The Church of What's Happening Now: The New Testament - #379 - Alberto Crane

Episode Date: May 12, 2016

Alberto Crane, the first American to recieve a black belt from the Gracie Barra Academy and Owner of Legacy Jiu Jitsu in Burbank joins joins Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt live in studio.    This podcast is brought to you by: Datsusara: Go to DSgear.com and check out all of their great products, like gi's and rash guards, that are made with high quality hemp textiles   Tracker - Go to Thetracker.com and use code word "church" for 30% off of your entire order.    Onnit.com. Use Promo code CHURCH for a discount at checkout.    Recorded live on 05/11/2016.
    

This show is brought to you by Tracker. Never lose anything again with Tracker. Go to TheTracker.com, T-H-E-Tracker.com, and enter promo code church, and you're going to get 30% off of your entire order. That's TheTracker.com promo code church and save 30% off of your entire order. This show is also brought to you by Datsusara. That's D-A-T-S-U-S-A-R-A. Extremely high-quality, functional gear made with hemp textiles. They have bags, geese, gis,

and rash guards, go to Datsusar.com and enter promo code Joey to get 5% off. And go to Onit.com and use promo code church to get 10% off all of the great optimization products like Alphabrain, New Mood, Shrm Tech Immune, and Trum Tech Sport. Oh shit. I hope your afternoon's going well because it's about to get better. The church of what's happening now. Lee Syatt, Professor Alberto Crane. And your Uncle Joey here dropping it for Bob Marley today.

Somebody hit me on Twitter. He's been dead like 36 years today or something. Wow. Kick it, Lee. Kick this meal, Lee. Oh, shit. Oh, shit. Leeds has got a little nightshirt on tonight.

Look, him he's ready. All right, here we go. It's a beautiful day to be alive here. Professor Crane's in studio. What's happening, little brother? How's it going? Thanks for having. Oh, it's a pleasure.

It's an honor to have you in the studio. You're one of the men of the great BJJ world. Lee Syatt, what's going on with you? I'm having a great day. It's a beautiful day out. I had a great workout this morning. It's hotter than hell out there. I was halfway walking here on the halfway mark.

I said, you know what? I left my phone at home. I go, you know what? I don't need my phone. I don't need my phone. It's such a great feeling to just go, you know what? I don't want that thing in my pocket no more. Like one day I'm just going to wake up one day

and just throw that thing away. Yeah. Like, that's the goal of it, just to get rid of it. My friend finally went to a flip phone. He said he was spending too much time on the phone messing around, so, you know, whatever. Somebody calls you. That's it. That's all I worry about the phone is the baby and my wife.

Everything else, you know, is up to. Do you get anxiety when you don't have it or not really? Not at all. Not at all. I'd rather not have the goddamn thing, you know? Oh, yeah. No. It's, I've been doing it because you've always said don't have it when you.

you work out and it's I notice it now when people do have it when they're working out and it's just it's so when you when you stop using it when you're working out it looks so out of place when you see people like texting or just doing something on their phone during a work are you like what is what is even what you're wasting your time here when you go like the ymca here when I go to the Lipson times you know there's people on the phone you say why did you come here. Why did you come here? You missed the whole point of this whole hour. This hour is for you to sweat and thank and go, Jesus, I got this today and this today. But if you're on the elliptical on the phone, you're bringing all that shit into your little place. At halftime, I check my phone

just for the baby. But I check it for the baby just in case they call from the daycare, my wife's in yoga. That's it. And then at the end of the class, I check it. But I only check it for the baby. Anybody else who called me, I don't stop and call them back. I don't give a fuck. And there's a difference between checking it. Like, I've seen people on, like, full-blown conversations, like, on their phone on the elliptical. And that just makes me laugh.

It just gets me sad because you're missing the whole point. You're bringing your shit into where you tried to get away from everything for one hour. For one hour. You know how better you feel after one hour? That's it. And I really like how, like, it's different with a class because even if, like, you go and you're working on, I used to do the elliptical all the time and just have, like, music or watching something,

you're kind of I was still too focused on it because it's like you're just you're working up but in the class I don't focus on it at all nothing you just focus on your breathing and what the hell's going on I guess right yeah yeah what's going on

professor you fought this weekend it never ends with you always something always something you're in San Diego choking people you're here teaching I went one day you're swinging a bat in the back like go to my chel club bells

you got everything You're the man of everything. Good to have you. You know, I've known you since 2004 the summer. We went to shoot the longest yard with Ivan and Bob Sapp and Goldberg. And we'd go by your school and you were a sweetheart. And then one day you popped up. I bumped into your adjustments.

Yeah. And you're telling me how you have the school in Glendale and Encino. And I'm like, wow, this guy moves quick. He didn't even stop. And you promised me when was that, 2004? So 12 years ago, you're like, I'm going to come into your gym. And you came in, took me 12 years. I'm going to come in.

I'm telling you I'm going to come in. And then one day I had joined over here at V-Mack, but they had an afternoon class, and I was telling Lee about it. So Lee's like, Joey, I can't do nothing in the afternoons because I sleep all day. He's an editor. He gets off work at five.

So I said, Lee, why don't you go right from the net of Jiu-Jitsu? Somebody's got to have a 6 o'clock class, and you were the only guy in the area, and I called. And the lady's like, who's this? And I goes, Mr. Crane there. I don't know. And then you called me back, and I'm like, my buddy wants to do the 7 a.

class but he's not sure how long is it you know and that's the last time i talked to you and then i went to flappers one night and i saw the school had grown like i said i don't go to that part of town at all i go i used to go to the cuban place up the corner there's a there's two cuban places on victory you know there's the one at the end of victory past got bells mamba or something mombo right there's there's the other one in the other direction behind the mcdonald so that's the only time in cosco's around there isn't it costco the street so when You know, I really wanted, like last year I was hurting jujitsu-wise. I was like, what am I going to do with my life?

I mean, I have to get out of this because I don't want to go over the hill more on Wednesdays to Higgins, three hours. And Mondays, I have nothing. And one day I went with my wife to the Cuban place, porthos, and they have the school down the corner. But they wear socks and shit, and you don't have a Monday class. You know, fuck you. I didn't want to do that. Yeah, they got socks on. I want fungus.

You know what I'm saying? That's part of the package. You want to get some fucking rickshaw on your neck. So it's so weird that we ended up, you know, I ended up crossing Patrick you again, and it's like my favorite thing to do now. It's like it takes me out of everything. I have a pattern now.

I come home in the morning. I write at 1115. I know I've got to take an aspirin from my heart. I drink a protein shaking. I don't want to die over that, professor. So I got an aspirin for my heart. You know, Professor Joey always says to me, dog, you can always come through the 60s.

I know you're up. I go, listen, most heart. attacks happen between six and twelve I ain't that fucking stupid you wouldn't catch me swing of the kettlebell five 30 in the morning that's probably I gotta get up of two the swing of kettlebell I would have to get up at two drink a protein shake take a shower like have like a half a blown morning and then go pick up 45 pounds and 60 pounds to swing them yeah it is different especially like six in the morning oh that's do you do that class I don't do well in the one that early when it's dark still I don't do well it's got to be

light it's got to be at least like you know eight a quarter clock. You know, that's good for me. Eight in the morning is good for me, yeah. They're doing 8.30 on Sundays, don't they over there? We do, uh, 8.30 on Sunday mornings, the guys. 9.m. Over 40 or something?

Oh, yeah, 8.m. On Sundays. Yeah, he told you about it. He's like a principal, isn't he? He's a principal. Tremendous. High school principal. Bad ass black belt.

He's there. He's really good. Competes. Smashes wins. He's one of the guys that said, come by. But there was, I bumped into an Armenian guy one day. that went to his daughter, went to school with my daughter.

You know where I go to school, there's four black belts. Like my daughter, the parents, they have a Tenth Planet guy that trains with, who's the UFC fighter, the kickboxer? Good looking dude. I know, Alan. Alan Joban, okay.

He goes over there. One of the guys is a black belt over there. He doesn't go to Tent Planet somewhere else. One of the guys from Gracie Barron Northbridge. There's a brown belt there. One of his kids goes in there. He torments me constantly because he's a big guy. And he goes, we got four big guys.

One year with you, you'll be a U.S. champion. I'm like, I don't want to be a champion. You just want to be in shape. One year, Northridge, you'll be a champion. You understand? I don't know. But there's somebody else that's like, it's so popular now that people, you bump into people,

but I bumped into that principle somewhere. And he's the one that said to me, hey, you got to come out and see Alberta. So when I saw him there, he goes, you came. Yeah, I came up here. How long have you had that school? Burbank, we opened up in 2011, January of 2011. So five and a half years.

Five and a half years. It's beautiful. Thank you. Clean, you know. How did you get into all this? I was 18, graduated from high school. I was working at this restaurant, just randomly. This is an albuquer.

