Jeff Bonugli is 54 years old and has been in martial arts for over 35 years.  He has fought all over Texas, Louisiana and even Mexico winning tournaments in full contact karate and American kickboxing. Jeff has experienced life through a fighter’s eyes and has seen the good and the bad: “Martial Arts got me through a rough patch in my life. It helped me get through my lowest point. If it wasn’t for Martial Arts and my mentor, Mr. Chris Lopez , I wouldn’t be here today.” He’s fought in Karate tournaments, Judo, Kickboxing and now for the first and last time, MMA.

Jeff is a humble man who came from a time when the sport was more than just fighting, it was a way of life. He lived and breathed it. A respect for the sport and his elders plays a big role in how he conducts himself. Many of today’s fighters, he feels, don’t understand that. It’s not always about being the biggest and baddest, it’s about discipline and honor.

Mr. Bonugli will be getting back into the ring come July 17th to face a man half his age. Jeff’s not doing this for the money, a boost in his career or anything a young fighter is in it for. He’s doing it to prove to himself that he still has what it takes even at age 54. He’s doing it for his two nieces who were killed, one in a car accident and another who was shot at point blank range. He’s doing it most importantly for the faith that he has gained in a belief of a Savior who died for us. This last one is what truly motivates him, not just to fight but what carries him and has carried him through out his life. This is who he gives all the credit to. Whether he wins or loses, he knows that Jesus Christ laid down his life for him and this is what motivates him the most. To give the glory to God.

In the video you’ll hear some brief stories about the good ole days of martial arts and what it means to him, as well as his final goodbyes to 35 years of fighting and a true love for the sport. Much respect is given to this man who, not only lived it, but plans to prove it once again in the cage.

Jeff will make his way to the cage on July 17th, 2010 in San Antonio at the Municipal Auditorium. A total of three, three minute rounds, win or lose, Jeff will give his all and leave the rest up to his Maker.

Interview & Media Production by: Chris Lopez Jr.

Texas Rage In The Cage Presents CAGE RAGE 7

May 8, 2010 @ State Farm Arena in Rio Grande Valley, Hidalgo Tx

Main Event: Former Power Ranger Jason “Fearless” Frank Vs James “Beast” Willis

Title Fight

Co Main Event: Undefeated Mark Garcia (Houston) VS 160lb TRCAA Champion Jordan Morgan (Buna tx)

Also out of the UFC legend Wanderlei Silvas camp Josh Montalvo takes on 2009 San DA world gold medalist Daniel Duran

10 action packed MMA fights

PREPARE TO TAPOUT OR GET KOCKEDOUT!!!!
www.texasrageinthecage.com

Scottie “The Savage” Ayers is a unique individual. He loves to fight and has earned respect in the sport of mma through his experiences and determination. His father was his mentor and boxing coach up until 2004 when his father passed away. In 2005 during Katrina, he lost his Mom and five sisters, leaving him here alone to deal with this tragedy on his own. His motivation is real and comes from living a life with nothing to lose. He’s stated, “I’ve learned the hard way. You can’t just sit back and let things come to you. You have to live life and give 1000% or nothing at all. This is also how I view my fighting.”

Enjoy the interview with with “The Savage!”

Start of Interview

Texas Fighting: Where are you from?

Scottie Ayers: I was born and raised in New Orleans Louisiana, now living in Houston Texas.

Texas Fighting: Where do you train?

Scottie Ayers: I’m in with Team Out Law but I’ve been all over the world. I’ve trained with some really great fighters but the best training I’ve ever gotten was in Vegas at the Warrior Training Center, as well as the Fight Lab with Dan Henderson and those guys up in Cali.

Texas Fighting: You mentioned that you have fought out on a reservation, what’s that like?

Scottie Ayers: The rez is pretty cool, if you get hooked up with the right promoter and get paid but some of those guys run out and don’t pay the fighters such as the guys I fought for in up state New York.

Texas Fighting: What is your biggest motivation in life and in fighting?

