Latest / Caught on the Mike... / "From the Edge of the Razor" with UFC's Curtis 'Razor" Blaydes

Transcript

"From the Edge of the Razor" with UFC's Curtis 'Razor" Blaydes · Caught on the Mike...

0:02
SPEAKER_02: Warning, due to some language and subject matter, listener discretion is devised.
0:20
SPEAKER_00: Living a life without regret, yet maintaining a sense of discipline, having a clear understanding of what your goals are, and being open to whatever circumstances might cause that goal to change.
0:43
SPEAKER_00: In this episode, I get the pleasure of learning Curtis's backstory while we deconstruct discipline and what it takes to be disciplined, and we also touch on the fact of how important it is to surround yourself with the right people and the right team.
1:00
SPEAKER_00: We're living on the Razor's edge.
1:02
SPEAKER_00: Ladies and gentlemen, this is Caught on the Mic.
1:15
SPEAKER_00: Ladies and gentlemen, I am joined by my friend Curtis Blades.
1:20
SPEAKER_00: How are you, sir?
1:21
SPEAKER_00: I'm doing good, man.
1:22
SPEAKER_00: Thanks.
1:23
SPEAKER_00: Thanks for having me on the show.
1:24
SPEAKER_00: It's always fun to uh follow your career, man, because you have been on a roll.
1:30
SPEAKER_00: Like you've won five of the last six fights.
1:32
SPEAKER_00: What's next for Curtis Blades right now?
1:35
SPEAKER_01: That's I don't know.
1:36
SPEAKER_01: Um, I mean, there's like an there's an alternate reality where I fight Steep Anex.
1:42
SPEAKER_01: There's an alternate reality where I fight the loser of Ingon and Gone, and there's an alternate reality where I fight John Jones.
1:50
SPEAKER_01: I don't know yet.
1:51
SPEAKER_01: We would have to wait and see how things sh shake out because we don't know what's going on with John.
2:00
SPEAKER_01: Uh haven't really heard much from Stipe.
2:04
SPEAKER_01: I know he wants to go for the belt, which he deserves.
2:07
SPEAKER_01: I don't blame him.
2:07
SPEAKER_01: So I'm just waiting, but would I be ready for whoever they give me because I know it's gonna be a high-level um opponent, so I don't have to be ready for that.
2:15
SPEAKER_00: You're no slouch, you always fight high-level opponents, and that's one of the things that I enjoy.
2:20
SPEAKER_00: If you had your choice and you had to pick who you would fight, well, I I know the answer to this, but who would you fight if you had to pick tomorrow?
2:28
SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's honestly it it doesn't really matter because any any one of those guys, I beat them, I get title shots.
2:36
SPEAKER_01: So uh I guess the one with the most prestige would probably be Stipe, because to me he's the greatest heavyweight of all time in the UFC.
2:45
SPEAKER_01: So win over him, I think, makes my resume.
2:48
SPEAKER_01: Like, how could I not get a title shot after that?
2:51
SPEAKER_00: So I kind of jumped ahead by asking that.
2:54
SPEAKER_00: So let's kind of back up and uh let's talk a little bit about how you got your start in the mixed martial arts and even before that, because you played defensive end in high school, didn't you?
3:05
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that was a long time ago, long time ago.
3:09
SPEAKER_00: And then you made the move to wrestling.
3:11
SPEAKER_00: So what kind of inspired that?
3:13
SPEAKER_01: Um, well, I wrestled all four years.
3:15
SPEAKER_01: I wrestled originally I got into it because it was like peer pressure, all the other like offensive linemen and defensive linemen, um, in my grade, a freshman, they all joined a wrestling team.
3:27
SPEAKER_01: And I was like, okay, just a another opportunity to hang out with my friends and learn a new skill.
3:32
SPEAKER_01: So that's that's what got me into it.
3:35
SPEAKER_01: And then I realized I'm actually a better uh wrestler than I am, uh football player, which I wish it was the other way around because the NFL pays a lot more.
3:45
SPEAKER_01: But after uh four years, I went downstate.
3:50
SPEAKER_01: Uh my junior year didn't place, went down again my senior year, I won state, and I was in uh Illinois, and then I got a scholarship to uh Northern Illinois University, which is Division I, but it's a small one, uh mid-major.
4:04
SPEAKER_01: It's in the Mac.
4:06
SPEAKER_01: And um I was there for one year, but I messed up my grades, uh, lost my scholarship.
