business inside and out more than Chris Jericho. And that's just a fact. So the fact that I get to hang out with this guy, he pick his brain, we get to talk, we get to work together. And honestly, it's not this weird partnership. It is 110% 50-50, whether it's inside of the ring or outside of the ring. There's just an insane amount of mutual respect there.

The guy's a legend. I genuinely feel in 10 years from now, when it's all said and done, people will look at what Chris did, not just for AEW, but for the whole industry, he'll be revered easily as one of the greatest of all time, as if he's not already. He truly is, but I think it'll only be cemented more. Think about what he did. He jumped again from that monopolized company, came to AEW, and you think that didn't have to, that didn't help everybody that was working in WWE?

you think all those guys in WWE didn't start getting paid and compensated more out of fear that they would jump as well? No, it did. He didn't just help himself. He helped the whole entire industry. He was able to help strengthen a new brand, and he was also able to help strengthen everybody's checks and pockets, you know, because now it's not a monopolized industry anymore.

He changed the game, and I think everybody should be thanking him for that every day. That's one. Two, what was it like wrestling him? It was incredible. I believe that what we did out there, there was great. I think that it's very obvious. Chris is still in the prime of his career. He can still go. As it is very obvious, I'm already there. Let's face it. I've beaten Cody Rhodes. I've beaten Chris Jericho. I've beaten them all. I would have beat John Moxley if he didn't cheat,

but that's a different story for a different day. Probably should be in front of a court of law, if we're being honest. But yeah, man, it felt great to be in there with Chris. And, you know, I hate to say it, but it felt great to win too. Let's be honest. Did I see it coming? Yes, but it wasn't easy. I can tell you that much. Wasn't easy at all. Yeah, I agree with everything you're saying about Chris, because anyone you talk to,

it's always, you know, people talk about the Hogan's and the Austens and the rocks of the world when talking about like legendary runs in the sport, even like the John Cinas of the world. But, you know, I asked Jake Hager this, and he thought, you know, this, it absolutely was.

The run that Chris Jericho has been on this business is the best ever, in my opinion, especially with the longevity, being a top guy, his ability to get fans invested, the stuff he did would do Japan was unbelievable. The stuff he's doing in AEW now is unbelievable. Like in terms of actual wrestling runs,

this has to be the best or one of the best of all time. And as a student of the game myself, and it sounds to me like you're a student in the game as well. Obviously not as great a student as me. Nobody is. But if you watch Hulk Hogan in his last leg run there in WCW, he wasn't having the type of matches that Chris Jericho is having, not even close.

And the sick thing is Chris is just getting started. I can't stress enough how great he is in the ring. Obviously, I must be a little bit better. I won. We don't need to get into that. I love and respect Chris. I'm just throwing that out there. But he's the dude's a gold mine,

and I couldn't be happier to be working with him. And that's just the fact, man. That's just the facts. And like I said, the best thing is he doesn't have to be going 50-50 with me. He could just be looking me straight in the face when I walk into a room and going, here's what's going to happen, kid. And that's not the case.

Everything has been genuinely a team effort, as has been a team effort with everybody in the inner circle from the Sart. I love my little buddy, Sammy Guevara. He's the bestest in the world, I think, is his catchphrase, bestest in the way. I don't remember. And I love everybody in there. It's great. Everybody in there is great.

Being now in the inner circle and like you said, 50-50 with Jericho, there's a lot you can pick up from him. Where do you see yourself, I don't know, a year from now in AEW? Like what kinds of visions are you seeing for yourself? Heck, not just for yourself, but for the promotion itself one year from right now. Oh, I've seen myself being the AEW world champion. I mean, that's final. That's obvious.

