jimufctna24 Posted January 12 Posted January 12 Sherdog published a new interview with Igor Vovchanchyn today - Igor Vovchanchyn: Where is He Now? (sherdog.com) I've only skimmed through it, but it appears to be a fascinating read. Quote
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted May 27 Author Paid Members Posted May 27 MMA History has just uploaded the first part of an interview with Cage Rage founder Andy Geer about the history of the promotion, this is right up my street! I may have had something to do with them pursuing this as I requested some Cage Rage alumni and they said they'd try, so fuck it, i'm claiming it. Quote
NeverYield Posted May 27 Posted May 27 (edited) Very fond memories of watching Cage Rage back in the day At one point it was the main MMA I watched Lee Murray was a massive what if in MMA for me, just a natural fighter and an absolute handful by all accounts, there wasn't many from south east london, or london in general at that time that fancied their chances with Murray in a straightener in the world he lived in. Edited May 27 by NeverYield Quote
Paid Members Carbomb Posted May 27 Paid Members Posted May 27 58 minutes ago, NeverYield said: Lee Murray was a massive what if in MMA for me, just a natural fighter and an absolute handful by all accounts, there wasn't many from south east london, or london in general at that time that fancied their chances with Murray in a straightener in the world he lived in. An interesting euphemism for "fucking nightmare scumbag of a human being". Quote
NeverYield Posted May 27 Posted May 27 1 hour ago, Carbomb said: An interesting euphemism for "fucking nightmare scumbag of a human being". Well yes, he was never going to win any awards for being citizen of the year, but he certainly had that aptitude for fighting, I do think he could have been a pretty accomplished fighter in the cage, but the discipline obviously wasn't there to fully focus on training. Quote
jimufctna24 Posted May 27 Posted May 27 (edited) 5 hours ago, Egg Shen said: MMA History has just uploaded the first part of an interview with Cage Rage founder Andy Geer about the history of the promotion, this is right up my street! I may have had something to do with them pursuing this as I requested some Cage Rage alumni and they said they'd try, so fuck it, i'm claiming it. 45 minutes in. My knowledge of early Cage Rage events is non-existent, but it's still a riveting listen so far. Thanks for sharing. Edited May 27 by jimufctna24 Quote
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted May 27 Author Paid Members Posted May 27 47 minutes ago, NeverYield said: Well yes, he was never going to win any awards for being citizen of the year, but he certainly had that aptitude for fighting, I do think he could have been a pretty accomplished fighter in the cage, but the discipline obviously wasn't there to fully focus on training. Definitely one of the biggest 'what if's' in MMA history. A lot of that old London MMA lot were unsavoury characters, it what fascinates me about the story of it. It's all tied into a True Crime type story. I've listened to a few Mark Epstein podcasts recently, he was associated with Lee Murray and had a decent run in MMA though he seems a fairly reformed character now, he was a right wrong 'un back in the day. Charlie Ward who's closely tied to Conor McGregor and fought in the UFC was also a bit of a player in the London crime scene. Quote
jimufctna24 Posted May 27 Posted May 27 (edited) It's a bit of an open secret that Cage Rage events were glorified piss-ups for the London Underworld, especially around the cageside seats. Edited May 27 by jimufctna24 Quote
Paid Members Carbomb Posted May 27 Paid Members Posted May 27 1 hour ago, NeverYield said: Well yes, he was never going to win any awards for being citizen of the year, but he certainly had that aptitude for fighting, I do think he could have been a pretty accomplished fighter in the cage, but the discipline obviously wasn't there to fully focus on training. Not just that, though - his criminality actually cost him his MMA career. The fact he got to the UFC means he could have left it behind, but instead he chose to be stupid and do something that would get him arrested and imprisoned. Quote