4:12
SPEAKER_01: So I went to uh a JUCO, a junior college in the Illinois area.
4:17
SPEAKER_01: Uh the one I went to was called Harper, and I was there for two years.
4:23
SPEAKER_01: Uh my first year there, I wrestled a little bit, but I was predominantly focused on fixing my grades and like getting getting eligible again.
4:33
SPEAKER_01: And then my uh my junior year, uh I won JUCO Nationals, and I was in 2012.
4:41
SPEAKER_01: And then after that, um I went home, I went back to uh uh Chicago and I was the plan was to go to an NAIA school.
4:52
SPEAKER_01: I had a scholarship offer to go wrestle, but messed up.
4:57
SPEAKER_01: I didn't get my uh my grades in in time for the fall semester, so I was like, I needed something to do to like maintain my uh my shape.
5:10
SPEAKER_01: So a buddy of mine I knew from high school, we had wrestled together.
5:14
SPEAKER_01: He is uh a few years behind me.
5:17
SPEAKER_01: And uh his dad, he owned an MMA, not an MMA gym, he owned a boxing gym, and they they kept hitting me up, like you should give it a uh try, come up here, just just see see if you like it.
5:33
SPEAKER_01: And I did finally, that was in August of 2012.
5:39
SPEAKER_01: I went I went in, I started boxing, and then uh again, peer pressure.
5:45
SPEAKER_01: I was peer pressured into my first amateur MMA fight.
5:49
SPEAKER_01: And really the only reason I did it was because I was told I would be able to use my wrestling.
5:54
SPEAKER_01: So I was like, okay, well, I'll just use my wrestling to beat guys, and that's what I was doing early on in my amateur career.
6:00
SPEAKER_01: It wasn't a whole lot of stand-up.
6:03
SPEAKER_01: Like it's not a lot, a lot of stand-up right now, but back then it was it was all wrestling.
6:08
SPEAKER_02: Right.
6:09
SPEAKER_01: So um I was an amateur for two years, and then I turned pro in 2014.
6:17
SPEAKER_01: I made my pro debut in April of that year, no, May of that year, and then I I just racked up the wins.
6:24
SPEAKER_01: And originally in my head, I was like, I'm only gonna do this just until I lose.
6:29
SPEAKER_01: And I just I didn't lose until I got into the UFC.
6:33
SPEAKER_01: So then by then it was like a job.
6:36
SPEAKER_01: It was a real a viable option to be my long-term uh career.
6:41
SPEAKER_01: So I just stuck with it.
6:42
SPEAKER_01: But after that first loss, I debuted against Ngano.
6:47
SPEAKER_01: After that, I realized the gym I was at in uh back in uh Chicago, it wasn't not a bad gym, but it just it wasn't what I needed to hang with those guys at that level.
7:00
SPEAKER_01: And that's when I eventually uh I made my debut in 2016.
7:05
SPEAKER_01: That was in April.
7:06
SPEAKER_01: I lost that, and then I moved out here to Denver in June of that year.
7:12
SPEAKER_01: And ever since then, it's been majority good.
7:15
SPEAKER_01: A few bumps along the way, but it's been it's been majority good.
7:19
SPEAKER_00: One of the things that I think we we we kind of really quickly glazed over is the fact your senior year in high school.
7:27
SPEAKER_00: Did I read this right?
7:28
SPEAKER_00: You went 44 and 0.
7:30
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah, it was a good year.
7:34
SPEAKER_00: That's that's awesome.
7:35
SPEAKER_00: And and you know, you've got probably one of the best double leg takedowns in the UFC today.
7:42
SPEAKER_00: Thank you.
7:43
SPEAKER_00: It's always fun to watch just because I dig it when people can wrestle at a high level, because if you're not able to wrestle, you're just not able to hold your own in the cage, are you?
7:52
SPEAKER_01: I think wrestling is like one of the major foundations of MMA.
7:56
SPEAKER_01: Like, if you can't dictate where the fight is, how can you really be one of the best?
8:01
SPEAKER_01: Like uh even if you're not being like an offensive wrestler, you still have to have your defensive wrestling, you have to have a good sprawl.
8:08
SPEAKER_01: But if you can get taken down at will, that means you're always in like the danger zone.
8:14
SPEAKER_01: So I think I think wrestling deserves a lot more respect in MMA.
8:19
SPEAKER_00: I agree.
8:20
SPEAKER_00: And and you are um you're a blue belt in Brazilian jujitsu, correct?
