NFL & MLB Athletes Training Mixed Martial Arts

What does Baseball and American Football have in common with Mixed Martial Arts (MMA), besides the fact that they are sports? If the answer is absolutely nothing, try again. If the answer is everything, that is correct. In order for someone to get paid millions upon millions of dollars to play a kid’s sport, says a lot of the hard work of the athlete. Upon the copious amount of necessary skills that a professional athlete must possess, there are two that are the most vital to a player’s success in their respective sport. In MMA, conditioning and mental toughness are the core of the MMA fighter’s spirit, and without them, their time in the sport will be short lived. However, in order to be successful in Baseball and American Football, a player, above all, needs to have dedication and talent to have a prominent career in their respective sport. Now with MMA promotions such as the UFC/Strikeforce and Bellator gaining popularity among masses, professional athletes included, many are drawn to the many benefits. A good reason why professional athletes participate in MMA training - a monumental component of it - is to further develop their conditioning and mental toughness. After the completion of MMA training and leading to their respective season, the athletes that cross trained with MMA have had successful seasons.

Atlanta Falcons Team 

A prime example of MMA training proving successful for pro-athletes was seen in the 2010 Atlanta Falcons. Their overall record for the 2010 season was 13-3, one of their best seasons in franchise history. The whole team was introduced to MMA training prior to the 2010 season by the general manager, Thomas Dimitroff, implementing a program catered to MMA. “This was something we were comfortable with as far as conditioning but even more importantly the idea of having MMA help the players with their leverage, hand quickness, and things that could help them within the trenches taking on blocks and battling inside.” Implementing such a program proved to be an excellent idea for the organization and the fan base because the team made it to the post-season and was given the 2010 first-seed with home field advantage due to their outstanding season. A major contributor to the consistency all season long can be attributed to the mental and physical stress the players endured during training; for example, when the 4^th quarter of a highly contested game was in front of them, the players would feel fresh since MMA training made them feel as if they were there on a daily basis, and taught them to ‘push-through.’ “You get some great conditioning out of it,” Lofton has said after a workout inside the Falcons field house. “Plus, there’s a lot of carryover to what we do on the field.

Patrick Willis

Although there are many American Football players who train MMA such as Clay Mathews, Jared Allen, Mercedes Lewis, the one player that merits his own paragraph is Patrick Willis of the 5x Super Bowl Champions San Francisco 49ers.  When the name Patrick Willis is said, many people will simply refer to him as a “Beast” – a term given to anyone who performs at a higher level than their constituents in their respective craft; in this case, Patrick Willis is a “beast” in his position as Middle Linebacker. Since his inauguration into the NFL in 2007, he has been selected to the Pro-Bowl 4x, 3x NFL Linebacker of the Year, and AP Player Defensive Rookie of the Year. When he incorporated MMA training to his regime that is when Patrick Willis started to become “more human than human” and everyone started to pay him more attention. A scout stated that, "Nobody in the NFL plays their position better than Patrick Willis, and that is saying a lot." His predatory instincts and good positioning on the gridiron (American Football Field similar to a Football Pitch) goes back to his MMA training and the similarities he saw between the two sports. “I see a fight and a guy goes to grab somebody and you look at how the other guy leverages, it’s just like football,” Willis commented. “You would think a lot of times a guy that’s 250 pounds and comes in on a guy that’s 235 pounds and just de-cleat him, but if he’s got good pad leverage you’ll just ricochet off him, and that’s what happens in (MMA).”

Batter Rushing the Mound

Just like in American Football, Baseball is another sport where MMA training is flourishing for any player in different positions. “Adam Dunn of the Chicago White Sox, Brad Penny of the Detroit Tigers and Russell Martin of the Yankees have used the sport’s punches and kicks to improve their throwing and swinging.” In addition, since Baseball is known for batters rushing the pitcher especially if the batter felt it was thrown with malicious intent, the pitcher should have the confidence to defend himself from the batter. MMA fighter and coach, Dan Henderson stated “it might give Brad [Penny] a little more confidence when he’s pitching inside…And he’s prepared in case anyone rushes the mound.”