This is in San Francisco. New Mexico. Where I met you. Where you met me. Is it still beautiful? Is it still beautiful? Yeah, it's beautiful. The city different.

You know, it's a little town. 60,000 people. Middle nowhere. Are the rents still high and all that? The rents are still high. Really? Because, you know, like people like to live there, but there's not a lot of opportunities. It's beautiful, Lee.

Oh, that's my favorite part of the country. Like, I've driven, I've done that back and forth to East Coast three times. And I love, as soon. as I hit New Mexico and Arizona like that like the, what was it like growing up in like the desert? You just run out and like go to like all those little rocks and all that shit. You know what I love about it just

you know when you spend time in L.A. or if you go to New York and then you go to a place like New Mexico like it's like silent. The silence, the you look up with the sky during the day or at night and it's just clear. Not and it's like peaceful. For me it gives me like peace of mind. I can't explain it but

Well there's a I mean so what what schools are out there because I know in LA there's like everyone always talks about southern California has a lot of jiu-jitsu and m-ma-a schools and i know that there's the uh jackson winklejohn in new mexico anything else well i started my my school was the first brazilian jihitsu school in the state of new mexico and so i started i started teaching um i kind of started teaching in the 90s you know i went down to brazil so just to start over again like you know some of my friends would i was working at a restaurant and they was like hey you should come and try this jihitsu stuff out

I'm like, yeah, yeah, okay. It took him like three, four months, and then I did one class, and my buddy, who's this like little skinny guy, arm barred me like 10 times. And it was 10 times because it was like, let's go again. I couldn't believe what he just did to me. And he got my arm and I was like, what the hell? I had to tap out and he did it again, did it again. And I was like, what the hell?

And I just got addicted. I was like, after that class, this guy that originally taught it, he taught two classes a week. after that first class, I never missed until that guy moved away. And so that guy, he used to be a Navy SEAL, and then he went back in. That's why I moved away. And then one of my best friends, Amal Easton, who's like a Hansa Gracie Blackbelt, he was gone for six months, and then he came back, and we started training in his garage every day.

He runs like the Eastern training centers in Colorado. He has like the biggest schools in Colorado. And we started training in his garage every day. He started showing me all this cool stuff that he learned in Brazil. And I was, I was, like, blown away. I was like, oh, man, it's crazy. I want to go. I was still, like, 18, 19, you know, maybe 19 at the time.

And then he took me to a couple tournaments out here in L.A. You know, this guy named Joe Morera. He had the, put these tournaments on. And then the first Pan Amses, like, in 96. I met Eddie Bravo. We were hanging out with him. He was a blue belt. Because it was only blue belts then.

There was no, like, white belt tournaments, you know. And then after that, after that year, I went down to Brazil for six months. saved my money of, went out to Brazil, and actually came back, and I was like, I want to go again for the world, so went down for a month again. I had a good job at that restaurant, actually. I was still working at that restaurant, the Cowdy Cafe, downtown Santa Fe. And I was able to save up money and, you know, I work hard and save up all the money. And then my mom was like, listen, if you're going to keep going back and forth, you might as well just go and stay.

And so I was like, all right, sounds good to me. And so I went for a year. She's like, just go down there for a year because when she was younger, she did an exchange program in like Spain she's a teacher and so uh yeah i went down and stayed for a year and i wasn't done yet so i ended up staying like like two and a half years now who was your teacher at the time so uh i went to gracey bahra you know i walked in there a mall he that's where he went you know um so grace bhaanriere grida genera and then um after that uh i met jacquino well i went there and i met jacolino and so i went to a school in belizzz that he was just starting and it was all like

whites maybe a couple blue belts And when I went there, I just felt so at home and that I was like, man, like, I want to, when I move, when I move back to Brazil, when I actually stay and, you know, move here, this is where I want to go. Like, you know, Grace Sabaugh had all the black belts, had all the world champions, had the best of the best, you know, was the best school at the time. And, and then I was like, but I felt at home at Draclino school. And so, you know, I ended up being one of the best schools, like, in the world, just one school. because, you know, Grace Sibaha and these big teams, they join forces with all the schools, and they got all the best guys from all the different schools, and they join them up. But, like, Dracolino's school as a whole, he had, like, the most world champions, you know,

like the guy in Northridge, or Hamil Bahal, you know, it's one of his guys from Belarizans. That's the city I lived in. So it was, it was, there's three big cities, you know, the biggest, three biggest cities, you know, there's Rio, DiGeno, San Paulo, and Belarizant is like the third largest city. What did you do for work down then? So at first, I saved up money. and then my mom was like when she told me to go down there for a year she's like let me help you for the year you know and then I was like I'm not done yet and so uh you know I I I tried to get a job

but then I was like this is getting the way of my training so I quit and and so I ended up like racking up a $20,000 credit card bill that uh you know when I came back I started paying it off and actually I taught English for a second you know for a little bit like but it got in the way of my training so I stopped but then I taught jiu-jitsu as a purple belt I I made enough of a name for myself. So Jacqueline actually took me in a couple of places and I got, you know, I got hooked up with like a teaching job. And it was good.

It was part of my training, which I figured, you know, teaching helps you, like, learn. What, does that make you nervous racking up that bill? Or were you just like, or you just knew like, okay, I'm putting this in. I'm going to be able to pay this. Like, just to me, that freaks me out just thinking about that. You know, I was so committed. Does it sound on? Yeah.

I was so committed that it didn't matter, you know? It didn't matter. Like, this is what? I wanted to do. And it didn't matter if it was 20,000 or 100,000. Like, I'm going to do this. I'm going to do it to the best of my ability. And that's it. I'd just look forward what I was going to do. I wanted to be the best. And that's where I was going to do it. And that's all that mattered to me. So Dracolino gave you your first black belt. Yeah, when I got my black belt in Brazil, 2001. Yeah. Yeah. And he's in New York now. He's in Houston, Texas.

So the school I drive by in New York, that's a different Dracula. that's no in New York there's there's Hanzo Gracie Hanzo there's Marcella Garcia there's another guy with a weird man Shaolin Showlin yeah okay yeah I got to compete against him when I was a bra belt he was already a three-time Blackbird World Champion he's a legend you know and uh or we the match is zero zero and Dracquino had told my my buddy's like if you had won I would give him his black belt red thin and there you know but I almost my grip slipped there was a good match.

So he's in Houston, Texas. He has a school, Dragway. He has a school in Houston, Texas. In the heart of Texas, so outside. You go down there to visit him? I went last year. I went last year with one of my main training partners.

713 or the other area code? I don't even know. 83, no, it's not 832. I think it's 731. Yeah, yeah, 713. That's in the city limits. Out of the loop. It's like Webster, Webster next to the NASA.

Okay, I know exactly. Yeah, he's 713. Okay. That's great. I didn't know he was there. I thought he was in New York. Yeah, he moved, he moved six, seven years. Were you scared in Brazil?

Did anybody have a messy as an American? I mean. So my buddy, my buddy, I'm all east, and he's kind of a hippie. You know? Or he grew up as a, he actually grew up as a hippie. And so he lived, we lived on this island in Baja de Tizuja, like Raci Baja, Bada Tizuja. And so I had to paddle a boat, you know? And so, one time.

I'm like, he's like, oh, take our bikes back to the house and started paddling his boat. You know, in Brazil, like the, well, in that laguna at the time anyway, like the sewage kind of goes into the water and stuff. And so sometimes it stinks. And, man, one of the times I tried, the way, actually, it was like my first day, the first or second day. The current started taking me out into the ocean, you know, because that lagoon flushes out into the ocean. And, man, it took me like an hour to get back to the original spot where I started to go. Because I've never, I've never paddled the boat. Have you paddled the boat?

Never. You know? So you have to like, you know, push on both sides. Yeah. And so I started pushing and it started spinning me. Spending around, yeah. Spinning, spinning. And there's a current and there was like these little plants like they were catching me.

And I was like, oh my God. They started, you know, I was going faster and faster outside. So I started grabbing, grabbing whatever I could and pull myself back to the original spot. I was like, my God, you almost killed me. And there was like gunshots. Like, you know, I'm just shit my pants. It was like the first week, you know, that I was there. And I remember being like scared, not really like wanting to eat too much stuff.

like because I was eating like crackers and stuff because I don't want to get sick. You know, I was like parent and I was a kid. I remember not bringing anything like nice clothes with me because I was like, oh, it's a third world country. But it's like beautiful, you know, it's like here kind of, you know, in the nice areas anyway. It's just when you told me the story that you just went down there. When I went home, I thought about it, how you, it's a great thing that you did. It's like moving to Japan to learn to be karate.