Scottie Ayers: My biggest motivation in life is to live it up, have no regrets . . . . I think that everything we go through gets us ready for the next great thing so I try to cherish every moment as if it was my last. As far as my motivation for fighting goes …… It’s the only time I can do what I wanna do to another human being and not go to prison for it. When I’m in the ring, or the in the cage, I feel free and in my comfort zone. I also want to go fight for one of the big three (Strike Force, WEC, UFC) but if I had to hang up my gloves tomorrow I’d want everyone who talks about me to be able to say that I brought my game every time I fought and that I never disappointed.

Texas Fighting: Tell me about your mixed fighting background?

Scottie Ayers: Well I’m a black belt in judo as well as a brown belt in Japanese jujitsu and a purple belt in bjj, I have a boxing base (that’s where I got my start from @ around age three). This year I plan on going back to my roots and box a few times as well as keep stacking up wins in mma.

Texas Fighting: Nice, any upcoming fights?

Scottie Ayers: I was supposed to fight at the end of this month in Austin for King of Kombat but I had some problems with my manager. I had to pull out and get things regrouped, which leaves me looking for a new manager. I’m currently in Australia to help my buddy get ready for ufc 110 (Texas Fighting: sorry for the delay in posting this) …. There is nothing like getting someone ready for a big fight, the sparring is second to none!

Texas Fighting: Who are your sponsors?

Scottie Ayers: Submission Effects, Born Hustler Family, Azure’ Kennels, WarMMA.com, Stay Fresh Barber Shop (Southeast Houston Texas)

Texas Fighting: What is your dream fight?

Scottie Ayers: Anybody that wants to stand up and test me. I can’t stand it when people talk a lot of sh!t and can’t back it up. I mean, for real lets get in there and give the people what they paid for. Stop talking and fight!

Texas Fighting: Who would you like to punch in the face but know you’ll never get the chance to?

Scottie Ayers: I’m not one for trash talk, it just isn’t my style. I’d rather just deal with them in the cage one day,  TRUST ME THEY KNOW WHO THEY ARE!

Texas Fighting: Is there anyone you’d like to thank?

Scottie Ayers: Of course, all my sponsors, everyone that has stood by my side through the rough times and never doubted me, and of course you guys @ TEXASFIGHTING.COM for taking time out to help promote texas talent!

End of Interview

Quote from TexasFighter.org:

On November 14, 2009, TAMMA conducted the very first “Heroes Fighting Championship” on Ft. Sam Houston Army Post. The event included a No-Gi Submission Tournament and Amateur MMA. One of the TAMMA registered fighters was Jorge Deleon. Jorge is a disabled veteran who lost his right leg from the knee down. Jorge was injured when his Hum-Vee struck an anti-tank mine while serving in Afghanistan.

The Texas Department of License and Regulation, Combative Sports Division (TDLR) has launched an investigation because of Jorge’s participation. According to TDLR General Counsel Brad Bowman, Mr. Deleon’s prosthesis falls into the same category as “necklaces, jewelry, or other piercings” and thus disqualifies Mr. Deleon from competition. Pending this investigation “No TAMMA events will be approved” per TDLR Administrator Greg Alvarez. We will attempt to keep all our members up to date as this matter progresses through the Administrative Process.

TAMMA maintains that our role as an amateur organization is to promote our sport and encourage participation of every member to the best of thier ability without regard to race, sex, national origin, or disability. We feel that for anyone to deny Jorge Deleon the opportunity to compete after the incredible sacrifice he made is just plain “OFFENSIVE.”

Jorge Deleon video clip starts 27 seconds in on the Heroes Fighting Championship video.

Stay tuned at TexasFighting.com for an in-depth report…

Aaron will be fighting at the TAMMA Texas Fight Fest 15 “Fight Against Hunger” today October 3rd, 2009 at 6:00pm. Enjoy the interview!

~Interview Start~

Texas Fighting: Aaron tell me a little about how you got started in MMA?