Beside the physical aspect of Baseball, each individual athlete should mentally prepare themselves for the strenuous schedule, injuries, and etc, that is the Baseball season. “In addition to improving overall fitness, Martin said, mixed martial arts can make an athlete mentally tougher.” With the long grueling season that Baseball teams are subjected to each and every year, the most important transferable skill that MMA training instills is, as what Russell Martin said, the mental toughness. Consequently, training MMA gives the player the mental capacity to overcome the injuries or days when the player isn’t feeling 100%, since they already know that nothing will compare to the training.

For those Baseball and American Football players who incorporate MMA training to their off-season workouts, will see improvements in their overall performance. Whether it shows on the stat book or in the clubhouse/sideline, the impact will be felt. Since the core of MMA training is to develop endurance and mental toughness, the benefits are usually shown at the end of the game, when most players are sluggish; but those who went through MMA training would still have their ‘fresh legs,’ meaning they will most likely be victorious. One does not like to have a liking to MMA but one does have to have respect for the training that a professional fighter endures, for that is what separates the champions from the non-champions – the training. Hence, many professional athletes participate in MMA training because they want to be champions in their respective sport. With that being said: Hard Work on 3, Hard Work on 3 - 1….2….3….HARDWORK!!

UFC 131 – Clash of Some Titans

Junior Dos Santos vs Shane Carwin

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 131 at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada will be the second consecutive event that the card has been changed because of injuries. However, UFC 130 had both main event fighters, Frankie Edgar and Grey Maynard, pull out of the card because of injuries, whereas UFC 131 only has one – Brock Lesnar. As seen from the UFC 131 poster above and the awareness of the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) community, the original main event was going to be the culmination of the thirteenth season of the Ultimate Fighter coaches – Brock Lesnar vs. Junior “Cigano” Dos Santos- fighting or, as the famed referee “Big” John McCarthy has said many times “GET IT ON.” The UFC asked fellow heavyweight, Shane Carwin, if he would be willing to step in to fight Junior Dos Santos in the main event card; Shane willingly agreed to a dream opportunity, he once had but was stopped by his lack of conditioning (even though Brock Lesnar submitted him with an arm-triangle, it was evident that Shane was the superior fight but because of lack of condition and strategy, Brock capitalized and finished him) but now has a chance at redemption fighting in the main event at UFC 131. 


The reason why Brock Lesnar withdrew from the fight was by an opponent that no fighter can submit or knock out. Brock Lesnar did not suffer any injury in his fight preparation; rather he suffered a debilitating illness from a deadly opponent that has made Brock “tap out” (not Frank Mir) in the past called Diverticulitis. This time around, the medical condition “knocked him out cold,” in a sense that he needed to have surgery that had 12-inches of his colon removed and repaired. As a result, he withdrew from the main-event bout and was replaced by the behemoth that is Shane Carwin, whom also had surgery last year to repair back and neck issues and was on the UFC 131 card fighting promotional newcomer – Jon Olav Einemo of Norway. But like that saying goes: “One man’s joy is another man’s sorrow.” In this case, while Brock is in pain, Shane is enjoying the opportunity of a lifetime; as aforementioned, Shane has been in this position before - to be the heavyweight number-one contender and to fight the eventual Heavyweight Champion, if successful, but will his conditioning defeat him again (it’s worth mentioning that with his new nutritionist, he’s slimmed down tremendously) or will the hands of “Cigano” Dos Santos knock the conditioning out of him? The world will find out on June 10th, 2011 in Vancouver, British Colombia, Canada. Also on the UFC 131 card, there are a few notable fights that are worth watching.

Rogers Center in Beautiful Vancouver

On the preliminary card shown on Facebook/YouTube and Spike TV, there a few fights that are a must see which are Michihiro Omigawa vs. Darren Elkins and Krzysztof Soszynski vs. Mike Massenzio but as fight fans that do not have access to Spike TV should watch all the “online” fights on Facebook/YouTube. The preliminary fight card shown on Spike TV is Jesse Bongfeldt vs. Chris Weidman and Sam Stout vs. Yves Edwards, which should be an entertaining pair of fights leading up to the main card on Pay-Per-View (PPV).