8:24
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
8:25
SPEAKER_00: And you'd been training that with Cody.
8:27
SPEAKER_00: So what's that relationship like?
8:29
SPEAKER_01: It's great.
8:30
SPEAKER_01: Um Cody is he's one of the main reasons I began to actually like enjoy jujitsu because originally I d I really didn't enjoy it.
8:38
SPEAKER_01: I only did it because I knew I had to, but when you do things like that with that type of mindset, it's hard to grow.
8:45
SPEAKER_01: And I wasn't growing, and it was like a um what is it, a prophecy that I was like fulfilling.
8:52
SPEAKER_01: Like, I don't like jujitsu because it's hard.
8:54
SPEAKER_01: It's hard because I don't like it.
8:56
SPEAKER_01: It just it went that way for the first four years of my uh my career.
9:01
SPEAKER_01: And then I moved here and I met Podi, and he just the way he explains it, the way he broke it down to me, it was it started to click, and that's that's why he's my professor.
9:11
SPEAKER_01: There's a lot of good professors at elevation, but he's the one I have the best like relationship with.
9:16
SPEAKER_00: Oh, absolutely.
9:17
SPEAKER_00: He's such a good dude, he's become one of my favorite people.
9:20
SPEAKER_00: It's probably not gonna lie, probably barn on one of my most favorite podcasts I've ever done.
9:25
SPEAKER_00: Is sit down and talk into that guy.
9:28
SPEAKER_00: And the thing is, so I've I've talked with Austin Hubbard, I've talked with Zach, I've talked with Cody, I've I've had Drew on, I've I've had Neil on.
9:36
SPEAKER_00: Pretty sure everybody's mentioned Curtis Blades at one point in time.
9:41
SPEAKER_00: What is it about all of you elevation guys, man?
9:44
SPEAKER_00: Because you guys are damn good people.
9:46
SPEAKER_00: So, what is it about your guys' mindset that sets you apart from everybody else competing in MMA right now?
9:52
SPEAKER_01: One of the reasons I love this, I love elevation, I love the team out here, I love the the the family type of environment.
9:59
SPEAKER_01: That's what it is.
10:00
SPEAKER_01: It it feels like.
10:01
SPEAKER_01: And that was from like the very first time I came out here.
10:05
SPEAKER_01: I came out here a month after I lost that debut against Nganu just to just to see if I would potentially want to move out here.
10:13
SPEAKER_01: And that first week, everyone's like helping me, giving me tips, giving me hints.
10:18
SPEAKER_01: Like it wasn't because I've been to other gyms.
10:20
SPEAKER_01: I went out to I went out to LA, out to Huntington Beach, and I was in 2015.
10:26
SPEAKER_01: I went to King's MMA, where Rafael Cordero is, and that's where Verdoon was.
10:31
SPEAKER_01: That's why I went there.
10:32
SPEAKER_01: But it was like it was almost like high school, like with the the clicks.
10:37
SPEAKER_01: Like if you didn't speak uh Portuguese or if you hadn't already been there for like eight years, they really didn't want to speak to you, they really didn't want to like help you.
10:45
SPEAKER_01: And I just I didn't really like that.
10:47
SPEAKER_01: So I almost moved out there.
10:48
SPEAKER_01: I almost moved out to LA to join that gym.
10:51
SPEAKER_01: But I'm happy I I made the decision to come here because everyone, like you said, Drew, Neil, Austin, me, everyone has the same like attitude.
11:00
SPEAKER_01: We just want to work, we just want to get money, and it's not about the the fame and the quits, it's just about hard work, and that's that's why Neil is uh the captain.
11:11
SPEAKER_01: Like he's not the official one, but that's that's like that's who we all look to as an example of how to work hard and how to be great.
11:19
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, and he he's uh very good role model as far as how to conduct yourself as a person too.
11:24
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, like there's so yeah, he is, he is.
11:28
SPEAKER_00: He's uh there's so many little stories that he'll never tell you that I've heard along the way about good things that that guy has done.
11:36
SPEAKER_00: And gosh, it's one.
11:38
SPEAKER_01: Um when I f first m moved out here, I was broke because I I lost the Inganoof.
11:45
SPEAKER_01: I only made 10 grand, and then I had to pay taxes because I went to Europe.
11:49
SPEAKER_01: I had to pay my manager, I had to pay taxes here, and then I went, I was a little depressed.
11:55
SPEAKER_01: I went on like a month uh binger, I was at bars all the time.
