The Joe Rogan Experience - JRE MMA Show #65 with Corey Anderson

Episode Date: April 26, 2019

Joe is joined by UFC Light Heavyweight fighter Corey Anderson.

three two one boom cory anderson ladies and gentlemen what's up how are you man what's going on joe we finally did it finally did it we're here and uh got some techno hunting as well yeah i told you about that game that game's very addictive isn't it i'm already trying to get back out to do some more when it's over so you get itchy right yeah yeah no it's amazing man that that game's incredible long have you been bow hunting for? I've been bow hunting since I was 16 or 17. I've been hunting my whole life. Wow. What switched you over to bow hunting?

My high school teammate, actually. I used to go rabbit hunting and stuff with a shotgun. And I've been shooting a bow since I was like 12 or 11, just 3D shooting. He's like, you ever bow hunting with it? You can hunt with this? I'm like, yeah. We go hunting all the time. So one day before school, he picked me up.

He went over to my buddy's house and got up in the stand. Well, he got in the stand. I couldn't climb because I didn't know what I was doing. I got stuck at the bottom of the tree sitting with my bow in my lap. But that was my first time. And after that, I just kept going. And every now and then, in between practices and whatnot. But now, when I got time between fighting and whatnot, I'm all hunting.

That's it. Oh, I can tell by your Instagram man I follow your Instagram all your you're constantly shooting and hunting and practicing and it's it gets in your blood I mean it's just like fighting like I said we're doing techno hunters I do it so much just muscle memory like everybody think oh you spend too much time hunting you're not training but I go win a fight and like oh that was impressive like I still train two three times a day but I get home from the, and I always have a bow in my truck. I have three bows, and one is always in my truck. So I pull up, pop the doors open, grab my speaker, and the target is right there.

Get, like, 30 to 60 shots, and then go in, spend time with the family, eat, go back to the gym. Go to the range and shoot indoors when it's dark. And I'm always shooting. I just enjoy it. Wow. So is it, like, a part of meditation for you do you think 100% coming off the OSP fight that was actually the first time I hunted in Jersey I've been in Jersey since 2014 when the show came out and after OSP fight and all that stuff and everybody

told me like don't pay attention you was winning that fight you got caught don't let the people get in your head and tell you you're not there so actually the next day I went home went and bought my hunting license and bought a stand and hunted hunting jersey for the first time and that helped me i didn't think about it at all from november to february 1st i was in tree stand every day and i went back to training like full camp with everything my mind i forgot all about that osp fight that's what i told my wife i found my balance you know the thing was i was always in the gym and that's why the name 25 8 came because cory never at the time i didn't do anything else but train you know i would train to go in the gym, and that's why the name 25-8 came, because Corey never, at the time, I didn't do anything else but train. You know, I would train to go to the gym and train, to go to therapy,

go back to the gym and train, go home, run, go to the garage, hit the heavy bag, go to Mark Henry's hip pads, and go train again. So, like, I was selling a wheel on the way here when I first went to UFC, and I'd say, oh, Corey's grew. He's gotten bigger. Like, I've always been a big guy. I was 300 pounds one time. But when I got down to 205, I was telling myself, I don't want to get heavier than like 210, 212.

So every day I had like a goal. I wanted to end the day off no heavier than 212. So if I was like 215 from eating too much and it's 10 o'clock at night, I got to lace up and go for a run. So I was all, every morning I wake up at 210. So that's why I took the fights like Jan Blakowicz on two, three weeks notice. Fabio Malinato in Brazil on a week notice. I didn't have to cut weight. It was like, okay, just go.

But when I got to Jimmy Manuel and he told me at the bar, he was like, bro, you're a good fighter. You're just too small. Like I weighed in Friday and Saturday. I slipped in the cage looking the exact same. I gained like six pounds. And he told me, you got to eat. You got to feed yourself. And after I did that, that was probably the best advice I ever got from a fighter. Because now I walk around like 235 and he told me you got to eat you got to feed yourself and after i did that that was

probably the best advice i ever got from a fighter because now i walk around like 235 and i feel great like the last fight with glover on two weeks notice i was 236 i got the weight off and hydrated right back up and felt fine fantastic went out there and did my thing because i treat my body right now so you're 236 up until like how far out of the fight? I try to stay at least 230, 230, 231 until like two weeks out. And I start tapering on like 225 area and just get 20 pounds of water off. A lot of water drinking the water load. And then Tuesday is the first day I hit it hard and just start trimming down. So you feel like that extra pounds helps you in what way?

It's recovery. That's for getting rocked as well. Like that was the thing in college. So you feel like that extra pounds helps you in what way? It's recovery. That's what getting rocked as well. Like that was the thing in college. My coach, he was always trained in wrestling. We're going to go a whole practice. Nobody go get a water. If I see anybody go to the water fountain, we're doing sprints, whatever.

That means you're weak. You know, it was great because we trained. And in the mat, you see guys gassing for water in third period. We all standing tall, ready to go. And I had that same mentality when it came to fighting because you got to think, now we're taking blows to the head. So I got to keep water, keep that brain hydrated

because if I'm dehydrated, that one shot, it lights out. You don't have anything to help take it. So it's like, like I said, after OSP fighting

and hunting and everything, I just went back and did a lot of figuring things out before that Pat Cummins fight and I just knew what I had to do to be the best me.

And like I said, getting bigger, stronger, not worrying about keeping my weight low. The weight's going to come what I had to do to be the best me and uh like I said getting bigger stronger not worrying about keeping my weight low the weight gonna come off it's gonna be hard sometimes but it's gonna come off you know but that's when I will not miss weight if I gotta kill myself I'm end up in the hospital before I miss weight so putting all that together and I feel like I have the recipe so the recipe was um did you start weight lifting like what did you do to pack on the extra weight yeah um weight lifting was a big thing big key to my brother first before i had to

strengthen conditioning coaches i was on board my coach before was great for cardio same guy frank yeager had and we had cardio and we were getting strong but it wasn't like size building strong it was like mobility strength to punch and keep the cardio up then my brother he had a contract to play pro ball back in what like 2000 or whatever so he knew like all the combine lifts and whatever he hit me up and said bro we got to get bigger like we got it you you you're dominant like you look at these guys you fight they say you're gonna lose you go out there and you dominate and you're small so imagine if you put the size on you got the power you you can dominate these guys for real so he flew out like i'll fly off for a week you put me on the right diet and how y'all lifted in nfl camps or whatnot and we get stronger

so she literally had me on compound lifts every day eating like i said i got the freezer full of deer meat he's like you got all the stuff you need you got protein right here have jenny go grab my wife go grab rice and potatoes and you just eat meat potatoes rice you eat eggs with meat potatoes and rice everything you eat put meat potatoes, rice. You eat eggs with meat, potatoes, and rice. Everything you eat, put meat, potatoes, and rice in everything. And you're going to get that size. I promise you. And the strength and everything will come. And sure enough, I just saw it.

I went from like, this was after the Jimmy fight. He showed up. And it worked out as well. I met my supplement sponsor. But we went out to the buffet. Like, all right, we had a good workout. We're going to eat the buffet. Eat as much as we can.

Carve up. And actually, while I was there, a polynutrition, the owner of my supplement company he was like you're cory anderson right like i'm a huge fan i would love to work with you my brother said that's made it happen protein right there get a bottle of protein from them we're gonna start mixing this in with your meat potatoes or rice protein shake instantly and he just put me on a whole plan and when he left he left me a whole little list on the refrigerator and i still got it there and i don't need it anymore but but that's the thing. You eat your meat, potatoes, and rice, four or five eggs in the morning.

Just got a cup of rice, put some venison or hog, whatever meat I'm using that day, and then put some vegetables and a little bit of potatoes on. Get a big old meal, carve it up, then go hit the gym. Then when you're done, kill your protein shake. Come on, meat, potatoes, rice. How much difference is your diet doing this than it was before? I mean, it's crazy. You ask my teammates now and they say, we've seen the difference of how big you got.

Even Mark Henry. I was at MITS the other day for the first time with him and probably like a couple weeks or whatever in his basement. And I was still moving fast and everything. Like, bro, you got huge. I was like, I just started lifting the E, coach. Yeah. You know, so I used to work at MITS with him.

So you're probably holding yourself back before. Yeah, 100%. And then you were probably holding yourself back before. Yeah, 100%. And then probably draining yourself too much, but all that weight cutting and all that, you know, getting it down before the actual fight itself, all the extra running and everything. Like, even on the show, like, we were finished eating, and that's when I found out you can cut weight in a hot tub. I didn't know this because I fought heavyweight before the Ultimate Fighter. The guy's like, oh, you can lose weight in a hot tub. I was like, what?

And everybody was sitting in a hot tub for like 40, 50 minutes, and I get out. I lost all my weight. I'm at 206. I go, this is great. So we eat a bunch. Like, even one day, Frankie and the coaches brought In-N-Out burgers over. We ate and watched the fights, and I just sat in this hot tub for like 40 minutes and got all the weight off down to 210. Like, I don't know where I wanted to be.

They're like, bro, you can get up. So I'm like, nah, because we fight. We never know when we're going to fight. He wins tomorrow on Tuesday I might be fighting Thursday I don't wanna have to worry about that I was always scared of the weight cut Right but if you're getting in the sauna Or getting in the hot tub

Losing all that weight That's just water weight though right Like even if you're down Like where you wanna be You're still gonna have to cut more water Yeah To get to where you need to be To 205

Yeah but you can ask my wife I have the worst Not now But before I didn't know anything about nutrition because I wrestled heavyweight from freshman year in high school to my senior year in college. And I fought heavyweight until the Ultimate Fighter. So I never had to worry about the diet. You know, I used to eat ramen noodles.

I remember moving in my first time fighting, Ben Astin took me up to Rufus Sport. And I moved in the fighter house and everybody eating like chicken fillets and salmon. I came in with a big old box of ramen and a thing of chunky noodle soup. I was like, what are you doing? This is how I eat? Like, bro, that's not going to work.

What do you mean? Like, I train every day, and I eat this same stuff. Eat a bowl of cereal for breakfast, and they all cooking. Like, yo, that's not healthy. Like, it works for me. But then when it came time to go to 205 the first time, it was like, this isn't working for me. I have to figure something out. What do you feel the difference between, like, this isn't working for me. I have to figure something out.

What do you feel the difference between eating nonsense like ramen and then eating healthy food? What was the big shift? You just have more energy, really. Right. Because in wrestling, that's how we ate. Definitely in college, you ain't got no money. We go to Walmart on Saturday, Sunday, get a big old box of ramen. I used to get spaghetti sauce and just cook noodles and put spaghetti sauce on, you know. Can of soup right out of the can.

You're eating stuff like that, but you're training all day, so it doesn't really get to stick in your body. And you don't really feel the difference in energy because you never really ate clean. You're eating cafeteria food that's packed with grease. But now it's like we got meal prep companies and stuff out there, and you try all that different stuff. And then my wife fights, too, so she she fought like 120 so she was always dieting so when she's cutting weight i would eat clean and i would notice a difference in my energy like i wake up a lot earlier i can go longer that day in the night i'm not crashing i like i peacefully put myself in bed watch tv and fall asleep but when you got all that sugar and all the stuff in you feel like crap when the

end of the day you kind of like you're just fighting you don't have control anymore well you also have the advantage of the best protein the fact that you have you how many deer did you say you shot 13 that's a lot of protein a lot of protein a lot of clean wild protein and i even i got half that meat still in texas i never got actually justin gage you got it and i heard they we went hunting together one time me gage and his coach luke calilio whatever and we put the meal i don't know his last name but they put the meat in the same We went hunting together one time, me, Gaethje, and his coach, Luke Coliglio, whatever. And we put the meat in the same place. And we said, some of this goes to Corey, the other part goes to Justin. But they sent all of it down to Justin and his camp.

But I had a freezer full anyway. I had no space. Yeah, he's another one. Ray Borg, he's another. He bow hunts. Chad Mendez bow hunts. TJ Dillashaw bow hunts. We could probably keep going down the line.

There's a lot of pro fighters who bow hunt. Well, let's put it out there before we get too far. Justin hunts, but he can't bow hunt. He can't? We had him with a crossbow on a ranch. And we pushed. Like, everybody that got him, he kept missing. We put him in a corner.

Like, all right, we're going to all, like, drive him to you. So, all you got to do is be ready, bro. Just shoot. Somehow, all these big old deer coming he still missed like there was probably 10 yards 10 to 15 he missed like crossbow with a crossbow like bro how the hell did you miss like you can't shoot then he went to another ranch and the guy gave him a gun like you want to do a gun instead he killed it with a gun but he has uh his vision's not the best right something with his vision and his energy you know he's kind of i mean he's a great guy he's his energy not like bad energy kind of like focus that's what i mean oh like it's hard for him to like sit still like

we're in the trees or in uh this loft and he's like shadow box and so like bro you gotta chill calm down we hunting but some people can't hang out in the stand they can't stand is hard for And he's like, shadow box. I said, like, bro, you got a chance. Calm down. We're hunting. Some people can't hang out in the stand. They can't. The stand is hard for them. It's harder for them than just spot and stalk, just walking the mountains for all day. It's easier for them than to just stay put and do nothing. Yeah.

It's just sitting there quiet, you know? Yeah. I went with a buddy. We went turkey hunting. This was my first week of turkey hunting this year. And he's never hunted before. He's actually my archery partner. I taught him how to shoot bow like 15 weeks ago.

And he's actually got pretty good. He was hitting like all bullseyes in the league. He's like, I want to go hunting with you. So he sat in the blind. I told him he was going out there like, bro, when we get out here, you got to. You can't move. Like we in the blind. But that one window, the turkeys can see us.

If you move and they're going to see you. And they got good hearing too. So you got to chill out. So I'm like, I'm going to put the decoys up. Just sit i turn around he's like walk around what are you doing like i'm covering the blind if you got like little bitty twigs like bro we don't have time to blind he's like i seen it on youtube like getting the blind i was like bro get in the blind does it work does it work i'm like we're not we're not killing anything and you're talking like call call use a call like

use a call like bro I already called do it again they get bored yeah it was like exactly he just attention span

some people don't they can't sit there I can sit there for a whole day from sun up to sun down I'm fine with it I'm fine peace is

listen to the birds and watch the animals I have my phone check my phone every once in a while but some people they don't have that peace they need to be talking or doing things that's real add right yeah yeah that it's a it's it's a weird mental exercise just sit there and do nothing

and just wait for an animal to come to you and it seems like it would be easy but after a while it starts fucking with your head you know it's it's a it's a mental exercise. The thing that's crazy, I can do that in tree stand, but in college, I couldn't focus a shit. In school? Yeah. Even now,

if I go to like a meeting or something and people are talking, I start dozing off. I can't sit there, but in that tree stand, I can sit wide awake for hours.

Awesome. In that tree stand, though, you're waiting for something. It's very specific. If you're doing something you don't want to do, a guy like you

who burns off so much energy In the day Your body's probably like This is boring as fuck Let's just not out Yeah Let's just

You've been training Six hours a day You know It's the same way at home I mean my wife said You never stop moving Just hang out You know

Like DeWill said I'll be baby To have my baby And I'm doing something With the camera Editing my YouTube channel So I can't just Sit down

Because I'll fall asleep I have to do something But like when it's time Just YouTube channel. So I can't just sit down because I'll fall asleep. I have to do something. But like when it's time to just relax. Like it's Sunday. We're just going to sit here and watch TV. Sit down. Five minutes in, I'm out. So what did you think about the movie?

Like, huh? My bad, babe. I fell asleep. Yeah. Well, if you're a guy who trains as much as you, I mean, every chance your body gets to actually rest, your body's probably like right about now. It's a good time It doesn't take much we get in the car before we all just drive when she's driving Well a guy who works as hard as you do because one of the things you're known for man is your cardio you have crazy

Fucking cardio and you notice it in fights where around the second and the third round i start seeing your opponent start to slow down a little bit and then you ramp it like elire latife it's a perfect example that was a great fight for you because that guy's a tank he's a tank very scary dude hits really fucking hard strong as shit but he's a he's a guy that relies on that explosive power he's like a sprinter in a lot of ways and you can only do that for so long and you could say like somewhere around the second round it was real obvious that you weren't slowing down at all and he was taking some big deep breaths and it's just it's harder for him have you always had that kind of cardio i mean i got it in wrestling

like i said i was big you know and i was especially when i got to 300 pounds and i was still working cardio trying to get down as a heavyweight to wrestle and be i always studied little guys films you know like the henry suhudo films and shit like that when i was in college that's just what i watched my coach like watch heavyweights and i'm like nah i want to move i want footwork i want to fake i want to take shots like i led my team in takedowns as a heavyweight because I moved around as a big guy. And the same thing. I've had one match, a guy was beating me, what, 15 to 1. If you need one more point to take me, going to the third round, but he gassed.

And I was still going. I came back and beat him in overtime. It's because I can just keep going. That was the mindset. Guys are going to break eventually. My coach always said, act fresh. Even if you're tired as dog shit, stand up and act fresh like no matter what look fresh and you'll be surprised how your mind take over you realize later on you're not really tired and when you're tired keep pushing because

the next time you usually get tired around that three minute mark it'll make it to about the seven eight minute then it's like 15 you start doing those grind matches and you go 30 minutes live and when it's done i'm able to walk Shake coach's hand And go grab another partner Or go get on a treadmill Because we always push As a big guy So you got to imagine

When I came down to 205 It was like Yeah It was crazy Like this is This is like magic I can do this all day coach Five rounds

That first My five round fight with Jimmy When they called me Like oh it's the main event now You got to train six rounds Like okay Like it was a million a cage We did did three rounds Mark like you know you're doing six today that's fine gave me three new partners went and they was tired and I was still good like

dude your cardio is crazy it's just a mental even when I'm tired I'll never show it it's like I just gotta act fresh and get through it it can only last so long my father told me that forever it is a weird thing isn't it that your your mind can give you more energy like you know that feeling that sometimes you're on a treadmill or something like that and you're running and a great song comes on and all of a sudden you're like whoa you like feel it you got like all of a sudden actually where's it coming from it's coming from your mind your mind that one beat the uptempo beat and your heart starts pumping and you kind of start dancing while you're running and like three to five minutes how long that song gets You're like on a sprint

Yeah Then once that song ends You're like Then you really feel it The tone changes You're like oh shit I'm tired of it It's crazy isn't it

That that's some There's a switch in your mind That you almost Like you have to figure out where it is You got to go find it And a song can find it for you But like for you just to be able to pull it out Like especially in a fight or

something like that when you're battling doubt and this and that and you know you're wondering how he's doing you know is he okay is he tired am i only who's tired or me or him you know and there's that switch in your mind that if you could just access that all the time and keep it on one of the things i think one of the guys i looked up to when i was in college you know he was past steve prefontaine that's why i just story all the time his quotes to do anything anything less than your best is a waste of a gift you know like every he ran he didn't it's cross country but guys tried they pacing and every day he said i'm running to like i'm sprinting like i watched all his movies the movies on him how his mindset even that one race when he was full out sprint they say his heart's going to give.

And he gave out right before the finish line. Like, I'd rather go out that way than pacing the whole time and then try to sprint in and fail because I wasn't ready. So that's like in my fight, I start off so fast. That's just, I'm going all out. There's no fill out period. We're going to touch gloves, and I'm ready to move. And I already know, like, if I'm getting tired, I know this guy's getting tired right he's not training like i'm training and if he is training like i'm training he might not be tired but in my mind i'm thinking he's getting

tired so just keep pushing because eventually he's gonna break he's gonna break before me now do you have a system in terms of like your strength and conditioning program do you do you have a schedule that you follow like like very specifically for however many weeks you have before your fight when i get in the fight camp everything get really specific like i said on ariel so i'm i'm calculating when it's camp time like you don't mess my order like i'll be early i have my bags packed night before i have three four training bags packed at the right at the little exit way so when i come home, if I'm running short on time, running late, grab something to eat, grab the next bag. I'm out the door.

And I know where I got to go. I hate when people have to cancel. Oh, I can't make it today. Or something came up. Or I show up and my partner don't show up. You're not on time. I'm like, I'm on the guys. Like, I'm kind of like the leader of the big guys.

Like, we're going to be here early this week so we can start at 1030 because I want to do drills after. We're going to do this. You need to work on that. I'm very punctual. Like, I hate, you know, it's camp time if you showing up late i hate it kind of it runs me rag and i just when we spar i kind of take it out on people i just i'm very calculated when it comes to camp because this is my career you know i'm serious about this i'm not showing up late like i go to boxing gyms with guys and we're always sparring at six o'clock so i show up at 5 4545 At 6.45

They still not there When you walk in Like nothing's wrong Talking and dancing Like yo you said 6 o'clock right Like you're a professional ain't you Well quit acting like an amateur Get here on time

Let's go This is your camp I'm here to help you Even that makes me mad But when it's my camp And you show up It's not fun Because I know I'm not going to get tired

So I'm just going to beat on you Who writes out Do you write it out Or do you just know what it is Do you have it in your schedule? Do you write it out or do you just know what it is? Do you have it in your head or do you write it out? You write it out. Well, I get like a notepad and I put how many weeks and I put it out and I try to early into it.

Like when I first start, I give like an idea of what I want to do. So Tuesday, Thursday, strength and conditioning or Monday, Friday, strength and conditioning before jujitsu with Ricardo. And then Tuesday, Thursday, I'm going to do one-on-ones with Ricardo. On Wednesday, I'm going to do my one-on-one with Nick Cotone. And then Tuesday night or Monday night, I'm going to do mitts with Mark. And then Saturday after sparring, I do another mitt. Try to do two of everything and then go up to Rutgers and wrestle

because in Jersey, everything is such a commute. So you have to time everything perfect because if practice goes 15 minutes past or whatever or somebody is late, that's messing me up because I've got to drive an hour to 45 minutes to get to the next place and i'm running late for that practice or if it's three practices in a row and i get there just a little bit right on time i don't have time to get ready to do my full warm-up to make sure my body's warm then get to the next spot and do the same thing now i'm rushing now it's non-stop now i gotta get home and grab something to eat quick or i gotta keep my food with me and it's getting cold and And this is, like, I'm very punctual and specific when it comes to stuff like that.

Do you meal prep? Do you have, like, little Tupperware containers with your food? So you just grab one and. I used to use, well, not use. I still use Eat Clean Bro when I get in the camp. I just use them all the time. But now, like I said, I got a white. It's called Eat Clean Bro.

Eat Clean Bro. It's Jamie. I can't remember his last name. But Jamie in New Jersey That's a good name He's killing it man He's DJ Khaled Carmelo Anthony

Lala All the famous people use him He just opened up another one In Atlanta He's killing the game With the meal prep And he's It's good

It's accurate It wasn't as accurate before But he teamed up With his company Revolutionize Which is a nutrition company They do the calculation Of all the meals For fighters and different people

Bodybuilders And it's perfect So it has all your nutrients All your protein It has it set up Like this is 40 grams of protein Yeah And then you can also go in there

And just order the raw stuff They give it And they deliver it to your door And then you just cook it Yeah you can get it raw And they put it in a freezer bag You get it And just put it

I know people that do it that way. Like I said, now I have my wife who fights, and she was used to fighting. She knows what's going on. Most of the time, she does that for me. If you bring them venison, will they cook that and put that in you? I'm sure they would. I know he told me if I get a turkey, he'll cook it up for me. So I'm sure he'll give me some venison, or cook me venison if I took it to him.

Now, when you say you have everything set up, are you monitoring your heart rate? Like, what are you doing to make sure that you're not overtrained or that you're not sick? That's one thing I'm still, I'm not really dancing with it. I'm fine with it because growing up, my coaches tell me all the time, no such thing. Overtraining is a mental state. You know, as long as you train, eat, rest. You give your body time to rest and recover.

Get to bed by a certain time so you get at least seven to eight hours of sleep. It's kind of hard to overtrain, but those days where you feel you're hurting, like shoulders, like my injuries, it's okay to dial back. When you go to the gym, you don't have to hit it hard. Just go through the motions. Sometimes it's like, oh, I don't be here to go through the motions, but sometimes it ain't bad to go through the motions as long as you focus on one thing, to master this takedown, to master this sweep,

to master that jiu-jitsu submission or a sweep or whatever it is. Focus on it and go nice and slow. Calculate. You don't have to get a sweat every time because you learned muscle memory. Do it a thousand times and now it's kind of like,

it's in there. I got it. But with the overtraining and heart monitoring, I only heart monitor for the last five to six weeks because that's when i hit cardio hard not so much strength anymore but pushing the pace everything i'm doing blowing it out trying to keep my heart rate above a certain thing so if the last day before i go into that space i put the heart rate monitor on and see wherever i got to i don't take much of a break

between my trainers my stations see where my heart rate got so the high was 172 today or whatever all right so that's the high on a slow day and it's hard for me to get my heart rate got. So if the high was 172 today or whatever. All right, so that's the high on a slow day. And it's hard for me to get my heart rate up. So it's like when we're doing cardio, I'm shooting for like 180s after everything. I need to be above that. So it takes time for that to come down. So in between that 30 to a minute break, if I'm still right there at 180, 170, so I'm going to hit the next one, I know my heart is still racing.