The main card on PPV other than the main event is above average. The bout that is preceding the main event has an interesting story. It is between Kenny Florian vs. Diego Nunes to decide who will fight Jose Aldo, reigning UFC Featherweight Champion, for the belt. It is interesting because Diego Nunes is Jose Aldo’s teammate; meaning that if Diego were to win on June 10th, 2011, then logic says that he will fight his teammate for the belt. But as the MMA community is well aware, most teammates will not fight each other except if it is Jon Jones (who was slated to fight his now former teammate Rashad Evans but pulled out because of an injury). However, Jose Aldo has stated that he will not fight Diego unless the UFC makes him an offer (monetarily speaking) that he simply cannot refuse but until then, it is a NO. Other fights that could be possible fight of night are: Mark Munoz vs. Damian Maia, Daniel Cerrone vs. Vagner Rocha and promotional newcomer, Jon Olav Einemo vs. Dave Herman. UFC 131 is scheduled for June 11th, 2011 at the Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Colombia, Canada, which will be the return of the UFC (first time was UFC 115 – Chuck Liddell vs. Rich Franklin).

Should Plaxico Burress get another chance in the NFL?

NFL is the governing body of the most popular sport in the United States of America, and it stands for the National (American) Football League; but many players and fans alike, aptly call it the “No Fun League.” A big reason for the “No Fun League” is for the player violations of the rules- ranging from excessive celebration, using social media in meetings, pre-game, during game, after game and amending the rules of the game in any given Sunday to favor certain positions. In essence, the “No Fun League” was coined to critique the league for the many rule changes that inhibits the players from having “fun”. But at times, the NFL has been a forgiving league, especially to previous players who have been in serious trouble with the law. Examples of this can be seen with the likes of Michael Vick, Donte Stallworth, and Ray Lewis. A potential reason as to why, might be their personality and the age of the player – all have been in their mid to late twenty’s. The NFL gave them a second chance to resurrect their American Football career. The most recent NFL player, Plaxico Burress, who was just released from prison from his charges, has been said is “a monumental risk for any team;” which can only lead to the question of –Should Plaxico Burress get another chance in the NFL?

Speaking on behalf of Michael Vick's 2nd Chance

Plaxico Burress, with his large frame of 6’5 (1.96m) and 232 (105kg), and before he was incarcerated, was Eli Manning’s favorite target in the end zone. He is best known for catching the winning touchdown in Super Bowl XLII that derailed the New England Patriots chance of being the second team of having a perfect season and winning the Super Bowl (only team is the 1972 Miami Dolphins). One might ask: what happen to the man that ruined the honeymoon of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick? Well, after this career highlight, Plaxico started to become involved with the law, not for the right reasons but all for the wrong reasons. But the one legal trouble that he could not run from or juke was the accidental shooting at a New York Nightclub. If this story is not familiar to someone, it will be hard to understand, not because of the concept is difficult but for the act of imbecility of the perpetrator. While he was going upstairs, Plaxico Burress managed to shoot himself in the thigh with his concealed firearm.  Yes, he shot himself in the thigh, resulting in his incarceration due to the strict New York’s Gun Laws. Consequently, he lost two prime years of his career, two years with his family, missing his baby being born and most important, he left his American Football career in limbo. He now becomes a high-risk player for several reasons; the first being of his criminal past, his difficult personality, and now his age (he entered prison at 32 and left at 34, which is seen as old in NFL standards).

