Who was sound? Who was a cockhole?

[John Matrix]

Back in 2008 at the peak of my MMA fandom (as I type that it seems insane to think that was 8 years ago!) I spent three nights in Las Vegas.

 

I know for most, that's like a dream ticket but to be honest, I hated the fucking place. So on day two, I googled the address got in a cab with $50 on me and asked them to take me there.

 

25 minutes and $40 later, we pull up outside Xtreme Couture. I can't begin to describe how excited I was, I'd idolised Randy Couture as one of the first MMA fights I saw was the Sylvia fight. Watching the grizzled veteran return to dethrone a giant with full Rogan hype job was like every action movie and pro wrestling story id ever loved rolled into one, and it was real!

 

Anyway, absolutely no one of note was working out and turns out the cunt was on a promotional tour of Germany that week!! They gave me a little tour of the gym and I spent an hour browsing through the onsite store trying to add to my Affliction collection when someone tapped me on the shoulder and told me I'd have to leave soon, as pro-training started in 15 minutes.

 

I'd blown my wad on the cab fare and was basically fucked, so I asked if they'd be so kind as to call me a cab, which they did and told me I could sit in the gym while I waited. It took forever to get there - during which time all the big XC names from that era showed up to train. I met and got pictures with Grey Maynard, Martin Kampmann and Forrest Griffin who all seemed flattered/bemused that a man in his mid 20's might choose to spent a vacation in Vegas loitering at an MMA gym, but they were perfectly friendly, Maynard was every bit as vanilla as he's renound for - perfectly nice guy but utterly uninspiring.

 

Forrest I was anxious about, he was the biggest star at the gym, Randy aside but has form for being a dick. He was absolutely fine though, wasn't about to make you feel like you were his best mate or anything, and bearing in mind it wasn't 'an appearance' or anything, they had every right to tell me to fuck off and leave them alone, I couldn't have asked for anything more.

 

Martin Kampmann was easily the coolest of the three, more personable, more comfortable and showed an interest in me, rather than merely fulfil my request for a picture - what was great though was getting to watch the guys train, seeing them in their own environment, away from the cameras, being themselves was something else. Still didn't inspire me to get off my fat arse and get in shape mind you.

[wandshogun09]

Great post Matrix, exactly the kind of thing I was hoping this thread would throw up. The one time you were actually glad your taxi was late, eh?

 

As soon as I saw the fighter names in your post, I had a feeling Kampmann would be the soundest of the three. It never really came across on UFC programming but any time I saw anything of him in backstage footage or video blogs or whatever he always seemed cool as fuck and proper laid back.

[Bus Surfer]

Yeah love that post Matrix. Good stuff.

[Supremo]

For the weigh ins for Machida vs. Munoz there seemed to be a complete fuck up in terms of lack of security after everyone had weighed in.

 

There was nobody looking after the fighters between the stage door and their bus back to the hotel, so it was absolute bedlam when the fighters came out, with people grabbing them and trying to get photos with them. Loads of coaches were shouting and screaming about how unprofessional everything was, poor Lyoto Machida looked terrified as a load of lads were throwing their arms around his neck to pose for a photo whether he liked it or not.

 

But amongst all of this was Mark Munoz, smiling from ear to ear, laughing his head off as he chomped on a jacket spud. I never got to speak to him or anything, but I remember thinking it spoke volumes for Mark. Everyone else was panicking or complaining or looking completely baffled (Machida), but Mark thought the whole thing was hilarious.

[Egg Shen]

No one ever has a bad word to say of Munoz.

[wandshogun09]

I remember you telling that story before, Supremo. The 'Munoz jacket spud' story is becoming like the MMA version of Ian's 'Gangrel cheese and onion Walkers crisps' story

 

Munoz does genuinely seem like a top bloke. I remember when he fought Chris Leben at UFC 138 in Birmingham, I actually felt sorry for him because he was being pretty heavily booed. I don't know if it came across on telly but the crowd, in my section at least, were baying for his blood. I don't think it was anything against him really, it was just a very pro-Leben crowd that night. But even the booers were won around by Munoz by the time he'd finished his victory speech and the most respectful callout ever, challenging Anderson Silva (which Anderson was STILL somehow offended by).

 

I don't think I've ever heard anyone in MMA say anything even remotely negative about Munoz. Even when Chael Sonnen was briefly scheduled to fight him a few years ago, he couldn't have spoken more highly of him. And Machida looked fucking depressed after he KO'd Munoz.

[John Matrix]

Great post Matrix, exactly the kind of thing I was hoping this thread would throw up. The one time you were actually glad your taxi was late, eh?

 

As soon as I saw the fighter names in your post, I had a feeling Kampmann would be the soundest of the three. It never really came across on UFC programming but any time I saw anything of him in backstage footage or video blogs or whatever he always seemed cool as fuck and proper laid back.

 

Thanks mate, and yeah... cab arriving late was a god-send.  It was weird though, because you think of the UFC in Vegas as mainstream, but both the cab drivers I had were utterly bemused, had no idea where the place was, how to find it etc.

 

Anyway, I managed to find this picture of Forrest and I.  As you can tell, one of us was far happier than the other to have met.

 

 

Never occured to me when I posted originally, but what was bizarre looking back, was seeing Ryan and Kim going about their business manning the front desk, and doing a bit of admin etc.  Neither as far as i'm aware had debuted at that stage and were just regular joes putting a shift in.