Latest / Caught on the Mike... / "Under The Surface" with Bellator MMA star Dante Schiro

Transcript

"Under The Surface" with Bellator MMA star Dante Schiro · Caught on the Mike...

• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: Ladies and gentlemen, I am joined today by Dante Spiro, Walter Wait with Bellator MMA.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_00: How you doing, sir?
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_01: Great, man.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_01: Feeling good.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_01: How are you?
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: Good, good.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for thanks for doing the show.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: My pleasure.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_01: So how's things going in Colorado?
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_01: Good, man.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_01: I'm loving it here.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_01: Like uh, like I just told you a little bit ago, me and my wife moved out here in June, and uh it's I mean, it's been amazing.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: Do you have any favorite sites or any favorite activities that you've taken up since you've been living there?
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we're both we both like to like be outdoors and and hike and camp and all kinds of stuff.
• 1:48
  SPEAKER_01: So like moving out here was uh, I mean, as far as that goes, a no-brainer.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_01: So I mean, we lately not as much.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_01: It's been a little like with the winter and stuff, obviously it slows down a little bit.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_01: Too bad we don't really ski or snowboard.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_01: But uh we've I don't know, dude, like almost every other weekend that it's been nice out here, we've gone on a hike or camped or something.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_01: So we're we're really taking advantage of all the scenery out here.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: Without any further ado, I'm gonna let you introduce yourself and kind of tell your origin story.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_01: As you announced, Dante Skiro, that's who I am.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um, born and raised in Madison, Wisconsin.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_01: As far as like getting into MMA, I didn't get into MMA until right around like my college years.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_01: So like 2015 is like when I had my first fight.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_01: But I grew up playing soccer my whole life.
• 2:37
  SPEAKER_01: Always wanted to be a professional soccer player.
• 2:39
  SPEAKER_01: That was like that was my shit.
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_01: That was my my main goal was to be a professional soccer player.
• 2:43
  SPEAKER_01: And then uh high school, I started wrestling a little bit.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_01: My little brothers wrestled, I started wrestling, and I kind of took to that and I started liking that.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_01: Went to went to college at UW Whitewater for um two years and wrestled and played soccer there a little bit.
• 2:58
  SPEAKER_01: And then uh pretty much I just school wasn't for me, and I I you know I wanted to um do something with wrestling, and then like fighting be started to become more popular, and I got into that and I was like, shit, why don't I just try it?
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_01: Why don't I go for it?
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like that's I started to fall in love with it, and I was like, school's not for me.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_01: Dropped out, went to like the closest gym to my parents' house back at home when I moved in there, and then from there just started.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_00: So, what was the first discipline you picked up?
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_00: Was it just your wrestling or yeah, um what in addition to?
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_01: Well, so I wrestled in high school and then a little bit in college, and then I just started do I just started like kind of not everything because there's so many different martial arts you can do, like from legit to not like legit martial arts, but uh I just started doing jujitsu and uh Muay Thai, and then um yeah, I that's just kind of how it all started.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_01: I just went in deep and did everything.
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: Right, right, right.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: Is there a preferred style?
• 3:56
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, um, I still love all the grappling, like that's probably my not my main focus, but what I I'm attracted to the most.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_01: Just I think just because wrestling, and then I started doing jujitsu and like really fell in love with that, and uh, but like for this to be your job, you gotta do everything, you know.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_01: So like I not that I don't love like learning my like boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, all that stuff, but I something draws me more to the grappling than anything for sure.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_00: You have had fights with LFA, with one um Chosen Few MMA based out of Wisconsin.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: Talk a little bit about Chosen Few.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so Chosen Few uh gym is uh where I've got like where I had the bulk of my training.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_01: So I started out at another gym, uh just a small gym called Fight Prime Um in Wisconsin, also.
• 4:48
  SPEAKER_01: And that was like that was one of those classic, like, where do I want to go to like what gym do I want to go to?
• 4:55
  SPEAKER_01: All right, go on Google, type in like MMA gyms near me, and it was the closest one, you know.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_01: Like I could walk there, I could hop on the butt bus there.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I didn't I didn't have my own car or money really.
• 5:05
  SPEAKER_01: I was I was living with my parents um for a little bit after I dropped out, and it was just the closest place.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_01: So I was like, all right, this is convenient.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_01: And then um my main coach at the time, Eric Stein, um, I was still pretty new, and uh honestly I didn't even really know what was going on.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_01: One day he just told me, he was like, hey, did uh the other guys tell you the news?