Aaron Lanfranco: I heard about it after watching a couple of UFC fights but then I found out that it wasn’t legalized in Texas, this was like 4 or 5 years ago. When I was younger I was a real active kid. My dad put me in baseball and football and my mom wanted me in sports ‘cus I was a hyper a@@ little kid. If you asked her she’d tell you I was like “zipp” “zapp” here and there. So I did sports throughout middle school and high school and in my freshman year I started wrestling, which was in 2001 I believe. That was my first individual sport that I did. Once I was introduced to wrestling I fell in love with it because of the adrenaline pump. I did wrestling throughout high school and continued with football on into junior college. I ended up leaving wrestling but when I finished college I came back and had nothing else to do. I had to do something, I always have to do something to relieve my anger, my stress so I found a jujitsu gym right down the street from here (south Austin) and started attending.

Texas Fighting: What gym?

Aaron Lanfranco: Relson Gracie Academy with Phil Cardella. After that I found out that MMA was legalized in Texas. Phil asked me, “why did you decide to join my gym?” I told him, “I wanna fight.” Phil told me straight up, ” You’re not ready!” (chuckles) I replied, “well ok, what do I have to do to get ready?” He then let me know that I needed a couple of years in training and experience before I stepped into the ring. I let him know that my background is in wrestling and he told me that I was a step above most people that come into a jujitsu gym. After a couple years on and off he started noticing that I was picking up stuff and he invited me to the MMA classes and for the past 2 years I’ve been training MMA pretty consistently. May of this year I had my first fight after 2 years of training.

Texas Fighting: How many fights do you have under your belt?

Aaron Lanfranco: I’m at four amateur fights, this will be my fifth… One every month man.

Texas Fighting: Good, so what’s your record right now?

Aaron Lanfranco: 4-0

Texas Fighting: So this next fight will put you at 5-0?

Aaron Lanfranco: That’s what I’m fighting for!

Texas Fighting: Do you think wrestling has helped you out in MMA?

Aaron Lanfranco: Oh yeah! And my parents say my grandmother helped me out too ‘cus I have her aggression. (chuckles)

Texas Fighting: Where do you train at now?

Aaron Lanfranco: I still train at Relson Gracie Academy and I train out in Lockhart for my boxing.

Texas Fighting: What gym is that?

Aaron Lanfranco: Puros Chingasos, LTX Fight Club. I started training over there about two weeks before my first fight. They offer jujitsu and other groundwork but I mainly work on striking and cardio conditioning there.

Texas Fighting: What weight are you fighting in for your next fight?

Aaron Lanfranco: 175, I believe it’s welterweight.

Texas Fighting: What weight did you fight in on your last fight?

Aaron Lanfranco: 170. The fight before that was 170, the one before that was 175 and my first fight was 155. (Laughter) Big difference.

Texas Fighting: What weight do you like to fight at?

Aaron Lanfranco: It doesn’t really matter to me but I’ll probably drop to 155 when I go pro. Even then it’s still iffy ‘cus I love to eat!

Texas Fighting: Do you work out with weights?

Aaron Lanfranco: No, it’s just all grappling training. I train almost six days a week. If I’m working a lot, I try to workout whenever I can.

Texas Fighting: What are your goals in MMA? You mentioned “when I go pro” so when do you foresee that happening?

Aaron Lanfranco: I’ve been given advice to just wait to go pro and get more fights under my belt. What I’ve also been told is that I may be big stuff right now but it’s only amateur and when I go pro if I go in with a big head I may be in for an upset. With the momentum that I have right now, I’m going to take that advice. I’ll have a couple more fights and then if anyone wants to sign me, I’ll go! WEC is going to be there in San Antonio tomorrow so hopefully I’ll put on a good show, I really want to put on a good show, and the hopefully I can get a couple good words in to them. There are some guys in WEC that I want to fight but I don’t think I’m ready for it but if they asked me to fight I won’t back down. That’s just the way I was raised to not back down from anything. If you have the opportunity in life take it, don’t pass it up. These are pretty much my plans for going pro. I really just want to be #1, be the champ. I want to be the #1 contender.

Texas Fighting: Whe is your next fight?

Aaron Lanfranco: It’s for TAMMA and will be held in San Antonio, Saturday October 3rd. Fight starts at 6:00 doors open at 5:30. General admission is $20. I’m going to the 5th fight on the card.

Texas Fighting: Who are you fighting?

Aaron Lanfranco: Hmmm, Mr. Wilson I believe. