Category Archives: Fighter of the Month

I have always been an emotional guy, but the only time I’d ever shed a tear for a celebrity was when I heard the news of Arizona Cardinal’s Safety, Pat Tillman’s unfortunate and untimely death in Afghanistan. He had it all. A million dollar pro bowl football star gave everything up, including his life, to serve his country. It’s not that other people are giving up less when they enter into the military but it’s human nature to seek out and hold on to the best opportunities available.  I could never wrap my mind around that kind of courage or patriotism until I interviewed November’s Fighter of the Month, Brian Marino.

Brian tried to play down the significance of his decision to join the military. He eventually wants to work as a police officer and said that he knows you either need a military background or a college degree for them to even consider you in the first place. A responsible sentiment, especially for a guy who has a combined pro/am record of 9-1. Even more so for a guy who has turned down rumored offers from Bellator Fighting Championships and Triumph to stay state side and take his fight career to the next level.

Don’t think that Brian is giving up on the fight game. He fully expects to take on more fights when he’s settled into the Army. The military has recently embraced MMA with their combative programs and events. Brian’s recruiter was thrilled by his background as a pro fighter.

“They were excited that I came from a fighting background because it proved I’m mentally strong and in shape.”

Mentally strong, indeed. Brian admitted his toughest challenge as a fighter was his bout against DJ Grimes. After breaking his foot in the first round, he continued on to win via technical knockout with just a few second left in the final round, while also breaking his hand in the process.

Brian’s career goal within the Army is to become an instructor to new recruits. There are different levels of certification for soldiers based on their experience and completed training regimens. Throughout the year, there are Pankration matches, Jiu Jitsu tournaments and even MMA events similar to our region’s amateur bouts. Outside of the service, there’s nothing barring him from taking on a few pro fights.

“I’m hoping that maybe a year down the road, wherever I’m stationed, I might still be able to find some fights. Whatever country I’m in, I still want to train and fight. Being able to train with guys all around the world is going to be amazing.”

Brian got his first taste of international MMA when he left his job and took on a full time training camp down at Hit Squad.

“Up until my training camp for the Bonnell fight, I was working full time and training. The opportunity to go down to hit squad and just train; that was the best experience in my fight career so far. I was training with guys from all over the world. Being able to train with guys from Finland, Sweeden, Germany, Hungary, Australia… ”

Before his career exploded to where it isnow, Brian got his start at LA Boxing with Pete DiLorenzo.

“I started off at LA boxing as a means to get back into shape. Pete DiLorenzo was working there and after being there for a few months he asked me if I wanted to fight. At first I thought he was crazy, but I went to a few shows and I thought, maybe I can do it.”

Pete speaks of his relationship with Brian in a sort of non incestuous Father/Son/Brother type of way. He took him under his wing early on as a trainer and saw quite a bit of potential. With a lot of the typical fighter back story, Pete helped Brian get on track and launch a successful fight career. As much as Pete did for Brian in the early years, the favor was returned as Brian blossomed into a headline commodity for the American Fighting Organization. At first, Pete was hesitant to support Brian’s decision to enter into the military. He was obviously concerned with his safety, but there was also the MMA career that Brian had to put on hold. Eventually, it all clicked and Pete got behind Brian’s decision. He must have uncovered what Brian was trying to play down in out interview. He’s a Blue Blooded Patriot.

“Ever since 9/11, I’ve always wanted to be in the military,” Brian confessed when I pressed the issue.

When a guy works 10 hours per day moving rebar and then spends another 3 hours in the gym every night just to afford himself the chance to build a fight career, you know he’s dedicated. When he gives it all up to serve his country, you know he’s more than just North East MMA’s November Fighter of the Month…

Brian begins his career with the Army March 1^st and has signed on for three years and four months. He’d like to thank his family, Pete DiLorezo, Team United and everyone at Allaire, namely Andree.

Everyone at NorthEastMMA.net as well as the entire North East fight community would like to wish Brian Marino a safe and successful career with the United States Armed Forces.

“Pat Thompson, I completely forgot about him!”

Harrowing words spoken as we compiled the current rankings for the top fighters in the north east. You’d think a fighter might be disappointed to hear something like that, but it’s quite the contrary.

“That’s fine with me, I’d rather be under estimated,” Pat said, completely void of any defensive undertones. He may be more thrilled to learn that he’s managed to stay out of the lime light than to even be awarded fighter of the month.