So I'm stretching my lungs out and take a little short break. never do a full minute break even in sparring so in fighting that's why in that minute you see me talking to mark henner and everything is everybody oh of course having a conversation in between around mark cost i'm like yep yep okay i'm going to jiu-jitsu mark says i'm trying i hear you because that's how we train and practice on a short clock a longer time work shorter time recover. And I'm tired in practice at the beginning, but at the end it's kind of like going to the fight that last week. We talking.

We smiling. We chilling. Good round. This and this. You got to do this. All right, well, we got to do better this time. Did I have to sweep right? Did I submission?

What was wrong with my hands? And the next one, all right, work on this again. And to be able to communicate and not be tired, it makes a world of difference. Do you give yourself 30 seconds in training it depends depends on who we fighting it depends on my mentality you know if i feel like today's gonna be a hard day if we ain't got the clock sometimes i have on my phone if the coaches aren't there and my wife doing it and i stand up and i feel like i'm recovering like 20 minutes or 20 seconds start go. Go. I just got to keep rotating my partners, though, because I know they can't recover all the time.

But it's just like I'm a little different. You know, it's like I was thinking outside the box. I'm trying to do what the other people aren't. You know, everybody going off like the Dolce diet or the keto diet or such and such training or Westside barbell or this and that. It's kind of like I take the different stuff I learned from this guy and I soften this guy. I learned in wrestling. I seen on YouTube and I heard somebody say this. Like, I wonder if I can just take away and take a little bit of this,

put a little bit with the Westside Barbell, put it with the keto diet along with my own venison diet and this, this, and this and just try it out. And if it works, it works. And if I don't feel good, if I feel low energy, it's like, all right, that doesn't work. We're going to try something different. It seems like a lot of people would want to listen to you, though. I would imagine if I was in camp with a guy like you and i saw the kind of cardio that you

have for a big guy and the amount of effort that you put in i would imagine there's other dudes that are following you now oh my teammates yeah they know like um one of the guys my like a brother to me is carl robertson you see he stepped up he stepped up on the global fight that's something we talked about when he was an amateur I've been working with him Since he was an amateur And I told his coach Dean Like this kid is good He get the right stuff

He go pro He be in the UFC in no time I'm telling you Because he was I watched him Me him and Chris Wyman He came in with us When I was helping Wyman

With the Rockhole fight And I'm not sure If he was an amateur or pro yet But he was hanging His Jiu Jitsu In the wrestling He didn't have that But striking wise

He was giving us problems It was like This this kid is good. He's a glory kickboxer. Like, ah, that makes sense. He kicks hard. Like, I haven't seen him put many people to sleep with his head kick in practice. Like, yo, pull it. He's like, bro, that wasn't even hard.

Like, what you mean that wasn't hard? He's like, I just flicked it up there. But he's just so explosive and athletic. He hit me with a knee, what, last Saturday. My chest still hurt. It was like I shot, and he caught me coming in on the shot, and I was like, oh, shit. But I was in deep.

He's just so quick. It's just, but, like, he's one. He hits me up all the time when I come to camp. I'm like, oh, he has it died down because of Bo and Clint out at the PI. He had that, but it come, like, the work and stuff. Should we keep doing this? Should we do this? I'm going to run today.

So when I want to work On my Jiu Jitsu What should I do Should I just drill Or should we go hard So he trains sometimes At the Performance Institute In Vegas

Well every time we get a camp Me and him We got to think If one of us get in camp We already know I'm going to contact him You got to fight When we're going to Vegas

So I go We go out there For a week or two weeks Me him and Rex Harris He was in the PFL We call each other The Bash Bros Only three dudes

At USC in Jersey We didn't travel around we've been to vegas we've been to arizona wherever we go and we go hard and that's why we call it bash bros there's no oh we're going light today bro don't hit me every time it's like are you ready you ready rex actually text me we're doing tecmo he was like yeah i'll be there tomorrow because i'm flying here, and I get back in time for training. So Bass Bros meet up, and we go at it. That's it. Are you always sparring hard, or do you spar technically? We got certain days. Like if we don't want to spar hard, we know not to go with each other

because it's kind of like if one week I get the best of wrecks. Like there's been times like I've had Carl for OSP because he's southpaw, and he's super good. So I went with Carl three rounds hard. So his main focus was takedown, don't let him up. So I take him down and just beat him on the ground, beat him on the ground, take him down, beat him on the ground because he didn't have wrestling at the time. And then he would go with, like, somebody else.

Like, ah, I need one more round. And he'd be mad. I know that. But that's why I'm not going with him on the fourth round because he's mad. And he'd go out there with somebody else and just eat him up. And I'm just like, I'm sorry. I have to apologize to the other guy. Like, I'm sorry for beating him up because the hostility so we go hard but there's times we pull other guys in like i'm gonna call this amateur guy in pretty good amateur or a

low level pro pro some guys that eddie alvarez knows or whatever i got this kid he's pro 205 he's the beginner whatever you want to work with him that's a guy all right bring him up today i'm gonna do a technical move day kind of like wall work drilling we spawn we have headgear on just in case because accidents happen but nothing is thrown with intention to hurt anybody well you have a fantastic camp too man it's one of the most unheralded camps if you want to talk about who's training out there zabit you guys have uh marlin you know of course frankie edgar i mean so many guys come from that area Eddie Alvarez you and I mean it's just Mark Henry's one of the most underappreciated guys in MMA I think because he's so quiet and unassuming doesn't toot his own horn but when you talk to that guy you see the

wheel spinning like wow he's something serious and everybody I know that's worked with him has said he's like one of the best coaches I've ever seen. There's nothing like it. I remember the first time he broke it down, I remember he was telling me, movement. On the show, he broke me down a little bit. Like, we're going to work, like, throw a punch, slide out, slide back, slide left, clinch, different stuff, staying out of punching range.

He broke it down very lightly for six weeks. And, like, I fell in love with it there. Was that the first time you worked with him? You ask him to this day, when we was in the back, the first fight to get in the house. And that was the last fight. And I told him, like, Coach, I like to warm up early. So I want to start warming up before the first fight just to get my heart going.

It was a wrestling thing. Go hard and just chill until time. And when I was going, he was like, have you ever done this before? I had no background in anything, just a wrestler that I could throw a one-two. That was it. And he was like, I'm going to show you this. And he kept telling me to do it. And I was listening. Like, bro, you listen so well. Like, like when i'm wrestling you have to listen and that's

when me and mark clicked from that day and i remember when they flipped the coin and it came off frankie saying frankie get the first pick i remember hearing mark in the back core we want core he listens he's a wrestler this is this and me and mark have been like this since and we have that bond but i remember coming the first day of this house i got the jersey is that's how i got there mark was the one texting me frankie Frankie said, oh, come on, Ricardo. I met everybody together. But Mark was the one that was more hands-on, texting me while I was back home with the family. Work this, work that, work this, work that.

Go to Rufus Sport and work your kicks. We need to have the kicks good by the time you get here. And he was in the basement. He's like, all right. So you see, like, this whole piece of paper, like, all the way down, like, codes. Everybody's codes wrote on paper. And what is that? He's like, oh, that's the combos. Like, that's like 100 combos. Like, all the way down, like codes. Everybody's codes rolled out on paper. And what is that? He's like,

oh, that's the combos. Like, that's like 100 combos. Like, oh yeah, we got codes. Like, nobody ever knows this. And he changes the code for each fight, right? Yeah.

And I'm like, what is that? And you see my paper just blank. He's like, all right, so this is your schedule. He had me on the first schedule.

This is your schedule. And that was just packed. Like 13 weeks of nonstop going. And like, and this is what we're going to work for your code. So today we're going to start

with the jab, cross, get, the coach, and movement. About three rounds. And I was like, yo, I'm flat-footed. I couldn't move like that. I can't do this. He's like, you can do it. It's like a tandem dance. And we joined the dance team.

The first day we learned this new routine, we're going to be all over. We're tripping each other every day. And the next day we get a little better. And we got kind of like the first course, we got it. By the end of time, it was time to perform we're gonna look beautiful i promise you and sure enough he he's uh i found he had the piece of real like i want a slice of pizza like i want you to learn how to move like you learn how to move i'll give you a slice of my pizza he's like when you can move i'll bring you a slice of pizza i heard he's got some killer pizza pretty good i think like it was week 10 before the fight. I had 13 week camp.

He's like, you actually moved a little bit. I told my wife to bring you home a slice. Gale said it was a slice. I got his approval. And ever since then, it's just been a thing. That movement, his scientific ways. I've seen Chris Weidman do it, Rashad Evans. We got Lance Palmer and Claudia now.

Different people watching and trying to learn. You can just see. Oh, Lance Palmer's out there too now? Yeah, he just came out recently. He was out last week before I left. Who else is out there? Who did you say? Claudia. Claudia Gadelia?

She had a gym out there, and she's been at our gym working. And when Mark was helping them after sparring last Thursday, and he called me in the case, like, Corey's really good. Show him how we do the one-two, blah, blah, blah. And when I look back at it, and they both had that look at each other like, that's a lot of shit. But you figure it out in time.

When it's new, anything new to you is going to be uncomfortable. But after you figure it out and you do it for so much, it's muscle memory. So when you were fighting as a heavyweight, you weren't a mover? I mean, what I thought was moving wasn't moving. But for heavyweight, it was just kind of like a little bounce. Bounce on my knees. If they go to step forward, when they go throw a punch, hop out and then come back with a jab to a double A. Right.

That's what I had to mean. Standard check. Yeah, that was movement. I thought I was the man. I'm moving my ass off. No. That was nothing. You get to marking, it's kind of like feet on your toes.

Bounce, bounce. Don't ever stop. When you stop, he hit you like 10 times. That's what happens when you stop. It's really interesting when you watch the difference between the way people utilize footwork. I think probably the best example in combat, well, there's two great examples in combat sports. Lomachenko, who has got some of the most incredible footwork of all time, and Sanchai, who's a tie fighter, who's got crazy footwork. Constantly switching stances, light on his toes, fights different than any other Thai fighter, and widely considered the best of all time.

And Lomachenko, when you watch guys who have good footwork fight him, they're like, what in the fuck? You throw a punch, and he's over here, and he's hitting you here, and uppercuts coming under your arm, and he's back this way. He's like the Matrix. Constantly moving. And that guy started out as a dancer. dad when he was his dad was training him Out of box he made him do

Russian folk dancing I think I want to say for like four years He made him do this this kind of Russian style of dancing He was like you got it. You're gonna have to learn how to move your feet and now you see him he fights It's effortless It's just a part of who he is and guys are like more plotting and they're used to that normal stationary target he's so much more complex and you see any obviously fantastic puncher too but the footwork is off the charts it's just such a different thing there's levels to everything and you i guess realized that when you went from heavyweight to training with Mark.

Two or five, Mark, yep. But like we said, the footwork thing, one thing I've seen in MMA, the Holloway-Ortega fight. Yeah. I feel like,

in my mind, I feel like I was watching Lemon Chaco MMA how Holloway was like hitting angles. Because Brian isn't like a mover type. He's just a game.

He's biting down. He's gritty. He's ready to go. And it seemed like as the round, like third, fourth, and fifth round, or third He's biting down, he's gritty, he's ready to go. And it seemed like as the round, like third, fourth, and fifth round,

or third and fourth round, like when he would go to punch, Max would switch southpaw, pow, pow, and when he'd go to counter, he'd go back with the hook this way, and it was just like, yo,

his footwork right now was, like I watched it probably like seven times, just studying his feet, like how was he, and he never lost balance, one time. And I was like,

this is just incredible, I love watching that, like you said, a dance. It's beautiful. Max is very good at distance control. He's one of the very best at just moving slightly out of range and then right back in. And he puts a lot of pressure on you because of that, too. If he catches you breathing heavy, if he sees any slowing down in you, he starts pouring it on.

Like he starts trying to get you to wilt. He sees it. sees any slowing down in you he starts pouring it on like he starts trying to get you to wilt he sees it it's very and very interesting how he does it too because he does it with he overloads you not just with his attack but also with all the variables that you see the combinations of switching and putting pressure on you just as there's so much going on that you're always thinking about it and it's just that on top of it makes you more tired yeah he's good at smelling the blood yeah he's good at smelling the blood yeah

he's good at smelling he knows a lot of people I know that's one thing I'm not good at I don't I'm working on it Mark was telling me the other day like I want to start

finishing people with the hands like you had so many fights where you couldn't but you hit a guy with a combo and you take a shot like the guy would be rocked you just don't see it instead of keep punching him

you would shoot he would stop punching and you would shoot on him it's like I hit guys with combos and like when I go to the boxing they're like bro box like you're a boxer but you're going to your fights and you box just to get to your takedowns but that's because i'm a wrestler yeah i can box i don't have to but i will do you think there's a a worry though when you're trying to finish fights versus just trying to fight your best i think guys should just fight their best, and if a finish comes, it comes.

I'm of the opinion that. I'm of the opinion that when people make big mistakes, and I wouldn't discourage anybody from going crazy. If someone likes to go crazy, they like to fight wild, hey, man, that's you. That's your style. That's how you express yourself. Nothing wrong with it.

But if I was going to give some advice, they say, what should I do? I want to have a long career as a professional. I'd say fight your best. Don't worry about the outcome. Just fight your best. And if you fight your best and if you connect and someone gets hurt and you put them away, that's great. But if you just win, that's great too.

Just fight your best. The more you can do what you can technically and take as little damage as possible, that's a good fight. And that's, like I said, that's something else. The OSP fight, Mark said it. Like, you just got to, Smothers has got a whole camp.

Like, he's got that good kick. And the OSP fight and Gianvalente, the two fights Mark called the only things I can get knocked out with. He said, with Gianvalente, the only thing this guy can knock you out with is overhand right. He says, you got to bring that jab right back after you've got a good jab bring your hands back because he times that overhand right so smooth and even in between rounds like you're eating overhand right i know it's not hurting you but it only takes one it takes one

keep that hand up keep that hand up and sure enough to this day he say remember i told you overhand right and then with osp he's like only thing i can get you with is that head that left kick if you stay close to him keep the pressure keep him on theP, he's like, only thing I can get you with is that left kick. If you stay close to him, keep the pressure, keep him on the cage. When he's down, he stand up,

bring him back down. Don't listen to the fans. People are going to boot. They're going to get in your head and make you want to strike, trying to get in that fight. That's what they want to see. But we're just trying to get the win. Don't go right

and keep pressure. Do not go right and keep pressure. If you watch that fight, the whole two rounds, pressure. Not going right, going left. Put him to the cage.

Take him down. Keep him down in the cage. You stand up, bring him back. Third round, I took him down. He piled up. When I was against the cage, I can remember hearing people say, oh, let's stand up and fight. Stand up and fight. And I bagged away for a second.

I started moving. Like, all right, I'm going to play from the outside a little bit. And I went right. Right into the head kick. And I was like, when I came first thing, Mark said in the back, hey, bro, you look phenomenal. You just went right. Like, you look great.

You just went right. Everything was beautiful in that fight. That was your breakthrough fight. You just went right. But we're going to go back. You're going to do better. I know you will. And I was just like, after that, like I said, I went to the drum,

but I was like, fuck what the fans say. We winning. Fuck what the fans say. But like you said When you and Sha I was listening before And you say I beat Lil Latifi

I beat this But you don't hear my name It's because I'm not trying to do the stuff That's exciting anymore I'm just winning And my style Ain't exciting to them

But that's because You're not a mixed martial arts fan You're a fan of a knockout Or you're a fan of some fancy stuff They talking Johnny Walker Of this and this Johnny Walker hasn't shown Mixed martial arts yet

He's shown fancy stuff That knock people out It looks great Yes But just like Anthony Smith And all those guys When they get in front of somebody Like John Jones

And you can't hit him With that one punch What are you going to do? You know what I mean? So that's the thing I say Right now I'm not fighting He's saying

When are you going to fight? I don't know But I'll be ready Because I can do everything Yeah we were just talking about Johnny Walker. He's in surgery now. He had to go through surgery for a shoulder because of that. That celebration.

That celebration, which is so crazy. He wins. He beats Sarkunov with a beautiful timed knee, perfect flying knee, looks fantastic, and then drops to the ground just playing around and blows his fucking shoulder out. It's crazy. That's the game anything can happen when it when it happens like that it's like god damn man you're so promising um he's a he's a i mean what what gets people excited when people finish fights right when people ko people and so

a lot of times people try to lean towards that but if that's's not your style, you should fight the way you're fighting. If I was in your corner, first of all, I'd say listen to Mark Henry. Mark Henry knows everything. And then second of all, I'd say don't change shit, man. What you're doing is perfect. Just fight the way you're fighting. The way you're fighting is just you're winning. I just think that it should be emphasized always to fight the best you can,

fight intelligently. And you've got to decide, and everybody has to decide, when is it time to take a risk? When is it time to close the distance? When is it time to put pressure on someone and throw yourself into the fire to try to get a finish? And if you just think you should just fight technically, look, man, fucking Floyd Mayweather's done that

most of his career, especially like later on when he was pretty boy Floyd earlier on in his career, he was trying to knock a lot of guys out. But later on in his career, in most of his big fights, like with Pacquiao and a lot of other guys, he just wins. He just wins, and he makes more money than anybody. Just wins.

Trust me. In my mind, i know exactly i'll tell you when i get in the sparring no sparring is when i want to work on things you know every every saturday going to sparring my wife josh like what are we working on today we're gonna try to work on putting a little more emphasis on the punches and not shoot right away blah blah blah on the ground more ground and pound don't worry about the jiu-jitsu submissions just hit this and this when it's come time to fight when that lights come on saturday on Saturday night and Bruce Buffer in there and you sit at the side, it's a whole different game plan.

I know what I can do. I know what's right. And that's why I get into those spots. It ain't like I tell myself to take a shot. It's muscle memory. I hit him. He put his hands up and he stopped. The legs was wide open.

I was an NCAA All-American, NCAA finalist. Why would I not shoot? I take them down. Exactly. And if you look at my last three fights fights I feel like going back and watching them those you can't say I'm one-sided because Lear everybody no way he can wrestle Lear Lear is way more powerful and better wrestler. He works up for Whatever where he's from Albanian world team. He couldn't take me down and I was struck him You know you went to glow like all Glover to finish energy just you got court goes to ground him

It's over and he cannot choreo. I out-struck him. I out-wrestled him and got him in the mount and had him in side guard. I had his back. I had every position on him. So you can't say I don't have jiu-jitsu. I don't have wrestling. I don't have striking because I'm there. And then Pat Cummins, everybody's like, oh, he was in the NCAA.

D1 All-American. This and this. He beat DC at the OTC. He's going to kill Corey in wrestling. Stop this takedown and set the record with 13 takedowns on him who had the record at 11 it's like

I don't understand the fans everybody got something to say I think you listen to people too much Corey that's the problem

my wife said it all the time like every morning she's like no negativity today you should just stay the fuck offline that's what you should do don't read that shit

cause now I'm doing the hunting stuff and I'm posting stuff it's like it pops I'm gonna pop up stuff and I'm posting stuff it's like and then it pops I'm gonna pop up and then you see it

MMA questions yeah or at the top of the screen it'll drop down or it'll pop up in the notification or I get a email notification

somebody said and you see half of it and I'm like don't open it don't open it then I'm driving like I wonder what the rest of it say

it could be a good thing it might be bad and I actually open it up later on and somebody's saying something bad. And it's just like my wife just said. She's like, I see it. Just don't pay no attention to it. But yeah, you're allowing negativity into your life that you don't need.

I mean, you think about your camp. You got all these positive people, all these motivated people, all these professionals, exceptional human beings, right? Everybody training and grinding together. And then you got schmoes that are contacting you on Twitter or Instagram or whatever and just saying a bunch of nonsense. And that can fuck with your head. You know, and these are not people that would ever say that if they were in front of your

face. It's a gross way to communicate. It's just, it's not a hell. It's like, it's like passing by a shitty fast food restaurant being drawn in to eat And then you eat you're like god what I need that garbage. It's the same thing It's like it's like fast food for your brain It's it's so tempting because you just want to read those comments and most of the people are probably good people who are fans Most of them, but all it takes is 10% assholes and you never want to look at your comments again.

One out of 10. It's not hard to get 10%. You know, 10% assholes is like pretty damn good in the real world. You know, if you only run into one out of 10, that's an asshole. You know, or one out of 100. Even if it was one out of 100 in your comments that are shitty, you don't want to read those comments. It's just for a fighter, man. It's so much of it is about mindset and and just being focused and not having any distractions and i think those

comments are a giant distraction you know you don't need anybody telling you what to do you got mark fucking henry you you've got ricardo almeida you've got all these world champions around you like you don't need any any other information you're getting plenty of information you know fuck all that shit. You shouldn't even look at it. You should post and just run away. Just post something and don't even look at it. Don't even read it.

Just keep going. Just keep going. I got to work it. I know I got to work on it. Because what you're saying right now, all the things you were saying about beating Glover, about beating Aaliyah Latife, yeah. But you're saying it Like you're arguing With somebody

You're saying like Someone told you You can't do it But who gives a fuck What they said You did do it So why argue With someone who

Clearly doesn't know What the fuck They're talking about Anyway Right But in your head You're like They said I couldn't

Do this Like so you Still have that See you know What I'm talking about You have that battle 100% Cause Mark

They tell me all the time Like bro quit feeding Like Don't even read it Where I come from Me and my brother We also had that mentality Like people like to talk

This and this We weren't the type We ain't gonna sit there And talk back and forth It's like My first response to anybody They talking shit Like alright

Put your hands up I'm ready to fight You say the truth I'm gonna prove you wrong That's how I spend my time Like they always said Corey couldn't do this You wouldn't do that

You wouldn't do this My whole life Like in college Like Corey You're not good enough To go to Midlands We only take five guys on the team And I guarantee

Coach ain't going to take you But the two years I was there I was the guy That went to Midlands The first pick every time Like I'm always shooting To prove somebody wrong Do you feel like

That's a part of your motivation Yes It's always been that way But you're also Your motivation is obviously Excellence There's no way it could just be to prove someone wrong as hard as you work no but that's just let's put that's how i got to the mentality and the work ethic i got because in high school i wasn't like this i sucked in high school i lost what way i didn't win a match i was sophomore in high school really i've been wrestling

since third grade like i was ass-tastic And I was horrible Like Why? I got beat one time And the coach left me They left They loaded the bus

And left me sitting there Because you got beat The way you got beat? Yes They didn't want to bring you home? It wasn't I got beat I got lost to a girl, Joe

You lost to a girl? Dead ass I didn't have the mental When I got off the mat The team was gone When I was outside The bus was gone Only reason I got home Because the mental. When I got off the mat, the team was gone. When I was outside, the bus was gone. Only reason I got home because the varsity came for a duel that night. And the coach was like, why are you still here?

Wow, that's fucked up. Yeah. That's a ruthless coach. But that's the thing. I wasn't. I was that boy. Like they got the little boy that cry wolf. You know, I was always trying to get out of workouts. I was fat.

I was lazy. At the time growing up, I loved the outdoors, but I loved video games love video games i love eating junk you know i didn't always have this mindset so when it came to the point when i wanted to do good and i was trying to take my first injury my very first injury sophomore year in high school before conference i snapped my ankle cleanser and i remember everybody when i was sitting i hurt first time i was actually hurt but i had faked so many injuries even the coach came up and like telling me get up corey up, Corey, I was faking. Everybody's going to run sprints, so you get up. Because they all thought I was faking. But I was actually hurt.

And my buddy stopped by. He grabbed me and took me to the trainer. Even the trainer was like, I was probably going to sprint. He'll be fine. I went to the doc. My dad came and got me. Went there. They did an x-ray on my – there was like this much bone holding my foot from falling off my leg.