Super Bowl XLII TD Catch

The only thing good that is coming out of the NFL Lockout (if that makes any sense at all) beside Chad OchoCinco’s tweets and endeavors is that the fans truly know now that the NFL is a business first than the fans. The NFL is comprised of thirty-two teams with thirty-two owners, whom invest their money into the team, management, players and so forth.  With so much money invested into the team; the owners need to protect their investment and they do so by micromanaging the organization and choosing the people that are a perfect fit for their organization. That being said, would an owner of a team invest millions of dollars into a player who has been known to be difficult with management? A player who has been in legal trouble in the form of civil lawsuits? A player who is unaware of the State of New York’s laws, which can translate into now being aware of team rules? A player who is two years removed from his tremendous contribution to a Super Bowl winning team? A player who is 34 years old or a younger player? Does his 6’5 (1.95m) and 232 (105kg) frame and his skills still warrant to be on a team or has his skills diminish while he was away? As with any investment, especially if it’s a large sum of money, a lot of questions have to be answered before the investor decides whether or not, there will be a return of investment.  One thing is for certain, the players aforementioned in the introductory paragraph learned from their mistake and have been given a second chance but should Plaxico Burress receive his second chance in the NFL? 

Steven Seagal & The Kick That Has Mixed Martial Arts Under Siege

Steven Seagal "Epic" Front Kick

“I would like to thank a Mr. Steven Seagal for teaching me that kick”, said Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida, after their last fights that both ended with the same move, the front kick, that left their opponents looking Half Past Dead. When asked how he learned the kick, Steven Seagal responded –“I learned that in Japan 30-40 years ago; something I’ve been perfecting and I teach a variation of it, something I created.” For those who are clearing their eyes and asking themselves, did I just read that Steven Seagal, the movie star, actually knows the martial arts well enough to leave Exit Wounds on professional fighters, when taught to someone? The answer is absolutely. Before he became Steven Seagal the movie star, he was Steven Seagal, the martial art sensei (the first American born to teach martial arts in Japan). He is a 7^th dan degree and Shihan in Aikido, a martial arts discipline developed in Japan. Unbeknownst to the mixed martial arts (MMA) community, Mr. Steven Seagal would contribute immensely to MMA and have non-team Black House fighters On Deadly Ground.

Anderson Silva executing Steven Seagal "Epic" Front Kick

One can only think; with the introduction of Steven Seagal into MMA, and especially with his movie career obsolete, that he will be Out for Justice, which seems to be the case. He became involved with Team Black House-the camp that Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida represent-when Anderson Silva sent him a letter, in which according to Mr. Steven Seagal stated “Can you please teach me your deadly stuff?” After pondering, if Team Blackhouse members have the aptitude and ability to learn his deadly stuff, Steven Seagal made the Executive Decision to accept the offer. Who would have thought that the strikes that Mr. Steven Seagal would teach would give the impression to the fans that ‘his fighters’ would have Fire Down Below; and the only way to extinguish the fire, is the air that is generated from lifting the foot from the ground to the opponents chin. At first, no one believed that Steven Seagal could teach Anderson Silva such a vicious kick but two months later, it happened again to another quality opponent. Now that Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida have given credit to Mr. Steven Seagal for teaching them the front kick and will be teaching more, their next opponents should be concerned if they too are Marked for Death.

Lyoto Machida Executing the Front Kick for the 2nd Time

However, not everyone was convinced that Mr. Steven Seagal should receive all the credit for inventing a kick that has been around well before his time. Consequently, when interviewed again after the Lyoto Machida KO of Randy Couture, he said “I didn’t invent anything; I modified them in such a way that I can make my students & myself, in a real fight, land them to hurt them.” It seemed that after both fighters praised him for introducing the front kick, many people believed he was Above the Law, and the experts and fans alike took it upon themselves to bring him back to reality. It is clear that Mr. Steven Seagal is leaving his footprint (pun intended) in the MMA world with his ‘deadly stuff’, and with the moves perfectly executed, it would be Hard to Kill the fact to think otherwise. A possibility, as to why, Anderson and Lyoto have been so successful is the manner how Mr. Steven Seagal teaches it::

“This kick, the thing that's deceptive about it is that, the normal (technique) where you lift up your knee and you kick, this one I'm kind of trying to teach the guys to lead with the foot. I don’t want to say too much about it because I don't want to give it away completely to the world. It's different and it’s hard to see. It's very difficult to see coming, and that's how my guys have been successful with that."