I think everybody sees that coming too. I would be the world champion right now, again, if dictator John didn't cheat, but I'm not trying to talk about that right now. He's a paper. Sorry, I have a really bad call. I promise it's not Therona. And yeah, man, I see myself being that AEW world champion. And moreover, I don't think people should be shocked if they start seeing me every now and then

on possibly the big screen or in TV or music. Because I'm a very multi-talented, multifaceted guy. And that's something that I definitely foresee in my future. Anything in the works? I can't answer that, bud. you could just like say yes or no you don't have to tell me exactly what it is i don't i don't even know what you just asked me i'm very busy do you have any other question all right i'll give you one more because i and excuse the cheesy nature of the question but call me curious throughout

this conversation but you you mentioned the territory days and and how much you you enjoyed watching those so if you could go back like in the delorean and and be part of any of these great error as a professional wrestling promotion, regional territory, any sort of time frame, where would you go just to see, like, you know, how you would fare? Well, if I have to be, I've thought about this myself and my instant answer is normal, you know, 80s territory is. And then I stop myself, I go, maybe the attitude error. And then I stop myself and I go, what am I talking about? I'm needed right now. And the reason I say that is because here's this new brand. It has every opportunity, again, not just the wrestlers, but the brand had every opportunity in the world.

it's sink or swim. And we've been swimming, not only swimming, but swimming well. We've now beaten Raw in Key Demo, I believe, I know more than twice. And that's huge. That hasn't happened in, what, 25, 26 years, I think? That's crazy. But again, that wouldn't be happening if it wasn't for guys like me. And that's just a fact.

I'm one of the top ratings draws on Wednesday nights. Hell, I'm one of the top ratings draws in all professional wrestling. So I'm needed right now, because right now we're creating. a resurgence of real, true, and provide professional wrestling, not sports entertainment, but professional wrestling. And I'm really proud to be a part of that. I'm proud to be the face of it. I'm proud to be on the forefront. And yeah, so my answer is right now, because I'm needed right now. Those marks right now need MJF more than they ever could have possibly needed me 10, 20, 30 years ago. Well, I don't know how you feel MJF, but this was great. It was an honor, honestly. You are

absolutely killing it. I'm so glad we're able to make this happen. I appreciate your time. I wish you nothing but the best for you and AEW. And I wish you a happy holidays, sir. This was probably the worst interview I'd ever done. I hope you have bad turkey. Good day, sir. So pumped that that happened this week. Really excited for it.

MJF from AEW coming on here, taking shots at me when he could. He is a UFC fan, giving some insight on guys like Connor McGregor, like Colby Covington. And listen, this is not something we're going to do a lot, once in a blue moon. But I thought, you know what? It is Thanksgiving after all. Let's do something unique. And MJF is certainly that and then some. So big thank you to MJF for coming on during his busy schedule.

Big thank you to AEW, All-E-Ressling. Make sure you check them out on TNT Wednesday nights, AEW. So thank you for them for setting that up as we're getting ready to head out out of here. We got one more interview to leave you with, but I just wanted to say on this Thanksgiving that I appreciate all of you that are watching right now, that are here. the sound of my voice, the ones who are in, the ones who are on the fence, the ones who like me, and for those of you who do not, that's fine. I appreciate all of you very much. All of you have an impact in some way, and it means the world, and I hope you all have the best Thanksgiving ever.

Or if you're not celebrating, like my man, AK, my co-host, the best friend, co-matchmaker, Alex Kaylee. I wish you have, I wish you the best Thursday ever, or whatever day you're listening or watching. But a big thank you to Casey Leiden on the production. Jose Young's, Alex Savas, I have a big pain in their butts, asking them for graphics, asking them for all sorts of different things. They never complain, and that is unbelievable. So thank you to them. And with that said, have a heck of a week, everybody. We leave you with my chat with UFC band-in-way contender Rob Font as he prepares to face Marlon Marius on December 19th.

All right, we have Rob Font back on the show. Here he turns to action for the first time in a little over a year. recovered from a torn ACL and he's going to face Marlon Marius at the UFC's event on December 19th welcome backs all around Rob how are you doing great man thank you for having me on and excited to be back you know a big fight I'm ready excited yeah I mean this is very exciting stuff I mean we spoke a few months back while you were in Abu Dhabi I had a Calvin Cater's fight with dan I gay and you're pretty much clear to return to training you were hoping to get a fight in before the end of the year and you got your wish.

How excited are you that the timeframes lined up the way you hoped it would? Because that doesn't happen very often in life. Yeah, definitely not with me either. So, yeah, it worked out. You know, recovery went smooth. You know, it's a big fight, big opportunity for me, obviously, for New England, for Boston, for the cartel. So it's going to be a big, a couple big months for me and Calvin, so I'm excited. Yeah, I mean, the New England cartel is just going crazy right now.