The ankle was like pretty much shattered. Why didn't nobody bring you in? Like they kept saying there was nothing wrong. And I went back to the x-ray. They was all like, oh, bro, we're so sorry. You have been for so long. I've been wrestling since third grade. I did it because my brother did it.

I want to do everything he did, but I didn't have the drive he had. After that scene, everybody kind of dogged me out. I remember coming back from recovery from that. The first time I ran after an injury, even in my mind, I can't run. I can't run yet. I did. I was limping. I was scared it was going to break again. When I made it to where I was going, I my mind, like, I can't run this. I can't run it. And I did. And I was limping. And I was scared it was going to break again.

But I made it to where I was going. I was like, bro, I can do this. It's just, it's all here now. That's my real, everything is mentality. Like, I never had any problem. I was just lazy. I didn't want to work. So I was finding a way out.

And after that, the next year, you can ask the coaches. They told my parents. I got moved to the varsity tournament, what, the first or second match. And I took second and third in the varsity tournament after wrestling JV Ford a year before. And I lost to a guy that won the thing. The difference between Corey and I was night and day. It's because I realized if I put my mind to it and just work, quit work. My dad said it, too.

That's the thing. My dad pushed on at such a young age. My brother got it. He was a star athlete. But he didn't get the openings and the opportunities I had, you know, because he was always working for my father and working here and working there. He didn't have the time to do camps and all that. Me being the youngest, it was a little easier for me. I seen what he did, what he told me, what my brothers, my sisters and teammates and all the different people around me had done.

I knew the way I needed to go to get somewhere. But being a star athlete, a professional athlete was never a goal of mine. I wanted to be an engineer. I love building clubhouses and shit like that. That was what I wanted to do. Wow. But all that opened doors. I wanted to go to school, to University of Wisconsin-Platteville for the engineer program.

But just like sports, my grades was ass. I didn't try myself. I went there to hang out with my friends and be cool. Right. You know what I mean? When I applied, they messaged me back saying, your GPA isn't good enough. The wrestling coach wanted me there. Because by the end, I was good in wrestling. My last my last few years i killed it i never made the state but i

killed in the regional and sections i went all the sections and lost in the finals you had to go you had to win that a third whatever but um they said you can't get here but you gotta go to junior college you get your gpa up we can get you in again i went there i didn't plan on wrestling anymore i loved wrestling i cried when it was over but then then I got Dave Clem, Matt Hughes' old coach. That's how I met Matt Hughes through Lincoln College. He reached out to me. He was like, I heard about you. You got the mentality of a warrior.

Like, you work hard. You're a workhorse. I need somebody like you to come here and work for me. I can't get your scholarship because you didn't do much. I don't have money left. I gave you $1,800. It was $27,000. I thought I was on, like, a full ride.

I'm like, oh, I'm getting money. You know, I went there excited, determined to get there. And everybody was like, oh, you never made a state. You're not going to do good. This isn't this. Again, that was motivation from right there. Going to school, they don't think I can do this. My grades aren't good enough.

They don't think I can get an education. I'm not good enough at sports. They don't think I'm All-American. They think I'm going to go there and just be another member of the team. I went there. I cut up, but right before the season, snapped my leg in three. I thought it was over again. That coach was like, I saw you fire. A different leg injury. The same leg, but right before the season, snapped my leg in three. I thought it was over again. And that coach was like, I saw you fired.

A different leg injury. The same leg, but a different injury. Like three years later. Let me bring it back to the first one. That injury is what changed you? Well, I got tired of people thinking I was faking. So because you were injured for real, and people thought you were faking it, you realized something was wrong.

I realized I had been lazy. And my father, my whole life, you go to my old house right now in the garage it's still carved in there i never get there it was probably like eight o'clock nine o'clock school night my dad woke me and my brother to help him do some stuff on the boat we tired you know we want to go back we out there complaining the whole time he says my dad if you met my dad is the most motivating person ever don't have an education other but he he started his own business from the ground up and he's living the dream. Hunting properties,

whatever he want, he can do it. And that's where I got it from. But it took me forever to realize this. And I'll never forget the day. It comes to me all the time when I think about it.

He stood up on the boat and was up against the garage door. Brand new garage door he just put up. You know one thing I hate? I cannot stand. It was lazy and he took his drill

and he cut L-A-Z-Y in the back of his brand new garage door and it's still there to this day. When I go home and I visit, I go to that garage, and you'll see it cut in the door. Lazy. And he cannot stand it. And if you know him, the way he works, he just turned 59 Tuesday. And his voice, when I said, you're at the job site, aren't you?

They are working. He got a bunch of 20-year-olds and 30-year-olds. He outworks everybody. 59 years old, up and down the ladder running the crane driving the truck to the shop and that's it he always said when I was a kid

son it can only last so long I never understood what he said he used to come up to me on the football field I'd be crying and moping it can only last so long

son keep going it can only last so long I said like what the why you always say that and then later on when it started getting hard

I started thinking like practice going looking at the clock it's like 45 minutes but it can only last so long. And it clicked, like, oh, shit. That's what my dad meant all these years. It can only last so long. Just grind.

Just go. Just go. Just put your nose down and get to it. So you have this injury, sophomore year, your ankle snaps, and you realize you've been lazy. So what shifted in your mind? How did you change? I just stopped worrying about excuses to get out of practice and was it immediate or was it a gradual change as i was healing you know i was on bed rest for a while it was so bad and people come in and out and my

brother used to come over at a time he was playing football and whatever and watching his games just like sitting there for so long away from all the sports and all your friends, and just sitting there just yourself. And I just realized, like, I've been doing this since third grade. I've seen this stuff a million times. I know the moves. I just don't apply. I think when I get back, if I actually start trying and drilling and actually practicing and getting that extra workout in,

I could cut up. And sure enough, that's what happened. So what was the first step when I came back it was when that first run I was literally my dad's shop

was probably 200 yards from my house and it was raining that's all that's the only reason why I ran because I didn't want to get wet

I was like I'm about to run to the house and I'm thinking like but this leg I don't know if I can make it and then right then

that doubt in my mind like why are you telling yourself you can't make it how many months out from the injury this was what I broke it in what january or december and this was summertime so it was long

like i had to cast on for like five six months so really yeah and i went to air boot it was like it was five or six months it was bad and then like right now i got the plate and the screws in there but i broke some of the screws because i was like trying to move in a wrestling stance in my boot and i slipped my dad Had um the tile or the cement and he had a little gloss over and I was washing the cars one day And I was like, I'm just gonna in my shadow say I don't know what I slipped on the wet spot and I slipped I felt it and the two of the pins that go across my ankle his snap So I had to wait for all that to heal again. Jesus Christ. It was a whole process

So I was late at the pins the two I still got the two long screws that they take out. They leave the seven and go up the femur or the tibia. But the two long ones, they're supposed to pull out. But the middle, when I slipped, they broke in half on my bone. So that made the bone heal slower. Because now it's just a little spot they drilled through. It opened up like that much more. So I had to wait for all that to heal before I could actually walk.

Did they take the screws out and put new ones in? No, they still in there. So you got broken screws in your ankle? If you look at it, like when I work out, I'm like, bro, your ankle is fat as hell. That's because the plate and the screws are so long, the swelling and everything. It looks different than the other angle? Yeah. Let me see what it looks like.

Which ankle? That's a fat ankle. Yeah, that's the fat one. And that's the normal one. That one's pretty fat too well he has some big ankles dude oh yeah oh yeah oh yeah that's a big difference yeah so like when i get done training yeah this one is like this big because all the blood and everything's falling around the screw wow so does it fuck with you anymore like when it gets cold out or anything i feel it

but again mental everything is mental to me now right everything in life even she hates it because i tell her all the time she had a negative uh negative insight on something like find the positive in it like it's all in your mind babe you can make the best out of anything and i'm just oh this this and this happened like well you could be dead or you're good like it's always so much you got no legs like she got her car smashed at work somebody hit the side of a tour it all up and had to go in the shop. I was like, the windows didn't break. I was like, think about it.

It dries and your windows ain't broke. It's the middle of the winter. It ain't got to be cold. Think about that. It could have torn the car. And you didn't get hurt. Yeah. It's a million different things you can find to be sad.

But finding the good things is a fine deposit. It's going to get fixed eventually. So this ankle fucks with you still, but not enough to stop you. Nothing to stop me. Yeah. And does it affect you at all when you kick things? Depends. Yeah?

They dig in? Like if I kick, if they go to do the elbow, like I go to kick the liver and you go to sit on it and like the elbow kind of catch it, I feel it. But again, it doesn't stop me. Right. It's just a sensation. 15 minutes. That's nothing. It only lasts so long. It only lasts so long. 15 minutes, that's nothing.

It only lasts so long. It only lasts so long. I'm going to bounce this out and keep going. Yeah. So you get out of the injury. You have the cast on you for five or six months. You realize how blessed you were to be able to move around and that feeling once you get your leg back under you and start moving again. What is the changes you make? How do you start to move your life in this positive way

well after i made that first jog and i realized i'm i'm good like i first doubted myself but i made it because i told myself i can do it i made it here there's no injuries i'm fine as i was just slow and steady just start hand fighting like good little they got to take down dummies that hang on the wall let's go there and move you know not nothing fast just work hand fighting just kind of grab the leg working my shots in and out in and out in the morning before practice i used to go watch the guys for off-season practice study and then when i came back it was just i have the heavyweight coach that coach can we drill today you asked me to drill yeah coach can see i just want to work with i'm gonna do a little bit extra stuff and after practice he worked with me then the other coach would come work with me.

It got to the point where, like, in the morning, I was in there before school. And I was there after school for practice. And I would stay after with Coach and drill different stuff. They must have been so confused. They didn't. Like, the coach says, night and day. Like, the difference between Corey and I was night and day. That must have been so strange.

You have this lazy kid, and all of a sudden, he becomes a savage. They have. When I go back to the school, they always ask ask me come talk to these people they call me a success store not only was this but i grew up in an area where there was no black people i was the only black family there so we had racism my whole life you know i mean dealing with that so that's another man that was the mental the mental is the mental fucks of it all like no matter what i did you're gonna be wrong like i was another Corey Anderson, too. That was even worse.

He was actually a troublemaker. So when he would get in trouble, they would always come get me out of the classroom. Like, where was Corey Anderson? I would get pulled. I ain't even did nothing. I was a good kid.

Never did nothing wrong. Like, I'm down in the office and the principal walking in like, wrong Corey. Like, of course it's the wrong Corey. It's every time. I remember Corey Richard Anderson and Corey C. Anderson.

I'm Corey C. He's Corey Richard. But they always pulled me in there And it was just Because I was It was only a few of us In my high school And the fact that

I never did drugs Just like when we was on the ring I said I don't want I want to come to your show And shoot with you I don't want to smoke weed I never did drugs I don't do none of that

I've been a good kid But to deal with that stuff I used to get pulled over For no reason I had a nice truck An STN drop to the ground With rims and speakers I used to get pulled over

And me and my friends Would get put in cuffs And sit on the curb While they searched the car Looking for something When I went to college It was the same thing Get pulled over all the time

And teacher wouldn't be like Every time you late for class You say you got pulled over Like I was telling Will On the way here Like I'm serious I have classmates I saw him like

No he's telling truth We saw him On the side of the road Like he always gets pulled over Because nice vehicle Black They always think it's something You know and that's just

Where I'm from. So, dealing with that and the mentality I finally figured out. Like I said, that's why when people doubt me, I think, trying to prove wrong because I had coaches in high school. I won't put names on air, but I remember even when I was doing good, I knew I was doing good because I had the lead team in sacks. I didn't start. You know what I mean?

I lay the starting lineman out or beat this guy and this and that and this and that, and I never got the position or something was around it. And then when I came back after I made it to the U.S., they're like, oh, yeah, I remember this. Like, I ain't trying to hear that. The only coach in that high school, I will say, that believed in me was a wrestling coach, Marty Kaiser. Marty Kaiser made everything possible.

He let me meet dave clem who was my junior college coach who led me to russ davey who led me to ben askren who tim fader and everything and i've been blessed with the people in my life that bring me to frankie and mark and ricardo and i got like the ultimate people around me like my mom says you've always been blessed to have a good circle of people and the one year i had a bad coach in college that's like my mom said we didn't have so much good. Don't let this one coach defeat you. Now, I'll never forget him. Jason Valick. I'll put his name on the air.

That guy, that made me the toughest man I could because no matter what I did, he wanted to make sure he could break me. He had control over me. I was 16 hours away from home in South Carolina. No family. No money. He had me on a full ride and he would just use that. I got you here

You here because of me You do this Or I'm going to cut you Cut me then Fuck Cut me Alright you off the team Alright I go get recruited

And you put me back on the team You still in NLI You can't do that This this and this So it's kind of like I think that's where I got the mentality Where I want to prove people wrong Because

I beat the starter And I beat him bad 13 to 1 12 to 1 Every time I wrestle I beat him But you still not starting What the fuck you making me wrestle him off for Like I didn't beat him bad 13 to 1 12 to 1 Every time I wrestle I beat him But you still not starting What the fuck

You making me wrestle him off for Like I didn't beat him every time Well you lost him The first duel in a match By riding time The first week of school And I beat him every time But you not gonna let me start

Nope Cause he pins people And you only get points Kind of like fighting He knocks people out And you only win by decision And it's kind of like Alright

So I left Went to Whitewater where I met Ben and everything else. Again, went there. The coach knew who I was. Nobody else knew who I was

because I didn't get to wrestle the year before. I was a bench warmer. The killer on the team but never wrestled. That's so crazy. Killer, never wrestled.

My parents would drive 16 hours to watch me duel and he'd make me sit at the bench the whole tournament. It'd be a tournament. He'd be like, you're not wrestling today.

My parents would be like, you're not wrestling. They're like, my parents drove 16 hours. You a tournament. He'd be like, you're not wrestling today. My parents would be like, you're not wrestling today. Like, my parents drove six. You're not wrestling. Like, you got me eight hours from the school. My parents drove all the way up, and I can't wrestle. What was this guy's problem? We don't know.

I got teammates now and guys are still fighting and everything. They're like, bro, you got out of there. And like a lot of guys, he had them there academically. He'd be like, oh, we're going to short-term, short-credits you, but this is this. You're going to do half-credits, but you're going to be able to wrestle. So he was just a dick to a lot of guys. Just a dick. He just wanted to win. He was like, oh, we're going to short-term, short-credit you, but this and this, you're going to do half-credits, but you're going to be able to wrestle. So he was just a dick to a lot of guys.

Just a dick. He just wanted to win. That was it. So, like, guys would finish their wrestling career, but they didn't have the courage to graduate. Like, coach, I need help. Like, what can I do? You don't wrestle for me no more.

I was like, bro, I'm only here because of you. But I left. Power. He kept hitting me up like, oh, you keep coming back, and next year I'll let you start next year if you beat him again. Fuck you. And I was like, you're exactly right. So said i went to the ad office told him what was going on they gave me my letters and trans let me transfer out but i couldn't go division two like you can leave but you can't go division two he can't hold you back anymore like that's fine i'm out i left like a month before school and he showed up at my house one day

and like where are you i'm at your house like i bro. Like, what do you mean I'm gone? Like, I'm done. I'm transferring. Like, you can't. I showed him the papers. Like, how did you get that? Like, I went behind your back. I got it done.

I'm out of there. And then Tim Fader, the coach at Whitewater, I remember he pulled up at my house. I almost didn't go back to school because he kind of got in my head. Like, I don't want to go nowhere else and waste my last year of school doing the same shit. I can't trust anybody. I took, what, six the year before an injury, but I was beating everybody. You know,

I only lost a D1, D2 guys. And so it was like, I don't want to go anywhere else and somebody's going to screw me over a full ride. But then this guy pulled up in my driveway when I was working one day. He was like,

I'm looking for Corey Anderson. I've seen him before, but I didn't really know much about him. And we went to lunch or whatever. He was like, I know your story,

but the thing is, I can't give you a full ride because of D3. We can't give money, but I want went to lunch or whatever. He was like, I know your story, but the thing is, I can't give you a full ride because of D3. We can't give money, but I want you to wrestle for me. This isn't this. And like I said, when I went D3,

nobody knew who I was because I didn't get to wrestle. But he knew, like, we're not even going to let you wrestle for a while. So I thought, right off the get-go,

like, what the fuck? Are you fucking kidding me? Same shit. Like, what the fuck? He's like, no,

it ain't that. He said, I don't want people to know what we got. We're going to wait until the first home duel and I'm going to let you loose. And the first home duel had the number three dude in the country. And I'll never forget that week. He said I don't want people To know what we got We're going to wait Until the first home duel And I'm going to let you loose And the first home duel

I had the number three dude In the country And I'll never forget that week He said you ready Like what you mean Like it's the time You get to come out Gave him my singer

Like you ready to show up Like you know I'm ready Dogged the number three guy Out by like 12 points And I was like Who the fuck is this kid He was like yes I'm finally home

And then shortly after I met Russ Davey A guy who came from Colorado who coached in Wisconsin. He was my heavyweight coach, Olympic guy. And then he brought in Ben Askren. That's how I got into fighting. And Ben, it was just like I said, the people around you, it just molds you. Like I'm blessed.

I'm sitting here thinking about it. And it makes me feel good because all the things I've been through and everything, it all worked out. Yeah, having that dick coach probably helped you. It helped me. It wasn't about, and my coach told me when I signed. When I signed, my coach gave me a full ride. That's the one that kept saying, they gave me a full ride. He kept saying, Corey, it ain't all about the money.

Like, it's the most important decision in your life. It's not about the money. Coach Clem and Steven Bradley, and they both said, like, it's not about the money, Corey. Remember, it's the most important decision of your life. Don't let the money fuel you. But that's what it was for me. You know, I went to school as a walk-on pretty much. Important decision of your life. Don't let the money fuel you. But that's what it was for me. You know, I went to school as a walk-on pretty much.

Now I'm getting full ride offers from everywhere. And now I'm going to the number one school, Division II, and they give me a full ride? Like, I thought that was something. When I got there, I figured out what he meant. And I'll never forget calling both coaches. Like, you guys are right. I'm back home now, and I'm trying to figure out what's now.

Like, well, you can go to NAI. I know a few schools that want you. There's good coaches, blah, blah, blah. I'm just going to chill and think about it. When that coach came and the fact that he came to my house reached out to me he told me i can't get you money but i want you for you and as a leader and i first got there even though he told me he wasn't gonna let me wrestle he let me run practice for like the first month because he couldn't teach it before season got there i want you to like run practice this isn't this because you got that. You can help these guys show what you did in D2. Number one school, you can show us stuff here.

You know, I ended up being the first NCAA All-American or NCAA finalist the school had in 22 years. You know, I led the team in takedowns all the way up until, like, the regional tournament with my roommate, when we had a competition going on. I did a lot of things that most people didn't see heavyweights do. The way I shot, the way I wrestled, my mentality. I was always working.

I was doing strength and conditioning before practice. And before Des Moines, like 6 o'clock, we had strength and conditioning. And I got out of class at 1. I'd be in the gym lifting or doing circuit training until 3. And it went from just me to me and my teammate, or me and my roommate to other teammates. And like you said, people would see how you're doing it, and they would jump in.

And before you know it, it was like six or seven of us working out in the field. Yeah. And we were just motivating each other. Yeah. And the bond we had there as a team, like I remember getting there, and everybody was like, oh, what's our goal? The only thing I thought about was nationals. Everybody was like, oh, we want to win nationals or win conference. I was like, why the fuck are y'all talking about conference?

That's like the first step. You got conference, regionals, all this national. What about the big picture? Like, oh oh we never won conference before and I was like we should still want to get nationals

and like by the end of the year everybody was feeding off each other we had we had three guys from the same high school me to 97 or 87

or 84 pounds excuse me and they called us the high nigga death row cause that was our school and like death row sugar night and all that so one guy

printed up shirts and it was us three and it was like it was so cool to have three guys that was from the same school we grew up right down the street from each other but we all went separate ways one went here one went there we ended up in junior college together we and the one guy that in our very last year we all end up together as a team captains senior years our last time to do it together the hoorah and we We brought our whole high school to come to all our matches. It was only like an hour from home. It was just cool, man.

Like I said, when I met Ben there and he brought me to this thing, I didn't want to fight. Again, I had a doubt in my mind. I want to go to that, but I want to go back to your high school days when you made that big shift. Did you slip at all? You went from being a guy who was kind of lazy and under motivated to a guy who's very disciplined that it was like night and day

but was there ever a time where you fell back to your old ways i mean there was times like it took a lot of motivation and pep talked to myself to get out and do something it'd be times like i wanted to instead of go work out go play video right so i was big in a dirt bike and a four-wheeler. And like when I get off the bus, you can hear the dirt bikes coming to my house. I had the motocross track in my backyard.

Me and the neighbor, he had a freestyle track, I got a dirt bike track. And I get off the bus and be thinking like, all right, I'm about to go do my homework. I need to go do a little workout,

lift or something. And you hear him coming. It's like, oh, I want to go ride instead. I want to go ride. But at the same time, like you're a wrestler.

You're a wrestler. I forgot too, which one is first. You know, I let the guys Go ride on my track And I'll do pushups Or whatever And do my homework

Whatever it was I'd do just a little something As long as I get something If I did a little bit of something That's more than the next person Right You know by the time My senior year came around

It was kind of like I still wasn't all in But I was a little more I didn't get all in Until after that second injury In college And the second injury In college was the second injury in college

was the same injury, same leg. Same leg, different injury. What'd you do this time? I snapped my leg in three. How'd it happen? Freak accident.

To this day, I just remember hearing the pop. Was it wrestling? Wrestling. Me and my coach drilling. Just drilling? Very slow drilling

but we had brand new mats so they were super sticky and I had brand new wrestling shoes which were super sticky and I had brand new wrestling shoes which were super sticky and I remember the drill Coach Morgan was like alright so we're going to

work the chain wrestling I shoot a single lay you get the single back when I shoot a double you bump with the hips you snap to your shot he grabbed the single lay I snapped the foot down

he shot the double and I hit him with my hips I fell backwards and he hear a pop but I didn't feel it and he stood over me I remember him standing feet over both sides like don't look down where he said don't look down fell backwards and hear a pop, but I didn't feel it. And he stood over me, I remember him standing over,

feet over both sides like, don't look down. Where he said, don't look down. Now somebody tell you, don't look, you gonna look. I looked and my foot was like pointed like this and it was down. I turned my back, I start arm and crawl, we got a pool on the other side of the door and I'm trying to get to the door

and just drown myself in pain, not a pain kick, I'm trying to get in the pool. I'm trying to get in the pool? I'm trying to drown myself in the DP, I'm trying to drive but like it hurt. Like I was like, I wanna die and I'm trying to get to the door and just drown myself in pain out of pain because I'm trying to get in the pool I'm trying to drown but like it hurt I was like I want to die so I'm just going I remember flipping me over you trying to drown

this shit will go to your mind when shock when shock things that hit you you don't think that's a crazy thing to think I'm going to go drown myself

it hurt Joe you ever snap your leg no no you know the nerves you know how that feels not one spot three spots. So it's like shooting up your whole leg to your back.

It's like all the way to your shoulders. I just want to just over with it. I'm just going to go jump in the water. Wow. First thing on my mind, I'm going to bear cause to fall in the water. That's a crazy instinct, man. That wasn't the most sane kid, but that was the most certain. First thing on my mind, go find the water.

Just end it. And they flipped me over. And I remember they threw it up on a punching bag. So it had nothing to do with the old injury. Nothing to do with it. Oh, it's a completely different spot. Just a totally different spot. Probably like four or five inches up from the old injury.

Because it just snapped. Freak accident. That's what they kept saying in the hospital. It's a freak accident. So what did they do then? Go to the hospital that day and they snapped. I remember the guy that snatches it back. Pulls it and snatches it and lines all the bones up.

And they put it. Like, we're putting it in the cask now, but you got to get plates and pins to set this straight. And that one I was out for, again, that was October 27th. And I came back. I got the release back January 13th or 14th. It was like a little bit before a regional. And we didn't have a heavyweight all year because I got hurt

and the other guys got kicked out of school or whatever. So three months-ish and you were back? Yeah, this one healed and you were back well i wasn't back but i was cleared to start drilling i remember begging the coach like coach just let me come back i can save with six points because every time one guy don't wrestle that's automatic six did they have to put plates in your shin i'm on the side of my leg i got a plate you can feel it if you bring your hand up down it's like all bent up and from now all the wars and shit, kicks and wrestling. It's like all wobbly, bent, warped, holes, all kinds of stuff. From getting kicked? Getting kicked in it from wrestling.