You know, you surround yourself with it. It's a different living. You go away from your family and stuff. So basically all you have to do is train, you know? Yeah. You know, when you told me that story, I was like, that's, you know, I have to shoot a special in October. And I know that after July, I have to immerse myself with comedy.

That's the only way to really improve and really get the focus of what you're doing. Yeah. Is to just immerse yourself, you know, to live and, you know, with nothing, a TV, nothing. So when you do go home, you're like, fuck it. There ain't nothing to do here. It's like, I was listening. to Nate to talk about how he used to train just because he knew the guys would buy him a burrito

afterwards. You know what I'm saying? Like he had none to eat at home, but if he went to the gym, they'd buy him a burrito from the fucking Mexican food truck or something. That's just, that's when you just go. And eventually you become, you know,

you go there and you're at the end of the line and pretty much you just keep going, keep going, keep going, keep going, keep going, and one day you're in the middle of the line. And you keep going and keep going again, and you just, and it's really hard for you to explain that to somebody in the beginning when they walk into your school as a white belt and when somebody gets into comedy,

it's really hard for me to communicate with them this, that this is what you need to do. But it's a, I was blown away how you just went to Brazil. Yeah. I'd be scared shit. You know, you know, Scottie from on the mat? Yes, Scott.

Yeah, so, you know, he moved down to Brazil. He had a house down there. But me and my buddy Amal, he always says, like, No, I'm all Easton. Amal Easton? Amal Easton. Did he fight? Do I know, why do I know that?

Some of his guy, like Elliot Marshall. Okay, they're in Denver. Yeah, yeah, they're in Denver, right. Boulder and Boulder, too. Yeah, that's right. That's what it was. So how long did you stay in Brazil total? So I lived there, you know, the last time, you know, almost three years.

Is that, you got your black belt, you want some competitions. Actually, I came back, like in 2000, like beginning of 2000. And then I was a brown belt, and I started, like, my school in Santa Fe. Started teaching and, you know, then I had Draclino come out and do like a seminar. And then that year, 2001, I went back to Brazil and like, he gave me a black belt because I was kicking butt, you know, and all the tournaments and stuff. So he's like, all right, you're good enough. And I almost beat that, the legend, you know, Shaolin, you know.

So it's like, all right, you're good enough. So it was pretty cool because I was like one of the first, I was the first group of blackbelts of his. You know, plus I was American. You know, I'm actually the, that out of that Gracie Baja, I'm like the first American, their first American black belt. which is something no to be pretty cool to pretty pretty pretty pretty pretty that's a tremendous honor yeah

that's a tremendous honor so and it forgive me but it's ever since joe he's been going for like five months I wasn't aware that you were in the UFC I just imagine you sound like I just imagine you were older like he just he talks about you like with such like he's so like he has so much respect for you

and he just every time he talks I just imagine like a six like six years old I have no idea why And but like maybe you just have great skin But like you don't How like like you seem like you're like 30 30? 30 So I'll be 40

I'll be 40 this summer Wow Yeah But I feel young You know I feel young Like I asked Alan you know It was 70 Alan Savage

You know I was like how old do you feel He's like because I was like I feel like I'm like 25 You know And he's like We're 30 you know the most And he's like

Yeah I feel like I'm 25 30 I'm like, all right, we're good then. You know, it's so funny how you see people now. The other than I'm watching TV, ABC World News tonight, and they're talking about the end now. They have a cream now to make your skin look younger. And the whole thing with people is that try to look younger. And you're never going to look like you did at 20.

But to feel good, it's like going over by you. That's one thing. Because there's so many younger people there. And they show you respect and you show them respect. And when you walk off the mat, they throw you around and you're like, you're 28. It's that the type of things that kind of keep you young, I think. You know, this baby being born at my house, it's reopening up my eyes to cartoons. You know, I was always retarded.

But now that I can sit there and watch bubble guppies and shit, I have an excuse. But it's so weird how it reintroduced me. So it's not me buying $100, $100,000. You know, like those people that buy, you ever go to Vegas, and you're walking around Friday night, and there's these guys are like my age, but they got $2,000. jeans on and a tattoo and a $300 shirt and they got their head

dyed and they got the earring and they're trying to be 30 and you stick out like a fucking sore thumb. You know what I'm saying? You just stick out. But if you go to Jiu Jitsu, you'd stick out like a pregnant lady. Your skin's good, you're shiny. You know what I'm saying? You got a smile on your face. You got choked out that day.

You ran on there. You know, it's that's where people they don't want to do the work. Like nobody really wants to do it. Not, listen, if I hung out with 30-year-olds at night and went to bars, that's not trying to be young. That's just trying to be a fucking idiot. We used to have this, because I did a couple of schools, you know, I was involved with a couple

schools in L.A. So we had this black belt. He used to drive up from Orange County. He was this psychologist, you know, and we taught, we used to have these deep conversations. And I was like, you know, like, man, I'm like talking about like jihitsu. Like, you feel young when you train jihitsu. And he's like, well, you know, when you get older, everything is either in the past or in the future.

You never like in the moment, you know. So when you train jihitsu, if. It puts you in the moment. It puts you in the present. Like when you're a kid, everything's in the now. Everything's the present. So it kind of brings you back to your childhood. I was like, wow, thought about that.

That's a good way to look at it. He was like, yeah, it brings you back to your childhood. And I think, I don't know. I don't know if that's the reason. But, man, like everybody that trains Jiu-Jitsu, they stay young. Like, they stay young. Like, to me, they're young. Savage, like, I mean, he's 70, but, man.

He's really 70? He's 70. And he's really a savage. And he walked in there as a white belt. Walked in there as a white belt. And I mean, sometimes I get there. I watch the end of Nogi. He's in Nogi class with a put in sweatshirtown.

I'm choking people. Then he comes off. He brings a lunch with him. He's a bad motherfuckerly. He brings a sour with him. And he starts watching people in the class. And then he jumps in and starts teaching you little things, you know. And he's this crazy thing.

What belt is he now? He's a purple? Blue Blue Blue Bo. Three striped blue. Do you know, daily, he taught me something that I couldn't do in 90 fucking years, okay? Okay. They get you inside control, okay? Lee, he did the craziest thing.

So he's like, grab the guy and pull yourself up. Sure. Just pull yourself up and then push the guy and go backwards and then pull him and throw him over your fucking neck. And I'm like, really, really? And he did it to me. That's the crazy thing, Lee. He fucking threw me over his head and jumped on and got me inside control. And Lee, you love it.

He comes up to you, he talks to you, he helps everybody, you know, and he's bony. So he's tougher than fuck. And he puts that bone in your fucking arm and your throat. You feel it. But it does something to you. Seeing that guy there, you feel bad. Yeah. You're like, what the fuck?

They're like 30 and like, I'm too old to do this shit. See Alan's 70 years old mixing it up with everybody every single day. Now, when you... Did you try that with him? Did he try it to like the... He teaches your shit. No, but did you do it? Did you throw him over?

Yeah, he did. He, you know, I mean, he did have to work for me, you know, but it made sense, but it was tremendous. Like, I could see a 32-year-old saying that to me. This is what you do. Some guy who, like, lives every day and does little juice. I could see him doing one of those guerrilla moves where he picks somebody up and flips him over you and turns around and jumps into side control. Not a 70-year-old manly. So you leave there going, fuck, I got to pick up my guy.

game. I got to do something. I got to catch up with the fucking savage. Now the training they did in Brazil when you were a blue belt. Has it changed in this country? Has it evolved a great time? Because, I mean, in the 90s, all the tournaments, everything was in Brazil. Everything was in Brazil. The world championships. And I mean, they had the pans like starting in, I think, 96 or 95. So everything was in Brazil. And then now, man, everything is in the U.S. like the world, all the major Brazilian jih jih Tjitsu tournaments, you know, most of them are here in the U.S. and all like the kind of the top guys, like top competitors, they all live here. So really like, I mean, the U.S. is kind of the capital of Jiu-Jitsu in a way. Even like So-Kalau, so-Cow is like the Mecca, you know, the mecca of,

of the mecha of all the guys like the Andro Gavon is like Hamo Baha. Like, I mean, you name it. The men's brothers, like everybody, everybody's here now. So, I mean, the level of like Americans coming up is, I mean, it's really high. I mean, like the, the, the, the, the, one of the kids from Northridge, Edward Najmi, like he won the pants as first year as a black belt. I mean,

it's awesome, it's awesome. But is the, like, if, just the training. If I was to walk into a school in Brazil, would they whip me and I'd have like a thousand

Diego Alves is throwing me around? It's a little tougher compared to now. Like, it has an Americanized little bit. What's happened, like, you know, because back then,

back in like the, I mean, probably early 2000s, too, like, it was like only the strong survived, you know, It was like, you know, you go in and people beat you up because where you from, like, you know,

it's like kind of gang mentality in a way. And now it's like more professional, you know. I have to say Gracie Bahad did a, you know, did a great job, like kind of leading the charge as far as like professionalizing like, like, like, jiu jitzy schools, you know. So they've made it more professional, like, so even in Brazil, like it's gone a lot more professional, like worldwide, you know what I mean? It's not like it used to be like where you're from. You're from Carlson Gracie team.