11:59
SPEAKER_01: I blew through a lot of money, which was really dumb, but did that.
12:03
SPEAKER_01: I moved out here with like 1800, and I lived in I live we used to be at a muscle farm, right?
12:10
SPEAKER_01: And I lived in an RV at the gym owned.
12:13
SPEAKER_01: I was there for two weeks, and then um I didn't I didn't have any any homies out here.
12:19
SPEAKER_01: I just moved out here.
12:20
SPEAKER_01: Right.
12:20
SPEAKER_01: And Neil reached out, but he was like, hey, you looking looking for a place, and I was like, Yeah, but I don't have the money right now.
12:27
SPEAKER_01: He was like, that's okay, you you get me when you you got the money.
12:30
SPEAKER_01: He let me move in in August, and I didn't have a I didn't have my next fight until October 1st.
12:38
SPEAKER_01: And that's that's when I I got some more uh money.
12:41
SPEAKER_01: I won the bonus, which I really helped.
12:43
SPEAKER_01: But he I lived at his he owned a house, and I lived in that house the first two months rent-free.
12:49
SPEAKER_01: He he barely even knew who I was.
12:51
SPEAKER_01: He was just being a nice guy.
12:52
SPEAKER_01: That's and that's how he always is.
12:54
SPEAKER_01: He's always looking to help somebody.
12:56
SPEAKER_01: It's like I always tell him, like, bro, you're definitely going to heaven.
13:00
SPEAKER_01: Like, no if and bust about it, you're going to heaven, right?
13:04
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
13:04
SPEAKER_00: Cause Austin had a similar story too.
13:06
SPEAKER_00: Austin was like, I lived on Neil's couch for a couple of weeks or for a little while.
13:11
SPEAKER_00: So, man, that's that's amazing to hear.
13:14
SPEAKER_00: And I I love hearing stuff like that.
13:15
SPEAKER_00: It's just, you know, the world needs to hear more stories like that.
13:19
SPEAKER_00: He's an awesome dude.
13:20
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
13:21
SPEAKER_00: So what kind of things outside of fighting, and what kind of things do you do to relieve stress in your off time?
13:28
SPEAKER_00: What what are some of your interests and some of your hobbies?
13:30
SPEAKER_01: Um, I watch a lot of anime.
13:32
SPEAKER_01: Um, I read, I read books, I like to read.
13:36
SPEAKER_01: I'm into like 5-5, fantasy, anything with like ills, dwarves, aliens, robots, all that stuff.
13:44
SPEAKER_01: I'm into all that.
13:45
SPEAKER_01: Um I smoke, that helps.
13:49
SPEAKER_01: Um that's about it.
13:50
SPEAKER_01: I'm I'm lazy.
13:52
SPEAKER_01: Like if I'm not at the gym, I'm at home, either playing Madden, smoking, or reading a book.
13:58
SPEAKER_01: Like, I really don't do too much.
14:01
SPEAKER_00: Kind of hard to do anything right now, isn't it?
14:03
SPEAKER_01: Well, no, uh, the weather here is actually awesome.
14:06
SPEAKER_01: Like a lot of a lot of the guys here, they like to go hiking and all that.
14:10
SPEAKER_01: I'm not into it because I don't have the energy.
14:12
SPEAKER_01: I don't know how they have the energy.
14:13
SPEAKER_01: Like Austin and uh Neil, they like to go on bike rides because they both own uh motorcycles.
14:20
SPEAKER_01: They're into that.
14:21
SPEAKER_01: But yeah, I'm just a homebody.
14:23
SPEAKER_01: I'm just in the house.
14:24
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah.
14:25
SPEAKER_00: I I think I was talking uh when last time I talked to Zach, I I come out probably once or twice a year, and I always want to do the Manitou incline at uh you know at Pike's Peak, but I always chicken out because I'm not used to the elevation.
14:42
SPEAKER_00: So I always chicken out at the 11th hour, man.
14:44
SPEAKER_00: It's like, man, I'm too damn lazy.
14:48
SPEAKER_01: That's one of the biggest reasons I moved there was the elevation.
14:50
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yeah, and that's what that's what Zach was saying.
14:53
SPEAKER_00: He he was saying whenever he went and fought in San Diego, like his cardio was on a totally different level because in maybe it was a a result of not being so high up in the elevation.
15:05
SPEAKER_01: It's it's real.
15:06
SPEAKER_01: Like everyone always asks me, they're always like they're they're uh surprised that I tell them that the elevation it matters.
