Category: Interviews (Page 44 of 46)

A Chat with WEC Fighter Anthony “Showtime” Pettis

December 2, 2010 /

The biggest day in Anthony Pettis’ life is quickly approaching. At age 23, the World Extreme Cagefighting lightweight is set to contend for the WEC title against champion Ben Henderson on Thursday, Dec. 16 in Glendale, Ariz. in the final WEC event in the history of the organization. As if fighting for the title wasn’t enough, the winner of this showdown will immediately become the No. 1 contender to the UFC lightweight title as the premiere MMA organization will absorb the WEC starting in January.

It has been whirlwind year for Pettis, who picked up a major sponsorship with AMP Energy and was featured on MTV’s “World of Jenks” over the past few months all while climbing the WEC lightweight ladder. With his lifelong dream and a world of opportunity within his grasp, Pettis took some time from preparing for Henderson to speak will Bullz-Eye.com about this.

Bullz-Eye: Well, Anthony, the fight is getting closer, how do you feel your training is going as you are winding down your camp?

Anthony Pettis: I am feeling great. I have had a great camp. I am ready. I have pushed myself to the limits everyday. I leave it all in practice. If Ben is going to beat me it is because he is truly better than me, not because I didn’t prepare the right way.

BE: What about the concept of a five-round fight? How have you been working on your cardio for this fight and how do you feel about your conditioning if it goes into those later rounds?

AP: I hired a great strength and conditioning coach that I have been working with for the last two fights and we have been pushing it. The only way to prepare for a five-round fight is to push your cardio and push yourself to the limits. I have been doing that everyday and I have been sparring six-minute rounds and I have been feeling good. My coach, Duke Roufus, really knows how to get ready for a fight and he is pushing me hard.

BE: Do you have to change your mindset for this fight knowing you may have to go an extra 10 minutes than a normal bout?

AP: I am not changing anything. I am training myself to give 100 percent every second of every round. I am pushing myself to the limits. I really am pushing myself to my limits. I want to be able to go, go, go. I want to take the fight anywhere and everywhere. I am not going to be looking to take it easy for a couple of rounds. I am going to push a fast pace and do my all to keep winning the fight at all times.

BE: What do you see when you watch Ben Henderson on film? What stands out about him? He seems like he just has a little bit of everything and doesn’t excel in any one area.

AP: Yeah, I am glad you said that because clearly Ben is a great fighter and he is a great champion that is tough in every aspect, but he has holes in his game just like everyone does. I mean, I have holes in my game. My coach has been watching a lot of tape on him and he has been training me for certain positions and situations that are going to help me capitalize and get a win in this fight. I have some great training partners that even look like Ben. The thing I have to look out for is his cardio because he is relentless and I can’t let myself lose focus.

BE: Without giving away your strategy for the fight, in what areas do you feel you are superior to Henderson?

AP: It is simple, for this fight I want to be the better fighter everywhere. His wrestling is great, his striking is good, and his cardio is good. I have to be ready for anything and be just a little bit better.

BE: How important will the mental aspect of this fight be given that it is your first title fight?

AP: It is big. Each fight I have had over the last few years has been a peak fight where it was the biggest fight of my career to that point. Now, I am 23-years-old and fighting for a world title and a chance to fight for the UFC belt. It is kind of overwhelming, but I know no matter what I do, I am going to have some nerves. I really just need to focus on doing what I did to get to this point and push myself a little further than that. I don’t want to overdo it or under do it.

BE: Are you going to try and enjoy the moment of reaching this milestone come fight night?

AP: I am going to love every moment. I am loving it now. This is what I have wanted to do with my life and this is all I have wanted to do. I am going to enjoy every moment and this is the last event ever in the WEC and I am going to be part of that. It will be great.

BE: With the nerves, how long does it take for your nerves to settle on fight night?

AP: I don’t think my nerves go away until I am lying in bed that night and when the fight is over, the interviews are done, and after the celebrating is over. It is one of those things you can’t explain. I love the feeling, but I just can’t explain it. You have to get up for these fights, but for me the nerves don’t go away until I am sleeping.

BE: How have you envisioned yourself winning this fight?