We're going to smash. We're going to kill you, you know, just because you're a affiliate with him or whatever, you know. But, but now it's a lot, it's a lot, like, it depends on the school, you know. Like we went to, we did like a little tour with Donnie and a bunch of the guys from the gym. We went to, like, you know, we went to the, to Gordo's, you know, the Graciebaugh, check mat and Dracolinos. And, like at Dracolinos, it was really cool. It was really cool, really nice, but they would smash you. And they were good, too, you know what I mean?

So, you know, I think, I think it's the same. It's, that the level is pretty, pretty even, you know. It just depends on the school, you know. But back in the day, it was definitely like only the strong survived. It was, that's how it was set up. Like, I remember. Like, if you were a black belt, like, you were a black belt. If you're a blue belt, you were a blue belt.

Like, there was no, like, oh, you did enough, I did these classes and, you know, you're getting a belt because you showed up, you know. No, no, no, no, it was completely. You're a white belt. You'd be a wipe up for 20 years. Oh. Oh. And that's the Brazilian mentality of it. That's what it was.

That's what it was. They didn't promote you, like if you went to a competition and you did well. If you did well, yeah, if you did well. Yeah. That's pretty much like that was, you know, or maybe you assisted.

There's some other ways. You assisted, the professor, the coach, like you contributed, you know. It's funny how you, when I joined karate early on, I mean, the teachers would kick in the stomach. You know, I joined American karate Lee in 1968. I tell you, that I sit here sometimes,

and I fucking can't believe that he would make his run in the winter with a guion. It could be 10 below fucking zero, snow shovel, and we'd be running through fucking streets in New York City, not New York State, New York City, Upper West Side

with a fucking guion. There's no rash cards in the fucking 60s, you know what I'm saying? You had a T-shirt, and it got drinks, and it was heavy. And the classes were, like in those days, I would go to karate at five. And my mom would pick me up at fucking eight. Because you did your age group class, and then they let you sly in the 10 to 13.

And then when I moved to Jersey, that dude was a Vietnam vet. He would swat of flies that weren't there. But he would walk around with a little broom. And he'd hit you with the fucking broom. If you didn't do your push-ups correctly, you know, he'd put shit. was fucking tortually. The sparring in the classes, you got kicked on the stomach. It was semi-contact, no punches to the head, you know, I could score, but that's it. But the body from here to the fucking stomach was open game, man. And they would kick you full speed ahead. And then I

remember going to like, when I was, when I was in high school, after high school, I said, let me get my life together. Maybe I'll go back to, and I went to a taekwondo school. I walked in, that guy, Professor Crean, had a wooden. stick and he was smashing motherfuckers with the stick and at that time my screws weren't on too tight you know what I'm saying I'm like this guy's gonna hit me with one that stick one down I'm gonna go out to the car and come back with a sword and chop them and have so fuck it I ain't joining him they were hitting students you know this was a difference so I always imagined Brazilian what was this this is this is 80s I quit karate in 1979 I went to karate in 179 I went to karate

in New York from 68 to 73, I became a green belt, where it was Renato's father, Leonardo LaRano LaRange's father. Then I went to Catholic school, but it was boarding school. So I could only go on Saturday. So I just worked for my uncle or my mom at the bar. And then when I moved to Jersey, I joined the school. His name was Wayne Norlander, Kevin Norlander. And he was a good teacher, but I never saw that guy smile.

Like, he wasn't in business to smile. He wasn't a nice person at all. everything was professional. You had a bow. He'd punch in the fucking stomach. That type of shit. You know, you were giggling class. He fucking knocked me out, dog.

You know, that's crazy shit. And your parents would go, why'd you get hit? Because we giggled. Fuck it. You know, you deserve to get hit because it was all about not laughing. Sometimes you went in there when you're 10, you get the giggles, man.

You know? I still get the giggles. Oh, my God. You walk in there. A fact guy walks in his geese falls off. You start laughing. He would beat the fuck out of us, man. Like with karate punches and shit.

The Jessica's Setsay from Brazil, he's coming, you know, he was Jacques Grey's original jiu-jitsu coach from white to black, you know. He has his, you know, in his living room. He has his, Jack Ray's an 80-c trophy in his living room. She's from the Amazon, you know, Manaus, the Amazon. And so actually a buddy of mine, Ricardo was telling me about how he went to visit a school, you know, like years ago. His school is in Ozzy.

He's a Gracie Bah now. But he used to carry stick and he would hit people with the stick. Now that he's Gracie Baja and it's more professional, he doesn't do it anymore. But that's where that's where Jokre comes from and Jessica comes from. That's why she's so damn tough, you know, because she's from that school, you know. She's from him. Well, I mean, we touched on it earlier, but my only, like, knowledge of Brazil in that, like, time is, like, city of God. Like, that movie about, like, the favelas.

Like, that's, where were you living? Were you living in, like, a nice place? So when I first went down, I lived on this island, and it was, uh, it was, uh, it was, uh, A guy was taking my buddy a mall. He found this place. He met this guy on the beach randomly. And he had this abandoned house. The guy took care of this abandoned house.

It was a three-story. Yeah. And, yeah, our, our, yeah, we got electricity later on. So we had a fridge and everything. How far later on? Like, until the guy, like, set it up, you got to connect it, you know? So it was like fight that movie would bring. Brad Pitt and his buddy, no electricity.

We had Higin Matrato on, and he was saying that him and all of the graces, like, they would sleep on the mats. And then, like, they'd wake up and then just start rolling. I guess you guys just don't care. You're like, I just here to roll. I mean, I would walk. I would walk to the Gracie Baja gym, you know, when I lived in Rio on that island. So, you know, it was nice. You know, we ended up getting a fan, you know.

and, you know, to keep the mosquitoes off. Before that, you just put a shit over your head and you hear the mosquitoes. But then I got it and make a skil the sheet. Like out here, if I don't have my, like, internet set up within, like, three hours of moving in a place, it's terrible. And you know there's no internet. No internet. Just got that was normal. Just gunshots that first week.

Obviously, no internet, but I meant, like, gunshot. People change when they hear gunshots. People really change. But man, like it made me who I am, you know, maybe who I am, I wouldn't trade it for nothing.

I've got these, like, old, like, like, like, they look like something you get out of a cracker jackbox, you know, the medals, you know, from these tournaments

from back in the, in the 90s. Man, like, I wouldn't trade those things for nothing. Those things was, like, oh, like somebody, like,

because I made this, like, trophy case, you know, with these, I've been competing in the last few years, a lot. And I was like,

would you train that for a million dollars or what do you know, people say that 10 million oh yeah i was like you know actually i would but the other one's in the other room than what little crackerjack uh metals like not for nothing because it made me who i am you know like all those experiences like those those things are priceless okay so mosquitoes bick let's go back to that i want to hear this shit so you're living in this fucking abandoned house you how long how long do you got electricity and running more so i think it was a couple months we had a couple months maybe two three months yeah of of mosquitoes

was a sheet sheet over my head. Did you ever think about the reason why you're so successful today is because of those three months? Just those three months. Because God puts that in your way. God really puts that shit in your way, or Satan or Buddha or whoever the fuck, the Jew God, whoever, puts that in your way. What do you think would stand up? Yeah.

You know, I remember waking up and waking up one night in a mattress and there was a piece of dog shit four feet away. Right there, you're like, you know what? I'm not making any money. I'm quitting. Speaking of shit, so, you know, I would train, I'd train twice a day. Every class I would train, you know, so I'd get home, like, it's 10 o'clock, you're tired, you're like, man. And so we would have to, I would have to, it's on an island. So I have to take a ferry to the front of the island, I have to walk to the side of the island.

It's another, like, you know, six, seven minute walk, ten minute walk, whatever. And then I have to paddle that boat. I have to paddle that boat to our house because there's no entrance. You have to paddle a boat, okay? Man, like I said, sometimes the shit would go into the water. And so, like, it's like sewage, you know? Like sewage. All right.

And then I would get there sometimes, and somebody would steal the fucking paddle. How the fuck do you get to the house with no paddle? That's the fucking, that's character building. You still think about those times when time to time, like when you're eating with your kids? I do. I think about that. Absolutely. The paddle.

Absolutely. The paddle. Absolutely. The paddle. I get stuck on those things, and it makes me, I think about it for a few days and I think about how I didn't just shoot myself at that moment. Like that's it. Like after training, two hours, you're hungry.