15:16
SPEAKER_01: Like when I go to places like Houston or Florida or just anywhere that's not here, I I feel like a god.
15:23
SPEAKER_01: Like I don't get tired.
15:25
SPEAKER_01: I can shoot, shoot.
15:26
SPEAKER_01: Well, except for the Volkoff.
15:29
SPEAKER_01: I I didn't that was a bad one.
15:31
SPEAKER_01: I got tired because I I over I overestimated my own conditioning in that one.
15:37
SPEAKER_00: What's something that people seem to misunderstand about you as a fighter?
15:41
SPEAKER_01: Um the main reason I use my my wrestling as often as I do, I know a lot of people don't like it, but I'll be able to fight a lot longer because I'm not not doing the standing and the banging.
15:54
SPEAKER_01: I think that's one of the things that messed up the last quest.
15:58
SPEAKER_01: He should be in the UFC right now still.
16:00
SPEAKER_01: But although he had the best wrestling at that time, and he really didn't use it because he wanted to prove a point.
16:08
SPEAKER_01: And he did prove a point.
16:10
SPEAKER_01: He has great hands, he had a great uh jaw, but eventually you only have how many hits you can absorb.
16:19
SPEAKER_01: I think he he reached that that mark a little early.
16:22
SPEAKER_01: I don't I don't want to reach that mark until like maybe eight years from now.
16:28
SPEAKER_01: Like, and the longer the more I wrestle, the less hits I take, the longer I can do it, and the more I can earn.
16:35
SPEAKER_01: So that's that's a lot of people don't get that.
16:38
SPEAKER_01: Like, I'm not gonna I don't want to stand in bang for 250 grand, especially if I don't have to.
16:46
SPEAKER_01: If if if my opponent doesn't have the ability to stop a takedown, that's not on me.
16:52
SPEAKER_01: That's on him.
16:54
SPEAKER_01: Like everyone I've ever fought, I've always been the better wrestler, so why wouldn't I use it?
17:00
SPEAKER_01: And a lot of the the fans expect me to not do that, they expect me to give my opponent an opportunity to knock me out.
17:08
SPEAKER_01: And I'm like, why would I do that?
17:10
SPEAKER_01: I just I don't understand that.
17:12
SPEAKER_01: That's the biggest thing I don't understand.
17:14
SPEAKER_00: Right.
17:15
SPEAKER_00: Right, right.
17:17
SPEAKER_00: So that's funny because that was gonna lead to my next question is uh you know, you just turned 30 uh this year.
17:24
SPEAKER_00: Do you have a certain point where you think it's gonna be time to call it a day?
17:30
SPEAKER_01: Uh heavyweights, we last a little longer because it's not a speed-based division, it's more about power and like actual like well, not technique, but technique it does play a part also, but it's mostly power.
17:43
SPEAKER_01: So I think I have at least eight more years, at least.
17:47
SPEAKER_00: So, what's the best compliment you've ever received from another fighter or somebody in your industry?
17:53
SPEAKER_01: After the Alistair, um after that fight, uh I just I got a lot of compliments about my uh ground and talent abilities, and everyone was really, really uh impressed by that.
18:05
SPEAKER_01: So that was I got a compliment from uh Guida.
18:09
SPEAKER_01: He's he's another guy from Illinois.
18:11
SPEAKER_01: He appreciated it.
18:13
SPEAKER_01: A lot of guys were hitting me up.
18:14
SPEAKER_01: So that was I was probably the one.
18:16
SPEAKER_00: That's that's pretty dope.
18:18
SPEAKER_00: So I was gonna ask you about Alistair.
18:21
SPEAKER_00: Like, what was it like to like fight him and then not too long afterwards he's a teammate now, right?
18:28
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
18:29
SPEAKER_01: Um he reached out to me because I don't know.
18:33
SPEAKER_01: It was out of the blue.
18:34
SPEAKER_01: It was like a month and a half after the fight, he reached out.
18:38
SPEAKER_01: He was just he was just 100 with me.
18:40
SPEAKER_01: He was like, We're probably not gonna have to fight again.
18:44
SPEAKER_01: I'd like to I'd like you to help me with your grappling.
18:48
SPEAKER_01: I know you can you can push me in that area, and I think I can help you with the striking, which he has.
18:53
SPEAKER_01: I've learned a lot, a lot from him.
18:55
SPEAKER_01: And it was it was very he's a he's a friend now.