People do foot sweeps. You ever get an x-ray of it to see what it looks like? I haven't had an x-ray in forever. I like to see what it looks like. It'd be pretty bad by now. I remember my first tournament when somebody foot swept me. Oh, my goodness. That feeling.

Like a guy had me me an underhook and he kicked that plate and i just fell like he didn't kick my foot i just fell because it's the first time you feel it and that pain slip you've never felt it right your nerves run up and down that so when it hit and everything just shut i just fell and he pinned me i was like coach like what's wrong like yo my leg gave i'm still on the mat like i don't know what the fuck happened and like your nerves are turning so i'm like you got nerves on the side of the leg you run up the plate what he did he probably kicked it right and hit the plate and another thing i had to get in my mind said like this is gonna happen often you just gotta be able to

toughen it up and just go through it yeah you have a an extra vulnerable spot now yeah yeah and have you been low leg kick there a lot oh yeah a little fight he did it like four times same spot low leg kick it's just like i said I got to a point now Where I just deal with it That was in 2007 This is 2019 It's 12 years of dealing with it You get to a point Where it's kind of like

It's not really a pain anymore It's just a Just a pesky injury You feel it Some of those injuries They'll go in After it's healed up And take the plate out

They said they can Do you want to do that? But to do that Because I got the broken pins Because those pins are so broke They got to cut like A whole section out of my leg, which means I'll be out of commission for a long time. I'm like, I'm used to it now. Is there any benefit if they do that?

I get my whole leg back. That's it. I get my leg back. That's the only benefit. Like I said, I can train, right? Yeah. It's just going to bother you. I deal with it.

When I retire, we do all that. But right now, there's no problem. Wow. So you have this shift in high school. You make it to senior year, and you're a different person night and day, but you're still not the Corey Anderson of today. Mm-hmm. So the second injury, what does the second injury do for you when you snapped it?

The second injury, that was just, I mean, that just, because I didn't get to show what I can do. It motivated me that much more that when I come back, I got to be undeniable. I got to show, I got to do, like, nobody knows what I can do because I didn't make it to state my senior year in high school. Right. But then we went to team state, and I pinned the guy that took fourth in state.

So I knew I could do it, but I just didn't make it there. So when I got hurt my freshman year, that was the year i was going to show people core answer what y'all used to know what you think this isn't this then i got hurt and it kind of set me back you know it was in my mind i was very i was sad like i remember being at home i was emotionally sad but when i went to go back and i couldn't focus on wrestling i just put my mind on schoolwork and that's when I figured out I can do schoolwork. I finished my freshman year with a 3.25 GPA after missing like three, four

months. I had to make up everything and take tests. And that's when I realized I can do that too. So that was the more thing I got, the thing I got out of that injury. Not so much the athletic part. I was motivated to work even harder next year, but I found the fact that I can do schoolwork if I want to. Again, it's just a

mental thing i have to take the time to study i've never i had never studied before that ever didn't do any homework it was i borrow somebody's homework or take somebody's nose and try to fill in answers just to get something to say it was a completion credit but when i had nothing to do i couldn't wrestle i couldn't you know i couldn run. I couldn't go play basketball in the back. But everybody else, it was the only thing I could focus on now was school. At the time I came back, my GPA dropped like two point something because I hadn't been in class for so long. So I had to get all that up before the end of the year and finish with a 3.0 at least. And I finished with a 3.25. So that was my, to make academic All-American was my, that was my highlight of my freshman year.

I didn't get to wrestle All-American, but I had the academic All-American. That's something I can work on because as a kid, my parents, my mom in eighth grade bet me $100 I wouldn't graduate. My own mother, and she's my mom's biggest motivation ever. Before my son came here, my mother was the hand that pushed me over everything. She's always, my dad comes with the work ethic. My mom was always, make sure you do things right. You can do this, this, and this. Always helped me.

I struggle with reading. She's helped me learn how to read faster, read better, and do things to the best of my ability in the academic world. Because sports and hard work is going to be there, but education is something you can always fall back on. So, but I was just so bad. And I lived next door to the middle school, so I was bad. The eighth grade year, they opened a new middle school up the street from my house. So I would mess up from school. I don't do homework.

I don't know why. I think I would get away with it. I'm getting out of class. My mom's sitting in the principal's office. Because it was nothing for a walk for her. They called. Like, Corey didn't do his homework again because she was on it. She would call.

Like, if Corey messed up in school, call me. She had me in summer camp. I had to go to summer school one year when I passed all my classes because she wanted me to get that fact. Like, just because you pass,

they let you pass. Don't mean you did good. You passed, but you're going to learn how to work. You're going to... But that was another thing. I didn't have the mentality

that my mom wanted me to have when it come to working for academics and stuff. So what made you do that? What was the shift that caused that from the the injury the second I said when the second I had nothing else to focus on it was either that or become a bum at the school sit in my room skipping class and fell out so I had to get my grades up if I wanted to wrestle next year so it probably been something that was bothering you already it didn't bother me I didn't care

that my grades because as long as i was athletic doing athletics the way like it's kind of like the movies if you're competing and they know you're good you're assets of the team the teachers help you they try to they don't give you but they'll help you out you got questions ask questions they won't fail you right you know if they can do everything they can to make sure i learn so were you realizing because the injury that maybe your athletic career wouldn't be there and you needed you needed to get this education. If I did, because now I didn't have the help I had in class. When I was an athlete, they helped me a little bit more.

But now I'm not wrestling, it's kind of like my GPA doesn't matter for the team anymore. And I have been missing from school for so long when I came back. It's kind of like now I got a lot to make up for. I just got to do it on my own. I was studying. That's all I had, class and my dorm room. Class and my dorm room. From that point on, from that injury, then's all i had class in my dorm room class from that point on from that

injury then you you get your academic work in order and you start being disciplined in all areas of your life and you feel like that carried over to your athletics as well everything works together yeah everything works for one thing and yeah talk about that okay like first thing we learn at orientation the college coach comes to us. We go in the room like, guys, we got your athletic scholarship, but you're here as a student athlete. And I remember going back and coaching at the same college and him giving the same speech. And he write it on the board, student athlete. We're going to make it in two parts. First part, student.

Second part, athlete. So we're going to write it on the board. What does this mean? So first priority, school. After that, next priority, athletics to me. After that, you got your family. Then it's making sure you stand out of trouble. And that the last thing, the very most important thing when you come to college is just social life.

The rest of that, everything else comes first. And at the end, then you worry about your friends and trying to be cool and all that extra stuff. You know, I'm 17 when I went to college. I graduated high school at 17. So I'm young. I'm not even an adult. But in my mind, I'm on my own. I'm doing what I want, blah, I'm 17 when I went to college. I graduated high school at 17. So I'm young. I'm not even an adult. But in my mind, I'm on my own. I'm doing what I want, blah, blah, blah.

I'm showing out. I'm being an ass, you know. Right. Not like getting in trouble, but not paying attention to school. I'm not worried about the student part. I'm just an athlete. They're not going to ask questions, act like I'm struggling. And they're trying to help me out, you know.

But I know they're not going to give me an F because I'm trying. But I really wasn't. I'm asking questions. I'm sitting in front of class. So you're not going to give me an F, but they're going to make sure I don't. I'm eligible to wrestle, but I'm not going to fail. Right. So when you get injured, you realize that ain't there no more because you ain't got nothing to wrestle for.

You all school now. So now you can't say I got practice, so I can't study. Was that a big eye opener for you when you realized that you can do good at school too? Yes, 100%. Because in your whole life, when you didn't try, you didn't care. And they had that no child left behind pretty much. Before they made it an official thing, it was always there. Because I know I didn't do enough in school, but somehow I graduated every year.

Somehow I graduated because there's always one teacher, one person that looked out for me. Like I said, I've been blessed to have that. In middle school, as Mr. Vermette, to this day, we still talk. I go home, we have lunch, breakfast, whatever. Really? Yes. If it wasn't for her, I probably would have dropped out of high school. That's cool.

Yeah. That's very cool. So in college, now your athletic career is in order. You're getting your schoolwork in. What was it that made you even consider being an MMA fighter? Ben Askren. Yeah. Funky Ben.

Funky Ben. And I didn't even consider. He tricked me. How did he trick you? I mean, all through college, I had teammates that did MMA. They all wrestled. But when it was over, they all was amateur MMA fighters. Of course, you should try it.

Like, your movement and stuff, you're so light on your feet and fast. Your weight, You can kill it But I got a metal plate In my leg bro I had a toe on my shoulder I got some injuries I wouldn't be good I'd be laid up too much

Like I didn't like What you think This isn't this Denied it Denied it Denied it My senior year Fifth year senior

Ben comes up He started working with me And Ben was like One of my main Wrestling partners And kind of like you said With Lemon Chaco Like you got somebody

You go to punch He's not there Ben's the same way in wrestling and I used to try to pick his brain how do you do this like I'd be dead to right

on a double leg pick you up in the air I go to take you down I land on my face and you're nowhere to be found you on my back how does that happen that's why they call me

the funk man the king of the funk the same hair come in practice with the sandals kick it off put his shoes on he just looked like

a floppy guy like his guy that's the crazy thing about him he doesn't look physically imposing at all this has been in his sandals, kick it off, put his shoes on. He just looked like a floppy guy. That's the crazy thing about him. He doesn't look physically imposing at all. My first time going like, this is Ben. No, I'm about to blow

through this dude. Hit him with a double A, gone. Every time. High crotch, gone. I took him down, I think, one time in my college career.

Clean takedown. And it's just like, what the? And after college, I was like, I want to do the Olympics, bro. And you've been there, but I don't know

any freestyle rules. Oh, we can work together, whatever. do the Olympics, bro. And you've been there. But I don't know any freestyle rules. Oh, we can work together, whatever. Him and my coach both wrestled at the Olympic level. Working together. And then one day he sent me an address. Like, oh, I'm not making it here today, but meet me here at this address. And we'll work, blah, blah, blah. Bring your gear.

I get up there. And it's Rufus Sport. But it's outside of a bank. It's still, like, it's underneath a bank, downstairs. Yeah, I've been to that spot. So I'm looking like, where the fuck is, where am I going? And I text him like, oh, go to the side, it's downstairs. You're going to see the sign, Rufus Sport, this and this.

And I walk down the stairs like, what is, he must have mats in here or something. And I go in there, and you got UFC there doing, Anthony Pettis doing a jump-off kick, making some photo for the magazine or whatever. And you got, like, Pascal Crues and Sergio Pettis. You got Ben Asher. It was a few other, Eric Koch, other UFC guys. I'm looking like, what is going on? All these guys hitting pads.

They got MMA practice. And Ben ran out to K. Oh, hey, I'm glad you can make this and this. This ain't no wrestling gym. What is this? He's like, oh, yeah, well, I want to talk to you about that. Welcome to the new sport. What?

What? It's like, I mean mean I know I heard you say You didn't want to fight Whatever But bro I think you could be good I just want you to try If you don't like it

After you try it We'll go back to wrestling Blah blah blah This and this I'm like Alright And I go to the front desk And the lady I meet at the front desk

To introduce me Was my wife now Didn't know that Jenny's just at my desk Like what is So I get the gear They give me some gloves And whatever

And I was like You know I really don't want to do Like the training So I just decided to watch I hit the bag a little bit I'm just watching And at the time This is where my mind

Was already set You got an opportunity You got to try it But I didn't try it that day I remember driving home It was an hour and a half drive Whole drive I'm at myself

Like you a bitch Talking to myself Like you a bitch Corey You didn't do that You had an opportunity You didn't even take it You a bitch I can't believe you didn't do that

So I get home I tell Ben Like I'm sorry I didn't try it But I'd like to do it again bitch, Corey. You didn't do that. You had an opportunity. You didn't even take it. You're a bitch. I can't believe you didn't do that. So I get home. I tell Ben, like, I'm sorry I didn't try, but I'd like to do it again. Like, well, it's good because tomorrow morning, 9 a.m., we up there. I get up early, 7.35, motorcycle up, shoot all the way up to Milwaukee. I get there. Duke Roof is open. Oh, Corey, nice to meet you. I heard about you.

This and this. Like, I came yesterday, but I didn't do it, but I want to try it today. I just watched. Like, well, that's good. I'm glad you came. Like, why is that? Like, stay sparring day like spar

with no sparring at all ever before I did amateur boxing when I broke my leg I did like boxing at a gym for rehab cause my brother-in-law

was a professional boxer at the time and I had two amateur fights and um so I had that and I came with my gloves and everything but old ratty

title gloves falling apart and all I got was my gloves and everything, but old ratty title gloves falling apart. And I got my gloves and my shorts. I go, we got gear. We get you stuff. Head gear and shin pads, this and this. They gave me two opposite combat corner shin pads. One was like a youth and one was like an extra loss. And one comes to my knee and one covered like half my shin.

Like this old raggedy head gear. And they got a mouthpiece. Like, yeah, man, that's all you need. So we're going to spar. So my first time I go with Ben. So Ben, you know, taking it easy on me. Boom got a mouthpiece? Yeah. That's all you need. So we're going to spar. So my first time, I go with Ben. So Ben, you know, taking it easy on me. Boom, boom, I punch him. He shoot on me.

I defend it in MMA. It's different. I can sprawl a lot harder. All right, well, there you go. Now we're going to put you with somebody else. Of course, it's Anthony Pettis. He's too small. I'm like, what do you need to feel like to get kicked?

What? Pow! Ah! What the? What the? Ah! He just kept kicking my leg and I grabbed him

he's like what do you do like I'm a wrestler I said take him down and I took him down alright you too big for Anthony you're gonna hurt him and he put me with a heavy weight he said nah I want you to take

everything you did you was punching Ben and you took him down took down Anthony and do everything with this guy your size and I fucking just hit him with a bunch of jab crosses

blast double on the punch just like didn't even know ground but just hit him like and just stand like and standing up and doing it again I did it again

I kept doing it doing it doing it and when it was over he was like alright there you go your first sparring session out of the way

and I hate to tell it I heard you kept saying you're not a fighter but you are an MMA fighter and I can tell you right now been working with a lot of guys you could be in the UFC

in three fights yeah right whatever I'm dead serious in three fights so what you got and your mentality from what I've seen in wrestling if you put it this, you could be in the UFC in three fights.

Whatever. But I like that. I like the training, and I kept coming back, and I never wrestled again. So what year is this? This was 2012, right after college. That's not that long ago, man. Oh, my first fight. I didn't debut until 2013.

You're a top-level MMA fighter in one of the most most talent rich divisions, in the light heavyweight division. And you've only been doing it for seven years. I was in the UFC with seven months fighting. After my first fight, seven months. And I was in the top ten within a year. That's the thing. So I'm learning. I didn't have an amateur career.

I had three fights. The ultimate fighter won that. Top ten inside a year of all MMA training. That's it. That's why people keep talking this shit about like they don't understand i ain't did this like most of these guys i look at pictures of guys i've been training with i got guys at the gym now that's still amateurs they pose a throwback thursday my senior year in college i have a throwback picture it'd be me in college in 2007

it'd be them like their third or fourth mma fight it's like and these guys are still amateur how old are you now i'm 29 dude you're still not even really in your prime your problem is like 31 32 like i said i'm coming i'm learning now you are learning now but it's crazy that you were in a top 10 a year into mma training because we always cite francis and gano that francis and gano is one of the craziest stories ever the guy goes from no mma training at all to five years later fighting for the title. You know, at like, but he's, what you did is as impressive.

The fact that you hit top 10 with a year of MMA training, that's bananas, man. Even in the tough house, I remember the guys, like you can hear them in the kitchen. We was all talking about,

oh, what's your background? This, this, and this. I went on tough with four or five months experience. Had my three fights back to back to back. And I remember my coach was pushing it, that third fight. We got to back. And I remember my coach was pushing it,

that third fight. We got to get this third fight. Why are you pushing it so hard? And then when it was over, they were like, all right, this is why we had to get that last fight. Ultimate Fighter Trials is next Tuesday in Indiana. You're going, fuck out of here.

I got to work. This is, I ain't going nowhere. And they called me Monday night like, yo, what are you doing? Like, I'm at work. I work night shift. I don't get off till one. And when he get off,

meet me at my house like, what? Like, we're going to Indiana. Like, I'm not, I'm going meet me at my house like what we're going to indiana like i'm not i'm gonna get to usg if i'm gonna do it i'm gonna go to harway no all right i'll see you at my house hung up the phone i get off i go i was like bro what the fuck you talking about he jumped in the driver's like get in like what are you talking about so you were saying you want if you get in you want to go the hard way i mean you earned from not doing the ultimate fight yeah i wanted to like get enough fights and somebody see me like all right here's your take a short notice fight or whatever that was a fantastic opportunity for exposure and exactly but in my mind i just started three four months i'm thinking like i'm just beating up cans i don't think i'm ready yet right but they say like corey we see you man like you

you have the opportunity to beat these guys like you being this guy he's been training forever he's been pro he's been bellator dustin's been pro. He's been Bellator. Dustin Jacoby was my first sparring partner when I went to Illinois. He had been a UFC Bellator. He's doing great in glory now. Yeah. And that was one of my first. And I was taking him down and ground and pound, but striking, I didn't have that. But all you got to do is use your takedowns, man.

You're taking everybody down. You're doing good. Use that. And I left. When I went there, whatever, my coach was like, just go do what you do. I have no doubt they're going to pick you. But the reason they picked me wasn't the same. You know, they picked me thinking it was going to be an easy fight for whoever.

But it's backfired on me because my work ethic, they didn't know me. Right. You know, I was cracking jokes. Like, I can beat anybody you have. And they was laughing. I'm thinking they laughing at my jokes. Come to find out, they tell me at the end, one guy told me, like, you know, when we picked you, we didn't think you could win. After a semifinal, we picked you because we thought you was going to lose to Kelly and us and give him an easy fight in.

And now, look, it kind of backfired. It was like because they didn't know who I was. They didn't know me as a person. And I name dropped Matt Hughes, and I think that was the only reason why I got there. Like, I trained with Matt Hughes here and there, blah, blah. You know Matty? Oh, Matty's our guy. Oh, can you make it to Vegas next week?

I'm like, I can make it yesterday if you would have told me. I'm like, well, pack your bags. You're going. Wow. And that was it. But the thing is, even though you were a year in, you were so many years into wrestling. And I think to this day that wrestling is the most important skill in MMA

because you get to dictate where the fight takes place. The superior wrestler gets to decide. Every fight starts standing up, and you have to know how to strike. But a superior wrestler gets to dictate where the fights take place. And you see that with guys like Khabib. You see that with so many superior grapplers. When they get a hold of a guy, their dominance is one of the most important aspects of fighting. So you did have all that.

Mm-hmm. I had the strike, the basic striking in wrestling. But like I said, when I came to meet Mark Henry and Ricardo Almeida, that's what took me into a martial arts. So that's only two years into your training. That wasn't even two years. That was a year and three months. That's why I didn't have it.

Mark tells people all the time. You hear him say it. I hear him tell people all the time. You guys want to see how I work and what happens? Corey. Corey is a pure fighter of what i what i'm coaching because he came here with nothing now you get guys that come to him like lance palmer now he's been fighting so he's won the pfl you got all these guys been fighting 10 12 years before they meet mark so it's

kind of like they just tuning up something you know when you got a guy like me that has nothing the gym i was at we literally like i was at rufus sport for a little bit but i got the college coaching job and had to leave so i met a group group of guys through Mark Fiore at the time, but he ended up leaving to go overseas. And it was probably six of us, and we had to find a guy who owned a warehouse. Like, oh, you can put mats in here and just in the corner, you guys can just train. We didn't have jiu-jitsu practice. We never had striking practice. No Thai practice.

We literally showed up, ground and pound, MMA gloves. We punched each other in the face. We learned how to get out. Sparring, no bridge-ass in sparring. I mean, you got injuries, we don't want to hear it. Just beat the shit out punch each other in the face. We learn how to get out. Sparring, no bitch ass in sparring. I mean, you got injuries, we don't want to hear it. Just beat the shit out of each other until it's over. It was horrible. Winter time, no heat.

We had a little kerosene about this big on the corner of the mat. And we in Illinois. Oh, Jesus. Down in mid-central Illinois, it's freezing. Negative 20, we in there fucking dudes breaking, hit the hand, hit the back, freezing, break the hand. We don't have any insurance. It's us beating the shit out of each other. But we got the opportunity for one of us.

It was three 205ers, but I was the only one that they was going to let go to the ultimate fighter. I had the least amount of fights, but you're the only one that can actually work and make us look good on there. So you get on the ultimate fighter, you meet Mark Henry, you want to win. And then you go from there You go And move to New Jersey Is that what you do? I went home I met Ali on the show

You know Ali was there every day He even said like Bro you're wrestling I like how you're good at wrestling Henzo came on He said like You're wrestling is key

That's when everybody let me know Mark First thing he said You're wrestling They made it known Like wrestling is going to run this And even Ali said right then He was was like, I'll work with you. And you don't even have to sign me as a manager, but I'll help you.

Like, I'll help lead you in the right way with what you need. Because I didn't have anybody to direct me. I knew nothing. Ben Ashman was the only thing I had, but he was in Wisconsin. You know, I'm out here on my own. And Ali, I remember saying, like, if you want to win this show and be the best you can, brother, you need to go to Jersey. And Mark and I already texted him, like, you're more than welcome to come out and train whenever you want.

By the time I had a girl who had a kid and my family and the coaching was my dream job still my dream job and i love that you know i didn't want to leave that for anything what were you coaching your college wrestling at the junior college level and i remember uh that was i only made 220 bucks a week but i worked other jobs to make my dream reality that's what i wanted to do And fight And Holly's like If you want to be the best You want to win this show

The best opportunity you got Man you need to go to Jersey Like I know you got guys there But even my guys told me After the show You need to leave Because we can't do anything for you But I didn't want to

I was so grounded today I didn't want to leave that That's what I knew And When Holly said Bro you got to go I can never live in Jersey It's too fast paced I'm a country boy I like outdoors And this hunting And stuff like that bro you got to go I can never live in Jersey it's too fast-paced I'm a

country boy I like outdoors and this hunting and stuff like that like you need to get to Jersey brother if you want to be the best if you don't want to be the best stay where you are I remember telling my mom like I said I need to go to Jersey my mom said when I was uh in high school my senior year she said if you get the opportunity ever to leave I want you to go far away did you think about going anywhere else like going to Rufusport permanently? That was a thought. That was a thought, but I didn't have the rest. Ben, but that was about it.

I'm a wrestling base, and I fell in love with the way Frankie and them train. I love that. I was looking for something like that. Mark Fiore had that, but when he left, had nowhere else to go. I was thinking, my mom said, if that's what the best is, you need to go be the best. My brother was like, yo, let's go. Mark Henry is such a unique guy that when people start training with him and realizing what he is and then comparing him to other people,

it makes them think, wow, this guy's got something very unique. All the way you're talking about his systems and all the stuff that he writes and the notes. Brendan Shaw was telling me that he trained with him for one fight and he said when he went down there he said like it was like like an eye-opening experience like he didn't know that a coach could be that good yeah and you know the crazy part the reason why mark isn't known the most because you got like freddie rose you got duke rufus all these big game name guys um what's uh the guy at hard knocks 365 or camora usman what's his coach's name uh henry hoofed henry hoofed there you go yeah all these guys but that's all they do throughout the

day so you see them because they work with so many fighters right and it's like that's all they do is coach mma you know mark has a pizza man when i first got it and they said that i didn't know he had owned the pizzeria he should used to say after sparring with the guy it's time to go make the dough. He thought he meant to go to his job and make money. He goes,

oh, I own the pizzeria. And that's his passion. When practice is over we just start at 9.30 because I need to be at my shop by 11. And I got to work with this guy

at 4.30 or 5. So he just mits twice a day. You got 7 o'clock in the morning or 4 o'clock in the afternoon. But through the day he's at the pizzeria. So he just mits twice a day. You got 7 o'clock in the morning or 4 o'clock in the afternoon. But through the day,

he's at the pizzeria. That's his baby. His father-in-law gave that to him. He's passionate about it. He loves it. His whole family and you go there

and you see the family bond. He treats all his employers like family. That's his dream. You got to respect that because he doesn't miss work because of this. Even with my fights,

whatever, he'd come out Thursday. Like, I got to be at the pizzeria all week, but I'd be there Thursday night or Friday morning. Sometimes he'd show up Saturday and fight me. I got a catering job. I can't make it, bro, but I'm going to video chat you and tell you what we need to work on, videotape this workout with such and such,

and I'll tell you what we need to tighten up, and I'll be there Saturday morning or Friday night, and we'll work as much as we can before the fight. It's like a character in a movie. Exactly, and the fact that he's that passionate about that and the MMA. And I remember driving with him to one of our amateur guys' fights. He's driving, watching the film. I'm like, Coach, are you watching the road or are you watching film?