“I like it, I like being the underdog. I’d rather fly under the radar for a little bit and just keep fighting and getting better and better.”

Try as he may, Pat’s become a big fat blip on the radar.  Well, maybe a slender blip. Before he started his mixed martial arts career, Pat was meandering around at a svelte 265 pounds.

 “I’d be nothing without the guys from South Shore. They took me from 265 pounds un-athletic kid to what I am now.”

Pat was hard pressed to define, “what” he is now. It was also extremely difficult for him to take credit anything positive about himself and his fight career. Everything we talked about turned into pure praise of his teammates at South Shore Sport Fighting. Feeding into his line answers, I asked him to sum up what it is about SSSF that makes for such great fighters.

“I think the biggest thing we do over there, is that we spar so hard. I think a lot of local guys go into fights and they get hit and it looks like they’re not used to it. They cower in there. We try to go real hard without hurting each other. Scott Lockhart puts workouts together for us. He looks at everybody’s individual fights and ‘this is where you lack.’ Working with Chuck O’Neil, Lee Metcalf, Josh Grispi, Sloppy Joe Lamoureux – you don’t get any easy rounds.

Sometimes I find myself on a plateau for a little while, but eventually I catch on and get better. You’re only as good as the people you train with, metal sharpens metal.”

Trying to stay as humble as a homeless guy at a wedding while keeping his “flying-under-the-radar” status intact, Pat left me with not a single sound bite to qualify his fighter of the month award. Instead, I turned to the people that know him best.

Bill Mahoney, South Shore Sport Fighting instructor / mascot

“Pat was a fair wrestler, but a fat kid lacking confidence that was scared to stand. He managed to go 2-2 and rather than quit or train to work around his weaknesses by pulling guard or learning better takedowns, he decided he never wanted to fight scared again. He took a LONG time off and got beat daily by Grispi, McMaster, Belleton, etc. in the cage standing. BAD. And he kept coming and slowly…very slowly…his awkward ass backwards style started to become marginally effective versus those uber strikers.

So he gets back in there with some tuff street fighter type kid and they mess each other up bad; blood is all over and I’m thinking ‘He’s gunna come back to the corner with that I CANT WIN, I WANT OUT look in his eyes.’ But he comes over when the bell rings, sits down and is like, ‘THAT WAS SO DAMN FUN!’ He’s all smiles. I’m was begging him to take it down to a weight where he WILL win, but he’d rather hang and bang where he MAY win.

So he wins and licks the blood off his face and each fight after he turns more and more into a sprawl and brawl fighter. He not only has the balls to get messed up, risk getting caught, but he had the balls to say ‘I suck at this, and I’ll spend a year getting concussed and messed up, until striking isn’t my enemy but until it’s my friend.’

Losers make it so their weaknesses can be made strong enough so that they get by. Winners like Pat make it a strength. That’s why Pat, the most humble man I know, has a lot less reason to be humble than most of us. He worked, suffered and bled for his skills. And now he doesn’t just, not suck. Many may still think he sucks because he isn’t all jacked up and he’s all smiles but he’s a very dangerous fighter with an uncommonly complete game.
I could still take him though if I wanted to…”

Respected by his coach, Pat has also earned the respect of his teammates, including their newest addition, Chuck “Cold Steel” O’Neil. Chuck told me that Pat was the first guy to welcome him to the team with open arms.

“Paddy is an all around good guy, whether he’s hitting on me in training with his new triangle defense, rolling around ass naked on a grey box while delusional from a weight cut or mutually sexting me…

He may not be the biggest 170 pound guy in the world but Paddy can compete with the best because he has more heart and fighting spirit than 99% of the fighters out there. If he’s not taking a beating in training, he’s not happy with it or himself.

So good luck to his next victim, I mean opponent, who steps in the cage with him.”

Let Metcalf, another seasoned South Shore veteran, had this to share about Pat.

“Paddy Thompson, well, he’s got a super hot girlfriend!

I’m not sure what info I could tell that isn’t already known? He is one of the hardest workers at SSSF. He teaches at our school, his style is very unorthodox and he’s got very slick submissions mixed with good wrestling and good standup.

Whenever Pat and I train we have battles because we’re very close in our unorthodox styles. My first day at SSSF, I tackled him through a wall!

He’s really friendly and personable. On fight day he turns into a different person though. It’s scary! I wouldn’t want to fight Pat Thompson.”

