It's finally fight week. I'm ready to go. I had to go into the Palms today to check in at the UFC office, sign papers and posters, get my itinerary, and check in my rooms...
This is Burt. I'm not sure what his official position is with the UFC, but he is the guy that keeps the fighters in line, and gets things done. He checks our weight when we arrive at the venue to make sure we are within a reasonable distance from our fight weight. It's a safety measure to make sure there are no last minute surprises at the weigh-ins.
Signing in with Greg. He handles medicals, cornerman licensing, etc. Another guy that gets things done.
This poor guy. I have a tendency to lose my temper when it comes to dealing with red tape and beaucracy. I was very upset about the $500 deposit required to check into my rooms. And they don't even tell you how much it's going to be. The just ask for a credit card for incidentals on the room, and then hit you with a $500 hold. The funds are no longer available to you, checks you've written bounce, overdraft fees are charged by you bank, it can cause all kinds of problems, and there's nothing you can do about it. No Warning!!! I felt like pulling the guy over the counter and throttling him!!!
But it's not his fault.
Later that afternoon, I dropped in to hit a work out at the Warrior Training Center(6670 S. Tenaya Way Las Vegas, NV 89113). Phil Baroni was there today, and we went a few rounds. That might surprise some readers here, due to the fact that Phil and I fought each other twice before in the UFC. Some might assume that if you fight someone, there will always be tension there, that you dislike each other, and might not be able to even be in the same room with one another. It's not like that at all though. Most fighters would laugh at those ideas. This is a sport and most of the guys at the higher levels are very professional, and very respectful of one another. Phil's a professionaland. We got some good low intensity rounds in. I finished all my heavy training last Saturday. It's nothing but easy work outs this week, just staying loose and resting up for the fight.
I know the picture quality is bad. I don't have the right camera for these types of shots. That will be taken care of soon.
Bebeo Duarte on the right. He's one of the head Brazilian Top Team coaches at the Warrior Training Center.
Had to go back up to the Palms later that afternoon to sign some event posters. CB Dollaway and I got stuck signing about a thousand of them, so it seemed.
There's a lot going on this week. I'll be posting when I can. Should be able to give everyone a behind the scenes look at the days leading up to a UFC fight, cutting weight, weigh-ins, etc. I'll be posting up lots of pics.