You got no electricity. It's not like you're going home to see fucking the Sopranos on the couch and have somebody rub your feet. Now you've got to bring a boat. I would buy that house. Man, I tried, when we went a couple years ago. Look at that. See?

We tried to find that house. We actually stayed in a house next door, but that house is gone now because I was like, oh, man, I got to find this house. I would buy that house today. buy that house to that and still paddle out there and lose 100 fucking pounds Can you imagine

paddling to your house leave? No, especially after like a jiu-jitsu workout. Like that's the thing. Like when I did it for like six months and after I like when I would get in the car I'd be like I'm not moving for the rest of the day if I don't have to.

You'd have to take a leave. I had 10 o'clock at night patting that damn boat and somebody would take the fucking paddle to wake up the next morning like what the fuck am I doing here? And not even paddling that like even like the walking on the island you have to get on the fair

like this office is within five minutes of both of our houses now where'd you go from there when did you get a little money you get the fuck out of that so uh so you know because back then well yeah you know actually we had to pay like a little bit of that the guy you know what do they charge you i don't know you know the guy the guy like mowdala stuff he took care of the house you know so it was just it was like the right thing actually we didn't have to pay but my friend malta was like is the right thing so we paid him some money so after that i came back to the u.s and I went back again for the world and then I moved to Bella Rizanche, you know, like, I was like, I was like, I'm going to go back and I lived in this, I lived in this apartment. It was a building,

a regular building. But this guy that I was friends with, I brought him these pit bulls. You wanted me to bring him pit bull so you could breed them and sell them, yeah. You imported pit bull? Yeah, yeah. From here? From here, from some guy, some breeder in SoCal, okay? Some blue nose. I don't know what the hell it was, you know? And I'm like, okay, sure, sure.

so I brought him I brought him and man the guy bounced he actually went to Cuba to train wrestling and stuff and left me there in this apartment again

no electricity the guy didn't pay the two dogs yeah and no actually he had we put the dogs somewhere else but I was there by myself but like no electricity I got the electricity to turn on

you know eventually you know but man again I was like the light the sun would go down the lights would go out you know like what the fuck am I do

again you know and then you know so but out of the Belarizantia was I was really happy you know with them with my training with Dracolino with the team like man like you're only two years in right yeah just a few years in at this point what was as a blue belt what was your dream what was your dream as a blue belt I wanted to be the best I was trying to you know I wanted to be the best that that I wanted to be number one I'm I want to be a world there was no UFC now there's nothing there's no UFC I never actually did a little article for one of my local newspapers in New Mexico like I don't want to fight UFC, I don't want to fight MMA. It's too crazy. Because back then it was no rules, no

no weight categories. It was just, I was crazy. I mean, it was cool watching it. I was like, I don't do that. And then, yeah, I just, I just, I wanted to be the best. I wanted to be a world champion. You know, I was, I was, I was trying to make my, make, make my way in the world, you know, and I wanted to be the best. And I was super focused. I gave everything I had, put my heart and soul into it, moved down where it was, where jihitsu was. Where, where jitza was, at and where I could get the best training and yeah went all in. All right. So now you're in Belarus.

Belarizant, yeah. Belarizance. Now, one other question I got to ask you. Who is the head instructor at Gracie Bah at this point? Well, you know, Carlos Gracie Jr. is the founder. Okay. But in Rio, it's this guy, Jefferson, more, and then Joclino students run the one in Belarusans, you know, so.

But when you went there, who was it? Jacques Lino was the guy. Yeah, he was my professor. Like, he was the run running it. And yeah, it was, like I said, it was all whites and blues, but I was so happy. And it was the camaraderie. I felt at home. I felt like, man, this is my team.

And, yeah, give everything I had. And I sold everything I had, you know, and I was there in Brazil. And the second year that I lived there, the, I mean, the good thing was the money doubled. So instead of having $1 to one A. I was like two to one. and I was actually able to get a car because I was racking up that $20,000 debt. I'm like, but like I said, I needed a car. It was hard, you know, taking the bus, like all these, like, man, like, it was like kind of, you know, it was rush hour.

It was tough, yeah. Everything took full forever, you know. I would get rides, of course. The guys, like, took care of me, you know. What were you eat? Did you ever eat that? You know, they had, like, like, where Draclino's school was. It's a really nice shopping center.

So I would eat after the, after the training. I would, you know, I did good, you know. And like the like maids and stuff, they're really cheap. And so the place where I ended up living later on, like they had a maid. And, you know, I ate good. That was part of my training. You know, I gave everything I had to have my training on point, you know. So I ate good.

I make sure I was ate good. And, you know, I had to rest. And, you know, I was over training. Like, you know. Now what years all this happened? This is like 90s. like 96 to like 2000. I came back in 2000, you know, so the late 90s.

Yeah. Opened your school. I was trying to figure out where I was going to go. And, you know, I started with the group over there, which many of them, I was like the young kid and they were like, most of them were older, but they, you know, they kind of took care of me and they helped me a lot, you know, with starting the school up. And so I just felt like, this is where I want to. This is where I fail at home, so I'm going to do it here.

Because it was a small town, 60,000 people. I mean, hey, anything I do here, what I do over there, it's like, the work, like, you know, you do 10 times the amount of work over there. What an illegal town. Now, has it grown since I was there? It's the same because there's only so much water, I think. Really? Yeah, it's a desert.

But, you know, it's a small town. There's not too much industry. There's tourism. And there's the state capital in Santa Fe. you know but albuquerque's grown a lot Santa Fe's it's course it's grown but not like you know not like a lot still you know I still got Dunkin' Donuts but Dunkin' Donuts I almost went nuts I get down I'm living in California I don't see a donut I'm driving around I see Dunkin' Donuts I'm there the coffee was hot yeah hot now how long did you stay now when I met you in Santa Fe it's

2004 you were not in the UFC then 2004 no you were still man I for a couple years like actually when I've met you the UFC stopped at Lightwood division I was I was winning I started fighting I think I was 8 and O you know and and and the UFC actually was was talking to me but then they got rid of the Lightwood division and so I was like oh man all right like no more goals like to accomplish like you know I know I was thinking about getting married and having kids family I was like man I got to start like kind of thinking about my

future and organizing like this school and making a good business that can afford to you know to have a family so I started focusing on the school and and like that's when you actually came in and I was just focusing on the school and then and then I moved to LA in 2000 my son was born 2007 so 2007 beginning of 2007 and then and then yeah Joe Joe Silva was asking me it was email hey come to the UFC because I fought that big fight with Harvey Vasquez, you know, for the King of the Cage title, which got a lot of hype, you know, and then they started the lightweight division up again, like a little bit before that, maybe like 2006, you know, with Kenny Florian actually was the first lightweight fight back. And I was like, all right, cool, you know, I can do this again, you know.

And then I was like, I'm not ready yet because I hadn't fought for like two and a half years, three years almost, you know, before my UFC debut. And actually, Morris Smith, I asked him, was like, he's like, I should do a tune-up fight, but I was like, you were asking me to fight in the U.S. He was like, I'm just going to do it, you know. So that was that. Fought in Mandalay Bay. Actually, right before the Randi Couture fight when he fought Gonzaga,

and after GSP, it was like one of those floater fights, I don't know what they call it, but I was right before the main events. I've been watching UFC on TV for 10 years. No, it was like, man, because it was against Roger Huerta, you know. So he was a big name. He had just been on the cover of the Sports Illustrator, which was a big deal, you know, like the UFC was really starting to cross over, you know, with the ultimate fighter and all that. And they don't have that many pay-per-view.

So, you know, every paper view, like everybody watched, right, back back then. Anyway, so I'm watching, you know, they move me after GSP between Rana Kouture, like the fight. So, you know, I mean, I was like, waiting, waiting, waiting, waiting. Imagine the anxiety, like, after watching the UFC on TV for 10 years. And then you walk down Mandalay Bay, you look up at the big ski and you're like, all right, okay. Oh. I would have a nervous breakdown. I would have a nervous breakdown.

I've thought about it. Like the difference between comedy and it's, it's, oh my God, if I saw, if I looked up and saw people, I would have a nervous breakdown. See, when I walk on, there's only people to the left of me or the right of me. I can look to the side of me and just see a curtain. So when I turned my head, there they are. But if I had to look that way, I'd shit my pants. I got nowhere to go. I got to look on the floor and you were losing already.

If you're looking at the floor, you're losing this fucking fight, you know? Yeah. How many UFC fights did you have? I did two fights. That's it. Yeah. Did you enjoy him? I did.

You know, looking back, like, at the time, like, you know, like, I didn't get the win. But, you know, looking back, it was, you know, I'm grateful that I had the opportunity. And I got to feel, walk down that runway and Mandalay Bay and pay-per-view and all that and just do it, you know, like follow through with what I started. You know, I wish I had more time. I wish, you know, I could have done this better or that better. But, man, I'm happy. I'm grateful. Like, got to fight all over the world.