• 5:25
  SPEAKER_01: And I was like, I don't know what you're talking about.
• 5:27
  SPEAKER_01: He's like, we're moving gyms, and I'm like, all right, uh, sure, why not?
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like whatever you say go.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_01: So we moved over to Chosen Few, which was more uh MMA um heavy, and like that's where like the fighters were.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_01: Um and we knew about that.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_01: I I always heard of Chosen Few when I was at Fight Prime and whatnot, and then um we moved over there, and uh I don't know, that's just that's where everything really took off.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_01: That's where like I probably had my most most growth in my early years, like fighting and everything, and then uh that's that's kind of where it all really started.
• 6:01
  SPEAKER_00: So, did you ever have or can you recall that kind of flick of the switch moment where you knew that this was going to be your career path?
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah, there's kind of two two things.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um, like I said, when I played soccer, I it was always soccer.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_01: Like soccer was my I wanted to be a professional soccer player.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_01: That was I was like hell bent on that.
• 6:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then like in high school, I just started gravitating more towards wrestling.
• 6:27
  SPEAKER_01: Like the individual aspect of it was really attractive to me.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_01: I got like started to just get sick of losing games and like you know, not everybody is holds yourself accountable, you know.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_01: When you play in a team, everybody's got to do their part, but you could do everything that you like, everything that's in your role and somebody else slacks and you lose because of that.
• 6:48
  SPEAKER_01: You know, you like you suffer the consequences of somebody else's actions, and it just it got old.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_01: I still love soccer.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_01: I I haven't played in a while.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_01: I would love like nothing against a sport itself.
• 6:58
  SPEAKER_01: It just competitively got got less and less attracted to me.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_01: And then um, I think like a lot of other people, I don't I was in the living room of my house, and like fights started to come on, and every now and then we'd watch them.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_01: I remember me and my dad would watch them on the on the couch sometimes, and my mom would come in, like, turn that off, blah blah, it's too violent, and we'd like kind of sneak watching it and whatever it.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_01: And uh I I remember specifically seeing uh Stefan Bonner and Forrest Griffin fight.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: That's like the classic bloody back and forth fight that everybody like a lot of people that was their first MMA fight, and I remember watching that and being like, damn, dude, maybe this is something I could do.
• 7:39
  SPEAKER_01: And then uh college came around when I was wrestling there.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_01: Um I actually like didn't really think much of MMA until I mean I thought about it, but I didn't really think about it as a career path.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_01: And then Corey Anderson, who also had um some roots at Whitewater, he went on the Ultimate Fighter and I believe he won it.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_01: Um and then kind of to me, I was like, damn, dude, like, all right, this is something I can do.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_01: Like, why don't why don't I try it?
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_01: And uh I didn't want to keep wasting money in college, and I said, you know, I was just like, fuck that.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_01: Let's just drop out and go to their nearest gym and it and do it that way, you know.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_01: So I I just that was the way to do it for me.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_01: I'm kind of an all or nothing person, so it's like I can't have my be dipping in too many different things.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_01: So I was like, all right, no more school, just sports, and this is what I'm gonna set out to do.
• 8:31
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, so you just recently signed with Bellator, and you mentioned Corey Anderson, who just made the jump from UFC to Bellator.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 8:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um have you had any inter interactions with Corey?
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_01: No, I actually haven't.
• 8:43
  SPEAKER_01: I've uh I follow him on Instagram and stuff, and like I I keep up with his stuff.
• 8:48
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not really uh I don't know.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe if I ran into him one day, I'd you know, talk to him about that because people like to know that kind of stuff, but I don't know.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_01: I guess I've kind of kept that to myself a little bit too.
• 8:58
  SPEAKER_01: I haven't really talked about that too much.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_00: So let's talk about that uh that pathway to Bellator.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_00: What was the genesis of making that happen?
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_00: And what all did you go through?
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_00: You have what 11 professional fights?
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_00: As a pro?
• 9:13
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, as a pro.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_01: Start obviously started on the local scene like everybody else, and had a couple fights with LFA that went well.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_01: And then, like you said, I got this weird opportunity with one championship, which I don't really have anything good to say about them anymore because of what happened with me.
• 9:31
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but I that's that's also that's the that's the ruthless part of this sport and this business.