AP: Everyone asks me that and I honestly don’t know. This is one of those fights where it could end standing or it could end on the ground or even in the clinch. We are both good fighters, it is just going to come down to who makes the first mistake and how that guy capitalizes on that mistake. I will tell you this, no matter how the fight ends, my hand will be raised and that belt will be around my waist.

BE: Is it hard not to think about the feeling of becoming champion and just focus on the opponent or do you allow yourself to get lost in that moment?

AP: That has been my dream and that is what pushes me, so I think about it a lot. I am not trying to be overconfident or cocky, but my goal has always been to be champion, so I just have to be prepared to do anything and everything to make that happen. The next 25 minutes inside that cage decided the rest of my career. I think about that all the time.

BE: Would going a full 25 minutes in this fight prove something to you or do you not need to prove anything to yourself?

AP: I don’t think I need to go 25 minutes to finish this guy. It is going to be a war and we are both going to be looking to finish at all times. If it does go 25 minutes, that is just more time for me to prove to this guy that I am the better fighter. I think it would be a plus for me if it went 25 minutes because I can just put on more of a show. If I can finish this guy in 25 minutes, I should be able to finish him in 15 minutes.

BE: With the UFC merger starting in January, is it hard to not look forward to being a UFC fighter soon?

AP: It is not playing a big factor right now. Right now I am a WEC fighter and my next fight will be in the blue octagon and my hands will be wrapped in the WEC logo. What ever comes after that, I will prepare for it then.

BE: Why should fans that haven’t seen much of the WEC or seen you fight tune into this fight?

AP: If you haven’t seen me fight, every time I go into the cage I bring something new. I put on a show. It’s not that I am trying to put on a show for the fans, that is just my style. I have so many moves that the world hasn’t seen yet. Also, Ben Henderson is a great fighter and it is going to be two true warriors fighting in that cage. It is the last WEC event ever and we are going to put on a show.

BE: Alright Anthony, I appreciate your time and best of luck to you in your title fight.

AP: Thanks a lot. It will be a great fight.

Interviews, Sports

Bullz-Eye interviews Anthony ‘Showtime’ Pettis

November 11, 2010 /

If you are looking for a Fighter of the Year in 2010, you perhaps have to look no further than Anthony “Showtime” Pettis. With three wins already under his belt this year, Pettis looks for his fourth when he faces WEC Lightweight Champion Ben “Smooth” Henderson at WEC 53: Henderson vs. Pettis on Dec. 16, 2010.

At just 23 years of age, the Milwaukee native has taken the MMA world by storm with his flashy fighting style. For his upcoming title bout with Henderson, Pettis is inviting a lucky Bullz-Eye.com reader to walk with him to the cage in Glendale, Ariz. I had a chance to talk to the WEC lightweight contender about his title opportunity, his
sponsorship with AMP Energy, as well as the upcoming merger between the WEC and
the UFC.

Bullz-Eye: Anthony, how is everything going?

Anthony Pettis: Things are going great.

BE: That’s great well tell me about training for this title fight on December 16 against Ben Henderson.

AP: Training going great. This is a huge fight for me. There is a lot riding on it and I am taking this fight very seriously. I have been training hard and just excited for the fight to come.

BE: What makes Ben Henderson so tough and successful?

AP: He is just very well rounded. He is good everywhere and he looks to finish the fight at all times. He really brings it. He has great conditioning and he is dangerous everywhere the fight goes no matter if it is standing or on the ground.

BE: Talk a little bit about your last fight with Shane Roller. That was the fight that really pushed you to the title shot.

AP: Shane was dominant wrestler so I really worked on my takedown defense heading into the fight. I can really pick things up quickly and I worked with a lot of great guys to get ready. I drilled takedown defense every day for a long time leading up to that fight so when the fight finally happened, I was prepared for everything that happened.

BE: Did you expect to get the title shot following your win over Roller?

AP: I didn’t expect to get the title shot. I thought I might have to win another fight or two, but they offered it to me and I was thrilled.

Anthony 'Showtime' PettisBE: How much of a better fighter are you now since your last loss to Bart Palaszewski on December 19 of last year?

AP: I am a way better fighter now. My skills have come up so much and just my motivational skills have improved since that loss. It is incredible how much I have learned and how much I have improved in the last year.