Like, Euro, Japan, like, UFC, Vegas. Like, man, I did it all. I had a full career. Had a full life in MMA. You know, like, did 20 professional fights. When MMA was MMA. Yeah, like, you know, I was like at the beginning, you know, kind of the beginning. You know, we didn't make nothing.

It was like, King of the Caves, like hundreds of bucks, you know. Luckily, I had a big, you know, I had a lot of support. So people would buy tickets and you get that commission. But overall, like, you know, You know, like, there was no money, you know. But, yeah, I'm grateful. I'm just grateful. I'm happy I had the, got to do what I got to do.

I got to do the whole thing, you know. Now, you said something real interesting before. You were there before Winklejohn, really? No, they helped me. Mike Winklejohn? No, no, in Albuquerque. They weren't Albuquerque. No, no, a jiu-jitsu.

So Brazilian Jitsu, and they were, like, actually, Mike Winklejohn had his own school. And it was Winklejohn. It was actually A-K-K-K-A. It was a karate school. was under like bill packer you know so school was a karate school and i go to school and greg jackson they were always cool and i and gregg jackson helped me for my first the the fights you know um but i was the first brazilian jihitsu school in new mexico and then all my students like if i ever go back to new me like most of the guys that are there they're from me like i brought

actually did a work visa for one of the brazilians he's actually training uh overeem he was in his corner this weekend and uh and uh john jones you know he he helps them with their oh yeah he's a new guy about out yeah right yeah so i brought them out there um but in san it was in albuquerque because i before i left i was like oh man i'm gonna i knew i was gonna have to end moving i started under the school in albuquerque so that was that and then when they had to move we me and tusa the guy john jones's coach like a juzzi coach we always got a lot we got along we hit it off the bat i did a tournament in santa fe with rachelovato and like these you know big names and we hit it off the bat and he was going to stay here illegally and i was like

I was like, listen, man, because of another buddy of mine stayed illegally and he's screwed. I was like, listen, I'll do an extension for you. And then you can travel around the U.S. and figure out what you want to do. And in the meantime, you're legal. And then when you're ready, like, you know, where you want to stay, then you figure it out, you know, but at least you stay legal. And so I ended up like, hey, I want to come stay with you in New Mexico. I'm like, all right, sounds good because we're like, we got along really well.

And he had doing his work visa. And it passed and got it. And, man, he's training John Jones. I met his dad, like, at the Pans this year. Give me a big hug. It was cool, man. He's a good dude. He's actually, yeah, his wife's from March County, so we'll see what happens, you know,

because he's going to have to, once he has kids, probably going to have to go to both places. But he, you know, he's there, he's their jihitsu coach, so he's doing that. And so everybody's kind of together. They run, like, a jihitsu training on Fridays at Winklejohn, Mike, Greg, Greg, what's it called Winkle, Jackson's, MN, Jackson's, MN, Yeah, so they're together now. that's just high level.

Right, right. It's just the pros, and then the other guys get the other stuff. But I started my first Jiu-Jitsu school in 2000, so, I mean, like, we've had a lot of blacks. We've had, like, man, like, I think 17 black belts. You know, most of those guys, they started with me on their first day.

I'm proud of that. That's probably one of my proudest, proudest, like, accomplishments in Jiu-Zitsu is, like, starting all those, you know, those students to black belt, you know. Like, I've had, like, a, I had the first American female world champion, like in 2001. A lot of history, you know, a lot of history on those mats.

I did a lot. I gave everything I had. Same thing with my, you know, everything I had to like coaching. I would travel, go to California, like, all over the place to compete for a lot of years, you know. I did not expect your school to be what it turned out to be. In New Mexico or here? No, the one in Burbank there in Magnolia.

I did not. I thought I was walking into U.S. F.C. Jr. You know what I'm saying? And it's you could tell your commitment to that school. Like,

you know, it starts, the party starts at five in the morning. We were laughing. You know, we were laughing. You can go down there throw kettlebells at five in the morning. Five fucking three in the moon. You're up? Come on down. Guess what? Oh, you get up at four when you work nights. They got jihitsu at 6.30 a.m. You know, bad

breath and everything. Hair sticking up. Fucking armpits stink. You're on it, you know what I'm saying? Yeah. Then it starts with the new thing you add in, and then there's no geek fit, tack fit, and then there's 11 o'clock, there's kickboxing. It's just a really efficient, smart way of doing business.

You're covering the spread. There's a little break in the afternoon. You get the kids in there. Then the party starts all over again. It's 630, 730, 8.30, and, you know, it just... But it seemed like you always had a good knack of having a school. You know, like you said, I'm committed, you know, like I love it so much. Like, to help me in my life and I just have a big passion, you know, I guess, I don't know.

My mom, I guess when she said, it's in your blood, you know, because she's a teacher and her parents, like, teachers, they're big on the, you know, the Board of Education. They did a lot of stuff for the community. Even my grandfather, who I was named after, he has a school named after him in Santa Fe, like elementary school. But, yeah, I just have a big passion. I love it. I love it. And yeah, I want to be there.

My kids train there. I train there. You know, obviously I train there. But, yeah, I love it. You know, I want to be there. I want to be there. I was really in shock what happened to martial arts the last 15 years. When I got to Boulder in 90, I was in Boulder for a while.

And I got into comedy in 91. And when I got into comedy, I had a gym. And I had a bag. And I had weights in the Olympic weights and a bag. I paid 35 bucks. And I'd open up the garage and I put music on. And I had the mitts. And I'd run in those days.

I got Pisthus in my heels. But I always miss martial arts. I went to New York. And when I was doing comedy in 93, I said, let me join the boxing gym. And that got me back in it. But I left. And I got to Boulder. And where Easton owns those gyms in Boulder, that's my original friend's gym.

What happened? This kid's father went to him one day and said, hey, I'm dying. What do you want? I'm going to give you $3 million. This kid was a Subbock doughnut And he goes I just want to open up the best gym in Colorado

And he went It was Boulder karate There was bolder karate There was bolder karate And then there was his school You should have seen this place And the guy would get there At 9 in the morning

And he won't go home Till 9 at 9 Hippy dude You know he was kind of crazy But I went in there One day I just went in there And I kept going

And going and going and going This is before I got fat by the way. At this time I'm in shape. This is 94. I went to him till 96 until I left Boulder. But the funny thing was that I really admired him because he was always there. Like this is what he did. Like this is what he did. When you came in at 2 in the afternoon, he'd be there with his

Gion. Like, you were thinking, he'd have his Gion on the computer and he'd come to you with his Gion. Add attention. Yeah. And in a way, you've got to respect that. Half of these places, They're closed in the afternoon. They tap out. They don't even want to put the F in it. What did I count today? 26 kids in the lunchtime class.

26, 27 kids. We had a switch mats. I mean, when you opened up the doors, there was no 27 kids. You know, and you could have said, I'm not going to have a once-time class, which a lot of schools do. Nobody has a lunch-time class.

They have three times a week, not every morning, not every day. You're the only one. And then you had Saturday and the Lord's Day. I went Mother's Day. my wife came home from church I got a headache well fuck you I'm out of here if you don't want to go eat Chinese

let me go in there I knew is when I pulled up I thought it was closed I walked in there was like six cats I said we're always okay yeah you know it just makes sense you know that's what it should be I should be able to pop into your place if I have a minute off that's what it was but if you only give me three options and I'm in the business I'm in man

I'm only gonna make once a week I can't go at night I have a three year old on a wife my wife cooks Mike, she's running back and forth in the kitchen. I'm going to walk past her with a ghee and say goodbye. Yeah, you get out of my house. My daughter won't let you out of the house, a little three-year-old. And then, you know, I'm getting calls. I got comedy at 8 o'clock.

I can't do it at night. So for me, and to see 27 people today. And that's a medium class. Like a couple Mondays ago, it was like 40 people. Somebody was wrestling outside when I left and stuff. You know, it's just amazing. And I take my hat off to you. Yeah, thanks.

Yeah, we work hard. We love it. Like I said, I love it. So, you know, it's a blessing, you know. I get to be there. I get to do what I love to do. Get to have my kids in there. You know, my wife's got the Asai Jungle Cafe next door.

So, you know, we do our separate things, but we get to see each other too. So, you know, blessed, you know. And now you have this new thing. Break it down for me. Because I know he's coming in. The guy's coming in at the end of the month. He's doing a three-hour seminar. I got to ask you something.

You know, I love you to death. I go in there and bang it out. but if you think I'd go in there and swing a bath for three hours, Professor, I can't go on or make me sore for four days. So this guy, this guy, Scott Sondon, man, this guy is like, he helped me for one of my UFC fights like 10 years ago. Actually, my first jihitsu coach introduced me to him, because he works a lot with government agencies and stuff.