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um I looking back on it, it's it's there's there's some red flags to me that uh when I coach someday and like have some of my own fighters, like I'll be able to give this advice and like watch out for these kind of things as as they happen to them.
• 9:54
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but a lot of like my my coaches and like the people around me were all kind of new to all this all this stuff as it is.
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_01: Like we haven't really had any big fighters really come out of our gym, we haven't had any world champions um or anybody in like really major promotion.
• 10:10
  SPEAKER_01: So a lot of it's new to us, and a lot of it's new to me.
• 10:13
  SPEAKER_01: I'm still learning as I go now.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but they offered a fight to one of my teammates originally, and with their weight cut system, it didn't work out with him and whatnot.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_01: But um my manager was kind of like, we have somebody else like that same weight.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I've pretty sure that's how it worked out.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_01: And asked me, it was like, hey, do you want to go to Malaysia next weekend and and fight?
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_01: And I was like, for one championship?
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_01: Hell yeah, like what?
• 10:41
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I'm not gonna turn this down.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_01: And uh it was like everything looked pretty about it.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the the money was more than I've ever ever had at the time, and then um the contract looked nice.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_01: It was a multi-fight contract, so I go over there and uh had a pretty good scrap.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I I ended up losing, but um, you know, short notice against their their little poster boy over there, and then lost a split decision.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_01: And I come, I I get home and go in like the little office in our gym, and my manager's like, hey, how'd it how'd it go?
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_01: Like, what happened over there?
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_01: I'm like, what do you mean what happened?
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I lost the fight, but what do you mean what happened?
• 11:22
  SPEAKER_01: He's like, Did anything bad?
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_01: Any bad relationships, whatever?
• 11:25
  SPEAKER_01: I'm like, no, everybody treated me well, it was amazing.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_01: He's like, Well, they uh they don't want you back.
• 11:31
  SPEAKER_01: I'm like, what does that mean?
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_01: Like, all right, and then so I started messaging people that I met at one and like asking them about that, and um, a couple fighters, and they're like, We've never even heard of that.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_01: That's crazy.
• 11:42
  SPEAKER_01: What I don't know what happened.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_01: Some other guys just you know told me he's like, hey, the the board doesn't want you back, they cut you, but looking back on it, it was it all looked pretty just to get me out there to save the fight, and it was what it was.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_01: But that's the that's the cutthroat part of the business, and that's the last time I'll I'll be under the one banner, I guess.
• 12:02
  SPEAKER_01: But I don't know.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_01: At least I don't have to fly to Malaysia and Asian countries every time I fight and be on 20-hour flights.
• 12:08
  SPEAKER_01: So it was a little blessing in disgust.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_00: Right, right.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_00: Right, right.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_00: So that so they basically they they uh kind of did a bait and switch.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, it was a bait and switch.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_00: They got you there so they could save their save their pay-per-view and then cut you as soon as you yeah, yeah.
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_01: I mean my manager got got the message hours later, hours after my fight.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_01: So it wasn't even they didn't even wait a day or like hold me on for a month, you know, or something.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_01: Like, but also that is a good thing that they just did it right away because they could have held me in contract and not let me fight for a while or something, you know.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_01: Like there's all kinds of other stuff they could have done.
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_00: We've all heard heard of that happening with every single organization in some shape or form.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_00: Right, yeah.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_00: How did that kind of culminate in you landing in Bellator?
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_01: Right, yeah, we kind of stopped there.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_01: I I lost track.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_00: That's not good.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um, yeah, so that happened.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_01: I had a couple more regional fights.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_01: I fought over in Finland for a nice promotion, uh, cage, and they good, good uh hospitality, good fighters over there.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_01: That was actually a really cool promotion to fight, uh fight under, and then uh that didn't work out for me.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_01: I I came out on the short end of the stick there.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then one of my actually a couple other of my teammates, they got signed to Bellator so um before me.
• 13:28
  SPEAKER_01: And so we kind of had to end there.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_01: So I just needed a couple more impressive wins, and and uh manager had the connection there and just worked it out, and it worked out nicely.
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I I'm I'm happy with Bellator right now and uh looking forward to see where this goes.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_00: Eight wins, three losses.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: You had a very impressive record because two of those losses were split decision losses.
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_00: How do you recalibrate in a situation like that?
• 13:57
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's tough.