18:59
SPEAKER_01: He's a very good friend now.
19:01
SPEAKER_01: He's been here for over uh three years, and we've hung out, we've I've been I want to go out to Amsterdam to visit him, and just haven't gotten around to doing it, but that's definitely on my bucket list.
19:15
SPEAKER_01: And uh it's just been a good experience.
19:17
SPEAKER_01: Like he he blends in very well.
19:19
SPEAKER_01: He's he's not a big ego guy, he's not a big like he actually he hates when people have out their phones and they they want like pictures or videos at the gym.
19:30
SPEAKER_01: He really hates that.
19:31
SPEAKER_01: But um it's it's been fun.
19:35
SPEAKER_01: I'm very happy.
19:36
SPEAKER_01: I'm happy he he reached out, I'm happy he joined us, and um I'm happy that we got to uh to fight.
19:46
SPEAKER_01: He's a legend to me, he's a legend, and him, Mark Hunt, Junior Del Santos having those guys on my resume, it uh it validates me.
19:56
SPEAKER_00: I get that.
19:57
SPEAKER_00: So uh are you a music guy?
19:59
SPEAKER_00: You listen to music?
20:00
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
20:00
SPEAKER_01: Um mostly hip-hop, uh a little bit of uh country, but mostly hip hop.
20:07
SPEAKER_00: If you had a workout playlist, what what would be some artists that we'd find on your playlist?
20:11
SPEAKER_01: Lil'Uzi Vert, I like him.
20:14
SPEAKER_01: Uh the baby, I like him, Lil Baby, uh Young Young uh Dolph.
20:22
SPEAKER_01: I don't know if you know, but he just recently that one hurt because I always wanted to watch him live, and I he was actually here a few years ago.
20:30
SPEAKER_01: I didn't go, and I regret it now because now he's not here.
20:35
SPEAKER_01: So those are probably the top four, maybe a little bit of uh G Herbo.
20:41
SPEAKER_01: He's a Chicago rapper.
20:43
SPEAKER_00: Gotcha, gotcha.
20:45
SPEAKER_00: So your dad was a former Marine.
20:49
SPEAKER_00: How has that led to your discipline?
20:52
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
20:54
SPEAKER_00: When it uh when it comes to fighting.
20:56
SPEAKER_01: We grew up in a very uh disciplined household.
20:59
SPEAKER_01: Like my dad was a dad, like if you leave something in the sink, like a spoon or a fork, he would come home.
21:05
SPEAKER_01: He's a police officer.
21:06
SPEAKER_01: Now he's been a police officer since I was like five or six years old.
21:10
SPEAKER_01: But he would get off at two in the morning, he'd get home, and if there was anything in the sink or if there was the walls had a speck on it, just little small thing like that, he wakes us up, he'd have us washing walls, vacuuming at like four in the morning, then we still have to get up and go to school.
21:28
SPEAKER_01: So I just I learned a lot of like he this is one of the things he always said, doing the little things right makes doing the big things easier.
21:38
SPEAKER_01: And that that goes into everything.
21:40
SPEAKER_01: Like just like hacking my bag for practice the night before or making my drinks or just everything.
21:48
SPEAKER_01: I'm always I I hate to be late.
21:51
SPEAKER_01: If you're early, you're on time.
21:53
SPEAKER_01: If you're on time, you're late.
21:54
SPEAKER_01: Like he's drilled that in my head.
21:57
SPEAKER_01: Like, I hate to be late.
21:58
SPEAKER_01: Like I I feel bad.
21:59
SPEAKER_01: Like even With us today, like me being late, I feel bad.
22:02
SPEAKER_01: I don't like doing that.
22:04
SPEAKER_01: Just growing up with a disciplinarian like that, like I've it also helped growing up in uh Chicago.
22:11
SPEAKER_01: I avoided all that, all the riff-raff, all the bad stuff.
22:15
SPEAKER_01: Like we knew better.
22:16
SPEAKER_01: We we never had a party at my dad's house.
22:18
SPEAKER_01: We never I didn't start drinking until after high school.
22:22
SPEAKER_01: Like a lot of guys I know they've been drinking since they were 14, 15.
22:27
SPEAKER_01: I didn't start drinking until I went to school.
22:30
SPEAKER_01: And even that was like reluctantly.
22:32
SPEAKER_01: Like I got peer pressure.
22:33
SPEAKER_01: I'm easily peer pressured.
22:35
SPEAKER_01: I'm I'm realizing that now.
22:38
SPEAKER_01: But yeah, uh I just I like to do things the right way because I know doing things the right way, it at the very least, even if things don't work out, like even with a fight, if it doesn't work out, I know I I did my best and it's easier for me to bounce back.
22:54
SPEAKER_01: I know I don't have any regrets.
22:56
SPEAKER_01: I hate having regrets.
22:58
SPEAKER_00: Right, yeah.
22:59
SPEAKER_00: It's oh man, I loved when you said that if you're earlier on time, you're on time, you're late, because I mentor people for a living, and that's exactly what I tell every single person.
23:09
SPEAKER_00: And it's like I I say that, and the other one that I use a lot is embrace the suck.
23:14
SPEAKER_01: Yes, like if something's wrestling, I embrace it.
23:18
SPEAKER_00: If something's gonna suck, just embrace it and it won't be hard anymore.
23:22
SPEAKER_01: Um, a lot of my values aren't just from my dad from wrestling.
23:27
SPEAKER_01: Like to be a good wrestler, you have to do extra, you have to do extra on your own.
23:32
SPEAKER_01: You shouldn't have to wait for your coach to tell you to do extra sprints or extra extra anything.
23:38
SPEAKER_01: Like, you you know what you have to do, you know where you're lacking, you know what you need to put extra effort into.
23:44
SPEAKER_01: And if you don't do it, that's one of the things I love about individual sports.
23:48
SPEAKER_01: Like if I lose, I lost.
23:51
SPEAKER_01: Or if I win, I won.
23:53
SPEAKER_01: And I just I really love that.
23:55
SPEAKER_01: I love that I don't have to rely on anyone.
23:57
SPEAKER_01: Well, I mean, I do have help from teammates and my coaches, but the majority of it is on me.
24:03
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, not like that.
24:04
SPEAKER_00: Absolutely, yeah.
24:05
SPEAKER_00: That's funny because that's been something that's been echoed through all of you guys.
24:10
SPEAKER_00: Is is that ownership and that sense of extreme ownership.
24:14
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, accountability.
24:16
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, exactly.
24:17
SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
24:17
SPEAKER_00: Self-accountability for sure, for sure.
24:21
SPEAKER_00: Man, I'm excited.
24:22
SPEAKER_00: I'm excited.
24:22
SPEAKER_00: And you've been cornering some of your teammates.
24:25
SPEAKER_00: Um, I've noticed that.
24:27
SPEAKER_00: What's uh what's what's most rewarding in regards to that?
24:31
SPEAKER_01: It almost not gonna lie, it almost feels better to watch the homie win than to actually win.
24:37
SPEAKER_01: Because it's just like because I understand what's happening, I understand the anxiety, I understand all that.
24:44
SPEAKER_01: So when they win, get the hand raised, and you you just see the joy, and I know the hard work that you put in, the sweat and all the grinding.
24:52
SPEAKER_01: It's it's really rewarding just to be a part of the process.
24:56
SPEAKER_00: And the reason I asked that question is exactly that, because I have watched you corner a few people.
25:02
SPEAKER_00: I don't think I've seen you smile bigger than when one of your friends wins, as opposed to even one of your own victories sometimes.
25:10
SPEAKER_01: Because I'm a I'm a perfectionist, I get that from my dad.
25:14
SPEAKER_01: I think he has OCD.
25:16
SPEAKER_01: He refuses to acknowledge it, but I swear he has OCD.
25:20
SPEAKER_01: But um I grade myself harder than anything.
25:24
SPEAKER_01: Like my coaches have to point out the things I did well because all I can see is oh, I missed that shot, or I I didn't slip that punch.
25:33
SPEAKER_01: I it's hard for me to like enjoy the victories.
25:36
SPEAKER_01: Like even the last one against Jorginho, it was I feel like I should have been able to find the finish.
25:44
SPEAKER_01: Like I know I'm I'm that I'm that skilled, I'm that good.
25:49
SPEAKER_01: I had him where I wanted the majority of the fight.
25:52
SPEAKER_01: He was on the ground, we ran half guard.
25:55
SPEAKER_01: I just wasn't able to get my elbows off, and uh I just it it weighs on me.
26:01
SPEAKER_01: That's why it's good to have coaches because they they help you think about things the right way and you don't you don't have to linger on things.
26:11
SPEAKER_01: So yeah.
26:14
SPEAKER_00: That's awesome.
26:16
SPEAKER_00: That's awesome, man.