One thing is for certain, Team Black House has found their ace in the hole and not just a Glimmer Man. 

(Idea credited to a fellow creative colleague of mine that has 20+years of athletic experience including coaching and participating at high levels of sports, JMH; Thank You) 

2011 UEFA Champions League Finals

For football (soccer) aficionados, the UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) Champions League Final can only be summed as - The Biggest Game in all European Football. For those living in the United States of America, this game is the equivalent to the Super Bowl in the National Football League (American Football). In other words, when the season starts for all European club teams, their goal is to win this game because it is the most sought after trophy. The team that wins this game has accomplished a grand feat that many team always strive to achieve, in which many teams have failed to do so because of the many great club teams that participate. However, the two teams in this years UEFA Cup Finals - Manchester United and Barcelona - have both won the Champions League three times each. In addition, these two teams are no stranger to each, for they have ran into each other 3 out of 4 years. Manchester United from the rugged English Premier League and Barcelona from the technical La Liga will once again be battling each other in the 2011 UEFA Champions League Finals at Wembley Stadium in London, England but before the analysis, one has to know why they constantly run into each other paths crushing each other's goals. 

Manchester United

When the football club of Manchester United is mentioned, many reactions will be received; either with disgust or with tremendous joy. The reason why one would react with disgust is that they have won the English Premier League (EPL) a record 19 times, won 11 FA Cups, won 3 UEFA Champions League Titles, and is the only English Club Team to be world champions (2x); as a result, many people view them as "buying championships" through the huge contracts that attract the great players to come play with them. On the contrary, the supporters of Manchester United are usually from Old Trafford, Greater Manchester and individuals from all over the world; but they are frowned upon because of the mantra bestowed upon them for "buying championships." Winning 19 EPL titles is no easy feat especially in a league that has no "weak team." The EPL is such a physical league that many other leagues throughout the world such as La Liga would complain for the foul because of the tackle or the challenge of any degree. The physicality, not so much the technical like in La Liga, of the EPL is what stands out amongst the many leagues across European Football; which many experts and fans from all degrees of support, have said the EPL is the best league in the world, for the "beautiful game" is actually played not stopped at every tackle or challenge. 

Barcelona

Amongst the fans (except, mainly those of Real Madrid) and experts, the most beloved Football club around the world is FC Barcelona. The reason for this is simple; Lionel Messi - the 2x FIFA World Player award recipient, and many other countless awards that if were to be acknowledge would transform this blog entry into a novel. Lionel Messi is at the helm of the attack and the reason behind the many winning efforts of FC Barcelona. Like Manchester United, Barcelona is a storied football club that have won countless of honors - 21 La Liga titles, 25 Spanish Cup, 3x UEFA Championship League titles, 3x UEFA Super Cup titles and many others. The success of Barcelona can be attributed to their amazing 'feeder team' (FC Barcelona B and Barcelona C Teams) that develop young talent into superstars such as Pedro, Bojan, Messi, Puyol, Xavi and many more. Since Barcelona tries not to attract great players through huge contracts, many fans around the world tend to be supporters. La Liga, unlike the EPL, is a completely different type of league.The Spanish League is all about being technical and not physical. Barcelona's approach is 'ball control', meaning that they are always passing the ball, in hopes of an opening, so they can attack. However, when there is a tackle or a challenge of any degree, many players tend to 'flop', in hopes that the referee awards a set piece. Consequently, the La Liga games seem to be slower than the EPL because the players tend to fall at every challenge from the defender; thus creating, a spark contrast between the EPL and La Liga.   