I mean, you got your fight. Calvin's getting ready to fight Max Holloway on January 16th. You're getting magazine covers. I mean, you guys are really on the verge of, you guys have wanted to become New England's fifth professional sports team. And in a way, you're starting to take steps. This is pretty incredible, is it not? Yeah, yeah.

It's coming together. You know, we just got to go out there and perform and, you know, put on a show, make those statements. And, you know, obviously, we know that the job's not done until we bring the bells back to Boston, but we're on the right path. there seemed like once you were talking about getting ready to get back in there, there seemed to be a lot of names sort of thrown out there for you.

I think most people thought maybe like a Cody Stamen was an option. Jimmy Rivera was thrown out there a couple times. I have to say, Marais was a bit of a pleasant surprise, especially since he had just gotten finished by Corey Sandhagen. This fight was booked like maybe a week or two after that. How did you react to finding out that Marlon Marais was the guy? I was like, all right, cool, man. I really thought it was going to be one of those names you mentioned.

You know, I figured it would be like Jimmy. a Cheeto or Cody Staming, you know, you know, perfect world. You know, I was like, that's cool. Just get to it. But then when I heard, but I kind of felt it. Like, oh, this could be something here. Like, when he lost, I was like, wait a minute. Like, all right, you know, this could potentially be a fight.

But the way he got finished, I was like, oh, I don't know. Then we got the call. And I was like, of course, man. Hell yeah. Let's go, man. This is a big opportunity, big fight. You know, and puts me right back into that mix. and kind of leaves frogs to all those names like you mentioned, you know,

and it puts me in a good spot. You know, I just got to go out there, capitalize on its opportunity. You know, remind everybody that, you know, I'm here. And, you know, I'm ready to throw down. So, yeah, I'm excited. Yeah, it's the last card of the year. And it's absolutely ridiculous. You got Leon Edwards and Hamzaa Jamiah for the main event, Wonderboy and Jeff Neal.

You mentioned Marlon Vera. He's fighting Jose Aldo. I mean, what a card to return on, right? Yeah, you know, I feel like, you know, the U.C. likes me. They always throw me on these big cards. Either they like me or they don't, because they either throw me on a nice big car or some crazy matchup with a tough fight.

But they keep giving me these opportunities. And obviously, they believe in me. So I just got to go out there and put on a show. And like I said, man, obviously I want the W, but I really, really want that finish. I feel like those finishes make, they make big statements. And I can, you know, get to that title shot a lot quicker, a lot faster.

But if, you know, I'm finishing these guys. Yeah, and since you last fought, Aldo is now in your division, just fought for the title. I mean, you have your own fight to worry about, but I'm sure you'll have your eye on this fight between Aldo and Cheeto Vera. But is it kind of surreal at this point in your career to share a card with the legend like Aldo? I mean, that's got to feel pretty good. That's huge, man. I mean, like I said, when I first got into MMA, I wasn't watching the UFC. I was watching WEC.

So, you know, Ozi Aldo, Uri of favor, Carlos Conant, those guys, the guy that looked up to. And I thought, you know, maybe a year two just watching WEC. I finally got into the UFC and the paper views and the tough show. So it's definitely like, oh, shit, let's go. You know, that's a name. That's, you know, I remember those late kicks. I remember that, you know, and that's what inspired me. So, you know, you get to fight a goat like Jose Aldo or even be on the same car.

That's huge. So I'm excited. It proves, you know what I'm saying? It shows that I'm here, you know, I'm a threat as well. And, you know, I want those opportunities to get in there with a guy that I used to watch on TV and kind of got me started in M&A. So I'm excited. So let's talk about the matchup. You're going to fight, like we said, Marlon Marias.

He's lost two of his last three. A lot of people actually thought he lost the fight to Jose Aldo, but still very dangerous guy, very explosive, especially early on in the fight. When you look at it from like an X's-N-O's perspective, how do you like the matchup? You know, it's going to, you know, Corey kind of put the game plan out there, you know, staying long. moving my feet. Not, you know, making sure I give him a bunch of different looks and, you know, switching up the angles on them and not just being, you know, a sitting object where he can just kick away and do, you know, make him feel comfortable.