He's like, I got to watch this girl's fight because we had Kaitlyn Shukagan, one of her first pro fights. He's watching fights while he's driving? Watching fights while driving. He gave me a piece of paper and a pen. And he was like, take this down. I was like, what? He was like, I need you to write this down for me. This is what I need.

So he's driving, watching film, and he started calling out stuff. I'm writing it down. He's like, all right, that's the stuff I need to remember for a fight. But he doesn't have the time most guys have to sit and do that through the day. He picked me up from the pizzeria, changed, and we hit the road. So he's like breaking film. And you see somebody so passionate that can do the things he does. And he got so many fighters. Like you said, with the Colts, we got the Russians, we got the Brazilians, and you see somebody so passionate that can do the things he does, and he got so many fighters.

Like you said, with the codes, we got the Russians, we got the Brazilians, and you got us. And everybody, the Russians, their stuff is in Russian. That means this guy's taking time to learn Russian. You go in the basement, he has translation codes. What? Yes, that he understands Russian now. So they write down what this means. He learned Russian?

He learns Russian just to help these guys with stuff. Jesus Christ. You hear me sparring. He be like, howdy, chow. What's up? Howdy, chow. What the hell? What's that?

I'm like, that means pretty good. Like, what the hell? Wow. The Brazilians. How does he learn that? Was he using like Rosetta Stone or something? I think he just have, like I said, they write it down what this means, like basic stuff. And they write down how you say it in Russian.

Oh, wow. That's how Mark is. He's a mad scientist. He's got so many things going on. He can't remember the direction he's going in. He'll be driving. He'll be like, oh, which way am I going? Like, what?

But when it comes to codes, he knows all 10 to 12 fighters. And everybody has a different language and different names. His name is after our family or your dog or something happened when you was a kid. Everything revolves around Something that happened And every fighter Has different codes And he knows everybody's

We line up for rounds At the At the Nickatones In the cage He's in the cage with Frankie Alright Marlon come in

Now it's all Portuguese Then Caitlyn come in Then it's all stuff Related to her Then I come in He knows how to speak Portuguese Yes

He has Codes speak Portuguese? Yes. He has everything. Codes in Portuguese. Everything. Mark is a wizard. Like I said, when I say he's a mad scientist, you don't know any other coaches that take the time to learn the stuff that he does to make his fighters the best. He ain't worried about, like, he wants to win and all that,

but he wants to make sure we are in sync. We in the cage. We talking. It's a foreign language. Like, that's why the Glover fight you hear Dan Hardy one of them say there's no point

in tuning in Corey's corner because we don't know what they're saying everything in like three fights later I won't even know what he said because we didn't

bend so many codes I got to go back and think what was that again do you ever get to a point where he's yelling something out and you don't know

what the code is no because muscle memory because when we hit pass it's never a one two a cross like what would he say if it's not one two like what would it be if it's something in portuguese like uh like for you one would be like i'm trying to think like give me an old one so i'm trying to think uh sink sink that's i can't remember what language

it was but i think that was a hooker or whatever A sink? Not a sink But that was how you say it In their language Oh But what about for you? That was it

Like he would sometimes So he would give you codes in different languages? If I didn't went through everything in English Now we got to switch it up We're working on Russian now That was the last time I was working on Russian stuff So it's kind of like He was giving you Russian codes?

I was like I'm learning too. You know what I'm saying? Like I said, Fede Haracho. I know that means very good now. And certain things he say to them and you figure it out. That's so crazy. So what is his logic behind that? He doesn't want anybody learning the codes.

Just keep you on your toes. Keep you on your toes. Keep you all. You're never getting comfortable with one thing. Because you get into a habit, one habit for the habit. You kind of get comfortable. The guy knows what the eye is closed. Right right you always got to learn something new it keeps you hungry like my friend he used to make me come over i used to do mitts on friday night and then we

would go to the movies but we do mitts from 4 to 5 30 when i first was learning and he'll make me sit at the table he's showering i'll shower whatever he goes i have to study my codes and when he come down he'll be watching tv whatever he'd the kitchen. And he'd take the paper from me. And he'd say something out. And I had to tell him what it meant, like one, two, one, two, left, kick, whatever. So he would say whatever the code was. And I had to know it. And if I messed it up, he'd bring a notepad back, like keep studying.

Wow. It was like he'd take you in like that. He took me in like a son. I'm 12 hours from home. He could have dogged me out. I could have just been there. What is this, Jamie? This is a corner transcript from Eddie's fight. Okay, look some code says yes 73 on the knee 73 on the knee 73 on the knee

you're too much in the front you too much yeah he switches it up down here chain chain chain chain hands up chin down what could be chain takedowns together it could be anything could be anything yeah no no chris chain chain chain chin down that ain't chain Take downs together It could be anything Could be anything Yeah No No cause chain chain chain Chin down That ain't a take down He told him something

For standing That's a standing call Like you never know 73 What the fuck is 73 Keep saying 73 What does that mean I couldn't

73 That could be anything For Eddie Cause Eddie don't Let's see some people 226 226 73 Like I said How weird.

So he's got numbers for him. I mean, we all got numbers. Yeah. We all have numbers. But if you're doing a code, when it's a combo, he makes it a code. If it's a single thing, he'll say, but it's not your normal one, two. Or it might be sync or if it's, what's another? He gave me Croatian once.

Croatian. Yeah. And that took me forever i don't know what it is it's just like russian it's taken now but it's like you don't know it but you learn let me ask you this so say if you have a fight scheduled now so someone the ufc calls you up and they say hey cory we got another one for you it's in eight weeks with this guy so that's when you'll start learning the newest codes we work codes right away after the last fight he said we sit down and watch the fight and we hear what we call so and we see how we reacted to it after that fight then you go to a new code we work the new stuff like right away as soon as you start training again new code already changed it up so when it's time to get in the camp that's the thing it's like people that don't stay in the gym after a fight when they first get in camp they spend the first half of camp getting in shape right same thing so if we don't have the codes then we have to first spend the first

four or five weeks just trying to understand each other i'm not really hitting pads right i'm messing up he'll say something i'll throw a cross when he meant a hook or i'll throw a kick what are you doing that was a jab like i don't know like so we spend that first time just shadow boxing cost figuring it out figuring it out for a few weeks we watch and film together and we go back like you see how you did it when you did this one? It was this language. That's what this is in that language. So it's just like study hall in college. You're figuring it out.

And he has codes for footwork as well? Everything. Everything. You would never hear him say shot. You would never hear him say jab. You would never hear him say head movement. And so it's all in different languages and where did he learn all this from is this his own system i never asked i never asked that's i don't ask

questions i just do it that's that's smart if you talk to brandon shop shop shop was blown away by it he's like i never seen anything like it rashad evan said the same thing i was gonna say rashad came down when he fought sam alvey i remember that can't and we linked up and trained after he's like bro he said i don't even know if i've been if i even did anything i won the world championship but mark make it feel like i'm a rookie like i don't know what i'm doing yeah we're talking about he was saying codes and i was like doing everything wrong and in my mind it's kind of like you start doubting yourself yeah because you can't get it right well by the end of it you do it so much like he says tandem dance well there's something About guys who take things To a totally new level

And that's what he seems to do You know with his coaching He loves it He loves it You can tell You can tell The way he treats fighters The way he

The way he corners fighters And you know man You guys got a fucking Incredible camp right now Everybody say We got a team We got a family Fourth of July

You know where everyone's Going to be on Fourth of July. Mark's house. Everybody's invited. If you've been there and trained with us, you get an invite. Hey, bro, if you were there that weekend, the week before, next week, Fourth of July, we're doing a big party at my house. Come on, bro. I got to go back to such and such.

Or you can make it back, bro. Open invite. You're more than welcome. Come hang out. We'd love to have you there. I remember when I was in Wisconsinisconsin like we hung out with anthony pettis and duke rubis and all those ufc guys that in the gym but i'll never remember seeing them outside like we say in the fight house but i've never seen them outside the gym it's not that way

in our house like i was talking to frankie last weekend was all eating or something oh and i was finished training stretching he said something about a party i'm like i still ain't never been invited to a new year's party like bro it's always invite. Everybody's invited to my house. You just never came. I'm like, oh, he's like, you know where I live. Your wife's over at my house all the time. You just never came. It's always an open invite. Like, we know where each other live. You know, I have my way to invite everybody

over. Everybody show up. So how did he get in touch with the Russians? Like, how does Zabit get over there? I think with Ali. Ah, that makes sense. Yeah. I mean, most of our guys come from ali i think everybody on our team is managed by ali now except for uh blind fighter but like i said except for who caitlin shukagan blind fighter you call her blind fighter that's her name that's her name blind fighter kc killer kc i call her because she's ruthless she is you see a little pretty

good and i've seen her like knock guys out multiple times in the gym. Really? Multiple times. I'm very interested in Marlon. Marlon Moraes versus Henry. The birthday boy. Happy birthday, Marlon. It's today's birthday. Today's birthday. Happy birthday, Marlon.

Even though it's on feed tonight. He was one of those guys, when he was fighting for World Series of Fighting, I was very interested in him coming over to the UFC. I was like, this guy's got legit skills. He's something special. He was smashing people. But he wasn't crushing cans.

He was beating real good guys. The way he was moving and the things he was doing, I was like, this guy's world class. I took Tamar on the show. He was one that helped me understand the way the pro with the manager and the payments. I had no I knew nothing. Like I said, I was in a gym.

He taught me how to do it. How to stuff work. We sit in sauna. He was talking about Ali. He's like, Oh bro, Ali's a good guy. Cause I wasn't,

I didn't know this guy. He's like, I'll help you out. This and this. And I asked him like, what'd you think about Ali? He's like, Oh,

he's my man. He's great brother. This is this, you know, he was way it works. Cause you get your purse and you break a certain percentage off to these people. You take the percentage.

And then we got to camp. This is breaking me down how their camp worked before i was coming out there so i had an understanding like how to get paid like you you they're gonna offer this if you get to ufc your first night off 10 and 10 or this organization is this and this and here's telling like you just can't let people take advantage you things i didn't know right you know because marlon was just super friendly he's a nice guy. Like now, if I went home right now, I'm sure him and his wife might be able to wear my wife and the baby, just hanging out with the puppy.

We're just a tight-knit family like that. That's awesome. Bro, what's going on with you in the fight? Like I heard this, I heard that, I saw this, I saw that. Don't let people get to you. This isn't this. Don't let them talk you into doing this. Don't let somebody get to you where you react like this.

Keep your head, brother. Like you're good. You're going to be the champ. I see you train. I know what you do. Keep your head, brother. Like, you're good. You're going to be the champ. I see you train. I know what you do. I know what you're capable of. You're good. You're translating so well from where you were to where you are now.

So, like I said, he's one of my – him and Frankie Edgar. Frankie Edgar are my two mentors in the fight game. Couldn't get two better mentors. If I need a question from any of you guys, I'll message them. Then you got Eddie Alvarez as well. I don't see Eddie as much. I see him. Eddie comes up like three, four times a week, but I see Frankie and Marlon every day.

How does Eddie like being over at 1FC? I think they treat him. I never ask them about it. You know, I'm not the type to ask questions. I don't like being in other people's business, so I don't ask, what do you think about this? What do you think about that? He told me when he came back from his first trip, I was like, bro, it's crazy. They treat me like a king.

What do you mean? He was like, me and Jamieie flodder i was like yeah that plane y'all was gonna look nice like yeah bro 32 000 or something for a ticket and i was like what damn that's crazy like that's each it was like 32 000 something like that it was like some asian airline first class and he was like they gave us like steaks and all it was amazing bro it was great like it was good and that's all I ever heard All I hear is good things Yeah All I hear is good things

About the way they treat the fighters The mentality that Chaudhry has And the way he runs the organization Very very impressed Yeah Like I said It's up and coming I'm glad it's doing well

When it first started I used to say Oh it's not going to be around They're not going to have backers They're throwing too much money Right in the get go In the way But now here we are

Huge success Five, six years later when they started. It's as big as the UFC or bigger worldwide. I mean, they're gigantic over in Asia. And people making money.

I know he was telling one of our teammates that was in the PFL turning 85. They're not doing 85 this year. He's like, what am I supposed to do now? I heard Eddie say,

I mean, I can have my guy talk to you. We can try to get you into one. I heard him saying, like, bro, he told me I can make some good money over there. I'm trying to do that. Hey, gotta worry about you and your family, bro. have my guy talk to you. We can try to get you into one. I heard him saying, like, bro, he told me I can make some good money over there. I'm trying to do that. Hey, got to worry about you and your family, bro.

Do what's best for you and yours. Well, I mean, worldwide, I think they're on a collision course with the UFC in terms of, like, notoriety and popularity. I mean, in Asia, it's already bigger. You know, it's something, something special. And, you know, you see with with the guy That Natsukin guy That Eddie fought They have world class fighters Over there

And those are That's a world I mean you knock out Eddie Alvarez You're a world class fighter And a first round Yeah Yeah

Very impressive And even the guy That Mighty Mouse fought He gave him trouble Guy's good You know They got good fighters Over there

Real world class fighters There's so many Good fighters now You know And then also They have You know Yadson Clies Fighting over there Real world class fighters There's so many good fighters now You know And then Also they have You know Yadson Clies fighting over there Nikki Holdskin

They got world class kickboxers And Muay Thai fighters Fighting in And then even They're even doing grappling matches Yeah I mean I love what they're doing That's why they mix it all together

I love it Like Bellator did the kickboxing MMA But now And they had two different rings for it But One do it all In one On one night

It's like MMA And now it's a kickbox Now they got grappling They're going back It's cool Keep you on your toes Only thing I don't like Is how early it's fucking

In the morning Right Like two, three o'clock I got to set an alarm To get up to see it I'm going to sleep You got to take the good with the bad They're in Singapore

Or wherever they are In different countries Whatever they hold their events I just think it's so important For fighters to have options, to have so many different places, to have Bellator. And now that Rory McDonald went over to Bellator and Gegard Mousasi and world-class guys.

Ryan Bader. Yeah. Ryan Bader is a heavyweight. It's a beast. Crazy. You see him knock out Fedor in the first round. You're like, what the fuck? Amazing.

He's doing his thing. Happy for him. Phil Davis. I'm just happy to see that fighters have options. Not just the UFC. It's good for the UFC. It's good for everybody. In my mind, people say, oh, did you ever think about going Bellator 1?

In my mind, it's great fighters everywhere. But right now, I still think the number one in all of it is in the UFC. The number one martial artist in the UFC. And right now, that's my goal. The money and all, all that's all great but i'm here to be the best i can go to one and make a killing i can go to bellator and get my sponsors back but i'm in no rush to leave here because i want to be the best yeah like after i prove that if there's nothing else and then it's like okay now i'm ready for the money then that's maybe an option but there's no contest in terms of prestige there's no contest if you get the ufc title you're the best that's... There's no contest. In terms of prestige, there's no contest.

If you get the UFC title, you're the best. That's it. There's no question. Like, oh, what about the Bellator? This, this, and this, because the Bellator champ lost to Jon Jones already. Especially in your division. In your division, you have one of the best guys of all time, if not the best guy of all time as a champion.

So when you see a guy like john at the top of the heap is that is that motivating to you to just ramp up it even harder because you realize that the guy who's a champion in your division is not just the best light heavyweight of all time maybe the best martial artist of all time it ramps up so much like i'm riding the bike in my basement i got the aerodrome bike and stationary bike and I got the projector. And I'm down there, only thing I know is Fight Pass.

And I'm watching Fight Pass and I'm usually watching John Jones. You know, to see him dominating other guys and you just hear that bike, you can hear the pedals

start picking up when he gets into like a brawl or something crazy. And like, I don't even be looking down at the clock but I can just hear the air,

the fan picking up. And I don't even realize it until like it goes to break and I slow it down and I'm heart-wrenched. And I'm just watching just like that's like if I want to get there I got to

I got to beat him to be the best so I need to work hard because that's what he does what's your take on him you can't take away what he does in the sport what is his outside

his personal life that's all he say she say I have my words after the the California stuff we went to 226 or whatever the fight was

in vegas and got moved here because of his lifestyle the drug test and all that extra stuff however you want to code it up it's past you know i'm done with it but i had my words there the fact he kept using god and jesus and this is this and i'm a god-fearing guy who read my bible every morning and i don't like the fact that you can that he would do that i'm like i'm not learning now but at the time my words was the fact that you can that he would do that. I'm not going to say I'm not on it now, but at the time, my words was the fact that he did that. And then at the same time, I went on an interview with him, so I want to thank God. That kind of rubbed me wrong.

And then we flew on the plane together, and like I said, I saw the way he was acting when he came on the plane, like, we're not doing this because of him. Like, all that at the time bothered me. And that was a pent up energy. And that was something else going into that fight. That was something on my shoulders, because I had posted something. because when UFC called me right before I got on the flight,

they was like, oh, don't come. I'm on my way to Vegas now. I got my wife. She's eight months pregnant. She's 30 weeks, whatever. She can't travel after this. She's struggling.

We hauling bags and y'all call me and I'll say, don't come. This and this. Go back home. We're going to fly you out again. I'm not doing this again.

Then when they get there, well, we can get you here but we get you to Cali but we can't take your wife. Like, what like what like well you we pay your ticket and the coach ticket like no fuck that all because john jones is that that's what got me mad so they were trying to save money by not flying people because we was we was literally walking down the runway to the plane when they called me jesus when i turn around but then when we got like okay you come here but we can get you to cali we can't get your wife to Cali

Like My wife is 30 weeks pregnant She's here with me She's coming Like well We don't know what to do Because you bought her a ticket Like what do you mean

You don't know what to do Get her another ticket Like I pay for my family What about the people That's on the way right now Like oh they gotta find their own way And that made me run Fight week

Fight week The week of the fight The thing of the things That you have to think about You know To be fucking with that. That's the last thing I need to worry about. God damn.

And then I get there. And they tell me, when you get, make sure you got your workout. If you don't have your workout scheduled at the PI, set already. As soon as you get there, go do it. I did mine like a month and a half ahead of time. I'm all, like I said, I'm punctual. Like, I like having stuff done. Yeah.

I'm getting ready to go to the PI. I'm packing my bags and I get a call. Oh, you can't come to the PI Why? John just came in And said he want to work out So we closing the gym down You're not allowed Y'all called me two months ago

And told me to set my schedule To come ahead of time I'm literally getting ready To walk to my Uber That's outside And you say I can't come now Like I'm sorry Nothing we can do is John

Why can't you work out At the same place Where John's working out You're not fighting John. It's the same thing when Connor's there. When I'm there in the summer and Connor shows up,

they're coming to tell everybody, you got to leave. Like, what? What? Connor just rolled up. Really? You walk out and Connor just has his car parked up

on the sidewalk. Come on. Yeah, they have security guards to block the stairs off and everything. Get the fuck out of here. You're not allowed to go up there. Ew.

I'm telling you. Yes. Ew. Ew, exactly. That's gross. You walk out and like, you heard somebody say. That's a big place

Yeah But you can go to the cardio room And the weights But you can't use the upstairs Where the cage and the bag and stuff is You can't use the If he's in the cage They have security

You can't use the bags So you can't go up there What the fuck is that about That's just The people I don't know That's not my people I'm an independent contractor sir

But Yeah like that stuff It kind of Rubbed me wrong. And that's when it was kind of like, if I was a champ, I wouldn't want that. No. You know what I mean? I want people to be able to see what I'm doing. Maybe it's the security.

They can watch me and see. I don't know. I mean, you know, you got to think about how much death threats that guy must get. How much shit he must take. You know, he's as popular as he is, as famous as he is. Maybe he just has overzealous security. Maybe. And they just want to tighten it down so they don't want anybody up there yeah they kept i was so that was the first time i've ever cursed at a ufc employee yeah like my i was curt like going off like y'all mongering me to change my whole workout schedule fight week

i'm cutting weight too you know like it's not just john yeah like we in the same division i'm gonna fuck about nine i don't care what are you doing i need to go up there and get a workout my coaches meet me there from the airport but we can't do a fuck about none of that I don't care what he's doing I need to go up there And get a workout My coaches meet me there From the airport But we can't do nothing About it Corey And the guy kept hanging up Because I was going off

That is ridiculous And they would call me back And I was like And then people would hit me up Like I'm glad you're actually Voicing yourself I'm hearing around The PR right now

Everybody talking about How you're mad And somebody texts me Like I'm glad you're actually Speaking up Because everybody else Is kind of like okay Like no

Like if it wasn't for my wife Being there I probably wouldn't Take this thing But I see the way she's struggling To carry this belly around And she's hurting You know

Of course Eight months Yeah She could give birth at any moment Anytime Yeah So the stress I'm sure is like

All that My baby's ill Even worse Sure I'm really Yeah It was ramping me up And my wife came like

Corey just stop Calm down It'll be okay This isn't this Like it ain't the fact of being okay It's the fact that they letting one person Dictate it all Yeah Like we're all equal right now they treat us like a number he's john jones but we're number 4722 right i mean i don't like that he's john i'm corey like i was

telling will on the way here reason i love rose nominators because i've never seen that from her she's a champ but you would see her and she'd act just like rose before when she was an evictus she doesn't change i don't want no special treatment from her or from anybody if i was a champ treat me the same yeah you know i mean some people are different like i said i don't know if it's john or his camp that was doing that or ufc's doing or security or what but it rubbed me wrong that we aren't equal anymore. No, that's understandable. But that's also got to give you some motivation. Exactly. Like I told him in the area of the one, I was sitting on the plane and I was literally

directly behind John Jones. And I see his head bobbing. I was just looking. I looked at my wife and she's like struggling, like falling asleep, but struggling to fall asleep. And I looked at the top of his head, the back of his head. I was just like, it's time for a change of the torch. Like my brother always said, like, you're good And you know you can beat everybody

But I feel like When it comes to those top guys Like John, Jones, and Gus You doubt yourself Just a little bit You ain't sure That you can get them yet You know you're good

But you feel like This is before Like before the earlier fight You get there And you You feel like You don't think you're ready for that But I'm telling you

I watched you bro I know what you made of You can do it And when I sat there And saw him bobbing And all the frustration Going through my mind Six o'clock in the morning we had to get up and catch a plane because this guy this is this they show up on time he still was late today and it was just like i if i'm the champ i don't want this you know i mean i don't want no special treatment

if you tell me sign up ahead of time and keep your schedule i expect that if we get down the scale first come first sir first come first first serve. First come, first serve. If I show up late, put me in the order I am. Don't put me up front because I'm a champ. Because I was the first or second person there.

I'm on my way to the scale and John was walking down the stairs fully dressed. We went back to the commission room and I remember people in the blue shirt came and said, hold up, hold up. And all of a sudden,

John come in. He could do all the paperwork. He went on the scale and he was out. He was the last person down. How is he first? It wasn't that big of a deal and he was out he was the last person down how is he first like it wasn't that big of a deal but the fact that

I don't like that well it's because he's headlining the card right yeah so they're giving him a special treat everything that's what they kept saying

it's John Jones every time I got the phone it was John Jones and they hang up like I don't like that he's still a person well

he's the greatest there is but he's still a person it's motivation for you to be Corey Anderson 100% it's Corey Anderson and change the tie it's cory and it's cory anderson but treat me normal don't give me a special treatment beautiful that you have that attitude what when you look at john you look at john skills like what do you think you

need to do if anything different in your life or in your training or where do you need to get to where you think you could beat him just keep getting better like the leo latife fight must have been a big boost for 100 every fight last every fight even the ones i lost has all been a boost could you go back and see tell me a fight that i've been getting beat up joe right i've never been a fight where somebody they all call you too small you're not good there's never been one fight in my career where somebody straight manhandled me and pushed me around you know i mean they mean? They talk about this, this, and this. He's the greatest this,

he's the greatest that. I was watching a UFC main event last night in a hotel. They had the Glover Rashad fight and they were talking about this, this, and this. And Glover's this,

Glover that, Glover this, Glover that. And I think, I beat that guy. You know, I was talking about I hope they don't give Johnny Walker a little TV.