• 13:58
  SPEAKER_01: I don't think so.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_01: The the one the one championship loss, that that was a split decision.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know that I like honestly learned too much about that fight.
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I I think like with the situation that happened, I kind of disconnected myself from that whole fight.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, I've I've gone back and watched it a few times and like broke it down, but I think um that yeah, that one I I learned from all my losses, but that one kind of like brushed past me.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_01: And then this this last one actually, I I I feel like I learned the most from this last fight.
• 14:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um kind of technically, technically speaking, and like um personally speaking, just about myself as well, um, as far as like mentality or around fighting goes and like learning how like things are structured in a fight.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_01: I've just I've learned a lot from that fight.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_01: And even just being out here in Colorado, like me and my wife talk about all the time.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_01: I've I've learned so much out here.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_01: Like I I I I can't even explain how how like much growth I feel like I've had out here.
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_01: It's it's ridiculous.
• 15:05
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know how I don't know.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_01: A part of me is like, I don't know how I didn't make the move out here sooner, but at the same time, I'm kind of like it it all happens at the right time.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_00: Right.
• 15:14
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_00: And you in currently you're training at high altitude martial arts and uh training with elevation fight team.
• 15:22
  SPEAKER_00: How has that experience been for you so far?
• 15:24
  SPEAKER_01: It's been amazing, man.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_01: Like uh when I first got out here, it was a little weird.
• 15:29
  SPEAKER_01: I I wasn't used to like the the structure of how everything is laid out.
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_01: I I wasn't used to the numbers in the practice room.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_01: Like I knew there'd be a lot of guys, but like I went from having like I mean, there'd be like 20 people in a jujitsu class and stuff, um, but only like five or six like fighters that I worked with, maybe a two or three pros, to coming out here and like every 40 killers in one room, and I'm like, what the hell?
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_01: Like, this is awesome.
• 15:58
  SPEAKER_01: But like, who do I go with?
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_01: What groups, you know, what coaches do I kind of um lean to and whatnot.
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_01: So it was a bit of a experience kind of finding my place out here, and um I I think I found it a little bit more.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_01: So uh I got like a good schedule down, good coaches, good training partners, and everything.
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but yeah, it was kind of a trip being out here at first, and I I had my I had that Bellator debut like within a month of being out here.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_01: So I didn't even have like a real camp or like a set like coaches that I work with, training partners.
• 16:37
  SPEAKER_01: So it was really weird doing that, uh going through that experience.
• 16:41
  SPEAKER_00: Have you been awestruck by anybody uh since you've been at elevation and who?
• 16:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, um I mean training partners, there's so many training, like there's so many training partners that it's like it's amazing.
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_01: Like I've I feel blessed to have this many people to be able to work with and like bounce ideas off of constantly.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_01: Like there's not a single person in the gym that I don't think I could not learn something from.
• 17:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but Cody, Cody Donovan, um, I had a s uh a weird connection uh to him uh before I got out here.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_01: And um I he was just kind of like my go-to person, and I've looked to him for just about everything now, and uh he he's opened my mind to like a whole different way of looking at this sport in general.
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_01: Like I as far as like my growth out here, I right now I owe like all of it to him because uh he's yeah, he's he's made me look at the sport differently, like find different ways to implement like my style and everything and add so much to it.
• 17:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so he's a huge reason for my growth out here.
• 17:50
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, so I've been working with him and uh Vinny and uh Justin Houghton.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_01: I just started to work with him a little bit more for stand-up stuff, and he's like my mind's blown again, you know.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_01: Like it's just the the coaching out here is amazing, dude.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_00: And the thing about Cody and Vinny in particular and getting to know them, uh, it's not just the fighting stuff, it's the mindset stuff with those guys as well.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_00: 100%.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_00: They just make you look at life completely differently.
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_00: And uh I I love that shit.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, like I'll go back, I'll go back and listen to the episodes that I've recorded with them and I'll just send them to my friends and I'll be like, dude, I know I know you're not an MMA guy, but listen to this, please.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_00: Uh huh.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_00: Like you can learn something from it.
• 18:33
  SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah, and it applies to everything.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_00: Absolutely, absolutely.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: And so when you're not in camp, what does your routine look like?
• 18:41
  SPEAKER_00: And does your routine, is your routine different in camp and out of camp?