BE: The WEC is going to be absorbed by the UFC at the start of 2011. What were your initial thoughts when you heard about the merger?

AP: I loved it. My whole goal when I started competing was to face off with the best in the world and now there is no doubt that I will get to do that and the opportunities that fighting in the UFC will provide are tremendous.

BE: How does the merger change this title fight for you, if at all? The winner of your fight with Henderson gets to face the UFC Lightweight Champion.

AP: It doesn’t change much. It may push me a little more, but I am already motivated. This is an exciting time for the WEC and for me. Really, this was the best time for me to get a title shot. This is the last WEC event, I am in the main event, I am fighting for a title, and the winner gets a UFC title shot. It is crazy.

BE: How does the merger change your future?

AP: All of us guys in the WEC are excited about this because we all put our heart into it. We don’t feel like we have been disrespected, but we feel like we don’t get as much recognition. Now, the money will be much better and we will be put on the big stage. There are some guys in the WEC that will definitely make some noise in the UFC.

BE: AMP is having a fan walk out with you during the title fight, what is the experience like when you are walking to the cage – Walking out is crazy. The music is blaring loud and the crowd is going nuts. As you are walking out to the cage it is the point of no return. You know the next 15 minutes and for that fight, the next 25 minutes will decide the rest of my career. It is cool that AMP is having a fan walk out with me for the event and for anyone interested, they can register to win the contest at Bullz-Eye.com and I will announce the winner during WEC 52 on Versus.

BE: What is it like having a company like AMP backing you now as a sponsor?

AP: Being backed by AMP is great and they get behind the right guys in this sport. It is an honor to have them want to associate with me and I am looking forward to doing a lot of great things with them.

BE: You recently were featured on the MTV documentary series “World of Jenks.” How have things changed for you since that appearance?

AP: I get recognized more for being on “World of Jenks” than I do for fighting. It was great because fans got a chance to see me prepare and see how hard I work. I have had a lot of people tell me that my story was motivational as well, so that is really cool.

BE: You are from Milwaukee and like to represent the city. How badly does Milwaukee need a world champion?

AP: We need one bad (laughs). It would be great to bring a world championship to the city. We haven’t had one in a long time and we deserve one.

BE: Is there anything you would like to say to your fans?

AP: Just thank you to all that support me. Your support means a lot and there is a lot of exciting times ahead.

Entertainment, Interviews, Television

A Chat with Stuart Paul, creator of DC / WildStorm’s “Ides of Blood”

August 28, 2010 /

Fact: real men read comics.

I’m sure some would still try to argue this point, but in a world where it seems like just about every comic-inspired movie finds itself atop the box office on its week of release, it’s hard to pretend that comics are strictly the domain of the geeks and the nerds. (Would that this transition could’ve occurred when I was still in high school.)

As such, Bullz-Eye is going to try to tackle more stories from the medium…and when I was sent a copy of “Ides of Blood,” a new series from DC / WildStorm which is – at least according to the press release – not entirely unlike a blend of “True Blood” and “Rome,” it certainly seemed like something that our readership might be interested in learning more about.

God bless DC’s publicity department: they quickly put me in touch with series creator Stuart Paul, who gladly answered a few questions for us about his own introduction to comic books, the origins of “Ides of Blood,” his semi-controversial decision to have characters in ancient Rome use modern colloquialisms, which of DC’s stable of superheroes he’d like to take a shot at writing, and much much more.

Since I’ve seen the phrase “new to comic books” used in conjunction with your history of writing for the medium, what’s your personal background with comics? And don’t be shy: if your memory stretches back that far, feel free to offer up the very first comic you remember buying.