He's super good, this, this, and this. But at the same time I was thinking and you said it, but what about Corey? And I was like, there we go. Finally somebody. All these guys, they talk cheaper. He's super good. This is this. But at the same time, I was thinking, and you said it, but what about Corey? And I was like, there we go.

Finally, somebody like all these guys that talk, they talk about how good these guys is not and beat them all. Like I'm that guy coming under the radar

and they don't expect me to do nothing because I lost to Gian Valente my third, fourth fight in the UFC. Two years of my career. You know what I mean? Jimmy Manuel,

Jimmy Manuel, I told Will on the way here too, Jimmy Manuel was the only fight I would say a guy beat me. He didn't manhandle me, but in my head from his highlights, and it's all, like you said, on Instagram, reading comments. And I let what people were saying and reading and seeing get in my head to think,

if this guy touches me, he's going to put me out. And when you go into a fight thinking that, I literally got touched, and my mind was already set. Like, if I thinking that, I literally got touched. And my mind was already set. Like, if I get hit, I'm going out. And I think subconsciously, I had myself so doubted that when he hit me, my mind just in panic kind of shut down. Because I remember when I hit the mat, like I wasn't out to play. I don't remember.

I was out, but I remember seeing his feet walk away. And I remember when I came to clearly. And I thought to myself like it happened exactly what I put in my mind if I got hit it happened that's right that was it it was like I can take I can take to anybody and I think OSP was more dangerous than Jimmy

because he can kick he was explosive and this is a damn punch and I did everything right and just slipped into the punch the wrong way but I was manhandling him for three rounds and I mean it's simple mistakes because I didn't have the discipline yet in three years of my career i hadn't learned a discipline and focus that it's a 15 minute fight right i can win 12 minutes of it all but one mistake and it's all gone well the the experience of making those mistakes and realizing what they are and and then when those moments come up again and you deviate

from the game plan and you do go to your right and you do move the wrong direction, you'll catch yourself. You'll realize. The experience of competition for a fighter is there's nothing that substitutes it. You can have great talent. You can have a great mindset. But the experience of competition is like nothing else. And one thing that I've seen from you is that every time you have had losses, you've gone back to work and come back better.

Like you made significant jumps in between each fight. That's why you, like when we're talking about fighters and I said, well, what about Corey Anderson? Cause people do leave you out of the discussion, but they don't leave you out of discussion because you're not good. They,

for whatever reason, leave you out of discussion. Cause maybe cause you're a polite, soft-spoken guy and you haven't been knocking people out like that's the the the knock on you if there is a knock but you're winning winning is that with fighting the key is winning it's not knocking people out or submitting people the key is winning can you win can you beat world class guys you've shown you can beat world class. And the fact that you've done this with just seven years total training is pretty fucking incredible. Pretty amazing, man.

I'm glad you voiced that on the air because I could say it all day and nobody would say it. Don't say it. You shouldn't even say it at all. Let me say it for you. I got to get off of social media and realize that. Get the fuck off social media. Post and run. Just post and run.

Because it's Like we were saying before It's just not a healthy way To consume things It's not There's just The random Because there's too many people

Out there that are bored Or maybe they're not healthy Mentally And they're just They would like to fuck With your head And they see a guy like you Especially a guy

Who's an elite athlete Fighting in the UFC There's so much Jealousy and pettiness And sports fans a guy like you, especially a guy who's an elite athlete fighting in the UFC. There's so much jealousy and pettiness. And sports fans are weird like that. They'll call some guy who's making $20 million a year a fucking loser. It's crazy. But you sit at home on food stamps watching.

It's crazy. But their words, although they mean nothing, if you see them in print and it's about you it can get you to go hey and that might fuck with you while you're running fuck that guy you know and there might be 30 of those guys and if you you go down a spiral if you you have a weak mind and you don't understand how to compartmentalize and how to how to look at things objectively if you don't see what that is and you start if i saw him i'd say this so come see that shit to my face and you start't see what that is and you start, if I saw him, I'd say this. Come say that shit to my face. And you start getting involved in that stuff. That's just a giant waste of resources, a giant waste of energy.

It doesn't do you any good at all. Especially when, look at what you're surrounded with, man. You're telling me it's all family, elite fighters, some of the best guys in the world. You have one of the best coaches on the planet Earth. Ricardo Almeida, one of the best jiu-jitsu coaches on the planet Earth. You're with some elite world-class fighters. You're all tight together. That should be all of your mental diet, all of your communication, camaraderie, all your interaction with people.

It should be that because you got top of the food chain. Why fuck with all these scavengers online and cannibals and fucking zombies and that's what you're dealing with when you get into those comment sections you don't know who these people are you know i mean it could be anybody true story just for a fighter the mentality and this is another thing i wanted to ask you about your mentality is so fucking important do you use a mental coach and have you ever been hypnotized have you ever worked with a mental coach at all only thing i did different this year was brain tap a brain my own yeah my uh physical therapist has thing you put the sound on

it's kind of it's like kind of like hypnosis and they got like flashing lights you can go take a nap whatever it's kind of like listening like they say you listen to rosetta stone or something before you go to bed and when you wake up it's in your mind because you heard it it's the same thing so i take a nap and i put it it's always positive thoughts it, like they say, you listen to Rosetta Stone or something before you go to bed. And when you wake up, it's in your mind because you heard it. It's the same thing. So I take a nap and I put it. It's always positive thoughts. It's like take a deep breath. This and this.

And it's slowly. It's just you hear this talking. He's speaking and it slowly stops. But you see the light still going off, but it's there. If you push it in forward, you can hear him like very lightly talking in the background. And I take like a nap, like 30 minutes. So what are the lights? How does it work?

I think it's like. He's got it here. Jamie's got it. He's going to does it work? I think it's like... Jamie's got it here? Jamie's got it. He's going to pull one up. Yeah, I think it's like pulling a... Brain tap headset. Yeah, there you go. And I think the lights and stuff just keep you focused

so your body isn't completely asleep or something. Let me see this. It says, uses unique frequencies of light and sound for brainwave entrainment. In just 22 minutes of deep relaxation, your brain will be guided to relax. Proven scientific techniques allows your brain the rest and recovery that it needs by reaching various states of consciousness, reboot, clean the slate of the unimportant

and reinforce the most valuable information for better memory and brain power, and revitalize. valuable information for better memory and brain power and revitalize our sessions are designed to build resilient build a resilient mind and fit body for life huh and with that and float tank that was another thing i added like relaxing because the one thing uh i had a problem with i used to you're always gonna have dreams you know if i have a bad spine whatever i'm thinking negative so when i go to bed i have a negative dream i have a dream i gotta take down 10 times i've had a dream i got hit hard in practice i got a dream i got hit hard and i put out i used to feel like and going into fights if i had one of them dreams like i remember this before the gianvalente fight it was after i

fought justin jones i went home i mean first night i went to sleep i woke up and had a dream i fought gianvalente next and i lost the split decision. And in my mind, I remember going into that fight, and that stayed vivid in my head that I lose this guy's split decision. Somehow, my dream was fighting Gian Valente next, and I lost split decision. And I think that's why in the third round, even though everybody was saying, like you were saying the leg kicks and everything, and when it came up, they showed the scorecard. I was like, I guess I was winning on the scorecards.

But in my mind, I thought I was getting defeated. And I had to go harder and go harder. And I was getting beat up because in my dream, it sat but in my mind, I thought I was getting defeated. And I had to go harder and go harder. And I was getting beat up because in my dream, it's that vivid in my mind. So I got greedy. And coaches just kept saying, like, just move. Get out of there. Move. And I was just doing the most, trying to hit him as much as I could.

And you kept saying it. And I watched the video. You said, the best offense is the best defense. If Corey can't get hit, Gian can't throw anything back. So that was my mind. If I get it this round, 10-8, there's no way I'll lose. So I hit him as much as I can, as many times as I can. Maybe I'll put him out.

And I got over his us and got caught. And then when the scorecards came out and said I was winning, there was no reason for me to do all that. In my mind, going into that fight, I remember all fight with that dream kept popping up. Never had another dream losing again, but that was from December of the year before, and it was stuck in my head. I couldn't

let go of it And then I can't remember whatever If I had another one That It didn't show The finish of the fight But I woke up With a record

Eight and two At the time I was eight and one Or seven and one Oh no Eight and one And this was before Going into the

Tom Lawler fight And I was Like fuck Do I lose this Now I remember in Vegas He rocked me in the beginning And I thought for sure They just gave him a scorecard like here you go here come that dream again here come a dream again they said Corey

Anson now I remember going to hotel room somebody put a sign on said nine and one now congratulations and that's when I stuck my head like oh that's where he means nothing that's my dreams is just dreams yeah I got a good enough of the flow tank helps you floating help my getting relaxed like the negative thoughts I always do it the last week, Sunday. I do massage. I go to church, massage, float tank. And there's nothing on my mind but the Bible and the gospel I heard that morning.

I go to the massage and I fall asleep and I go into that float tank. I think about what I need to do. And my mind zonks out and all I'm thinking about is that fight with victory, winning, getting my hand raised, whichever way, dominate, dominate, dominate. When I wake up that whole week, I don't have any negative thoughts because that's what I visualized. That last three times of work at home was all positive thinking. And with the brain tap, like my doc used to let me take it to the fight with me. So I'm resting between training, put it on. He gave me his little travel iPhone, whatever, put it on.

How does it make you feel the brain tap the brain tap you just wake up like I said relax like I get done with practice I'm tired I'm exhausted

but that little 15 or 20 minute nap whichever one I use when my brain come back to it's like I feel like I just slept for hours I don't understand why it does so much for you I've been the type

I never believe any of that stuff like hypnosis I never believed it but after he let me try he's like just try it once and I for you. I've been the type, I never believe any of that stuff. Like hypnosis, I never believed it. But after he let me try, he's like, just try it once. And I tried it, and I actually let my body relax. I noticed the next day in training, I'm like, dang. Like this jiu-jitsu, I always struggled at jiu-jitsu. I hated jiu-jitsu.

But I finally realized things I was doing. I was relaxed, pants under where Ricardo was sitting, watching the small details. And he was like, bro, you look good today. And I was thinking, I think maybe that brain tap he was like, bro, you look good today. And I was thinking, I think maybe that brain tap actually kind of helped, and I kept doing it. So it puts your mind in a good place to learn things. So you're kind of open-minded.

You relax. You wake up, and it's like, the air smells a lot fresher. Really? It's just, like I said, like hypnosis,

they say it works, and I guess. It does work. Like that's not, it's not putting me to sleep, or putting me on hypnosis, hypnotized, but the way it made me feel, like I ain't want to say, oh, I work hypnosis-wise.

I got hypnotized, but subliminal messages. You don't hear it. Like, if you listen to music and something in the background, it's in there. How often are you doing that brain tap thing? Well, now I haven't done it. I'm about to buy one of those from my physical therapist. He got some extra ones he said to get rid of so I can do it more. But I usually do it when I get in the camp.

And in my old physical therapist place place they relocated and closed down here so that's why i haven't done it that much but he said i got some i'll sell you so if you have one at home you'd use it every day not every day i don't want to get too sucked into it but yeah at least twice a week twice a week i do it when i go to therapy twice a week what about how often i think i do that once once just that last day before I leave just get you kind of like water load I don't want to over water load if you drink too much water

it backfires so I don't want to do the same thing with float tank because float tank is also great for the injuries in the body you know that's how I found it at first my shoulder was real messed up

going to the Pat Cummins fight and I kept getting a stinger and I couldn't figure it out and my physical therapist she was like you need to go try float tank I think it would be really good

help you with your other bumps and bruises and pull off a couple ounces at the same time because all epsom salt just sit there and try i reached out to the guy and brick and uh he gave me a little deal i hooked you up you know you advertised for me and i let you float yeah so i did it and i liked it like i said the negative thoughts going to the fat cummins fight that's where i got the dream i got take down took down like 10 times yeah because i had a guy come on he's like i've trained with he's really good at wrestling This guy was a national champ

He's really good He might take you down A couple times But he came out Cardio-y And my mom was like I don't want to get Taken down at all

So I started having dreams I was getting taken down Like 10, 12 times By Pat And that couldn't happen And as you see I ended up taking him down I didn't even want to

Shoot that fight I just wanted to Kill him on the feet I ended up taking him down 12 times And I was struck to death Do you think you were Taking him down Because of your dream? I just wanted to kill him on the feet. I ended up taking him down 12 times, and I was struck to death. Do you think you were taking him down because of your dream? Like you wanted to prove your dream wrong?

Like maybe you had that in your head? The first time I took him down, it was so easy. I was just like, I'm just going to keep doing this. Hit him with a couple of punches. When he get ready to punch, take him down. Because I'm thinking, in my mind, this guy just wrestled at the Olympic level. D1 All-American Penn State, the best school out there. I'm thinking, there's no way it's going to be easy To take this guy down

You have to wait Until you get tired And chain wrestle I just Like one of my Weakest blast doubles ever Just blew him off his feet And was like

That was That was kind of easy But it's different When you got a guy That's used to taking people down But nobody shoots on him Right He wasn't used to that

Right You watch his fights Only person I shot on Was Jan Blakowicz And that's when he was tired He finally got taken down Yeah Everybody else couldn't get it.

So I was like, I'm just going to try it. And I went through him. I was like, oh, man, that was too easy. I told Mark in the corner, like when he had my leg in the corner, you got to defend it. You got to defend it. I could feel when we hit the cage, and my wizard was so tight, and he had the leg.

I looked at him and called. I was like, and he asked me in the corner, why was you shaking your head? Like, he wasn't taking me down. He's not going to take me down. I can tell from the way he entered. I trained with Nick Catone, and he asked me in the corner, why was you shaking your head? Like, he wasn't taking me down. He's not going to take me down. I can tell from the way he entered. I trained with Nick Catone, and he was another UFC vet. He's a fucking monster when it comes to wrestling. Him and Chris Weidman, two toughest dudes I've ever wrestled in the MMA game.

And I knew from when he entered in, he was nothing compared to those guys. I just looked at Nick or Ricardo and shook my head. And Nick knew because he was in the corner, too. He knew. He could tell in my confidence. I wasn't worried. He's not getting me down. And after that, he was in the corner too He knew He could tell in my confidence I wasn't worried He's not getting me down And after that it was over

So this brain tap thing Float tank One week before the fight The last week What other Do you have any other rituals That you do That you make sure

You keep your head And your body in check I mean like I said I'm always on physical therapy Because like I said My body is so beat up I've been competing Ice baths

Every Sunday night. After I do all that, I go home and relax. And that night before I go to bed, 20 minutes in the tub where I sit there. I do cryotherapy twice a week. Once or twice a week. All training camp. Therapy twice a week. I do a massage every Sunday.

You know, I got a lady that used to train at our gym. Amazing. You ever fuck with yoga? Yeah, I do that too. Every once in a while I like closer to get that flexibility. Hot yoga helped me get some pounds off a little easier so I can rehydrate more before sparring. I do that Friday night with Saturday sparring so I'm more limber to throw kicks and stuff in my final spar throughout the week. So, you know, I got different places and companies I reach out to and they help me, I help them.

That's awesome. So where are you at right now? First of all, what is going on with that knuckle holy shit that's just glover's forehead i hit him with an uppercut and uh here you go show everybody put your hand up which way so they can see this one right in front of you look at that knuckle folks that's an evil knuckle with an uppercut on uh glover in the third round and i remember when Mark was calling a combo. He said, I can't remember the combo.

He said, and I hit him. I hit him with the right hand. I was like, ah! And I brought him and I looked down with my hand up and this finger

was like stuck out like that. I remember shaking my head to Mark like, nope, we russet. Wow. He was trying to shake my hand like, ah! Slapped my hand in his hand.

His hand was messed up. I think I dislocated my finger. He went in the back, oh, just dislocate. You pop it back. I couldn't get it. And we kept trying to just keep them taped together and keep it straight they couldn't get it and we kept trying to

just keep them taped together and keep it straight it'd get better and never did i remember the whole my wife was like don't move it don't move it you gotta quit move i was doing this like doing exercise mentally like it might hurt now if i get used to it and never hurt again did you ever go to a doctor yeah i went and i ruptured the tendon and the tendon from here rolled all the way up that's that is it rolled up and it was already fat because i broke the tendon rolled up yeah so all this that's why it's like curved like when we go down so was there anything they could do for it they can they said we can straighten out and put a pin to attach it but it would take i wouldn't be able to bend my hand like this but it decided it'd be kind of like it

wouldn't bend all the way anymore if i did that that's what he said like if you do that you won't be able to fight you know it's kind of hard to fight like that because i guess the pin is kind of long so it makes that joint not bend all the way but uh when i went to the doctor they did that they was like hold on they did the x-ray and mri i was like that makes no sense like what like this tendon is how you move this finger so how the hell you moving your finger there's no tendon i was like i don't know when it was taped together just kept doing it in germany while i was on my vacation my wife just kept doing it exercise and she's like well i guess it's a good thing you did that because if you wouldn't, it would have hardened up in here and this joint would have been immobilized.

I wouldn't be able to use it. But the fact that I kept doing it while it was fresh, I'm still able to move it. That's the craziest looking finger I've ever seen in my life. That's like a triple finger. That's nuts, man. That's a wild looking joint. And does that fuck with your grappling or anything nothing it's hard as a rock now it doesn't bother me at all wow it's crazy

looking man i think it's a weapon now you know the glove come right here if i throw a hook with my right hand right now i suck right it's all calcified right yeah yeah so um where are you at right now in terms of like what when does the UFC usually come to you with an idea of who? You're gonna fight next obviously you beat Latife. He was top five. Mm-hmm. Yeah, so you're gonna be three and five What are they what do they got you ranked now eighth or nine? How's that work? Do you tell the fuck? How's how does Corey Anderson not in the top five? I'll beat the number three and the five when I was three they put me at six

I don't know if I they put me at six. I don't understand. When I beat five, they put me at six. Like, I beat Glover and I went to six. By the time I fought, I was 10th.

That night in Cali, I was ranked 10th again. How the hell does that happen? Then I beat a leader who was six and I went, or fifth, or fourth,

and I went to six. Yeah. And then a week later, I was at seven. The next week, it came out, I was at eight. Like,

this makes no sense. Especially if there's no's no fights like i'm done watching it yeah don't even care well you're clearly top 10 you know whatever number that is i mean it's a you got a murderer's row of people in that division you know so they when when do you think they'll come to you with a an offer for well they wanted me to fight Gus. At the time, like I said, after the fight on the microphone, I don't want to fight anything else until my baby's here. When the baby's here and everything's checked out, I don't have to be in camp and stress this and this. Once that's all done, we can talk.

And they called me a couple weeks later about Gus because he tweeted me and had them ask me on Ariel, and I said the same thing. I'm waiting until my baby's done. That was March 15th. The due date of my baby was March 12th like it's too close not risking it you know then it's like all right what about June 1st and I was just saying let me can I finish with my baby and stuff I'm not really even training I'm at home with my wife I'm doing a little bit here and there but I'm worried about her now she's been with me ride out this whole time now's my time to focus on her what she

need she didn't want me away so I'm here and they kept calling i kept calling i just kept saying no no no and they kept asking me i was like all right and i was like i mean what if we get more money if they give my wife's like if we get more we'll take it okay if they give you more i'll let you go whatever we can start camp or whatever i have to give you more we're doing they said oh no we're not doing that the guy wouldn't wait let me finish this literally my baby came out and i felt that i asked the doctor everything fine i did the test everything came back clear like there's no problems i have to go to doctors nothing she's like you're fine you got a healthy baby boy congratulations literally pick my phone up tweeted gus gus you still want to go june 1st

you want to do it i'm your huckleberry let's go london i'll come yes corey you know i want to fight let's do it ali called me it's on his manager's call me we want to fight let to do it I'm your huckleberry Let's go London I'll come Yes Corey You know I want to fight Let's do it Ali called me It's on His manager just called me We want to fight Let's do it June 1st

Same pay No raise No nothing Whatever I was getting Let's go Text Dana Literally they called me The day before

On my way to the hospital I get a call from Ali They want to know If you want to fight Bro I'm on my way I'll call you after We'll figure it out I say yes

Less than 25 hours later They say nah We'll give it to Anthony Smith What the fuck Y than 25 hours later, they say, no, we're giving it to Anthony Smith. What the fuck y'all called me for yesterday? Harassing me all this camp. Now I say yes and you're taking it away? Like, what's going on? And that made me mad.

Then they called me for Luke Rockhold. Like, I'm not taking a step back. Like, I want to be here for the title. If I beat Luke, what are they going to say? Because I guess if they told Ali if I beat Glover since he was going to fight Aliyah, that would put me in a contention for a title fight. They gave me the new contract and everything with all that in it. Signed it.

Then I was like, oh, he needs one more fight. Then I was like, all right, make him and Aliyah fight. And Ali said no because he managed both of us. Don't you think that Luke Rockhold is a good fight for you? I mean, he's a former champion. I mean, he is a good fight, but he wouldn't do nothing for ranking. He's a great fighter, but it would definitely elevate you in the public's eye. I ain't worried about the public eye.

You don't think it would help you in the rankings? No. Rankings? No. You would think Aliyah Latif would have helped you In the public's eye You don't think it would help you You don't think it would help you In the rankings No Rankings what No You would think Leroy the Chief would help me In the rankings Can't go over

I don't buy that Because I think that like Rankings Like even if it's not One through ten Any one of those guys Could fight for the title If they get

Like Tiago Like Tiago Santos Right I mean He lost to David Branch What a year ago Right At a middleweight Same night I beat Pat Cummins Yeah April 13th or 18th Whatever it was Santos. Right? I mean, he lost to David Branch what, a year ago? Right?

At a middleweight. Same night I beat Pat Cummins. Yeah. April 20th, or April 13th, or 18th, whatever it was. And now he's fighting

for the title. I mean, it was a quick ascension from, you know, devastating knockouts and fighting like a wild maniac like he does.

He's a wild fighter to watch. Very entertaining guy. That's all it took. Yeah, but who was the next, he didn't have to be the big name guy. He beat Jan Blakowicz

Who I killed on my Fourth fight in the UFC He beat Jimmy Beat Jimmy Manoa Stopped him Eric Anders and the other guy Were both 85ers True

So he had two fights It's because he had knockouts That's the thing Like I said I told Ali was like Bro it's a good fight He said

Same thing you said It's a good fight Like Ali Let's look at who I fought I beat Glover Who was third They still didn't put me In the top fight

I beat Alir Latifi They said Next to beat the champ Whatever When I beat him They still don't give me The credibility It's like ali let's look at who i fought i'll be glover who was third they still didn't put me in a top fight i'll be a little tv where they say it's next to beat the champ whatever when i beat him they still don't give me the credibility it's like oh he's washed up now i put a tweet out like i apologize to anybody that i beat because once you lose to me it's kind of like you're a nobody i'm like i'm sorry for that tom lawler posted thing the other day saying oh these guys all fail they get six months i fail for the same thing i get two years i said i'm sorry tom it's because you lost to me. I think dead serious if you lose to me. You get the short end of the stick.

I'm sorry. It's just though the same thing is having that asshole coach when you're in college. It is in the same way. It's just giving you more motivation. And that's why I answer back to tweets and shit because in my head, things like that that I've been through, even though I should have learned, but now it doesn't matter. But in my mind, I voiced my opinion to that coach.

And when I proved him wrong, I ran into his assistant coach later on in life. And he said, he doesn't really like you anymore. Because the guy actually I fought in the Ultimate Fighter was his best friend, Kelly Nuss, one of his All-Americans. He used to call him back when I was in college trying to discipline me. If I did some shit to piss him off, he would have Kelly come in and try to beat me up. Never happened. He couldn't beat me up like that. And he used to get pissed at that.

So the fact that he thought he had, like, a hold on me with this transcript and I got out, and then I ended up fighting Kelly on the show, and he said that to me in practice. He'd kill you in MMA. He'd kill you in MMA. Well, the opportunity came, and I beat him. And somebody told me, like, he wasn't happy about that. He didn't like the fact that you beat Kelly.

Like, I'm sorry. I don't do things for him. But that, this thing where you don't feel like you're getting the respect that you deserve it does motivate you though it does give you like a little bit of extra juice in the gym i mean i'm a motivated guy anyway highly motivated the moment i wake up my open my eyes it's it's time to get to work so your son's born the anthony smith coming he had a you know anthony smith survived against john jones and you know especially early coming he had a you know anthony smith survived against john jones and you know especially early on he looked good you know showed good technique showed that he's he's really a world-class fighter and i think that they just think that that would be he probably said yes

when you said no and they gave it to him you know while you were waiting and your son was being born so now you're just waiting for another call yeah but the thing is like go back to that real fast you say yes and he said no. I watched his interview, excuse me, with Ariel Hawani and they said the day after he fought John Jones,

they called him about Anthony Smith or about Gus. So that was about the same time he was calling me. So it's kind of like they were just

throwing it out there and then Ali said, I guess they offered it to Johnny Walker. Johnny Walker's manager made a post, I've seen that. Like, offered us Gus.