Pat has become a headliner at the American Fighting Organization events. I spoke with AFO President, Pete DiLorenzo, to get a few words about Pat.

“Paddy was a big part of the AFO in the early stages and we turned to him to help us grow. He had a great fan base and main event’ed more fights with us than any other fighter. Mark Vaz, matchmaker for the AFO worked with Paddy at the BBC and from the stories I heard, Mark would laugh at Paddy when he had to fight or throw someone out of the bar. Mark would sit and watch and never help out…

Paddy has been in many wars inside the cage. One thing I always enjoy is seeing how big his face is going get with lumps and stuff. Best moment was watching him knock out Mike Schneider from his knees!”

So there you have it. Much to his chagrin, Pat Thompson is one of the best and most well respected fighters in town.

Pat has one more huge fight at 170 against 6-0 Steve Dunn tentatively scheduled for AFO’s January event. After that, it’s down to 155.

So much for staying off the radar.

Congratulations to Pat Thompson, NorthEastMMA.net’s October Fighter of the Month!

This past June, Noah Weisman took on Rockstar fighter, Luis Felix at WCF 10. To the surprise of many, Weisman, a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu brown belt under Julio Fernandez, never went for the takedown against his more powerful opponent.

“That was the first fight I really went into with a pretty solid game plan. I sat down with Tom Murphy before the fight and my other trainer Orlando Quiroz and we just figured out a good game plan. I went in and executed it to a t… That was the first time where I devised my game plan with Rail City and that’s what I want to do from here on out.”

Noah is part of the highly regarded Rail City MMA team which includes Firas Zahabi, Tom Murphy, Orlando Quiroz and George St. Pierre. The aggressive striking that eventually handed Weisman a TKO victory was all a part of their game plan. When you train under the tutelage of guys like this, you stick to the plan.

This solid victory is what put him on the radar when King of the Cage came to Massachusetts for the first time in the productions twelve year existence. Noah was set to fight King of the Cage veteran, Sean Wilmot, one of the pioneer fighters on the local MMA scene. Just one week before the fight, Noah separated his shoulder.

“A week before the fight I was warming up before training, just messing around with one of my partners and I fell on my shoulder and I separated it a week before my fight.”

Noah woke up the next day completely unable to move his left arm. After an emergency meeting with his physical therapist, he was able to at least move his arm, albeit with searing pain.

“I couldn’t throw my jab at all so I just used my left arm as a puller, I just grabbed onto him,” Noah told me laughingly as if he was recounting a simple mishap about walking into a meeting with his fly open. Noah’s jab, the most basic punch and front man for most combinations, was totally out of commission. Here he was making his debut in one of the most nationally renowned promotions, without the use of his lead hand. His biggest concern?

“She (physical therapist) taped me up and I wore the tape up until two days before the fight… You could see the tape marks all over my shoulder and back and I was like, ‘awe man, is he gunna see this stuff and know to just punch me in the shoulder during the fight?’ I guess he didn’t notice.”

Concerned only with tale telling tape marks, Noah had no hesitation in following through with the fight.

“I wasn’t going to pull out just because I knew it was too big of an opportunity for me to pull out of the fight.”

Weisman won the decision victory against Wilmot, mainly due to devastation dished out by knees. Bum shoulder and all, Noah won a decisive victory in his biggest fight to date.

This is the kind of fighter attitude that landed him a deal with Madison Avenue Sports and Entertainment.

“After that last fight, Madison Avenue Sporting and Entertainment had watched the fight on TV and they called me up the next day. I went down to New York and sat down with them and they’re going to be managing me from here on out.”

It turns out that Madison Avenue Sporting and Entertainment was started by a top Manhattan attorney and an NHL executive. These suits represent some of the top talent in the NHL, NFL & MLB and have recently branched out into the MMA world after snatching up contracts with some of the best fighters in Strikeforce. They have all kinds of marketing deals with top brands such as Bud Light, Kraft, Dodge, FedEx, Frito Lay and more. In a world where a sleeve of tattoos and the ability to get a hotel room upgrade qualifies you to be an MMA manager, Noah has gone straight to the top.

Throughout the interview, Noah stressed the importance of having good training partners, coaches, trainers and management. Any personal accomplishments we spoke of, he qualified through the help of others.  Even AFTER the interview, Noah touched base with me on more than one occasion to make sure I stressed how important these people are to his success. All of his sparring partners, Tom Murphy, Firas Zahabiand, Orlando Quiroz and Madison Avenue Sports and Entertainment were mentioned no less than a dozen times a piece. Noah is one of the most sincere and gracious fighters I’ve ever met.