jimufctna24 Posted May 27 Posted May 27 (edited) 40 minutes ago, Carbomb said: Not just that, though - his criminality actually cost him his MMA career. The fact he got to the UFC means he could have left it behind, but instead he chose to be stupid and do something that would get him arrested and imprisoned. IIRC, Murray's MMA career was on life support before the robbery, and his UFC career had completely hit the skids. After his successful UFC debut in 2004, Murray was repeatedly denied further entry into the US. The story goes that the Metropolitan Police shared information with American authorities about Murray's criminal history. That's why, despite being under contract with the UFC in 04 and 05, Murray fought Anderson Silva in Cage Rage, and according to his wiki was scheduled to fight Phil Baroni in Cage Rage in December of 2005. Murray was also briefly the most famous MMA fighter in the UK in September of 2005, as his stabbing made the front page of at least one of the red-top tabloid newspapers (I assume the stabbing was the reason the aforementioned fight with Baroni was cancelled). It's been said that while he returned to MMA training after the stabbing, he wasn't as committed to it as he had been previously. Then came the depot robbery in February of 2006. Edited May 27 by jimufctna24 Quote
NeverYield Posted May 27 Posted May 27 21 minutes ago, Egg Shen said: Definitely one of the biggest 'what if's' in MMA history. A lot of that old London MMA lot were unsavoury characters, it what fascinates me about the story of it. It's all tied into a True Crime type story. I've listened to a few Mark Epstein podcasts recently, he was associated with Lee Murray and had a decent run in MMA though he seems a fairly reformed character now, he was a right wrong 'un back in the day. Charlie Ward who's closely tied to Conor McGregor and fought in the UFC was also a bit of a player in the London crime scene. 100% it's very interesting stuff, and it gets me as well, I've got a very big interest in that type of true crime, organised etc. Yeah I've watched Epstein's podcasts, I finished the most recent one the other day, I enjoyed it. 100% you'll find many involved in MMA & Boxing particularly in that London and surrounding areas part involved in the crime stuff, and it is really interesting, I think when people say they have an interest in that sort of thing people can get it mixed up with glorification, but it is a very absorbing subject🤣, especially when you're somewhat local to certain names and events as well. Very true Carbomb, it cost him everything he could have become and he's still there today in that Moroccan nick. Quote
jimufctna24 Posted May 27 Posted May 27 (edited) 27 minutes ago, jimufctna24 said: After his successful UFC debut in 2004, Murray was repeatedly denied further entry into the US. The story goes that the Metropolitan Police shared information with American authorities about Murray's criminal history. That's why, despite being under contract with the UFC in 04 and 05, Murray fought Anderson Silva in Cage Rage, and according to his wiki was scheduled to fight Phil Baroni in Cage Rage in December of 2005. They've just discussed this on the podcast. Apparently, Murray was barred from the US long before 2004, but somehow gained entry multiple times before mid-2004, where I assumed the UK police tipped off US authorities about what he was doing. The rumour is that Murray's dual nationality (his Dad was Moroccan) may have somehow been allowing him to evade the ban. Edited May 27 by jimufctna24 Quote
NeverYield Posted May 27 Posted May 27 I think it was the road rage incident that got him barred originally. For anyone who hasn't read it, and likes true crime books, "Heist" by Howard Sounes is a cracking read. It is thoroughly researched, highly detailed, doesn't glorify anything, just tells the story of what happened, haven't read it in a long time but this podcast has made me want to dig it out, it is more of a true crime read but in the early stages of the book there is a fair bit about the UK MMA scene around that time in London, but it is mainly a true crime book for those who can read that sort of thing Quote
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted May 27 Author Paid Members Posted May 27 1 hour ago, Carbomb said: instead he chose to be stupid and do something that would get him arrested and imprisoned. He nearly got away with 53 million quid though, I probably would have taken that over a run in the UFC too 😄 I remember the stabbing being on a front page over here, crazy at the time. Only other time I remember MMA being front page news was when Gonzaga KO'd Crocop. Quote
Paid Members Egg Shen Posted May 27 Author Paid Members Posted May 27 40 minutes ago, NeverYield said: I think it was the road rage incident that got him barred originally. For anyone who hasn't read it, and likes true crime books, "Heist" by Howard Sounes is a cracking read. It is thoroughly researched, highly detailed, doesn't glorify anything, just tells the story of what happened, haven't read it in a long time but this podcast has made me want to dig it out, it is more of a true crime read but in the early stages of the book there is a fair bit about the UK MMA scene around that time in London, but it is mainly a true crime book for those who can read that sort of thing Ive got a kindle version of that, need to read it. The Catching Lighting series is also well worth watching if you can find it. Quote
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