Like, they were just throwing it out there for whoever's going to be the first person to say yes. Well, they probably have a post. I've seen it. Like, we offered us Gus. Like, they were just throwing it out there for whoever's going to be the first person to say yes. Well, they probably have a bunch of people say yes, and then they sit down.

Yeah. And they go over it. Like, what looks best for us? Like, what do we have? Yeah. You know?

I'm not a matchmaker, obviously. You know what goes on on a singing job. I sort of barely do, man. I'm telling you, I know as little as anybody should

in my position. That's right. You're an independent contractor. Legitimately. I have no fucking no fucking say look if they listen to me first of all there'll be no more weight cutting and there'd be weight classes every 10 pounds that's what i would i would fix i would fix that right away i would do the same sort of hydration testing that one fc does let people fight at their natural weight so you don't have these ridiculous 40 pound weight cuts like did you see brandon davis in his last fight he's uh uh he fought at 135 i didn't see the weight cut he looked fantastic he looked pretty skinny because i heard he was 45 or whatever he's giant

at 135 i'm standing next to him like how the fuck are you 135 pounds he does not he looks like he's 170 that's like montel jackson too yo yes i. I know him. He's about the same height as me. Crazy. I'm like, how the hell you make 135? With giant hands. You're a grown-ass man. Montel's got basketball palm in hands. He's got hands bigger than, for instance, Nagano.

Yes, he does. They're huge. And a 35-pounder man. And he fights smart, too. Smart and technical. Yeah, I watched him on the regional circuit. He fought in my hometown a few times. I would go there, special guest and watch. And saw him his fight in amstrad and i told

jim like this kid could be good he trained up in milwaukee but not rufus for uh red shafers at the time yeah and i saw him i used to go up there and train with her and i watch him like hitting pads and doing so he's funky he could be good when he go pro he could be a champion and then sure his first fight went the way it did and then callie i remember sending him in hotel like montel let me highlight you real fast. Like, you know I know you. I done seen you fight, bro. Go out there and do what you do.

You're fucking good. Like, hit this dude as much as you can. When he forwards a shot, get his admission. And you can't finish him with ground and pound. You can finish this dude. Like, I got you, bro. Thank you. And he went out there and did it.

And the back guy was like, man, I was surprised. Like, I'm not. I knew that. I seen what he's done in the gym. I know what he can do. He's special. He really is. He's got real potential.

But he doesn't freak me out as much as Brandon Davis turns a weight cut. He looks healthy at his weight. Brandon Davis, I couldn't believe that he ever weighed 135. When I'm looking at him, I'm like, you're so big for that weight. And he was 45 before that. And apparently the PI, the UFC Performance Institute, they're the ones who talked him into going to 35 they're like

you can make the cut he was more than 160 when he weighed in when he was in the octagon and that means I heard him say I'm about 160 now the PI said he can make it

that's good because when I went there got one point coming off the OSP or Jimmy I can't remember marking him I was like oh you're always thinking

about 85 85? yeah I was like I'll coach you I'm about 300 pounds I was like well maybe I tried a test cut it didn't go? Yeah. I was like, I'll coach you. I'm around 300 pounds. I was like, well, maybe. I tried to test because it didn't go well, but not to pee.

I was here. So I emailed them. I went out there, and we did a test. And Clint and Bo both said, well, Clint, Bo told me to just get stronger. Clint was like, I'm going to tell you right now, because I've seen your numbers compared to other numbers. You walk around smaller, but when you put you on a system, your numbers is like, you're like leaner than most of these guys.

You can make 85, but you're probably like die like it wouldn't be healthy at all it wouldn't be worth it well so many guys like Dustin Poirier so many guys

going up in weight class have been the best thing that's ever happened to them Jorge Masvidal so many guys they go up to 70 they just look better Robert Whitaker

Whitaker's perfect example champ yeah I mean I think that it's a it's a bad environment when there's 20 pound weight gaps between like 85 and 205 or even 15 between 55 and 70 these are giant weight gaps that's too much weight you gotta think from 205 to 85 that's 20 pounds people

are you gonna make it like you do you see me when i'm on the scale of 205 no it ain't like i'm still flat like my abs is popping yeah like my cheekbones you think i'm on the scale of 205? It ain't like I'm still flat Like my abs is popping Yeah Like my cheekbones You think I'm going to look at a 20 extra pounds? Oh, you'd be a dead man Yeah Yeah, you'd look like a dead man

I mean, you'd have to literally Like do something to your body Like you'd have to run Marathon distances Yeah, you'd have to run every day Brandon was running like 20 miles a day Brandon Davis before that fight That's Karl Ropesen

Because he was a big 85er Yeah But he fought 205 on contender But he wasn't like solid at 25 205 you can see he still had more body fat until stuff he can get off i remember going out to the pi and they told him like you're going to become like a marathon runner just can't what do you mean they gave his meal plans like very small meals but you got around like five to three to six miles a day. And then bike after that another 10 to 15 at night. So that's what we was doing. Like Sunday, hit me up.

Like, you ready to go to the park? All right, we go bike 15 miles. And I leave. He go run the thing, the five-mile loop. I'm like, bro, that's fucking crazy. I have to if I want to make weight. But now he's got it down pat. So he doesn't have to do that anymore.

He had to get his body to where he's supposed to be. Walk around like 205, 210 max, lean. So when he get into camp, a good two, three-mile run, get him supposed to be. Walk around like 205, the 210 max, lean. So when he get in the camp, a good two, three mile run, get him down to 201. Now it's just like eat right and train. And then suck that last few pounds off. Yeah, certain people like that.

But like when you see me, like I see you like next to Glover, that's when I really pay attention to it. When I came in at 236 on two week notice, we look about the same. We got on a scale or when we did the faceoff and then we turned side

and kind of see see he's thinner. But I got my torso and everything is thick. Because I was 300 pounds at one point. I don't lose that frame. Did you ever think about heavyweight? In the UFC, Mark has said it before. Yeah. He even said, like, bro, the weight is 85, 205, and heavyweight.

85 is like 205ers. That's a little smaller, faster. But they don't hit as hard as they is like 205ers. That's a little smaller, faster, but they don't hit as hard as they do in 205. In heavyweight, they hit hard, but they're a lot slower and faster than 205. So you can go up, and I think you still do great. And if you go down, I think if you rehydrate it right back up, you just go through everybody. But I like 205. Like I said, I haven't been dominated. Until somebody showed me I don't need to be here, I'm not going anywhere. Well, especially when you're walking around at 235, that's really the weight class for you.

It's 205. Yeah, like I said, time. You feel great and healthy at that weight. Yeah, why fuck around? The heavyweight division is so strange, too, because it's got a weight limit. Like, 265 always weirded me out. Like, why is there a weight limit? Like, there should probably be a 225, and then there should be an unlimited.

Yeah. It should be as big as you fucking get. A bunch of butter balls just rolling around each other. That'd probably be boring. Or giant dudes like Ngannou that don't even have to cut weight. Curtis Blaze, I know he was a big one. He's huge. I recruited him in college, and I seen him in high school.

He was big. Then who's another one? Juan something. He just came in from the contender.-skinned dude with afro real crazy He fought in Milwaukee the Milwaukee car Heavyweight he fought my buddy in the contender they went out there three weeks before and he was like 290 something Mmm three for my team. It was like 250 already. That's all my brothers ain't gonna be no Regional fight you need to come ready. This dude is huge. When he hits you, he's hitting you. And if he gets you to the ground, he's Donkey Kong.

I had seen film on him, and Curtis Blaze hit me up about him when he first started fighting pro. And I had seen film. And I told him, like, I seen film, but look at how big this kid is. It's not going to be a fight you're used to. And sure enough, I think my guy took it, like, he was like, oh, he's big big but he's not

gonna be as fast as me shit he rehydrated up but he was athletic as oh that was not a fight to watch but lessons learned yeah now if you could if you were running shit if cory anderson's president of the ufc what would you change the rankings the rankings go back to where it was if you beat this guy you move up Yeah You know what I mean Why do they do it now They do it based on like Journalists

I have no clue who runs it Yeah something like that Something like that A bunch of dudes vote for it That's what they say Yeah In my mind I feel I think somebody in the UFC

Still has something to do with it But they swear up and down Every time I say something I look like it's not them bro It's somebody else But I don't know Cause even Mick

After the Glover fight He told me Like bro that was a hell of a fight Thank you for stepping in you've definitely been a top five and i said in the interview like i should be top five but i got a feeling i won't be then everybody in the interview like that sounds crazy you just beat the number three you'll definitely be top five wednesday came out number six and people were like how does that make sense then i'd be a leader it's like oh there's no question you'll be top five but if everything starts going great for you and growing the right way do you think you'd be like, what the fuck am I fighting against now?

That's why I made a tweet. Somebody posted before, like, I don't understand how Corey's steady dropping down the rankings when you got guys like Diamond Rez. He beat Volcom, who was four. And everybody said, he lost that fight. Volcom was six, actually, or something like that. He lost that fight, but he jumped up to four. Like, how does he?

He won off decision. Like, oh, it's because you lose or win on decision. They don't move rankings up for decision. Then he won off decision. He went up to number lose Or win on decision They don't move rankings up for decision Then he won off decision He went up to number 4 And somebody said How is that even possible I said it's to the point now

I can't worry about Fighting people that's in charge Of the rankings And my opponent Cause if I worry about both of them I'm not focused on something So I'm just worried about the opponent And I'm just gonna keep beating

Whoever they put in front of me And eventually If they keep trying to put these guys Up to fight John Like off knockouts Like you said Anthony Smith He knocked out Rashad Shogun

And then choked out Vulcan He went up to UFC John And he had none on the ground All that extra stuff It's good when you're knocking guys out And I think it's going to be the same thing with Santo He knows if we're knocking guys out

But his losses In 85 Other than Branch He lost to Eric Spicely on the ground John is good on the ground John's going to take him down As soon as you come running me If you hit him once

John's gonna take you down And you ain't gonna have no answer Right You know what I mean If you don't have everything Tested by the time When it's time to go To the championship fight

If you can't do nothing Striking It's over Tiago to me seems like I mean he's a Very dangerous guy But almost like So aggressive

That he's almost like A kamikaze guy Like he's do or die, like kill or be killed. He comes in just swinging, throwing hammers. And if he connects, it's dangerous. If he connects, it's bad for everybody. But he might not connect. I mean, that's kind of how he is.

He's a wild card. That's the best way to put it. Like he could connect on John. If John fucks around around and i don't think he will i think i mean he hasn't ever before except for the gustafson fight i don't think he was prepared as much as he should have and we saw that in the second fight where he just dominated him but i think that if he makes a mistake tiago can shut the lights out on anybody that guy swings he throws like it's the sledgehammer he throws he's not trying to make it to the final

round like he's not pacing himself there's none of that that dude he comes out hard but it's like i think about him as my fight with a little chiefy going into that fight we i knew 100% a little he's gonna try to wrestle me but if he can't take me down everything is gonna be haymakers because he's seen me get touching the chin and go down a robble so as long as i keep moving if i make him miss he's's going to get tired. And he's going to stop throwing those big haymakers. And sometimes when he's swinging, he misses. He almost falls over.

And it gives you, like, the counter or the takedown. That's the thing. In our division, there's so many people not – more like rock and stocking robots, I think, because they got their hands up and they're blocking. It's like, oh, he's not hitting me. But with four-ounce gloves, I guess I put – like, I was cage-side for Ryan Bader and Anthony Johnson.

Bader had his hands up, but Rumble was hitting his hands so hard. All of a sudden, you see his hands just drop, and he was out. It doesn't matter. If you let him hit you, there's a chance of still getting wobbled. And I think with John, John's good at evading punches. Most guys stand there blocking, counterback, or try to take a punch and hit you back. Like, take a punch to give a punch. John's not that kind.

He's going to move, move, move, and you swing. He's so long, he can put his hands out and keep you at distance and hit you with those quick, fast, long kicks and stuff. And I just, like you said, I don't see John messing around. He knows it's dangerous. He's smart. I would say John's not only the best fighter, and mentally, as a mixed martial artist, he sees what's going on really well.

He knows how to adapt. He can go out there and try tricky stuff at times when you know i can try some stuff right here and get away with it because i'm long yeah like with the shogun fight he went out there and showed out jumping knees jumping kicks because shogun was so short yeah he knew he said it i'm a different breed i'm longer i'm faster and trickier but i think becoming a guy like gus he didn't do all that stuff but he knew he had to stay long and evade punches and get a takedown and hit him where you can yeah and the gus fight he showed his metal right he showed that he could take it and then win in the championship rounds even in a fight that he wasn't even really properly prepared for he showed that in the vitor belford

fight too when he got caught with that arm bar yep he overcomes adversity he's not just the hammer he knows how to be the nail he knows how to do it Well listen Corey You're a bad motherfucker I appreciate you coming here We're gonna talk hunting It was fun You wanna talk hunting more? We did three hours man

But we talked all MMA Let's get 30 minutes hunting Let's get 30 minutes hunting Okay let's do it I wanna talk hunting Okay let's talk hunting Fighting is fun I'm a hunter

You told me you're going on Your first elk hunting trip this year Yep Getting out to Montana Where part is it around? I can't remember So He gave me the codes

To put into the The DNR site Are you using a different set Because you're using A light setup out there But that's for target right? Here I got 60 pounds

Yeah 60 Just like 62 or 63 And how many grains Arrows you still 260 Yeah that's a really Light arrow man I'll use

When I go out there For elk hunting I'll use either 300 So I got the grizzly stick Weighted tips Whatever 300 grains That's it

That's usually what I shoot 300 grain I shoot 525 525 grains I should pull 84 pounds I like I like heavy arrows Like with the

Tip and everything I don't know what it is with the answer yeah it's 300 weight i don't yeah with everything yeah yeah i have to get the scale i make my own arrows in the basement and all that but i just i don't have a scale to see how much you weigh at the end the um are you trying to do that for speed is that why you have the light grains that's just with the guy the my guy aces and arrows i had some hats i'm wearing actually in vegas i'm going to connect you to john dudley i mean i know you've already talked to him, but I want to get you guys together. Next time you're anywhere near here or if you're in Vegas and he's in Vegas,

I'm going to get you guys together and have him coach you and help you because I already see that you're very accurate. When we're playing techno hunt, you're scoring in the vitals every single time except for one, one little fucker, one body shot. But even that's a dead elk where you hit it. But John can help you tremendously. He'll tighten up your shit. I'll show you.

I love that. I see his videos. I study that stuff all the time. But again, he's like the Mark Henry of archery. I see it. Yeah. That 100-yard shot through the kettlebell on target. I tell my friends all the time, that was the most amazing thing i ever seen the hole was this big yeah 100 yards he went through

an arrow only broke because of vibration yeah it's like you don't see people shooting like cam is good too but i'm not saying he couldn't do it but i don't cam could do it too yeah but cam doesn't post videos shooting through kettlebells no he posts some crazy videos too but i mean it's just that level of commitment where they're just constantly training constantly doing and john is also just such a fantastic coach you know he's so good at understanding archery fundamentals and explaining it to you positioning and it's very much like martial arts in that you make a few little changes and it does the world a difference i'm willing to learn yeah most of the time I'm learning on the fly. My dad, we learned how to shoot together when I was like 12.

One of his buddies was like, oh, you ever did archery? Took me to the range, got me a Browning when I was a kid. You know, I was shooting there, did 3D shooting with him. It's kind of like what I learned was from what he learned. But if you know my dad, everything other than work, everything is kind of like ghetto. I used to call him the ghetto cowboy. We had horses and everything. And it was just like the way you see people do it on TV and whatnot was not the way my dad learned how to arrange horses and grab horses and saddle them up.

Everything was kind of ghetto. So I was the ghetto cowboy, you know. So now when I go back from things I learned and I tell him, because like you said, you see my Instagram, I'm all hunting. You know, if I ain't fighting, I'm hunting. Constantly. He's like, where did'd you learn this it's just watching videos and I go hunting with somebody else just instead of talking like I talk about what I know but most I'm just listening to guys talk and I ask a question like yeah like I don't know what it is but I make it seem like I do but yes what are you thinking about that and they break it down I had no clue about

that you know I mean learn how to field dress my first deer in Texas with these guys hero sports a bunch of veterans we go out they asked me and justin gacy that's how i got close to gacy hunting with those guys we're up with veterans with amputated legs or mental problems whatever just listen to their story and we kill a deer like they've been hunting their whole life they grew up as kids so field dressing and how to call and like you shooting the right one like oh you go to this website and if you got 110 grand uh bullet it shows you here at 300 yards aim on this crosshair and like i learned different stuff

from those guys veterans that do this stuff for a living they'd have been to war and learn how to shoot a gun then guys these are like john doug i see his videos and his uh not school of knocks and whatnot watching stuff like that like you said you ever had any coaching like what i do is just practice over and over and over when i'm at the range the owner mike of a&m he'll come out and be like oh kind of try to turn your head a little bit more i didn't have a kisser button put a kisser button on that'll force you to turn your head and you need to be straight with the line straight down and think about pushing his lifeline through and just stuff like that i just practice like i said Like I said, I'm shooting. I used to shoot at least 100 arrows a day.

Like I said, I popped that truck bed down, put the radio on, and just sat there and shoot. I shot one time so long I couldn't move my neck back the next morning. I fell asleep like this, and I woke up. I was stuck. Like, I didn't even train because I was stuck with my head turning like this because my neck had got tight. Because I was crunching up here and doing this like I wasn't supposed to but it all tightened up yeah and you know so i'm learning the hard way just like i went turkey hunting this year this last week archery turkey yeah yeah never been turkey hunting before i've only seen on youtube i heard somebody telling me at the trade show the great american outdoors and it just sounds so interesting and i started youtubing i ordered all the stuff i need decoys

and i was teaching myself, watching videos. The first day I slate call and box call, I'm like, ugh. I know that's not right. I can't do that. Now I put it on a slate and it sounds like an actual turkey calling. Like I'm good in a week. I just study and try. So stuff like that.

So I just look forward to it. Have you ever fucked with those hex suits? The who? Hex suit. You know what it is? H-E-C-S. It's especially with birds. Birds can navigate using magnetics. They use the magnetic pole and electromagnetic fields.

It's been proven that birds can register and they sense electromagnetic fields. And they think that birds in particular and and sea creatures too like they use it with scuba divers and and spear fishermen and people like that there's a suit that blocks the electromagnetic signal that your body gives off and uh it's supposedly particularly effective with turkeys who you know are very, they see very well. And they see things, movement, and they're very, very skittish. If they see any weird shit, they just get the fuck out of there. But this guy, Mike Slinkard, who's one of the guys who created the hex suit, he hunts turkeys with no blind.

He just sits out in the field with this hex suit on that blocks the electromagnetic signal, and then he puts camo on over the hex suit. There's videos of him doing this, man. It's kind of crazy. You know, this is him sitting there. So he's sitting with this hex suit on right in front of these turkeys. Now, you know as well as I know that most of the time, if you were right in front of a turkey like that, they would get the fuck out of Dodge.

Unless you got your little decoy, the feather thing they put over. But he doesn't have that. He got a decoy in his hand. Yeah, I mean, he's probably got something. But you still see the body behind it. There's a giant body behind him that he's moving. But the idea is that it can't see the electromagnetic signal that you're giving off. There's a lot of videos on it.

It's super controversial, but dudley swears by it john dudley swears by and a lot of other folks do too um yeah i think it does i think it works for everything i think animals can sense something i mean it's not everything right i mean you still can't be downwind or upwind you know if if you if your wind comes and catches them they're gonna smell you and they're gonna get the fuck out of there but it's a another what is that another him with camo jesus christ that's a great picture like that's a perfect example of how camo works right that picture it's great but you gotta if you try to take that picture if me you tried that you're gonna see me it's like the perfect angle yeah of course i mean it's the perfect type of leaves the

perfect angle the perfect lighting you know it's probably fucked with a little but you know the the hex suit is a very controversial thing but people smarter than me say it works it really works with sea creatures for some reason with um things in the water because you know animals they have that uh lateral line or fish rather have that lateral line and they they sense electrical signals that are coming off of creatures that are in the water and so scuba divers swear by this fucking this suit it's interesting stuff yeah i've never heard i'm like what i'll get them to send you some yeah for sure well like i said i listen to dudley when it comes to every i'm you know i'm like you when it comes to martial arts if someone's teaching me something i just

listen i don't i don't second guess and when a guy as wise as him says that it works i'm curious about it at least try it before I knock it if it don't work for me then maybe it's just I'm doing something wrong and they come and show me and it still don't work it's kind of like

I don't believe but if it worked do you have a particular camo company that you appreciate right now I'm using Sika Sika's the best yeah I love it

they're the best they gave me a little pro deal 50% off oh really oh that's great so it worked out perfect I love it it's still expensive

but it's worth it yeah they just have so much engineering in their shit and guys like john barklow the guy was with the designer that does all the testing and cold weather and you ever see the cold water immersion test they've done with their shit he's got a rewarming drill that he put online explaining to people what you do if you're in cold conditions and you fall into the water, like how to re-warm yourself. He's got a whole video where he did it. They jumped into this icy river. Nope.

Yeah, nope. And then climbed out. And, you know, the suits are designed and a lot of the clothing is designed to allow you to survive in that sort of a situation. But, you know, you have to know how to do it, how to go about it. See, here's John and this guy that he's with, and they just dunked there's john on the right and they dunked themselves in this freezing fucking water and then get out and then they put on sleeping bags and got in the tent and i'm gonna tell you right now that's from wps joe

you're not gonna see no black Dunking himself in no frozen water That's WPS That's some WPS It's white people shit You're not going to see no brother And no ice But just to prove a point I'm cool

Well he's educating people That was actually When he was in the military That's what he did He taught cold weather survival He's so thorough too And you know And he's one of the reasons why sitka's

gear is so well engineered and designed because they've got a guy like him that's uh telling them how to design things and he's a hunter too he hunted with me uh last year i hunted uh elk with him and uh in um utah i'm actually gonna get the test out like my buddy told me before like i promise you sicker you get that warm and stuff no matter how cold you're not gonna get cold like the best shit so i'm going to uh saskatchewan canada for whitetail in november yeah the guy he told me he said it gets he's like it's not that bad but it's kind of like what's not bad he was like sometimes like negative that's fucking bad you come right i got an extra body suit for you so i'm gonna get their super warm gear and try it out and he said if it don't work i'll let you use the body suit but well you might need the body suit in saskatchewan

it's fucking cold i'm gonna test and see if it really works i might see your boys videos check it out that canada cold's a different cold you know those people are hardy folks yeah we went out there in uh june for the bear hunt actually me and my dad in the mornings it was cold yeah and by the time day the sun come out and then we. In the mornings, it was cold. Yeah. And by the time the day, the sun come out. And then we go to the top of the mountain to glass. And, oh, man, fast, like instantly, hands froze. I'm in the truck in the heat. And he's just out there chilling in his T-shirt.

Like, this is, how do they do this? They're just used to it. Yeah. Now, when you were up there, was that spot in stock? Yeah. Yeah. So you were catching them when they were coming out of the dens and eating grass? We have to go up

to the top of the viewing point at the top of the mountain and we look me him my dad he had the spotting scope we both from binoculars he said just look for a black dot you see something you tell me and i put the spotting scope on it and see if it's a sow or a bear we can get you know have something like all of us a sow or her cubs we're not shooting those we only want old males and it's crazy because it's a 30 minute drive's her cubs, we're not shooting those, we only want old males. And it's crazy because it's a 30 minute drive to the top of the mountain. So after we see him,

it might look like it's right there. It takes like an hour to get down there and we got to park and we still got to walk 20, 30 minutes and hope he's still

in that area. You know what I mean? And like I said, we came across elk, we came across cougars, all kinds of stuff, but you get there and that bear was gone.