• 18:45
  SPEAKER_01: Not really, man.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_01: I've always been kind of that guy who not to like toot my own horn, but like always ready.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_01: That's I've just like I like I said before, like I'm all kind of all or nothing.
• 18:57
  SPEAKER_01: Like that's just how I am.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, I mean, bugs the shit out of my wife because I'm like always in the gym and always training, but I've always been ready.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_01: There hasn't been a fight that I've felt uncomfortable taking because of oh, I don't know, I'm not in shape, blah blah blah.
• 19:13
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I don't, yeah, I don't have any excuse to like never you know take a fight.
• 19:19
  SPEAKER_01: So I guess my the only real difference in camp is like just kind of working more specific on who the opponent is and and whatnot.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_01: But otherwise, I'm literally I'm in the gym all the time making sure that I'm ready for like whatever.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_01: And I don't know, I only have so much time in this sport, you know.
• 19:39
  SPEAKER_01: The clock, the clock is constantly ticking.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_01: It doesn't stop if I'm tired, you know, it doesn't stop if I want to like rest and take a break or take a nap.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_01: Like the clock is gonna tick no matter what.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_01: So I don't know.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_01: Since I've been out here, uh I've I've like upped how many training sessions I do a day, all kinds of stuff, and it's just like I feel like I've grown, I've almost feel like I've more grown more in like this six, eight months that I've been out here than I have in like years of training, and that's not a knock to um right like any past coaching or training partners or anything like that.
• 20:13
  SPEAKER_01: It's just I haven't I haven't seen the sport from this angle, you know.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_01: So there's just so much, there's so much to absorb right now that like me and my wife, we were only gonna come out here for a few months because she's a nurse, so she she was coming out here on a travel nurse contract, and we kind of wanted to I wanted to get away and and um see something new as for my career, and like Colorado worked both great for both of our like interests, and we've just extended each contract because it's like I still have so much to like take out of here, you know.
• 20:46
  SPEAKER_01: Like I'm not I'm not done here yet.
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_00: So you were saying when you started getting into MMA, your mom walked in the room and she was like, shut that shit off kind of situation.
• 20:58
  SPEAKER_00: How does she feel about what you're doing for a living?
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_00: Oh my god.
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_01: Like it's good when it's good, right?
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_01: Like she she they haven't missed, they haven't missed a fight.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_01: As much as my mom hates me being out there and seeing her son get punched in the face or like punch somebody else in the face, she's been to every single one, and that's not to say she's not an emotional wreck during the entire thing, like quivering and crying and all kinds of like it's yeah, as much as she probably hates it, she loves it.
• 21:30
  SPEAKER_00: No matter how many stats you present to somebody, it's like you know, I have a I have less of a chance getting CTE being a fighter than I would have if I were in the NFL.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_01: Oh yeah, yeah.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_01: Right, for sure.
• 21:44
  SPEAKER_01: For sure.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_01: And even just like, and I mean, God God bless it, but like I haven't had any major injuries in a fight or anything, and like my family hasn't had to see me like that, but you know, I don't know.
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_01: I've I also know this sport everybody has their day.
• 22:02
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like no nobody gets nobody gets out of this on skate.
• 22:06
  SPEAKER_00: How long have you and your wife been together?
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_00: And did she meet you as a fighter or before you became a fighter?
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_01: No, she met me before.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_01: We we've been together since we were like 14 and we're 28 now.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 22:20
  SPEAKER_00: So what's the adjustment been like for her watching you on this journey?
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_01: Not much different than my mom sometimes.
• 22:27
  SPEAKER_01: But she she like, dude, she's my number one, besides like like my family, like my like she's my number one fan for sure.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_01: Like she like bless her soul, dude.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_01: She made me quit my job so that I could do this for real.
• 22:43
  SPEAKER_01: Like, she's like, if you're gonna do this, you're doing it for real.
• 22:46
  SPEAKER_01: Like, this is your dream, I'll support it, but like I'm not gonna support it if you're gonna do this half-ass, you know?
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_01: And so like she she's working hard to like make sure that I can train, I can like be healthy and do all this stuff.
• 23:00
  SPEAKER_01: And um, even when I was wanted to be professional soccer player, she was always supportive of that.
• 23:04
  SPEAKER_01: And like at first it was you know, at first it was hard the transition to MMA because she she wasn't familiar with it, and she's kind of like, Well, what like what is this?