2011 Champions League Final

For the football aficionados, this game is what they would say 'nothing new.' These two teams have run into each other and have crushed each others season's goals, either in the semi-finals or finals. In the 2007-2008 UEFA Champions League season, Manchester United defeated FC Barcelona 1-0 in aggregate in the semi-finals. The first leg was a 0 to 0 draw but in the second leg, United scored the gol that took them to the 2008 UEFA Champions League Final against another EPL team, Chelsea. United would win their third UEFA Champions League, 6 to 5 in penalty kicks. Then the next year, the 2008-2009 UEFA Champions League, both teams ran into each other again; this time in the 2009 Finals. It was a chance for FC Barcelona to redeem themselves from the previous semi-finals elimination at the hands of their finals opponents. Not only did they win but they won convincingly with a 2 to 0 defeat of the team that broke their hearts and derailed their 2007-2008 hopes of the title. Just like Manchester United, Barcelona won their third UEFA Champions League Final. Unfortunately or fortunately, depending on the person, Barcelona and Manchester United, did not run into each other but were both eliminated from the title contention by the eventual finalists, Bayern Munich and Inter Milan. Now in the 2010-2011 UEFA Champions League Final, the two teams that have always run into each other will once again, run into each other for the chance to be the 4x UEFA Champion. Will the physical play of the Manchester United superstar Wayne Rooney be enough to take Barcelona's superstar, Lionel Messi, out of his technical element? Will the Red Devils send the Avi del Barça down the path of damnation? Will the EPL reign supreme over La Liga? Barcelona or Manchester United? Who is your team?

Find The Ultimate Fighter 13 Entertaining?

Season 13

If a company where to put its cash-cow into one of their shows, one would think that the show would be full of excitement that would leave people agape on the events that transpired.  But that isn’t the case in season 13 of The Ultimate Fighter featuring the UFC’s cash cow, Brock Lesnar and number 1 contender, Junior Dos Santos.  Since the show premiered on March 30, 2011, it has been nothing but stuporous action. The action and the interaction between the coach’s and their respective teams have been, to say the least, vapid. One would think with Brock Lesnar’s austere appearance and snide manners at the helm of this season, that the fans would see Brock’s diatribe about Junior or the team, but that is nowhere to be found. A conjecture as to why Brock isn’t what people thought he would be, can be attributed to his newfound perspective on life, especially after his life or death bout with Diverticulitis. It is not all on Brock Lesnar to carry the show but on Junior Dos Santos, as well. For a fighter as exciting and fierce as Junior, when he isn’t fighting, his demeanor is very relaxed.  Throughout the show, Junior is lolling through his classes and interviews, having a good time, as if he were on vacation in Hawaii.

Brock Lesnar vs. Junior Dos Santos

The mixed martial arts (MMA) community had a feeling that the UFC was taking a risk with both, Brock Lesnar and Junior Dos Santos, as coaches in the UFC’s feeder show. The MMA community knew that Brock’s MMA experience did not warrant a coach’s spot on the show, but knew that his name recognition was the sole reason as to why. On the other hand, the MMA community did not question Junior Dos Santos MMA experience, but questioned his marketability, especially the language barrier that he is currently breaking down. Basically, it is a tale of polar opposites attracting to create a show, in which the UFC thought would generate massive ratings. In addition, the MMA community knew that Brock is not the type of person who likes being in the media, even though he performed in the WWE for many years; add Junior Dos Santos inexperience coaching in a language other than his native Brazilian Portuguese, especially in front of a camera. One has to remember; the purpose of any show is to create valuable content, and if the people don’t find the content valuable, then people will stop watching.  The main purpose of the The Ultimate Fighter is to create entertainment in the form of in-house drama, intriguing personalities and exciting fights; none of which have come to match previous seasons; thus, resulting in low ratings and viewership. 

Although the show’s premise is MMA, it does not supercede the fact that it is on TV for the entertainment value. As aforementioned, the entertainment value comes in the form of in-house drama, intriguing personalities and exciting fights. The show might have an initial spike in ratings because of Brock Lesnar’s name recognition, but once that fades away, what else is there? Content is what drives entertainment and without content, people will not invest their time and effort into it. As proven by the low ratings and viewership, the content in season 13 is not what it has been in the past Ultimate Fighters. Season 7 in the Ultimate Fighter, where Rashad “Sugar” Evans and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson coached had name recognition within the coaches and fighters – Kimbo Slice, Roy Nelson, ex-NFL players whom contributed to great content in the forms stated earlier; and till this day is UFC’s highest rated season. A show to have high ratings and a lot of ‘eyeballs’ watching is to simply have name recognition and great content. As Bill Gates once said “Content is King.”