When it comes to priorities, Noah’s got his head in the right place. When I asked him the dreaded and journalistically amateur, “So what do you do with your free time,” question, he lit up.

“I’m an outdoorsy guy and I just love spending time with my kids. I have my two sons that I do everything with. We go waterskiing together, we go hiking together we go cross country skiing, swimming, we were at the beach every day this summer. If I can spend time with my kids, that’s all I really want to do.”

At 4-1 with his only loss coming in a decision against John Benoit, Noah is poised to make a serious career out of mixed martial arts. He’s surrounded himself with the right people, the right management and has his priorities in order.

Congratulations to Noah Weisman, NorthEastMMA.net’s September Fighter of the Month!

How much do you love those guys who walk into your gym for the first time thinking they’re going to kick everyone’s ass? You know the bad ass one’s who’ve seen a few UFC’s and keep track of their street fighting record? They come in a little overweight with a chip on their shoulder and maybe a few tattoo’s and you just can’t wait to balloon sweep them or throw them into a gogoplata? Well Chuck O’Neil is one of those guys-

-Was one of those guys.

Chuck “Cold Steel” O’Neil started of his MMA journey walking into Team Aggression with no prior martial arts experience. “I walked in and the first thing I said to the head trainer on the first day is, ‘I wanna fight.’”

With no boxing, wrestling, jiu jitsu or even karate and less than one year MMA training, he was ready to step into the ring for the first time. “I actually got worse leading up to the fight. I had a sloppy right hand, my jiu jitsu sucked, my wrestling sucked, my cardio sucked; I didn’t do any cardio outside training and I thought I was just a big tough guy.”

Five minutes after making his pro debut, Chuck was submitted via triangle choke.

“I love this sport. If someone beats me, it’s going to make me better,” Chuck told me. So many prime time fighters talk about learning from their losses, but how much can people really learn from losing their FIRST professional fight? Have you ever taken the time to see how many 0-1 fighters are out there? Go take a look at a guy with an unusually high amount of wins. You’ll see his record littered with 0-1 guys just like Chuck was. Most of them learn to hang it up. Not Chuck.

“It (the loss) was good in the sense that I have that fight to watch before all my other fights. It’s a ritual I have. It keeps me humble and it keeps me hungry.” He uses the agony of defeat to drive himself toward victory.

After his first loss, Chuck won a few and lost another landing him at 2-2. Not bad, for a local pro who’s just looking to get out there and compete. Ready to get right back in the cage, he told his trainer to set up another match immediately. “I came out of a decision loss and said I want to fight again but my manager came to me and said, ‘I don’t think you should fight again for a year.’ So I just worked my ass off.”

What emerged from that year off is one of the best local fighters at 170. Since then, Chuck has gone 6-1 including a TKO win at Bellator over Damien Vitale and a rear naked choke finish to Anthony Kaponis’ undefeated record earlier this year. His only loss came in a title defense against Tim Pinney, which he will have a chance to avenge at Reality Fighting Eruption in October.

We’ve all seen flash in the pan guys crumble after going undefeated and then suddenly tasting defeat. But how often have we seen someone start out like Chuck O’Neil? How many guys are there out there who start out their career not so hot and then become one of the best fighters around? This does not happen very often and it takes a special kind of fighter to work a career just like this.

“I started off in this sport as a bigger guy. I was arrogant and real cocky and lost my first fight but it was the best thing that could ever happen to me. It knocked me down ten pegs and it made me think, wow, I’m not as good as I think I am. It made me work harder.”

Maybe the roller coaster ride start to Chuck’s career was only evident to us, the fans. Deep inside, this is a guy who has more passion and love for the sport than anyone I’ve ever met. Maybe Chuck always knew that he’d pull through and come out on top.

“Coming up in the MMA world, you’ve got to just work as hard as you can cause nothings impossible. I came from being a 240 pound fat kid completely outta shape… I fell in love with the sport and that was coming off a loss. Now I’ve found complete happiness within the sport.”

Besides the deeply rooted emotions and commitment for MMA, Chuck is taking all of the necessary steps to become a champion. He went out and got a degree in exercise science. He’s a strength coach and nutritionist for many fighters. “I eat like a #@!-ing scientist!” in reference to his diet. He welcomes getting roughed up in the gym on a daily basis knowing it’s going to make him better.

“If you’re worried about winning every day in training, you’re in this sport for the wrong reason. You gotta get your ass kicked to get yourself better.”

What’s in the future for Cold Steel? Of course every fighter wants to land in the UFC someday, but Chuck spoke of a specific interest in the Ultimate Fighter reality show. Anyone who has ever met him could easily make sense of this curiosity. Chuck likes to have fun and he seems to get the fact that this is a sport meant for entertaining fans. While he takes his job serious in the ring, he’s a funny and light hearted guy who makes you wonder about his ability in the cage… That is, of course, until you see him fight.

So congratulations to tough guy turned 0-1 record booster turned 2-2 casual fighter turned 6-1 welterweight powerhouse, Chuck “Cold Steel” O’Neil, August’s Fighter of the Month!

If anyone is interested in sponsoring Chuck O’Neil, he can be reached at ChuckONeil7 @ gmail.com. He’d also like to thank his current sponsors, MAC Realty, Katsu Kai Jiu Jitsu and Violence Incorporated.

On July 31^st, Rick Hawn defeated UFC veteran Shonie Carter in a devastating fashion earning him the title of July’s Fighter of the Month. This may have been the last time we see Rick fight on a local level. After further research, I realized that awarding him FOTM would be like tossing Bill Gates a nickel. He is the most highly decorated American Judoka to ever make the transition to mixed martial arts. He’s amassed a collection of almost two dozen medals in major US and international events including a 9^th place finish in the 2004 Olympics.

In 2009, Rick won Rookie of the Year after starting his career winning his first 5 fights over a short 9 month period. Rick got right to work in 2010 at WCF 9 with a 30-27 victory over New Jersey MMA star, Tom Gallicchio. He was then scheduled to take on Braulio Estima in the BJJ phenom’s MMA debut at Shine Fights in May. Unfortunately, the whole event fell through due to an injunction by Don King who had an invested interest in the main event. In June, he defeated the north east’s #1 ranked Dennis Olson with a second round KO to secure a Triumph title shot against Shonie Carter at the end of July.

I spoke with Rick about his preparation for this event. Besides an intense training camp, Rick watched a lot of YouTube footage of Shonie’s past fights. Considering his 48-20-7 record leading up to their fight, I’m sure there was no shortage of film for him to study. In a bloody, one sided beating, Rick won the Triumph title. While he was telling me about his fight with Shonie, I realized that even beyond his plethora of medals and Olympian status, Rick is still not your average fighter. While most fighters might talk about a punch that rocked them or a pivotal submission attempt, Rick went into a dynamic description of Shonie’s hip usage as if he was a Doctor describing quadruple bypass surgery. With only two years of experience as an MMA fighter, Rick seems to have the same understanding of the sport as a grizzled veteran. It may be his hunger to become one of the best welterweight fighters we’ve ever seen or maybe it’s that he’s surrounded himself with people like Mark Dellagrotte, the greatest striking coach to ever sport a scally cap and his manager, 2004 Olympic team mate, Jimmy Pedro. Not bad considering Jimmy is the most successful American Judoka in the history of the Olympics with a pair of bronze medals.

I also had a chance to speak with Jimmy Pedro. Besides being a Judo legend, he’s extremely qualified to represent Rick because of his sharp business sense and rolodex of connections to the MMA world. He is the Vice President of Zebra Mats not to mention an accomplished author, corporate speaker and owner of his own world renowned Judo center.

 He pointed out something stunningly obvious but easily overlooked about Rick’s work ethic. “He’s a professional. He took the same professional approach to Judo and has applied it to MMA. He trains hard, hits the weights and takes his nutrition and conditioning very seriously.” There’s a huge gap between being an Olympic Athlete and being a tough guy who wants to prove something in the cage. Rick isn’t some kind of troubled soul with a grudge against society, he’s a professional. I don’t mean to paint “average” fighters with such a broad brush but I think you all know what I mean. I asked him about interests outside of MMA but he clearly has none. He works a full time job and trains full time. Fortunately for Rick, he has a very flexible employer who gives him time off for pre-fight training camps and a few sponsorship dollars to survive those payless weeks. Any down time he has is spent resting and healing up from the wares of training. I’d suggest nicknaming this guy, “The Professional” if it didn’t conjure up images of Jean Reno shooting up a bunch of people to protect a pre-pubescent Natalie Portman…

It’s evident that he’s on the radar of several large productions as Strike Force contacted him to be a replacement fighter for their August 21^st show in Houston. According to Jimmy, they were unclear about who they wanted to match him up with but they ended up going with a different replacement fighter. Looking at the aftermath, my guess is that they were looking to match him up against Andre Galvao. In the only fight scheduled at 170, Andre’s original opponent, Nate Moore, dropped out with an injury. Nate was replaced by UFC vet Jorge “Macaco” Patino.

