Hey guys, I’m a little late on this one. Better late than never they say. Before last weekend, I’ve always hoped of meeting one of the most devastating strikers in MMA today, as well as, one of my all time favorite fighters, Wanderlei Silva. I always thought to myself that it would be damn near impossible to do so considering the fact that he fights in Japan and lives in Curitiba, Brazil. Luck was on my side last weekend. Read on…
Last weekend was the grand opening of Fizogen’s Xtreme Couture MMA Training Center in Wellington, Florida. A special grand opening training seminar was held with none other than 5-time UFC champ Randy “The Natural” Couture and Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva.
With the event on a weekend and Wellington being a mere hour drive away, there was nothing that was going to stop me and two of my good friends from attending. It was a two day event scheduled for 10 A.M to 6 P.M. on both Saturday and Sunday. Being the huge and fanatical MMA fan that I was, I insisted on being at the door by 8 A.M.
After a grueling two hours in the pouring rain, the event finally began. We were in absolute awe at the gym. It was flawless.
The website sums it up pretty well: “The center is a 7500+ square feet air conditioned space complete with an MMA circle cage, MMA boxing ring, large matted grappling area, large weight room with elite cardio / strength and conditioning equipment, showers, changing area and more!”
After about fifteen minutes, Randy Couture entered the gym. Before the entire gym noticed, my buddies and I sprinted over to Couture. We spoke to Couture for about ten minutes about the gym and asked him bout his upcoming matchup with Gabriel Gonzaga. Couture told me that he believed Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic was a bit one dimensional and thinks Gonzaga is a much better matchup for him and a more well rounded fighter. I certainly do hope Couture successfully defends his belt against Gonzaga. I snapped three photos with Couture and managed to squeeze out two autographs as well! Couture is and was a very amicable guy and sincere to all his fans.
A few minutes after my encounter with Couture, Wanderlei Silva strolled on in the gym with a mini Chute Boxe entourage behind him. I walked over to Silva with my buddy. Wanderlei Silva is the most sincere and kind person I’ve ever met in my entire life. I cannot stress this more. I tell everyone over and over again. It’s unbelievable. From ear to ear was Wanderlei’s smile, which didn’t leave his face through the entire event. Being that my buddy speaks Portuguese, he was really able to make Wanderlei feel at home. After snapping photos with him and receiving autographs, we were able to talk to Wanderlei for about an hour.
Regarding the Jackson-Liddell 2 fight, Silva believed that it was far too short to really determine the better fighter. He claimed that Liddell definitely made a mistake by leaving himself open. A mistake Jackson had no problem exploiting. “Landing a hook square on the jaw is almost impossible.” Wanderlei told us in Portuguese. He also went on to tell us that he believes Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, who was recently signed to the UFC, would fair wonderfully in the UFC due to his incredible talent and strength. Furthermore, regarding all the hype and rumors about him fighting Liddell, he informed us that it is currently in the works and he hopes to fight Liddell by the end of 2007, exciting!
We were able to briefly speak with Wanderlei’s physical trainer, Rafael Alejarra, and wife. I asked Silva’s wife if she had any Chute Boxe or WAND clothing/gear with her to sell, she said no and apologized. However, she offered to give me some of Wanderlei’s personal ‘Wand’ and Chute Boxe gear if I was able to return the next day. Unfortunately, I had to get my friend back home because he had a test the next day.
All in all, it was an amazing experience and worth the trip. I can now say I’ve met Chuck Liddell, Wanderlei Silva and Randy Couture. I hope one day to also meet Bas Rutten, Mirko Cro Cop, Fedor Emelianenko and some others here and there.
My thread on Sherdog.com answers questions and contains all my photos from the event:
http://sherdog.net/forums/showthread.php?t=580562
For more information on about the gym and to see some more photos of the event visit:
http://www.fizogen-couture.com/index2.html
and
http://www.wanderleisilva.com.br/site/
The Lianger
4 Comments:
Bas Rutten is Drew's favorite Mixed Martial Artist and he's up there on my list as well. Have you ever seen his self-defense videos?
I love Bas Rutten...he taught me how to bar fight...
Bas is the man. I have all his DVDs. :D
The Street Techniques one and the DVDs of Combat.
He is the best commentator in MMA as well.
I'm always impressed when I see fighters make a good transition to commentary. In the WWE, you have Jerry Lawler (great), JBL (much improved), and Tazz (who I think is hilarious). In the UFC, Randy Couture is my favorite crossover announcer.
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