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_01: Like, you you're we're not seeing each other after work and like hanging out and doing normal people shit because you want to go train at a gym and like fight and not get paid, like you're not making money off of this, and like you know, explaining the kind of the long game, and like you know, just I don't know.
• 23:34
  SPEAKER_01: She like when we've been together that long, and like obviously there's many conversations that led to like being on board with it, and like she I think she sees how serious I am about it and like the passion that I have for it that she can support me with it, um, which is amazing.
• 23:52
  SPEAKER_01: I do like I wouldn't I wouldn't be in the position that I am if if she wasn't here along for the ride as well, you know.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but like when fight time comes around, dude, she's yeah, she's so nervous.
• 24:05
  SPEAKER_01: She's like she she hates seeing me go in there, and like she's a nurse too, so she knows all of like these different like health things that can happen, and but she also wants to like help like she wants to be involved, she wants to help out with like anything that I need.
• 24:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but there's like some classic pictures of her like screaming in the crowd for me, like cheering me on, like she would just be some like normal fan out there, and it it's it's crazy.
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_01: And like there in some of the my YouTube videos online, like of me fighting, you can you can hear her voice in the background, like screaming, like, let's go, Dante, come on, like let's go.
• 24:41
  SPEAKER_01: So she's she's awesome.
• 24:42
  SPEAKER_01: She she loves it and hates it at the same time.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_00: So, what do you do to de-stress?
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know.
• 24:48
  SPEAKER_01: That's something I'm working on every day.
• 24:51
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I I don't but also at the same time, I shouldn't say that because I don't like I don't know, I don't really feel stressed out too much, and I don't know what that I don't know what that entails.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know if that's like part of my personality or what, like, but there's not many days that I'm stressed out, and I I it might just be because I'm doing what I love every day, dude.
• 25:12
  SPEAKER_01: I don't I don't know.
• 25:13
  SPEAKER_01: And that's not to say like I don't I'm not stressed on some days.
• 25:16
  SPEAKER_01: Everybody has stressful days, like, but I don't know.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_01: If if I would say if I'm stressed out, usually there's something that like I getting out in the mountains is something for me that's been like nice here, you know.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_01: Back back at home in Wisconsin, I don't really have that option as much, so it's like dude, I don't know.
• 25:35
  SPEAKER_01: In Wisconsin, you just go to a bar and drink, like there ain't really much else to do like around there, um, or go to a friend's house and drink.
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know.
• 25:44
  SPEAKER_00: I'm in Nebraska, dude.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_00: You're you're preaching to the choir.
• 25:49
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, but out here, man, like I don't know, like getting on the mountains, mountains is something super peaceful for me.
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_01: And like, like I said, me and my wife love doing that and camping and whatnot.
• 25:58
  SPEAKER_01: So I don't know.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_01: There has been a couple days here where it's been it's been stressful, and I've been able to just like drive 45 minutes and get out on a mountain, you know, and it's not far.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_01: So it's what's so nice about being out here.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_00: So what makes you feel inspired to be your best self?
• 26:15
  SPEAKER_00: It's a good question.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_01: I think uh I don't know, because I feel like a lot of people might say like somebody's looking up to them or something.
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: I don't really I don't really know.
• 26:24
  SPEAKER_01: I don't like I I think I just something about what I do uh I think helps me work on myself every day.
• 26:34
  SPEAKER_01: And like I have things I still need to work on constantly, and you know, something some habits that just like stick that you like try and get rid of and you just you can't, but um it just I think just keep the process of like working on things.
• 26:50
  SPEAKER_01: I think the process is something that's super attractive to me.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_01: Like I I I like to like watch a lot of motivational things and like read a lot of like I'm reading this book, I'm reading a couple books right now, but um Discipline Equals Freedom by Jocko Willink.
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know if you've read that.
• 27:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's a great book.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_01: I'm on that and the motivation manifesto.
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_01: I've I've been reading that a lot lately, and it talks a lot about like personal freedom on there, and like that's like everybody's goal in in life, whether they kind of know it or not, is just like a personal freedom, and that's basically just being being your best self, you know, being your being your authentic self, doing what it is you want to do without letting anybody or anything oppress you, you know, from and stop you from from being that.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_01: And I think lately that's kind of that's kind of a thing that's been on my mind is just like being authentically myself in every scenario that I'm in, you know.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_01: Um because it because it's easy to kind of cop out and and cower and kind of play to the crowd and do what other people want you to do, and um I guess kind of where I'm going in life is kind of the opposite of that.