As it stands right now, they’re fielding offers from various national organizations. However, both Jimmy and Rick made it clear that they’re ultimate goal is for Rick to make it to the UFC. They’re very open and realistic with his future. Without obnoxious humility or unearned arrogance, Rick knows he’s beat the best in town. He also knows that Karo Parysian, the first face of Judo in the UFC has had a lot of success. The sick thing is, there’s no comparing the two. Rick is far more decorated and from what I’ve gathered from his first fights, a far better athlete. Both Rick and his manager have respect for “The Heat” but they both share the idea that if Karo can do it, Rick can do it better.

In the meantime, Rick is training hard with extra focus on improving his submission skills. In his first eight fights, they have not been put to the test save for an armbar attempt by Gallichio and a flurry of triangles by Brandon Weafer. While he hasn’t completely ruled out the potential for another fight locally, I’m sure we’ll be seeing July’s fighter of the month on TV in no time. For more information about Rick, visit his website at RickHawn.com. Sponsors can direct their inquiries to Jimmy Pedro at JimmyPedro@ZebraMats.com

Northeast MMA October Fighter of the Month – Paul Gorman

By: Matt Peterson

Paul Gorman is well positioned to be the Northeast’s next contribution to the WEC. A dynamic Jay Jack Brown Belt, Gorman is riding a three-fight winning streak that he recently topped off in October with a second round submission over Jason Bennett at AFO’s Halloween Havoc.

Although Gorman—who has a winning record—sports more than a few losses in his career, don’t let that fool you. Many of Gorman’s losses came at the hands of world-class talent in fights that he took at featherweight—outside of his natural weight class of 135. Further, he has since avenged losses to competition such as the WCF Bantamweight Champion Dan Ferrer and former Untamed Champion Leandro “Tatu” Escobar.

Paul has fought around the country, as far away as Hawaii where he’s competed more than once in the reputable Icon Sport promotion. A devoted jiu-jitsu student, Paul has embraced Baba Hari Dass’ philosophy of “Teach in order to learn” and has become a sought after instructor for his patient approach and meticulous attention to detail and development. Paul is also the current Full Force Productions’ Untamed Bantamweight Champion.

Congratulations to Paul Gorman—the Northeast MMA October 2009 Fighter of the Month.

NEMMA: To begin with, please share a bit about your athletic history–what sports did you play in high school and what competitive background helped to shape your desire to pursue opportunities in BJJ and MMA? What was the beginning of BJJ for you? How did you first learn about jiu-jitsu, MMA, and what set you on the course that has taken you on this journey?

PG: As a kid I wrestled and played football. I was always competitive and into sports but by high school I was heading in the wrong direction. As a result I didn’t do much of anything athletic for most of my high school years. During my junior year a friend convinced me to play football and that sort of got me back in to it. I also met a kid who was a good amateur boxer, and I joined the Portland boxing club. This was my first taste of combat sports and probably the jump off point for my interest in MMA. After Graduation I didn’t have much of anything to do, I wanted to get into something new and found the academy. I started training and the rest is history.

NEMMA: You’ve been at The Academy of Mixed Martial Arts under Jay Jack and Amanda Buckner since the beginning of the school. What was it about them as instructors and coaches that resonated with you early on?

PG: I’m so lucky to have been able to train with them. Right away I felt like they wanted to help me learn and become a good fighter, and also improve myself as a person through fighting. Mandy has always been a great training partner for me being very talented and in the same weight class. Also a great coach having a knack for saying the right thing to give you that boost when you need it. Jay is undoubtedly one of the best kept secrets in MMA. He is not only a great fighter, but he is an amazing coach and teacher. He is an excellent training partner, and strategist. I can’t imagine training with anyone else.

NEMMA: February will mark the five-year anniversary of your first fight. Take us back to that initial bout—what motivated you to step into the ring in the first place? Did you ever imagine then that this sport would eventually consume your life and become a viable way for you to make a living?

PG: The motivation for that fight was purely from my coaches. Training was turning my life in the right direction but I would never have taken the leap without that little push from Jay and Mandy. At fight time I was terrified as I believe everyone is, admit it or not. I remember looking across the ring and thinking what the hell am I doing. I never imagined it would turn into as big a part of my life as it has. So far it has consumed my life, but hasn’t become a viable way for me to make a living. Hopefully that happens soon, lol.

NEMMA: We’ve talked about this before in-depth on the New England Fights podcast (http://newenglandfights.blogspot.com/2009/10/nef-32-jorge-rivera.html). You took very tough fights very early on and have never backed down from a challenge in your fighting career. For instance, in just your fifth fight you fought Rafael Rebello, who now fights in the WEC. Right after that you fought Mark Oshiro, who’s 11-2. You’ve fought Josh Grispi at 145-pounds–ten pounds over your natural weight class… The list goes on. I think many would agree that if you had a better record, we probably would have seen you compete in the WEC by now. The paradox is in the fact that your record reflects a level of world-class competition–which isn’t seen at first blush by reading a 7-6 record that shows up in the Fight Finder. Do you have any regrets about taking certain fights at various points in your career? We all know that regret is futile, but do you have any misgivings about past choices you made in opponents?

PG: I don’t really have any regrets because at the time there was no WEC or any real light at the end of the tunnel in that respect. I fought to fight and so we didn’t turn down anyone. If I could see the future I may have been a little pickier about fights but that was not the case. I’m glad I fought the guys I fought, I feel like I learned a lot from those losses. The only thing it has hurt is me making it to the WEC sooner. I can live with that, I’ll keep working and hopefully get there soon.

NEMMA: You’ve competed against a virtual who’s-who of the top bantamweight and featherweight fighters in New England. Who has been your toughest test to date and why?

PG: This is always a tough question. I feel like they are all tough in their own respect. The first fight with Ferrer was the toughest for me emotionally. I fought poorly and pretty much quit. I felt like I did just enough to not get beat up and even though it ended a draw it was hard to swallow. This last fight with Jason Bennett was also very challenging. After a year layoff I defiantly learned the meaning of ring rust. Jason is one of those guys that never quits, never seems to go away no matter what you do to him and that is always a tough guy to fight.

NEMMA: As we mentioned, you fought Josh Grispi, who has gone on to wreck everyone he’s faced in the WEC, including a legend in Jens Pulver. What was it like fighting Grispi and, as someone who’s felt his power first-hand, what do you think we can expect to see him do in the WEC’s 145-pound division?

PG: It was just like any other fight that you come out on the losing side of. Josh hit me real hard and submitted me with a triangle. I made some mistakes in that fight and he is someone you can’t do that against. Grispi is an awesome guy; He’ll fight anyone they put in front of him. The thing I like most about him is he maintains respect for everyone he fights, and he seems to be in it for the right reasons. I think in the coming years we will see him in title contention.

NEMMA: In October 2007 you dropped a very controversial decision to the then Untamed 135-pound Champion, Leandro “Tatu” Escobar. I was at that show and many in attendance thought you won that fight. You gained redemption almost one-year-to-the-day later in a rematch with “Tatu” by submitting him via triangle choke early in the second round. “Dedeco” Almeida, who awarded “Tatu” his black belt, told me that “Tatu” was one of the most natural black belts he’d ever seen–and you submitted him. Right after that win your instructor, Jay Jack, awarded you your brown belt in the ring. How significant was that moment for you–winning the Untamed title and being awarded your brown belt–and what was the feeling like?

PG: That was a great moment for me. I accomplished a couple goals in one night so it was awesome. I wanted to get that fight back more than anything at that time. It was a heart breaking loss for me the first time we fought, so getting that win was very redeeming for me. Being awarded my brown belt was by far the best part. I’ve worked a long time at BJJ and it was an honor to be Jay’s first brown belt.

NEMMA: Jay Jack is notoriously stingy with his belts–he really makes his students work and put in the time to move up the system–which speaks volumes about the commitment you’ve had to make to achieve the rank of brown belt. I’m assuming that becoming a Jay Jack BJJ Black Belt is a goal of yours and, if so, how far away do you feel you are from that achievement? What does the rank of BJJ Black Belt mean to you?

PG: Becoming a Black Belt is definitely a goal of mine. You’d have to ask jay how far I am from black belt. I try not to worry about those things; they always seem to work themselves out.