Yeah. And we hopped in and we're like, all right, back to the truck, back to the top and we did it all day till like it got dark and take us till midnight whatever to get home because it was so far into the mountains and it was great like i said but it was walking and i had the wrong boots i had like work boots so my casual stuff was burning

the first day but and i'm with the head guy he's i don't like driving i was like walking a lot so we did a whole lot of walking. He's like, I figured you being a UFC fighter, I could test you out. I never had a guy as athletic as you that's able to walk. Most people are overweight

or not that athletic. So you want to go a little bit and it's time to go to the truck. Like you, I can test you out. That's a lot of cardio, man. Those walking up those hills. Who are you telling?

Man, I've never been so sore in my life. That's what my mom said. Like, Mr. Overtime 25. Like, you ain't did it, mama. in my life. That's what my mom said, like, Mr. Overtime, 25-8. Like, you ain't did it, mama. It's different.

It's different walking up those hills and those guys that get used to it. Those very specific muscles that you use when you're constantly hiking up hills. You said you did a blackbird hunt before, right? Yeah, I did a few. A bow or a rifle? Bow in north of Alberta with my friends John and Jen, the Rivets, up there. They got a great camp up there. I just don't have the time to get away for that many camps, you know, and I prefer elk hunting. How many camps are you doing a year?

I'm going to do four this year. Four this year. Two elk, one axis deer, and one mule deer. Now, what about Saskatchewan White tail You seen those Fuck But would you

Would you do it Yeah I would do it Yeah I would do it He said He'd do whatever hunt He wanted to do But this year I can't Because I do have something

Scheduled in November already Well you tell me when I can't do more than One hunt a month I'll get divorced My kids will beat me up I'm on the verge of that already I'm on Every morning I get up at 4 o'clock She just on the verge of that already i'm all every morning i get

up four o'clock she just put the baby back to sleep i'm up making noise like wish me luck i'll see you when i get back i know they don't like it man it's funny but i get it but it's it's one of those things that just takes a lot of time like if you're gonna go on a hunting trip it's seven days away you know you have seven days and you're going to be probably somewhere where there's no cell phone signal but for me man it's very valuable for my head i i i recenter out there i get it man there's fucking animals chasing deer and things are trying to survive and it just puts everything in perspective for me when i'm sneaking up on an elk and i'm tiptoeing tiptoeing through the grass and i'm just trying to get inside like 60 70 yards just to get a good shot off and i'm tiptoeing tiptoeing through the grass and i'm just trying to get inside like 60 70 yards just to get a good shot off and i'm trying to make sure the wind is right and i'm not thinking

about anything else man nothing and when i draw back and i center my pin and you know and i put i'm looking through the peep site and everything's right and the housing's level and i've got my anchor point and i'm pulling with my back muscles and i'm just concentrating on that spot aim small miss small it all the world goes away the world goes away and when that arrow finds that crease and sinks right through then you see those fletchings disappear and you're like oh we fucking did it that's what people will never understand like why would you be happy you killed an animal? Because it's so hard to do.

It's not that you're happy the animals died. You're happy you did it. It's a relief. It's so hard to do. It's like people don't understand. Like, to maintain calmness and stillness when you're drawing on an animal, it's not like a rifle. I've shot things with a rifle, and it's not easy. It's more hard than people think it is, but it's way easier than using a bow. Exactly. It's not like a rifle. I've shot things with the rifle and it's not easy It's more hard than people think it is, but it's way easier than using a bow

It's not even close. So you got to draw back without being spotted. Yeah, then you got a hold steady Yeah, like the rifle is kind you got sticks. Yeah, I'm stick put it shoulder I can say it ain't easy, but you find the crosshair once you get it settled Is there with that that's just squeeze squeeze squeeze pull I pull down so you don't see me So right now I'm starting to shake I've been like the one I held three minutes and 41 seconds I had a record and I held his butt coming he kept stopping like I feel my back They got up and I put now I'm like wobbly

I'm like and I post the video after that kill like people wonder why I'm so proud of my kills like do you know it's Like being 235 pounds 6'3 in a tree not being spotted holding both you know and you got to control your breathing yeah one wrong move in my head if I go to it's something he see my hat move the silhouette he's gone it's like literally like I post a video and it looked like a picture like just me holding it looked like a picture because I never moved like I don't think anybody would understand how hard it is to be as big as I am all the way up in the tree with a climber i'm using the climb so that's hard too and get up and just sit still the wind blowing everything you can't

sway your scent everything has to be right it's an art to it people never know they'll never know unless they do it it's one of those things and many people that get mad at people that do it are meat eaters which drives me crazy they think there's something wrong with killing wild animals. Like, that's the best way to do it. Because these animals, first of all, you're going to get organic, real, wild meat. It's better for you. Second of all, like, these animals lived a real life. They're not, like, caged.

Chained up in a butcher shop. Come on. The funniest thing, after I got to bed, me and my dad got out, and we posted a picture. And this lady, she's in the same supplement company, and I know she eats meat. I've seen her at a barbecue, her and her husband, like, pounding burgers. And when I posted the picture, she's like, I can't believe you. I will no longer follow you. How could you dare go in the wild and kill a bear to eat it?

I said, don't you eat burgers? You went and got a cattle that somebody took and chained up and slaughtered. You'd rather that than me going out and getting them the most natural way ever? Not only that, if you love animals, you got to kill bears because they eat everything. 50% of all the deer fawns and elk calves, they get killed by bears. 50% of them. I posed a picture of killing a coyote once. And everybody was like, oh, did you kill a coyote? Didn't do anything to you. But the thing they didn't see like I post a picture killing coyote once and everybody like oh, how'd you get coyote?

Didn't do anything to you, but thing they didn't see I post a video a week later I killed the coyote as he was chasing down a doe Yeah He was like trying to get him and I saw I swung through right when he came out pow flipped and it was over I Saved the deer's life, but y'all saw was the picture of the coyote where you can't eat them Yeah, but I save the other wildlife. It's just you never make everybody happy. You can't make anybody happy that doesn't understand hunting.

That's for sure. They have this perception of it from movies and from a lot of those redneck stupid TV shows where, you know, they don't portray hunting in a positive way. And so people get this negative impression about it. Positive way And so people get This negative Impression about it But I think With more people

Like you Elite athletes That are getting Into it Bo Jackson Is a big Bo hunter You know

There's a lot Of Bo hunters Now That are You know That were Just athletes And they realize

Like wow This is Thrilling And exciting And then It's the best Meat in the world So you have

So many pros And it's the most I think it's the most Ethical way to eat meat Because you're going out and getting it yourself you're not hiring some supermarket hitman you're doing it yourself all right that's the thing well my youtube channel is the main point ain't all about hunting it's more like one a black guy in the community two showing people it's more than just killing like i so far the one i'm editing now is a turkey hunt this whole week i'm out there but i didn't kill anything, but it's more.

It's showing you, it's more. You see the deer walk up, the view, the sun coming up, the sun going down. And you're shooting all this and editing it, too? Yeah, I'm doing it all myself. Now, do you think you'll have a career in that after you get done with fighting? Like I tell when I meet people at the shows that work well and work with me, like, what do you want? I don't want no money or anything.

I just want your help. If you can let me use one of your gear, one of your thing, thing and i advertise it i'll put you a little link at the beginning tacticam boat creek different people i use just put a thing on there just i don't want money but because i'm just a fighter i'm not a hunter but i love the sport you know i love hunting and you share you help advertise whatever i just want to get as well as well known as i am in fighting i want the same thing in hunting and what that would do is i just bring other people because i see like when i go to the bow shop people ask all the time like i'm in today i was in the hotel my boy like oh you got a gig somewhere the guitar like no it's a bow and arrow you see a guy say bow and arrow you look at yeah i hunt all the time i love hunting especially when you see me like i told my wife i'm the first person

on joe rogan shooting techno thing with jordan's a do-rag or with a bow. Like, it don't work that way. That's true, you are. You don't see nobody wearing do-rag and Jordans. It's very rare. You see that guy on the streets with sounds,

but you see me with a bow or a gun. I wonder if you're the first guy to ever shoot techno hunt wearing a do-rag and a bow. You might be.

And Jordans. Well, Jordans, maybe someone's done that before. Not with a do-rag. Not with a do-rag. You might get somebody with a do-rag without the Jordans.

Right. You might get somebody with a do-rag. Jordans without the do. You might get somebody with a Jordans without the do-rag. It's true. I got them both. You got the combo. You know what I mean? So that's the thing. I want people to see with the show, not about hunting.

Just you don't have to be the typical what people see. You see country guys, cowboy hats, cowboy boots, kick shit kickers in their trucks and everything. That's the guy you expect to be a hunter. Right. The guy walk around in a camel, but I want somebody to see. Because people find out, like, you hunt? I love it. That's the guy you expect to be a hunter right you gotta walk around a camel but i want somebody to see because people find out like you hunt i love it that's it i know when people see a top level ufc fighter doing it they're like whoa really like it's his life yeah well you that's i love that you love it man it's it's it means a lot to me man i i think that positive role models like you are what the sport needs to change people's

i don't want to say sport because I don't think hunting is a sport. Let's call it a discipline. A culture. To change people's perceptions of it. The positive people like you that are elite athletes and just for people to get a chance to see like, hey, this is – I mean, I'm not encouraging everyone to do it, but I think there's a lot of people that would love it that have never tried it

because they maybe don't have an understanding of what it actually is. So if they see you or they see the videos of you doing like chad mendez is deep he's deep into it that's all he wants to do i love it he loves it that's all he wants to do i mean he he basically is fighting to pay for his hunting career you know yeah i plan oh hey you found it this is just scouting and stuff yeah but right now i got So is this in Jersey? Yeah This is like behind my house There's a lot Oh you got Mavens huh? It's a lot

That I purchased Like I said Everybody think Everything I post is Stuff I got No A lot of stuff I got I purchased

Because that's What I like to use I'll have Maven hook you up Brandon Weaver Where you at? I actually met him I met him at this Great house

That's where I bought it from They make great Great buyouts Like I was trying to I'm going to purchase this Oh that's good man Good for you They make great shit i mean there's a lot of great companies out there the guy filming he's a teammate of mine that hunts but

one of the guys i talked to frankie egger he said he wouldn't do it somebody gave him a bow i said give me a bow i'll set it up i'll show you how to get i got all my guys tell them all send the link um do your hunter safety card and i'll take you out i'll film it and i'll show you how to do it really like my buddies, my buddy's in Jersey. He's a Jersey Shore guido type guy. But like I said, I taught him how to shoot a bow 15 weeks ago. He kept mixing up the difference between. Is this your shop?

Yeah, this is the little pro shop in the basement. Oh, wow, nice. So you set up your own bows and everything? You level your third axis and all that stuff? No kidding. That's great, man. I love it. So the thing is just getting people.

I want average Joes. You get together with Jim Miller? He's out there too, right? He's up in Summit. I haven't hunted with him, but we talk every once in a while. He's another one. Full balls deep. I'm working with his guys at A&W Labs right now for attracting and whatnot.

Them and Bo Creek are the two I use. A&W Labs for what is it? They got minerals and attractants on top of the corn or whatever. Yeah. So like getting them on camera. So like I use this stuff like the Killer Q. Like I said, it's not just getting people in it, but like getting these local shops. Like he told me, like we don't sell in stores.

We try to get a few here and a few there. But like we don't have the network to get our name out there. So it's people like that. Right. Supporting those that support me. You help me support me fighting. And I post this stuff you know because i got more followers than you so maybe somebody will click the link for sure and they'll give it a try yeah for sure that's awesome man you have a perfect attitude i i would i think you know i mean there's a lot

of careers right now in the hunting world like a lot of guys make videos they post videos and they basically make a great living just making hunting videos you can you can do that now hunting podcast now you know steve rinello who's the guy who got me into hunting in uh 2012 for that show you've seen they make tremendous money now touring they do these podcasts these hunting podcasts and then they do them live they do them live it's sold out theaters i mean it's crazy i mean i try to get him involved in podcasting years ago because he would be on mine and he was so good at him like you're such a great talker you'd be perfect for this and now it's just one of their their biggest things but it's one more way where guys can make a living and also spread a really positive message and be a great ambassador

for for hunting for the hunting community like i told post on frankie's he did um the butcher box is that the new thing yeah and i told him like i've been trying to tell him get out to the woods i mean like we can get you some meat like i get him and ricardo meat if they want it out of my freezer and somebody said something about my comment i was like i can give a man a fish and he have food for days. But if I teach a man to fish, he have food for life. Yeah, he can get this box. It'd be cool. He's like, oh, not everybody can hunt like you, but I can teach him.

Anybody that's willing, you can hit me up anytime. If you're willing to hunt, if you can make it to me, I will take you out. And New Jersey's infested with deer. Everyone's like, oh, you're a murderer. But when it hits your car, you mad. I'm saving you that problem people die some guy in my friend cam haynes neighborhood last year died guy in front of him hit a deer the deer went up in the air and came through his windshield killed him

that's a freak story yeah but if i killed him i shot the deer before he got to the rope right that wouldn't happen are you saving lives i. I'm saving lives. Getting Lyme disease and ticks and everything out here. Did you get Lyme? Not yet. I'm out there. My wife says all the time, you're obsessed with ticks now. You should be. I feel like there's a tick on me or something.

Maybe I got ticks. I put the Sawyers on. I use Lethal now. Good. I put it on my skin and everything. Good. But I'll be in the woods and I feel something. And I'll pin it.

Sure enough, fucking tick on me. Really? I get home and I got socks over my pants Gloves over my sleeves And everything tucked in And I take everything off I look in the mirror Sure enough

There's one on my back Like dead ass I was at the Philly fights And me and my buddies From Hero Sports We were talking like I feel like something on my back Like bro what are you talking about

We seen one Ain't on your back And I reached in my shirt And sure enough Put a fucking tick on my back Like bro we in Philly At the fights Why a fucking tick get on me

They're everywhere Like they're everywhere They're everywhere And some giant percentage of them Have Lyme disease They say New Jersey Is the highest infested place With ticks

I can imagine And Lyme I mean you see what happened With Jim Miller I mean it fucked him up For years Yeah I mean it fucked my friend's son up

He got Bell's palsy Where his face went numb On his son Yeah It's fucking bad man I think Frank Was it Frank Yager One of the guys at the gym His wife had Yeah, I mean, it fucked my friend's son up. He got Bell's palsy where his face went numb on his son. It's fucking bad, man. I think Frank, was it Frank? One of the guys at the gym, his wife had Lyme. It got bit a while ago and she was messed up for a while.

Marcus Davis. Marcus Davis wound up using all of his money he earned in the UFC to help his wife. Because his wife got real bad Lyme disease where she was hospitalized for a long time, man. People don't understand that that shit can devastate you. That is a dirty disease. Those little stinking fucking ticks, man, they can really mess your life up. I'm surprised Cam don't get as much as he carried a deer. Every time I see that now, I'll be thinking, how do you carry a deer on your neck? If he did, he'd never tell anybody.

He would have Lyme disease and just run 150 miles until the Lyme disease died. Run it out. He's a psycho. There's discipline, and then there's what that guy has and this guy too oh yeah goggins he's another one man he's another one it's like these guys they're like they exhibit this next level toughness that makes you re-examine what you're doing like you think you're tough and then you find out like goggins what do we say he ran like 28 100 fucking mile runs in a row, something insane like that. It's a lot.

Why? It's more than once a lot. Why? To prove it. When you run over two miles, I look like, why? I get a text message from Goggins saying, stay hard, motherfucker. I'm checking in on you right now. All these pussies out there.

You hear him yelling in the text. Exactly, man. Have you seen the documentary Netflix Losers no I haven't look it up there's one on there the guy called Lost in the Desert

it's a guy who runs it's a desert run they do I don't care what country but he go out there and he was just so obsessed with winning like it's a

thousand people running through this desert but it's a course they have to follow when the wind get bad they got check-ins and what not they're supposed to follow

and this guy he was so obsessed like he wasn't checking He was like trying to take shortcuts and like if I go this way I'll find it He ended up going off the course and when it cleared up. He was way off course, but he was so obsessed I still got a finish. He was out there for like five or some five or six days Yeah, and that's talking about how they announced to his family told his family. Your husband's dead. We can't find you find them They had helicopters going all over the place. He went to a point

where he started drinking his own piss. He found his cave that was full of bats. He started ripping his heads off, mixing them up, drinking it to survive. Drinking the bat juice?

Bat juice, mixing it up. At one point, he heard a helicopter coming over. He took all his clothes, all his gear, dug a hole, and set it all on fire

hoping they would see him. As the fire went up, the wind blew it out. He didn't get saved. He's out there with no gear, no nothing, in the middle of nowhere.

He's about, he ended up getting back. His mind was like, I have to finish. He said, everybody left. He said, when he got there,

the checkpoint was gone but his friend had flew back to find him and sure enough, his friend was there following him in the desert. Yeah, it's called,

the documentary is called Losers here. Losers in the episode is Lost in the Desert. The whole show is good. All the little things on there in the episode is Lost in the Desert. The whole show is good. All the little things on it is good, but that Lost in the Desert one, he ended up divorcing his wife, but his wife left him because after that, he still went back.

He came home and she's like, you're not going back. He's like, I'm doing it again. I have to finish. And now he still does it. He divorced his wife for that? His wife left him because you got a family. When he left, she was mad. Like, what about your family people die on this what happened he's like don't worry this isn't this i love this i have to do it when he came back and his wife was

like we're not doing it again he was like yes i am like you just was on like he was pretty much dead they put him in the hospital they found him and everything he ended up doing again morrow prosperi wow the survival story of Mauro Prosperi. Disoriented after a sandstorm in the Sahara Desert, this Italian ultramarathon runner walked nearly 200 miles to safety. Fuck. But he's Italian. He's probably going to get divorced anyway.

Hey, where are you going to go? Those fucking guys are animals. Yeah, when you see that, you're going to be like, I want you to DM me after you watch it. I will. I will see it. When he ate the bad juice, I was like, I would just kill myself there. He was literally biting their heads off, just in a cave, dark, no light. He was feeling for them.

He could see their eyes. He'd bite their head and rip it up with a stick. That's how he would survive in a cave. What kind of diarrhea did that guy have? I don't care. Drinking bad. He even killed, he tried to kill himself actually.

Really? But he was so dehydrated he cut his wrist. He said he had the last sharp thing he had, he cut his wrist with and went to bed hoping he was going to wake,

like not wake up dead and he woke up. He's like, what in the world? He said, that was my sign that I wasn't supposed to die. He said when he got to the hospital

and they saw his wrist, they said you were too dehydrated to bleed. He didn't have anything. He couldn't bleed. He healed up. Jesus Christ. He said that was it. He was walking.

He said, I felt myself fainting. I just kept telling myself, I'm here. I have to make it. I have to make it. And I have to make it. And he said he found like, he see like some girl walking out there in the desert. He started walking away.

She was going. Then the army, whatever army, wherever it was at, the army had to come get him. And they got guns and shit. He think he's going to die. They ended up taking him to the hospital. And he woke up. He army had to come get him And they got guns and shit He think he's gonna die They ended up taking him to the hospital And he woke up

He had IVs and everything And they recovered him And took him back to his family It's a crazy story I mean all of them was good But that Was my brother calling me Like watch that bro

If you got a mentality like that You are the fucking man Watch that Two days in He stumbled Into an abandoned Muslim shrine Where he noticed

Some bats Huddled together. Prosperi grabbed a handful of them, cut off their heads with a knife, and then sucked out their insides to drink their blood and quench his thirst. Eventually, he did his vampire act on 20 bats. When another three days passed with no signs of rescue, he slit his wrists and waited to die, but his blood had thickened due to dehydration, so it wouldn't drain out. Fuck, man. Like, that's some guy getting up in the camera. They need to get together and do a podcast and talk about that. Like, that was.

They wouldn't have cut their wrist. They ain't that tough? No, they wouldn't have tried to kill themselves. You're right. They would have just kept going. I think those kind of people is ultra marathon people. It's a different breed of human. It's like everything has – there's levels, right, to everything.

There's levels. You've experienced it in your own life where you toughened up. You became a stronger person, a harder person, and then there's levels past that, and then there's levels past that. Especially for people that have one solitary thing they do like ultra marathons they're all the skinny dudes who can just keep going they just keep going it's just it's it's the the pulling it off the crossing the line and knowing that you did something that seemed almost impossible so so titanically epically difficult to do that so few people can ever do it when they do they're

talking about running a 500 mile race now because they did the moab 230 and they had the bigfoot 200 all these people that are putting on these races they're like okay we could do 240 let's see if we could do 500 so now they're talking about doing a 500 mile race it's next level it's hard for me to run a 5k i hear you well you're a big fella too i mean i could do it but i did in college and i've never ran like nothing calculated like you had to pay due again it was like a charity we had to do for college nope never again have you ever thought about doing something like that like i'm gonna go i'm gonna run 5k i ain't gonna pay it's like going skydive why am I jumping out of a perfectly good plane to go on the ground

I gotta go in the plane why do you have to pay to run a 5k like what are they organizing it I guess I guess most of them like go to foundations and stuff like that

but even then like you heard about the foundations that take money I don't trust them you do hear about them sometimes so I was like

I'm not paying no hundred and something bucks to go run 13.1 miles right I'm cool people know it's more effective

I can say I did it I can say I did it on my own I could run 13.1 miles right i'm cool people know it's more effective i can say i did it i can say i did it on my own yeah i don't run 13.1 miles i just check my phone you know 13 miles we're good track my mile track my run boom tell me how far i go and hit 13 i'm done calling a taxi but you like when you're a big guy like you you probably it's probably not good to run a lot of miles right a lot of pounding especially I'm flat for your shit. I'm so flat like my ankles like touch the inside of ankles touch I'm so flat foot flat foot zero at zero arch at all So I get a new pair of shoes every can't but after campus over cuz by all the movement and running

I'm doing I use the same shoes Athletic shoes for hitting mitts and shadow boxing and running so So with all the flat foot is pushing down, pushing down, by the time it's time to fight, it's gone. Like I feel it. My feet start hurting. My calves hurt. I know it's time for a new shoe. You ever try minimalist shoes? Like those toe shoes or minimalist shoes?

I don't think they make them in my size. What size are you? 14. I bet they do. I guarantee you they do. They make them in 11. I'm 11. Oh, yeah.

That's a big difference. They make everything in 11 and 13. I had a size 14 at the age of 14. Really? Yes. Damn. You must look like a puppy. I was big.

I was six foot tall. Freshman year in high school, 13 years old, I was six foot. Wow. Yeah. Size 14 shoes. Jesus. I wrestled heavyweight from freshman year in high school to senior year in college. That's 215 to 285.

What motivated you to go down to 205? Well, I did a catchweight fight at like 220, the fight before I went to Ultimate Fighter. When I went there,

I had to go 205. My coach said, you made it. You won the belt here. You might as well try it. Go 205. Like, you can do it. I know you can do it.

Once I got it, I was like, God, I can do this. Then it was like 85. I was like, I'm not doing it. I could do it, but I'm not doing And once I got it I was like God I can do this And then it was like 85 I was like I'm not doing it I can do it But I'm not doing it

I remember what it took To get here It ain't worth it It's not worth it You're too big You know If you look at I think a lot of guys

Have fucked their careers up By doing that But dropping too much weight It's not necessary You really get rocked off Or punched in You're very dehydrated That one little touch

Like I said I think that was a part The reason why I got knocked out against Jimmy so easy to I was so light I weighed in at 205 and next day I weighed at 212 going to the green he was 229 checking in he weighed in at 227 before the ring and he said like you too small and I feel like my mind like I said I used to keep myself so low like when I wake up and when I get up so fast I'm so I have to sit back down like I could tell I was getting lightheaded so easy Like when I wake up And when I get up so fast I'm starting to sit back down Like I could tell I was getting lightheaded

So easy You know what I mean Because I was doing too much So I didn't get lightheaded And I had to sit there for a while Drink some water And stand up slow That's the feeling you get

When you couldn't wait That's so crazy But I was feeling that All the time Do something too fast And training And just had to sit there On the mat

Like yeah give me a second And I stand up like alright Terrible Yeah but in my mind It's like if I stay here I'm always ready for a fight But it wasn't good at all. No.

No, you're cutting back on your performance in a big way. But listen, man, now we did a half hour more. So we're good. That was good. Let's get the fuck out of here. And let's go on a hunt, man. What's you and me doing? I'm down.

Okay, we'll figure something out. I'm all booked up for this fall, but maybe next year. We'll start planning. I'd like to take you out to Utah, especially'd love it. Especially after this year's elk hunt. You're going to love it. Let's do it. Corey Anderson. Thank you, sir.

Appreciate you, man. Bye, everybody. That was great. Bye. Thank you.