I want to push him backwards, get them uncomfortable, you know, draw them in at the same time. It's going to be a lot of, you know, in and out motions and movements. And, you know, I just got to stay long, you know, keep them at my range and let them, let him run into some big shots, but it's exciting fight. You know, you know, I got a long reach on them. I just got to use it and let them and be smart and pick my shots, but let them run right into the big ones that are forcing the big shots.

When he went to the, when you got to the UFC, he lost that really close fight to Hafiel Sun South. Then he wanted this big run before running into Henry Sehudo, fighting for the belt. And, you know, he actually put it to Henry pretty good early on in that fight before he got finished. And Henry proved to be super durable in that fight. Do you feel, I mean, especially after getting finished in two of his last three, do you feel like there's been some sort of decline with Marlon or is just kind of one of those

things where just wasn't his night or nights that is? Yeah, you know, it's tough. The sport is brutal. So I don't even like, you know, like, I'm not like going to look too much into his losses. You know, I feel like, I know, I bounce back better off every loss I've ever had. So it's, you know, it's a dangerous guy right now. He's coming off with some Ws. You don't know what it is in his person like that probably could have add to that.

So I don't know, but I know I'm not going to sleep on him. I'm not going to take him lightly. Because I know how it feels is coming off a loss and trying to get back in there. And, you know, wanting to erase that feeling. So he's coming. He's hungry. So in my mind, he's just as dangerous as he was when he had the belt, you know, for the other promotion. In my mind, he's still that champion.

I'm going to go out there and fight that guy that, you know, that is the ex-champian and, you know, that is confidence. So I'm going to go out there and try to fight the best mind of my rise and whatever shows up shows up. But in my mind, so I'm taking this very serious. Is there a difference in motivation heading into a fight coming off a win compared to coming off of a loss? Is there like a difference in an approach? As far as an approach, I don't think so. For me, I always just try to raise the bar every camp. as far as like new things, but trying to always push it a little harder as far as conditioning,

as far as like getting more reps and just trying to, or is just, you know, like, just the smaller things. But as far as each fight, we treat each fight like it's the title fight, you know, so it's for us, it's like, I mean, we're getting, we're getting smarter and we're adapt when we need to adapt or we'll pull back on certain things. We need to pull back. But for us, man, you know, like every fight's a title fight. You mentioned that you feel like Corey Sanaghan kind of put out the blueprint on what to do in terms of getting the best of Marlon.

But, I mean, do you go back at this point in your career and watch his past fights and try to pick up certain things from them? Or do you just see the sport evolving so quickly that you just kind of worry about yourself? You know, I'll watch probably last two fights. I watched the Corey Sanaghani fight and then I watch the Hammy Sudhaven fight. But besides that, that's kind of Tyson job. He'll do that. He already has a blueprint. He has, you know, notes, film study, everything I've already written out.

I kind of like, we'll watch two or three fights get an idea, study it, read it daily as far as the game plan and kind of what we want to do, the cause signs and all that. But I don't look too much into the filming part of it. And then I just go out there and try to react as much as possible and then just listen as much as possible as well. But yeah, that's kind of Tyson's thing. He's on point. And I know he's going to see something that I'm not seeing or he's going to, you know, I know that we're going to this fight 100% prepared. I'm just, I'm not big on watching film.

You know, it's not fully on it. I'll get bored. Honestly, I get bored. I'll watch it as far as to see the exciting part, but to break it down like that. Like, I don't really do too much of that. It's nice to see like you and Calvin getting, getting a put. and getting a buzz and having a lot of attention. But at the same time, it's cool to see Tyson getting some shine as well,

not just as a manager, but as a coach, you see him in different articles, giving his takes on certain fights with, you know, ESPNs of the world. How cool has that been from your perspective to see Tyson start to get that shine, too? That's huge. You know, he's probably the most underrated coach out there. And, you know, it's dope to see him kind of like, you know, get his shine. And in the next couple months, man, you're going to hear, I'm probably not going to be able to see my coach now.