My childhood experience with comics was pretty limited. Other than reading the occasional issue of Moon Knight or X-Men at my friend’s house, the only comics I personally bought were “Star Trek” comics—mostly “Next Generation” and some of the original crew that took place in the post-“Wrath of Khan” time period. It wasn’t until college that my girlfriend reintroduced me to comics through Sandman. Once I realized there were comics for adults out there, I started reading them more and more. Initially, I stuck with the superstars—Neil Gaiman, Alan Moore, Brian K. Vaughan, Garth Ennis. I was kind of a Vertigo whore at first. I guess I still kind of am, but not as much. I have to hear a lot of good buzz about something before I’ll invest in a whole series like Walking Dead, but I’ve definitely branched out. Once I discovered Urasawa’s Pluto, I started getting into manga more. Right now, I’ve got 20th Century Boys, Basilisk and Lone Wolf and Cub to read. I also went through a period of reading a lot of DC superheroes. Jeph Loeb’s Batman stuff is my favorite. Sometimes I’ll still read X-Men, but it’s pretty rare for me to read superheroes these days. My favorite series right now is probably Okko. I think Archaia is doing some of the most creative and well-made comics today. Also, Chew is the only series I read on a monthly basis. Everything else is TPB’s, although the iPad is kind of changing that.

There’s been much talk about how fans of both “True Blood” and “Rome” will find much to enjoy in Ides of Blood. Is that combination what led to the concept for this series? If not, what were its origins, and how do you feel about those points of comparison?

No, neither show existed when I originally came up with the idea and wrote the first draft. I mean, I don’t have a problem with people using those as points of reference. It’s an effective shorthand, but it’s the type of thing you’d bring up in a Hollywood pitch meeting. The problem is that you don’t necessarily know what connotations those shows have for the reader and also, they’re such current references that it makes the comic sound like it’s just trying to exploit the zeitgeist. I mean, if you said it’s “Gladiator” meets… well, actually, “Dracula” might have too much baggage attached to the name, so I guess “True Blood” probably is a good descriptor. The point is, I don’t mind the comparison, but I do think it has as much potential to put-off readers as it does to draw them in. Anyway, the concept for the series came out of boredom. I don’t really like vampires, so it started as a challenge to myself to figure out what I’d have to do to make vampires interesting to me. Julius Caesar just popped into my head.

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Books, Entertainment, Interviews, Movies, News, Television

Bullz-Eye-Witness Report: Snoop Dogg destroyin’ the evidence for “Mafia Wars: Las Vegas”

August 22, 2010 /

Say, did you hear about Snoop Dogg blowing up an armored car in the middle of the Nevada desert as part of a publicity stunt to celebrate the 10 millionth visitor to Zynga’s latest “Mafia Wars” expansion, “Mafia Wars: Las Vegas”?

Maybe you did. Maybe you even watched it happen at MafiaWars.com, since the event was streamed live…and if you did watch it live, then you no doubt noticed that, despite the designated start time having been established as 6 PM PST, it didn’t actually go down ’til a little bit later.

Yeah, I noticed it, too. Except I noticed it live from the Nevada desert, since I was standing right there when the whole thing went down. And it wasn’t much of a surprise to me, since I’d been watching the events unfold for the previous two hours.

And, now, here’s the story of what happened and how I came to be there.

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Entertainment, Games, Interviews, Music, News, On Location

Revisiting Bullz-Eye’s interviews with “The Expendables”

August 14, 2010 /

Perhaps it was always too much to hope that Bullz-Eye might be able to secure an interview with Sylvester Stallone in connection with the release of his all-star action extravaganza, “The Expendables” (not that we’ll ever stop trying ’til we get one), but at the very least, we can take a look back at some of the other stars of the film with whom we’ve spoken and reminisce about coming aboard the production in the first place.

The-Expendibles-Dolph-Lundgren

“(Sly and I) are sort of friendly. We’ve been seeing each other on and off, just saying ‘hello’ in Beverly Hills. Even though I live in Europe, I’ve been back here on occasion, and we always talk about the good old days. And I just got a call, and he said, ‘You want to check out this script, see this character, and see if you like it…?’ And he was very nice about it. He’s a down-to-earth kind of guy. And I read it, and I loved the writing. It’s, like, I realize that, with Sly, when he sits down and writes something, that’s when he changes things in his career and lots of people take notice. He’s a terrifc writer. I mean, look, he wrote one of the better screenplays ever, ‘Rocky.’ I mean, that’s a fricking classic. So I read the script, and I was, like, ‘This is great! It’s like ‘The Dirty Dozen’ with a sense of humor, and the action is terrific!’ And he wanted me to play this crazy Swede… (Laughs) …who’s this over-the-top, super-dangerous guy, but he wrote the character in a very funny way, kind of like Nick Nolte. One of those guys who drinks too much and who’s, like, a loose cannon. So I was very interested straight away, and then we had some talks. I had a couple of ideas, and he was very, very nice about it. And he actually developed a friendship between me and him that we’ve had in real life, and also the stuff that goes back to ‘Rocky IV,’ where we do have a falling out in the movie, but then we go back and forth, and…it’s really good. I think people are going to enjoy it. ” – Dolph Lundgren

(Be sure to check out my 2008 interview with Dolph, too!)