Like this guy, he was always ahead of the game, like the Navy SEAL, my first jujitsu coach, Marcos Gonzalez. And he's like, man, I want you to work with this guy. I want you to meet him and the guy he's a grapple he was a Samba guy actually

Asamba World Champion and he was like yeah I'd love to I'd love to work with Alberto you know he's I guess he knew me and he's like I'd love to work with him and so we started working together and the guy's so smart he was like all the stuff went over my head

I did everything he said and it was like great you know all the stuff he was shown me but I was like I wasn't really like ready for it you know but he wrote this blog he wrote this blog of all our training sessions like the guy can that guy's a genius and man I learned so many things like on breathing on recovery on just I mean the stuff is deep like

I'm like how does this guy know all these things you know like these we the guys that would train me there were two guys they would video everything and then they would send them back the info the guy's like a scientist anyway like just on the recovery like you know how good a shape you're in is how fast you can recover and just all these different like I never even thought about you know but I still use like joint mobility things to keep yourself healthy like man I think everybody that does jitzu they should they need to like they need to do tack fit they need to do this thing because it's uh it's for your it's like health you know like i was doing crossfit a couple years ago i got into it man you get all these overuse your thing overuse your body like you get you

get hurt tag it's all about health you know like you being healthy like you're feeling good and you should feel good you know when you work out and you do stuff you know and so it's about health health number one you know and uh he has different like training protocols he uses those clubbells that look like bats, kettlebells, you know, rings, a lot of body weight stuff. And man, it's like a lot of, like your core, you know, getting your core strong. And it's a perfect compliment to like jiu-jitsu or martial arts, you know, because it doesn't get in the way, you know, it just helps it. And that's one of the things that I remember, like, when his blog is like, yeah, your

conditioning, your strength training, you can't get in the way. It can't, like, because you can't get in the way of your, of your, your jitzu training, or your MMA, it's got to just compliment it. You know what I mean? So that's why I have it at the gym because it's a perfect compliment to whatever martial art you're doing at our gym. You know, it's a perfect compliment because a lot of the stuff is like similar movements. The guy, the guy's a martial artist, you know. He was a martial artist and then like I said, the guy's like crazy smart.

He has like a TED talk just on learning, you know. He was like dyslexic, so he went through a lot, you know, and he was a kid and just, and the guy's like, he's amazing, you know, and he's really taking me in. And so I'm trying to make him proud and do some good work, you know, at our school in Burbank. Tack fit, Tacit, Tuck for Burbank. I always mess it up.

I was tick-tag. Tactical, tactical fitness. And the guy that teaches at the school, what's his name? Robert. Robert. The blue belt. Purple.

Blue belt. Good guy. Good guy. Really good guy. It's really interesting what you do. And I always, like nobody knows what tack fit is, you know. But same thing with Jiu-Sidu,

when I first started Jiu-Jitsu, nobody knew what it was, you know, unless you saw like Hoys Gracie in the first UFC or the second of UFC. Like, you don't know what it was. But I believed in it. I loved it. And that was it. That's all I needed.

You know, I followed my heart. You know, I followed my heart and went for it, moved out to Brazil, brought it back, you know, started the school. I was educating people what it was. So I feel like in a way, like the same thing with this TACFit, you know, like people, a lot of people doing CrossFit and these different things. But, man, like, just from my experience, like, I got certified in the CrossFit. And I was going to even do, like, make my gym a CrossFit gym and teach, but teach TackFit, you know, because I always got that guy's, Scott's on his voice in my head. like, you know, like this philosophy, like how to, how to train and how to do all that stuff. So you stay healthy, you know.

But I was like, yeah, I'm going to, and I went to his certification this year. And, like, it was one of those nights. I stayed up all night, like, just talking to his guys. And he's like, man, if I go, I just do it, TACFitch in him, I was like, you know what? After you said that, I was like, you know what? You're right. Like, I got a sign. You know, those signs aren't cheap, you know, a few thousand bucks.

So I was like, boom, got the, got the sign, tack fit sign up. It's probably the first one, maybe. I don't know U.S. You know, but I believe in it. I believe in it. Yeah,

I want to help people. I want to get people healthy. And, you know, it's the best, you know, it's the best, like fitness,

like system program out there. What's your vision for the jitza next 10 years? Where do you think it's going? It's huge. For, for competition, Jitsu?

For, like for myself. I'm not going to go to a competition. I use it for fitness. Yeah. You know, and I, so I think,

I think it's, you know, for everybody's different right but uh like for you're asking me like you're asked me like whereas for me like for my school like i just want to i want to have something for everybody you know like somebody wants to be a world champion they want to go to the ufc like you should i should have a good enough school to take people there you know people like to be healthy to be healthy be you know understand like you're going to like an attack and then you just it's going to carry over it's going to mesh together you know but just learning how to like breathing recovery things mobility things to help you

joints like so you're not all aches you know how to fix yourself like you're going to do the stuff you're going to learn like how to how to do these things and you can you can help yourself you can help like your loved ones your friends like man try this you know it's crazy you know like you like you know like in in russia like sambal right they have uh they don't give black belts ensemble they give like the master of sport you know that's the that's the that's the title you get master's sport and so man like that's that's what's up you know like you blackball you you're master's sport you like you understand shit you know you're gonna be like you really understand the body you know know what that's beautiful that's what that's what it's about you know like going the distance you know

like a allen you know like like that guy he did he competed in the pans last year and i did an interview with him i was like man i was going to try to submit it to gracie mag and i was like man like so what's your secret to you know staying healthy and all that and he's like you know i always stayed active i always did stuff and i always tried to eat well like i don't eat too much meat i I have more fish, you know, blah, blah, blah. Always made sure I, you know, I ate pretty well. And then, and then I ask him, like, what his motivations are now? And, like, man, you're like, what do you?

Because he likes to compete. He likes to, you know, he's like, I just want to be, like, an inspiration. When I think about my kids, my grandkids, I want them to think about me and be like, you know what? Like, not to give up, to go for it, you know? And I think he does that, like, and partly with all of us, you know, just looking at him. Like, man, this guy is like, you have no excuses to, you know. No, you know, when you watch them.

To, you know, stay healthy and go for it, you know? Go for it until the end. It's, for me, when I walk out of that, I could do anything. Like, when I walk out of that place and I get in my car, in my mind, I could do anything because I just did the hardest thing I was going to do all day in my mind, because I'm walking in there, not even, it's not even being out of shape. It was also being scared. Yeah.

I had fear attached to it, you know. I'm a little old. I didn't know sleep ap me. I can't breathe. Yeah. And when I thought all those variables, I said, that's even more a reason why I should go. You know? That's awesome.

Fear for me is always, I like what I'm scared of. I don't want to not be scared. You know what I'm saying? Like, fear for me is... I mean, most people, when I train, like, the staff and the guys I talk to them, you know, about people coming in, like, off the street. Like, you know, like, people, they don't know what... They don't know what to expect. They think it's like the UFC, maybe they watch the UFC on TV.

Like, oh, am I going to get beat up? It's going to be like the old school, you know? Like, you know, I'm like, what's going to have? They're scared, you know? And so it's our job to like, you know, like hold their hand and get them through and get them to do that first class. So they really experience our, you know, our program and just that is professional. And like they're going to, they're going to succeed.

They can do it, you know? That's the biggest thing that they can do it. Hey, I can do this after the first class. I got this. I can do this. And it goes from there, you know, one day and then two days. and how many months has it been now? Like consistently training?

Since January 4th. Man, that's amazing, you know? You've lost like... I fell in love. I fell in love with it. And I went in there with a different... I went in there with my comedy attitude. You know, there's days I want to go in there,

but I don't let myself go in. Do you know that? There's days, I'm like, ah, unless I'm going to pinch for days, for my weekly goals, I won't go in there because I want to, I want to miss it.

I want to go to have 20 minutes before and ask you creepy questions. You know what I'm saying? You know, because that's what it's all about. When you wake up, you wake up and you, I know when I walk the baby and I come back, like I try to write, and that's when I send emails, but in the back of my mind, I'm writing little things to ask Coach Donnie, Coach Joe, you know, Professor Joe, Professor Donnie. I got Leo, who I get creepy with, I tell him, hold my arm, He teaches me all this stuff, you know, because you've got to have your own private Idaho professor.

Oh, yeah. Listen, that guy grabs your arm before an arm bar. It's nighty-night. You're not taking it back. So I wanted to, you know, I ask the guys, listen, and I look at the guys in class that are consistent, the guys that have a weird looking their eye. And from my perspective, I remember being a comic and having that look at your eye. You're foaming. And those other guys, I ask people questions.