It's going to be all over. Everybody's going to want to work with him and everybody's going to want to sign on them. I'm telling you, we're about to blow this thing up. You obviously fought some very solid names in your career, but, I mean, Marias, for sure, is the biggest name that you've stepped into the Octagon with. Have you allowed yourself to see where a win over a guy like Marlin

could take you in this division? Yeah. You know, like I said, that sets up a big, a lot of big fights. A big win and finish could potentially fight up, but a title shot you never know with injuries and whatnot. And then or a bigger name, like, I host, I'll do. I know TJ Dillish, I was coming back soon. So that could line up.

One thing I did want to ask you about, because, I mean, you mentioned Calvin and you've seen the success that he's been having since you've been on the shelf. And you guys have had this goal becoming champions at the same time, doing it for Boston, doing it for New England and a win over Mariah. So obviously get you a step closer. And I know with the relationship you guys have, his success is yours. success and vice versa. It's that cartel attitude you guys bring, but still like from like a teammate, a brotherly perspective, it's pretty cool to have something to chase in your own right,

have a little, a little race to the top, so to speak. Is that kind of accurate of the way you are approaching it? Definitely, you know, definitely. It's like you're getting there. You know, obviously we're competitive. So, you know, he's got to, we want to see who can do it first. And we're right there, you know, he had to be, but he's a little ahead of me right now. but it's just right there. So like I said, if he wins it, I feel like I won it. So it's, it's pretty cool how like we all, like we all benefit and help each other out. And again, like everybody, like he wins.

We all win. So our New England wins at that. So it's pretty cool how we got going on. And I'm just excited for the future. So the big question is how do you set the table for Calvin? How do you get this thing done on December 19th? How do you take that next step towards the table? top of this crazy band-o-weight division?

I want to get a big knockout elbow win like like Calvin did, man. I want that elbow win, man. He stepped up and took his elbows to a new height, you know. I think I want to try to mimic that. But yeah, it's going to be a finish. It's going to be a finish. I got to get in there finish. If not, there's going to be one of those exciting fights that you can learn a lot

from. I want to technically break this guy down or put him away. So we'll see. If not, I don't want to shoot for that big elbow knockout finish like my brother, Calvin Cater did. A couple more things to really go. The week prior to your fight, Bannamway title is going to be on the line. UFC 256, Piotr-Yon, defending against Al Jermaine Sterling, a fight that at this point,

I'm sure you're going to be paying very close attention to. How do you see that one playing out? I'm giving Sterling this one. Let me give Sterling to this one. I think he has he's long enough. He has enough, obviously, wrestling to deal with, you know, obviously, Peter Yon's wrestling. And then, you know, he's shown that he's stepping up his strike. And so he's got a lot of funky, weird style.

So we'll see what it does. I don't know. Obviously, I'm paying the closest attention in this fight, but more focused on my fight. But I think I see Sterling squeaking away with the decision here. And then finally, as you know, unfortunately, you may not be able to partake as a much as you would like, but Thanksgiving here in the United States is upon us. It's a little different this year with the pandemic and everything on the world. You have a fight to prepare for, but, you know, when it comes to your life, the sport, your career,

where you guys are heading as a group with the cartel, what is Rob Font thankful for in 2020? You know, just to be back, you know, just to move around, it's to be out of the shuttle. And kick I'll be this huge opportunity to To You know A huge opportunity It's a you know

Fight Monomer Rice And and You know And be a part of them Calvin's camps And like definitely a lot And also a little Yeah

Whatever I'm getting tired of thing Back to back I've been fighting around this time So it's kind of like Thanksgiving is not the same for me I'm saying they're eating turkey And hail you know

So It is not the same for me I'll be hanging out, probably say what's up to the family. I'll be in the gym either that night or that morning for sure. There you go. Well, very excited for this fight, Rob. The cartels making a lot of noise. Big things happening for you guys.

Couldn't be happy for you all. And all the best to you for the rest of the camp and in the fight, Rob. Thank you, as always. And have a happy Thanksgiving, my man. Thank you, man. Appreciate it. Thanks for having me on, bro. You're listening to the Vox Media Podcast Network.