“I was privileged and honored to work side by side with Sly. Most of my scenes take place with him, and I’m telling you, man, he took me under his wing, and it was a brilliant thing to be able to be under one of the Trinity. There’s a trinity of action stars: Sly, Arnold, and Bruce. And to say that I know all of them is…it’s just a really unique place to be. What can I say? They invented what the movie-going experience is right now. I don’t know what else to say. ‘Rocky,’ ‘Rambo,’ just everything he’s done is iconic, and it wasn’t lost on me. I love the man, and…I’ll just tell you this: I don’t die. I’ll give that away for you. And I can’t wait to do another one, ‘cause Sly’s the king of the sequels…and in my whole career, I’ve never done a sequel to any one of my projects. So I’m, like, ‘Sly, I’m ready for ‘Expendables 2,’ okay?'” – Terry Crews

“I was actually down at my ranch in South Texas, and my guys called me and said, ‘Hey, we’re trying to get you a meeting with Sylvester Stallone. He’s casting a movie called ‘The Expendables.’’ Several months went by, and he’d already cast ‘The Expendables,’ but he still wanted to meet me for potentially playing the part of Dan Paine. So I went in to meet Sly, it was the first time I’d ever met him, and I’m a huge fan. I remember watching ‘Rocky’ back in ’76 or whenever it was, then getting up the next morning, drinking eggs, and running down the street…and now here I am meeting with this guy! (Laughs) And, again, it was just two guys from two different backgrounds, but Sly has a big athletic background, with all of his college activities, his boxing, and all of his action movies, and he’s a big MMA pro wrestling fan as well. So we were still coming from two different worlds, but we met in his office one day, we hit it off like we’d known each other for ten years, and he offered me the part on the spot. I accepted on the spot, I was in ‘The Expendables,’ and it was an absolute thrill of a lifetime to be in that movie with all those people.” – Steve Austin

And, lastly, although our conversation took place well before he’d signed on to do “The Expendables,” I’d be remiss if I didn’t also offer up a link to…

The interview took place in conjunction with the DVD release of Roberts’ very first film, “King of the Gypsies,” and whenever I think back on our conversation, this is the story I remember most fondly:

“I’d been working about two or three weeks (on ‘King of the Gypsies’), and when we went into our night shoot, I had my first scene with (Sterling Hayden), in the back of a car. I show up early like I always do, and he shows up late, like he always did, and I’m waiting for him to get ready. The assistant director comes and knocks on the door and says, ‘Mr. Hayden would like to speak with you.’ And I’m, like, ‘Cool, man, great!’ So I go over there, and I knock on the door. (does a perfect Sterling Hayden growl) ‘Come in, come in!’ So I open up this door, and it reeks of hash! And he says to me, ‘Have a seat, son! So, what are we doing tonight?’ I say, ‘We’re doing scene 85.’ ‘I know the number! What the fuck happens?’ I say, ‘Well, it’s a night scene, and you want to bring me back into the fold because you don’t think your son is too capable but you think your grandson is,’ I being the grandson. He goes, ‘Okay! How’re your improvisations?’ I said, ‘I’m pretty good.’ He says, ‘Well, that’s what we’re doing tonight: we’re gonna improv the whole thing. Now that I know what we’re doing, we’re just gonna shoot from the hip, okay?’ I said, ‘Great!’ He said, ‘Y’wanna get high with me?’ I said, ‘No, if I get high, I can’t talk.’ And he says, ‘Well, I can only talk when I’m high!’ (imitates Hayden’s raspy laugh) So that’s kinda how we started. And we bonded, and I probably haven’t ever enjoyed working with an actor more until I worked with my wife.” – Eric Roberts

Entertainment, Interviews, Movies, News

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