26:17
SPEAKER_00: So uh when are you gonna make that Amsterdam trip to uh to go uh go see Overeem and can I come along?
26:27
SPEAKER_01: I don't know if you wanna come along because I I plan on I'm probably not gonna do a lot of sleeping.
26:35
SPEAKER_01: I plan on doing exploring and uh but yeah, I'll probably do it because he always tells me the best time to do it is from April to like August.
26:48
SPEAKER_01: I'll have to hopefully I have the availability because that's that's always been the issue.
26:54
SPEAKER_01: I didn't have the availability.
26:55
SPEAKER_01: Yeah so hopefully I have it this year and I can get out there maybe June.
27:01
SPEAKER_01: That'd be nice.
27:04
SPEAKER_00: That would be awesome, dud.
27:05
SPEAKER_00: That's awesome, man.
27:06
SPEAKER_00: So I was kind of kicking around, you know, talking about different episodes of the podcast and such, and I think I'm gonna try and come out and see some of you guys after the first of the year.
27:16
SPEAKER_00: So uh I definitely want to hook up, man, and uh we'll go get some barbecue or something or whatever.
27:22
SPEAKER_01: That's that's the thing.
27:24
SPEAKER_01: The food out here, maybe it's just me because I'm I'm spoiled.
27:28
SPEAKER_01: I grew up in Chicago, which was like the mecca of food.
27:32
SPEAKER_01: The food here isn't the best.
27:34
SPEAKER_00: So I don't well no, we gotta hook up a grill, then maybe we just barbecue it ourselves.
27:40
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, we're better off doing that.
27:42
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
27:43
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I'm in Lincoln, Nebraska, man.
27:45
SPEAKER_00: That's that's what I do on my weekends, is I'll I'll grill up some ribs or something along those lines.
27:50
SPEAKER_01: I was in Nebraska a few years ago.
27:53
SPEAKER_01: We drove up, me and Austin and uh Lavelle and uh Neil, he drove up there to watch uh Gagey when he fought James Vick and um San Hagen when he I forget who he fought, but it was an awesome fight because he almost got armbarred.
28:09
SPEAKER_01: He got out of the arm bar, it was it was wild.
28:12
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I was in I think that was Omaha.
28:14
SPEAKER_01: We were in Omaha.
28:15
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, yep, yep.
28:17
SPEAKER_00: Because that's what it's funny because that's what Drew and I were talking about.
28:20
SPEAKER_00: Drew's like, I have not found a good barbecue place since I've been here in Denver.
28:27
SPEAKER_00: I've heard of one.
28:28
SPEAKER_00: There's supposed to be one in Colorado Springs that's really good.
28:31
SPEAKER_00: My best friend talks about it all the time, but uh that's like an hour and a half away, though.
28:36
SPEAKER_01: I hate driving stuff.
28:38
SPEAKER_00: I do too, dude.
28:39
SPEAKER_00: I do for real, for real.
28:41
SPEAKER_00: Well, Curtis, thanks for making time out of your schedule to do my podcast.
28:46
SPEAKER_00: It it's been a pleasure talking to you and getting to know you, and uh uh I hope we can talk again soon.
28:51
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, for sure.
28:52
SPEAKER_01: Before the next fight or after the next fight, whatever works for you.
28:55
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
28:56
SPEAKER_00: I want to thank Curtis for joining me on the show today.
28:59
SPEAKER_00: It was an honor to sit down and chat with such a great fighter.
29:04
SPEAKER_00: Man, I swear there is something in the air and in the water of Colorado right now.
29:10
SPEAKER_00: Well, I have a hunch of what it might be, but some great fighters and even better people.
29:16
SPEAKER_00: What a privilege.
29:17
SPEAKER_00: Make sure you give Curtis a follow on Instagram, Razorblades265, and that's Blades B-L-A-Y-D-E-S.
29:26
SPEAKER_00: And while you're following him, make sure you give a follow to Elevation Fight Team and High Altitude Martial Arts.
29:33
SPEAKER_00: It wouldn't be a season of giving if you didn't give me a follow on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram.
29:39
SPEAKER_00: Look up Caught on the Mic or visit my website www.codonthemic.com.
29:46
SPEAKER_00: I will always appreciate that five-star rating on Apple Podcasts today.
29:52
SPEAKER_00: This has been Caught on the Mike with Michael Clark.
29:55
SPEAKER_00: I'm Michael Clark.
29:57
SPEAKER_00: Until next time, thank you.