• 28:02
  SPEAKER_01: Like I've nothing I'm doing is very traditional.
• 28:04
  SPEAKER_01: Obviously, it's becoming more popular now that like the UFC and Ballatour around, like, more people are um kind of taking that path.
• 28:14
  SPEAKER_01: Uh yeah, but I don't really think people really want to do it.
• 28:20
  SPEAKER_01: You know, there's some people who want to do it, and then there's people who like that's what that's what they're doing, that they're really about it.
• 28:26
  SPEAKER_01: And um that's that's what I'm doing.
• 28:31
  SPEAKER_00: I I think the big thing is, and it's just my observation, that the athleticism in MMA has improved like tenfold in the past five to seven years.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and that's why the popularity is increasing as much as it is.
• 28:46
  SPEAKER_01: You know what's kind of crazy on that too?
• 28:48
  SPEAKER_01: I that's another thing I noticed when I came out here is like I was meeting some of these these like fighters, and I'm like asking them about that, like how many fights they've had, and they're like, Oh, you're an amateur, oh shit, like you're just an amateur.
• 29:00
  SPEAKER_01: You've only had a couple fights.
• 29:02
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, you're 20 years old?
• 29:04
  SPEAKER_01: Like, oh, you're 16 years old.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_01: It's like, dude, when when I'm done with this sport, the the level, like, the level that it's like going to and gonna be at is ridiculous.
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_01: Some of these kids have been training since they're they're kids now.
• 29:19
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I it's gonna be it is gonna be wild.
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_01: There's gonna be some wild shit that happens in this sport in the next like 10-15 years with this next generation coming through.
• 29:31
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I used to be a musician, and so like, and I gave it up years ago, but nowadays I I get on YouTube and I'll see these kids that are just uber talented, and I'm like, Oh yeah, dude, I could I couldn't even carry your friggin' luggage, bro, you know?
• 29:48
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, dude.
• 29:49
  SPEAKER_01: It's it's amazing.
• 29:50
  SPEAKER_01: It's a beautiful thing to see, though.
• 29:52
  SPEAKER_01: Like evolving and and things evolving and growing.
• 29:55
  SPEAKER_00: What's the best compliment you've ever received?
• 29:57
  SPEAKER_01: Uh dude, honestly, and it's gonna sound a little corny, but probably just like my wife saying that she will spend the rest of my life with me.
• 30:06
  SPEAKER_01: Uh the fact that like somebody's willing to do that is is kind of crazy to me.
• 30:12
  SPEAKER_00: But that's not corny at all, man.
• 30:15
  SPEAKER_00: That's that's honestly that's not corny at all.
• 30:18
  SPEAKER_00: That's what life's about, right?
• 30:19
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, true.
• 30:21
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, dude, I don't know, I don't know many other people that would have said yeah.
• 30:25
  SPEAKER_01: So, and like I want to spend the rest of my life with her, so it works out well.
• 30:30
  SPEAKER_01: I'll take that over anything, you know.
• 30:33
  SPEAKER_00: That's awesome, man.
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_00: So, what are some final words of wisdom that you have for this audience?
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_00: What is something that uh they can look forward to with your career?
• 30:43
  SPEAKER_00: And uh what's next?
• 30:45
  SPEAKER_01: Um, as far as words of wisdom, let's see.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_01: I like I said, I've been reading a a lot lately and like trying to grow as a person.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_01: I think there's a lot of I think there's a there's a lot of things that I thought I was growing or like good at or okay with um in my 28 years of life, and I think that I've lied to myself about a lot of that.
• 31:09
  SPEAKER_01: I think I think if if you can be honest, not like because people can be honest with other people, um, but like it is hard, it I at least for me, it's been hard to be honest with myself about certain things.
• 31:25
  SPEAKER_01: And I think when you can be honest with yourself, that is when you'll like grow the most.
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_01: When you can be honest with yourself and not like not give in to excuses, not lie to yourself about certain things so you can take the easy road.
• 31:39
  SPEAKER_01: Um I I think things things are meant to be hard sometimes.
• 31:44
  SPEAKER_01: Things are meant to like be uncomfortable, and like you need to go, you need to go through everybody's heard it before.
• 31:49
  SPEAKER_01: You need to you need to go through like adversity, you need to be uncomfortable to grow and all that kind of stuff.