The Youngest Olympic Champion in U.S. History!

Henry Cejudo was 131lbs (60Kilos), 10lbs (5Kilos) heavier than allotted for his weight class and lost it in two hours prior to the most important match of his life. For the 121lbs (55Kilos) weight class, it was Henry Cejudo vs. Tomohiro Matsunaga in the finals match for Freestyle at the 2008 Summer Olympics held in Beijing, China.  To be 21 years old and on the world stage at an event that dates back to ancient times, is a testament to the Henry’s drive to succeed in freestyle wrestling. Although he is the son of undocumented immigrants, only his Mom was there during his younger days. His drive to succeed came from his desire and his family’s situation of living in poverty in several cities along the West Coast of the United States. The hardships of his childhood days were key motivating factors for him to immerse himself in athletics to get his mind off his living situation. It was his brother, Angel, who introduced Henry to wrestling; unbeknownst to Angel, his brother would soon make U.S. Olympic history. But before he was on the verge of becoming the youngest Olympic champion in U.S. history, one has to understand how he put himself in this opportune position. 

Henry Cejudo Won 2008 Wrestling Olympic Gold 

It all started when he opted not to finish high school and attend college rather he enlisted at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado.  When Henry Cejudo arrived, he was an accomplished high school wrestler who also set records for his accomplishments -4x State Champion (2 in Arizona, 2 in Colorado), First High School wrestler to win the U.S. Nationals since USA Wrestling became the sport's national governing body in 1983 and defeating one of the sports’ legend, Stephan Abas, which then prompted Abas to retire.  At the U.S. training facility, Henry had a head coach that oozes hard work and intensity, and who demands it to be reciprocated by his wrestlers. He was two-time world freestyle champion Terry Brands. But as the wrestling community knows, where one Brands brother is at, his twin brother, Tom Brands, isn’t that far away. Terry Brands did not accept mediocrity from Henry; thus, he pushed every single ounce of energy out of him, in order for Henry to be optimally prepared for the Olympics. Consequently, he’s said “Angel and Terry Brands were the reasons why he won the Olympics.” For four years, from the age of 17 years old till 21, Henry did not have a normal young-adults life. All he did was eat, train, sleep, and repeat for those grueling and intense years; as a result, he’s said “after the 2008 Olympics were over, I wanted to live the life I had never lived.”

Henry Cejudo Will Attempt Another Olympic Gold Medal

With the 2012 Summer Olympic Games in London looming, Henry Cejudo decided to put on his “sweat suit again” and go through the grind that a champion endures, in order to defend his gold medal.  He will be coming off a nearly three-year layoff from his gold medal performance in Beijing. He’s been said that he’s kept doing his conditioning to be up to par with the competition but as the wrestling community knows very well, that does not mean he’s in ‘wrestling shape.’ “People think I’ve just been sitting around and doing book signings, but I’ve been working out and staying in shape. I’m just not in wrestling shape yet,” admitted Henry in an interview with The USA Wrestler. It was evident in his most recent performance against Rasul Mashezov of Russia at the Beat the Streets Gala held at ‘The Crossroads of the World’ aka New York City’s Time Square that he wasn’t in ‘wrestling shape’. Yet, Henry defeated the Russian – 2 to 0 in the first round and 4 to 3 in the second, to take the bout; but there’s more blood and sweat to endure to repeat Beijing. The USA Wrestler asked Henry Cejudo if he missed wrestling and he responded:

  “I didn’t really miss it that much until last September (2010). What really drove me to come back was when I looked at the results from last year’s World Championships and saw how the U.S. struggled. That’s when I got the itch to come back. I felt like I could have been out there helping out country. I take a lot of pride winning for the United States. I feel like I can still be the best in the World.” 

Come the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, England, the whole world will see if Henry Cejudo’s drive is what it was in 2008 and prove to the world that he is still the best in the World in his weight class 121lbs (55Kilos)!!