They get there at 11, 10. 30 drilling. Classes at noon, they're there an hour, an hour and a half early. Yeah, and anytime you go there, you're going to find some creepy dude like you. Like, hey, hey, what are you doing here? I would teach him how to get out of this. Come over here. Let me teach you, too.

It's very, like I've said a thousand times. I went on this podcast for years and talked about losing weight. Never, professor. I'm lying. Maybe once or twice. It's somebody going, hey, when you come to my city, let me private train you. tomorrow. Right now, when I go back to my house by tonight, I'll check one of my emails and I go, hey, my name is, da-da-da, I'm a brown belt. I'm a big guy. We want to stop by the gym and

me to teach you. It's amazing. People offer it. Like, you're like, what? Like, never have people offered. So there was different things for me that I just knew. I wanted it to work. I can't breathe, so this is how I'm going to breathe. I want my daughter to see it. When I see little girls doing it, when I see women doing jiu-jitsu and they're fishing in it, I know that no matter what happens to me, my daughter's going to learn how to fucking break people's elbows. You know, and that's who's built for. It's built for little people to fuck people up, let it like me. But besides that, I'm just happy to be a associate professor.

You're a winner. Thank you. And you're a savage, and I always wanted you to come on here. And you make me laugh. You always got good fucking stories. I didn't know about the paddling shit. Fucking battle. That's right.

I'm talking about that fucking paddle. Oh, my God. Imagine like fucking shit Like shit water You don't have a paddle Like how the fuck you You know 10 o'clock at night You're tired

Man I think about that You know what that feels like to me When I got divorced And my wife took the mustard Like who takes the mustard You know what that's like You're gonna make a sandwich

And who takes the mustard And the fucking ketchup You dirty bitch You sit there for years Like who takes the fucking mustard Thank you professor for coming You gotta go Professor

I just said to do shoutouts and the ads. If you've got to go, I know you've got to go teach. I have no beef for you. Go. Give me a hug, Professor. You're a savage. Thank you. Thank you very much for coming.

I'll try to get leave there for tick. Tag me. And we'll get them going. Thank you, sir. I'll see you Monday. Okay. Bright and early. There you go, you savages. I hope you got the lesson of the lesson.

If you want to get good at some, you got to immerse yourself in it. You know, when he told me the story, I remember going home going, Jesus Christ, if I want to shoot this special in October, I got to fucking jump into this. And this is what I've been doing lately. I've been trying to write stupid sayings, everything.

And as once I have the surgery in July, after that, I'm going to go for it, man. I'm going to try to make this special a bet. But that's what you have to do. You have to watch football. You have to play football. You have to sleep. It's like Dice said a few weeks ago that he prepared himself emotionally, physically. He was prepared from day one.

If you're watching what Rogan's doing right now, Rogan's about to shoot a special. Watch his work ethic on Twitter. He's out every night. He's banging it. He's doing Sundays because he knows when you get there, you don't want to have no fucking dilemmas. You understand me, Lisa?

I hope you're learning something, cock-sucker. How stone do you fall in the sleep in front of my main man? I don't fall asleep. Bakersfield, Matt Baker, B.J., David Cole, Jr., Jason Temple, Andreas Hernandez, John Lee, one-by-one podcast, my main man Mikey over there, 609 running things, and Big John 419. I want to give a shout out to my man, Dante Gazzini. I got this shirt he sent me. What's the say, Lee?

I can't see. To his Gant Farm. You bad, motherfucker. In Sherman, Missouri. Look at them in shit. Stretching his muscles and shit. and that's it Lee how you feeling everything all right we finally for you people wanted to know we spoke to owen benjamin he's alive and kicked and i think he did his podcast yesterday

explained what happened we did not mean to poison him it's not like lee's dad this was just if anybody saw the periscope he put his hand in it and he took it you know hey man listen we i ate five or six Lee ate five or six you know you don't want to feel like Harvey fucking homo i love him i love him i love old benjamin at least he's not like half the people that come on here that fear. Guys, I can tell you stories about certain guests that will not come on here because they're scared to

touch anything that they might get fucked up. Can you believe that? That's the society we live in. That's why the guests who come on this show from Ada these motherfuckers are savages. Because they know you're walking the fucking spider web of debt. You don't know what's going to happen to you in here.

Look what happened to you on the night. I didn't even know what's going to happen. I didn't know what's going to happen. I did not expect that until he said he smoked vapor pens. I just can't wait to hear the story because I thought he was going to go, like, take a walk on, like, in our, like, up and down, like, the parking lot and then come back. I didn't think he was going to walk, like, down the street. He did? That's what he said on Twitter. Yeah, he said he got lost.

And I would hate to be him. I fell for him all night. I called them three times, people, for you people who think I'm a savage. I called them three times. I said a prayer for him, and that's it. Oh, you know, you're old enough. You know how to take Uber. I wouldn't fucking get in the car

and hit the 405. Not when you're on one of those stars of death. Trust me, I've tried it. And I've gotten in the HOV lane on those days and the car speeds up. You ever have that? When you get on the HOV lane and you went from doing 55, now everybody's doing 75. And you're hitting those corners on the 405.

Ooh, nelly. I can't do the ones. I've done those. I've taken a star and left the house at 4 in the morning. You can't do the HV lane then because that barrier is like death. Oh, my God. You have no fucking idea how many times I've hit.

I've eaten a star at that got on the 405 at 4 in the morning to catch the 6 o'clock flight to be there at 5. I'll get there at 420, 425. I'm already in the fucking terminal with a front row parking right next to the elevator. But there's times I get on the HOV land. I'm doing 80 down there. The star hits me by the fucking by the Wilshire exit. And I'm on fire going down that motherfucker. I'm putting brakes on.

I got a parachute behind me. You fucking think I'm kidding you You don't know how many times Listen About the first time I went back on the road I got so fucking high that morning I got car sick I started getting dizzy and I missed my exit

I almost missed the fucking flight I had to make a U-turned I didn't know where the fuck I was I took my chances I ended up back at the airport That would only happen to me If 4 in the fucking morning You understand me? That's scary

The one for me that's the worst Is that coming back from the ice house Because like the lanes At a certain point The right lanes start? the magical mystery tour. We're beeping at people. How many times have we beeped at people right next?

A little just blew past them. They're looking around, least frozen. We beeped at a cop one night. That was your favorite pastime? I think that's why you always offered to give me a rind because he would always do that. You'd give me super stoned. And then he would just start beeping like a lot.

Like not like one small beep would like beep. Like if a good song comes on, I'm like, I'm the backbone. I'm the pink float of the song. You know what the fuck? I just imagine. Where's the paperwork here. You're holding me out of here. For starters, as usual,

honor.com, always making it happen for you. Like I said, I had the flu last week, and the Shroom Tech immune, you know, and my nose problems are going to be my nose problems.

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bags to carry the Jitsu. So again, I want to welcome him to the show. I want to give a shout out to my mantracker.com and my main people over there and on it. All right. And that's it. That's it. That's that. Tomorrow night, Sacramento Punchline. 8 o'clock with Felicia Michaels.

Next motherfucking Thursday night. The Pittsburgh Improv. What? What? Roberto Clemente's showing up. Jay Bouchero's showing up. The teacher. He's bringing a pound. fucking nuts or what? 20 of life no parole. Lies Ayat. Mama's gone until when?

Mama's gone until tomorrow. Okay, so you're going to see it tomorrow and I? Probably Saturday. Because he's graduating this weekend. So you're going to see a Friday? Yeah, I'll see her Friday. What are you going to give it for a little graduation gift? I don't know if you go to the mall tomorrow.

You're going to give a little Jew dick. That's, I don't think that was considered a present. You should walk in the door and get like a plastic that it won't burn. And for graduation, put like some flight. the fluid on your dick with some of that chemical and light your dick on fire. That's what it is. Just go in there, Jew with his dick on fire. That's what you're doing tomorrow night for graduation.

Who's better than you? Nobody. Look at the shape of you. What are you going to do for you? What are you going to do for you going to do? Who wants a fucking scarf when they got you? I can't. I can't hang a shelf.

There's no way I'm going to light my dick. That's going to end up in the, that's going to be. I'm going to end up in the same hospital as Ida with my dick burn. Listen, you eat six stars you won't even feel. Who's better than you? Nobody. I love you guys. Have a great weekend.

Thank you for listening. We'll be back Monday night. 8 o'clock with a tremendous guest. I'll be here. Leo will be here. And most important, you bitches will be here. Stay black, motherfuckers. If you need to get a hold of me,

go to Gmail at church.com or something like that. I don't even know what the fuck it is no more. Hit me up on Facebook or Twitter or whatever. I love you guys. You're going to play music sometime this fucking year. You're going to stare into the... door like a swami from salami I was waiting for you to be done

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