• 31:57
  SPEAKER_01: But I it it's really true.
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_01: When you're really trying to work on yourself and grow and like be a better person, you actually have to do those things.
• 32:05
  SPEAKER_01: You can't lie to yourself about those things and act like you're doing something to grow when you're really not, you know.
• 32:11
  SPEAKER_01: Um but it's it's hard to do that nowadays because you can post online your fake self, you can put who you want to be out there, but like who you actually are is a totally different person.
• 32:21
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so I think that's that's that's just what I'm trying to do the most, is just I'm I like being authentically myself, and that I think is where you'll find like the most freedom in in your life and the most freedom in in all things that you do.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_01: Um but yeah, so that's something I'm kind of like focused on and like trying to grow with and and implement into my life lately.
• 32:50
  SPEAKER_01: Uh but as far as everything else, um I don't have any fights lined up yet.
• 32:56
  SPEAKER_01: Should have something in the next couple months, um, trying to work work for that, um, so I can show all this cool shit that I've been learning here in Colorado, dude.
• 33:05
  SPEAKER_01: Because like I'm I'm telling you, man, like my last my last fight I learned a lot from, but that wasn't me.
• 33:12
  SPEAKER_01: Like I I'm a totally different fighter.
• 33:14
  SPEAKER_01: I have a totally different mentality going into this this this stuff, and like I'm I'm excited to like really put it out there, you know.
• 33:22
  SPEAKER_01: Like there's there's been a lot of a lot of times I've like been nervous or like, you know, I'm okay just training right now, but like I I want to like right now, I want to fight.
• 33:32
  SPEAKER_01: So like when I go out there, I think that's gonna show that like I'm I'm here to fight and I'm here to like I'm here to really make a name for myself.
• 33:38
  SPEAKER_01: Um but we just gotta get date and opponent, so waiting on that.
• 33:44
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I tell you what, man, you you've got yourself surrounded but by all the right people there in Colorado.
• 33:50
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, and it sounds like you have yourself surrounded by all the right people at home as well.
• 33:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 33:57
  SPEAKER_00: It's been a pleasure getting to talk to you, sir, and uh man, hopefully we can kind of connect and do this again.
• 34:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, man, it's been fun.
• 34:05
  SPEAKER_01: It's always a little like, I don't know this guy, how's this gonna be?
• 34:09
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know if I want to do this, but like you made it fun.
• 34:11
  SPEAKER_01: You like this was a fun conversation.
• 34:14
  SPEAKER_00: Here's the thing, bro.
• 34:15
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I tell everybody that that comes on my show, and usually we talk about this offline, but I'm gonna actually include this in the episode.
• 34:21
  SPEAKER_00: All of these episodes, your first appearance, this is like me and you becoming friends for the first time.
• 34:26
  SPEAKER_00: The next time we're gonna talk about the fun shit.
• 34:29
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 34:30
  SPEAKER_01: I like it.
• 34:31
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, you definitely made me want to have another conversation with you.
• 34:35
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm I'm I'm always willing to like come back and talk again.
• 34:37
  SPEAKER_01: It was fun.
• 34:38
  SPEAKER_01: I enjoyed it.
• 34:39
  SPEAKER_00: Glad I didn't scare you off.
• 34:41
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_00: It was a great honor getting to talk to Dante today.
• 34:46
  SPEAKER_00: Make sure you give him a follow on social media.
• 34:49
  SPEAKER_00: He is on Facebook at Dante Spiro MMA and check him out on Instagram.
• 34:55
  SPEAKER_00: While your crew is in the web, make sure you go to www.highaltitude martial arts.com and also check out Elevation 15 and High Altitude Martial Arts on Instagram.
• 35:10
  SPEAKER_00: If you're in the mood to find some cool stuff on the web, make sure you go to www.cotonthemic.com.
• 35:17
  SPEAKER_00: Give me a follow on all forms of social media TikTok, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, wherever you're cruising your social.
• 35:27
  SPEAKER_00: I've got to appreciate that five-star review on the Apple Podcast app.
• 35:33
  SPEAKER_00: And now Spotify also has a new rating system.
• 35:37
  SPEAKER_00: This is Ben caught on the mic with Michael Clark.
• 35:41
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Michael Clark.
• 35:42
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time.
• 35:44
  SPEAKER_00: Thank you.