NEMMA: I’m not sure how fans peg your style–I don’t know if they see you as more of a traditional wrestler/grappler or more of a technical jiu-jitsu guy. Either way, you’ve shown your BJJ chops in tournament competition. On multiple occasions, I’ve witnessed you successfully execute flying armbars and other dynamic moves in grappling competition. How do you see yourself at this point? Do you consider yourself a wrestler, a jiu-jitsu artist, or an amalgamation of both? Explain your style, strengths, and areas where you feel you need to improve the most.

PG: I consider myself to be fairly well rounded. I don’t think I have very many large holes in my game. BJJ, and the clinch are probably my two strongest areas. I would like to improve my striking and wrestling the most. Stylistically I’m defiantly geared towards getting the fight to the ground so I can use BJJ to win the fight. I like to use good striking and clinch work to do damage on the way. 

NEMMA: In October you submitted a very tough Jason Bennett, who was 3-1 before he fought you. Who do you want to fight next? Dan Ferrer–a guy you’ve fought twice already and split victories with–currently holds the WCF bantamweight title. Would you like to do the rubbermatch with Ferrer for the title? Matt Smith recently won the GFL 135-pound belt–how would you feel about a fight with him? Who do you want locally right now?

PG: I look forward to doing what I’ve always done and fighting who ever my coaches tell me to. I would take fights with either of those guys. I’m sure Ferrer would like to fight me again after losing the last time around. Fighting Matt would be good as well. I’m interested in doing what ever I need to do to be invited to the WEC.

NEMMA: You’ve helped to build The Academy into one of, if not the biggest MMA school in Maine. What kind of community is The Academy, why should people train there, and what kind of atmosphere can they expect?

PG: The community at The Academy is a diverse group of people who are all trying to improve their lives and achieve goals together through BJJ and MMA. We offer classes for everyone not just people interested in fighting. In fact the vast majority of our students will never fight. Our atmosphere is one that accepts anyone who is interested in improving themselves, and shares the same values that we do.

NEMMA: MMA was recently legalized in Maine. What does this development mean to the Maine MMA community and how do you feel about the potential opportunity to compete in your home state?

PG: I think it’s awesome for the Northeast MMA scene as a whole. I feel like there is enough interest here in Maine to have fairly regular shows and it’s obviously very exciting to have the opportunity to fight in front of a true home town crowd.

NEMMA: What’s the latest with your instructors, Jay Jack and Amanda Buckner? With Strikeforce working to build their female division, could we possibly see Mandy competing there in the future? And what about Jay? He hasn’t fought in three years as he’s been focused on building the school, but could we potentially see him in the ring again?

PG: Amanda has had a very tough time finding fights for a very long time. Fortunately it seems she has found something for January, and at this point we are crossing our fingers nothing happens to mess it up. Jay is primarily concentrating on the school and now helping Mandy get ready. I can’t imagine he will never fight again though. At this point we will just have to wait and see.

NEMMA: Where do you envision yourself in 12 months from now, Paul? How many times do you hope to compete in 2010? Do you have any fights upcoming or being talked about?

PG: In twelve months I hope to be competing in the WEC against the best in the world. I’d like to fight 3-4 times in 2010. For fights I have some things in the works, nothing confirmed at this point though. I hope to fight early in 2010 so keep your eyes peeled.

NEMMA: After you’re done competing professionally, what are your intentions? Do you hope to teach in the future, have your own school and students–what are some of your goals?

PG: I’m defiantly interested in teaching. Over the last couple years it has become a huge part of this whole thing for me. Most of my goals at this point are fighting related, I try to keep them small and just add a new one as I complete them. My main goal is to make it to the WEC and see how I stack up with the best guys out there. When I’ve found out about that I’ll start thinking about what comes next. One thing at a time for now.

NEMMA: How can fans learn more about you and The Academy? Website, myspace, etc.?

PG: www.TheAcademyMaine.com is our website. We have a great blog that is constantly updated with new material. Both the Academy and I can also be found on Facebook.

NEMMA: Anyone you’d like to thank–sponsors, etc? 

PG: Id like to thank my coaches Jay Jack and Amanda Buckner for giving me this sport, and helping me along the way. You are both great friends and training partners and I owe you a lot.  Stan Skolfield at The Parisi speed school for all his help and support with my training throughout the years. Check him out at http://www.orthoassociates.com/LP10/parisi_speed_school.php . Hell on earth clothing company for my walkout shirts and other gear. www.hellonearthcult.com