7/31/2019 The Straits Times Life! Interview with MMA FIghters Dominick Cruz and Urijah Faber

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kenneth goh

It is not difficult to see why mixed-martial arts fighters DominickCruz, 26, and Urijah Faber, 32, donot see eye to eye outside of thering.

Faber is a showy sharpshooter who hasno qualms playing it up for the cameraduring fights. In a telephone interviewwith Life! from Los Angeles, the formerchild actor says: I am quite excited totake the action up to another level as it is

my opportunity to shine in front of millions of television viewers.On the other hand, Cruz appears to be

the earnest, no-nonsense sportsman.When asked about fighting in front of

a camera, he says in a separate telephoneinterview from Los Angeles: There is noacting involved when fighting in the ring.Everything is real, with the camera as thewitness.

The two Americans are the coaches of The Ultimate Fighter 15, a reality showabout mixed-martial arts, or MMA,which airs on Fox (StarHub Channel 505)every Saturday at 9.50pm.

While the show is in its 15th season, itpremiered here last month.

Its concept is similar to other sports-based competition shows, such as lastyears The Challenger: Muay Thai, wherefighters reveal their thoughts duringtraining and battle it out in elimination-style matches.

In this 13-part series, 16 contestantsare split into two teams, mentored byCruz and Faber separately. The winnerwill bag a coveted six-figure contract

with the worlds largest MMA promoter,the Ultimate Fighting Championship.MMA is a combat sport between two

individuals who use a variety of martial

arts such as boxing, muay thai, karateand jiu-jitsu.

On becoming mentors, Cruz and Fabersay that watching the actionfrom the side-lines is as stressful as being inside the ring.

Cruz says: It is difficult to watchwhen you cannot control the fightsituation. All you can do is hope that theyfollow the game plan.

Faber, who has been a wrestling coachsince his college days, describes watchinghis mentees fight as nerve-racking.

Noting that this stint is more stressfulthan his previous coaching experiences,he says: I know these guys only for a

short period of time, so I do not knowtheir fighting backgrounds well to predicthow they will perform.

However, Cruz takes things in his

stride. He believes that coaching ama-teurs can hone his fighting skills.

I need to break down and explainfight moves, which comes to me natural-ly, when teachingthem. This, in turn,allows me to under-stand some tech-niques more clearly.

That aside, theyare happy to step upas leaders to this teamof lightweight fight-ers.

Cruz says: I have

to put the fighters well-being beforemine and assure them that they are notalone in this journey.

Faber breaks the ice by cooking meals

for his fighters at their lodging so thatthey can see him as a real person and atool for them to fight better.

The coaches also have their fair shareof action. Cruz andFaber are ranked toptwo in the bantam-weight category bythe Ultimate FightingChampionship. Theywill face off in a UFCBantamweight Cham-pionship match comeJuly.

It is tradition on

The Ultimate Fighter that the coachesfight after a season concludes. The matchis highly anticipated, given that Cruz beatFaber in last years championships.

Cruz sounds almost indifferent whenasked about the upcoming match: I seethis as a new title with any anotheropponent. It is best not to let emotionsget to your head.

Faber was less tactful. SeeingDominick every week during filminggives me the motivation to beat him. Icannot wait to prove that I am betterthan him.

The drama behind these all-out brawlshas captivated audiences, contributing tohigh television viewership of the UltimateFighting Championship programmingaround the world.

The Ultimate Fighting Championshipsigned a seven-year broadcast deal withFox Sports last year and its first event onthe channel drew a record 5.7 millionviewers.

The sport is also picking up steam herein Singapore. There are currently 10 gymsoffering MMA classes, compared to justone in 2005.

The One Fighting Championship, anAsian-based MMA tournament, attracteda turnout of 7,000 at the SingaporeIndoor Stadium two weeks ago.

It was also reported in February thatSingapore could be the first South-eastAsian country to host an UltimateFighting Championship event as early asthe end of this year.

On the recent rise of MMA, Cruz, whodescribes these bouts as being a survivorof the fittest, says: People are intriguedby such a raw format of fighting. It takesthem out of reality and feel as if they arethe ones fighting.

kengohsz@sph.com.sgThe Ultimate Fighter 15 airs on Fox (StarHubChannel 505) every Saturday at 9.50pm.

A team coach on The Ultimate Fighter 15, Dominick Cruz (above left) beat reality TV co-star Urijah Faber (above right) ina mixed-martial arts competition last year (main picture). PHOTOS: FOX INTERNATIONAL CHANNELS AND ZUFFA LLC

TVs rival mixed-martial arts coaches are real opponents too

Seeing Dominick everyweek during filming givesme the motivation to beathim. I cannot wait to provethat I am better than himUrijah Faber on Dominick Cruz

Sock and awe

life!

THE STRAITS TIMES WEDNESDAY, APRIL 11 2012 PAGE C8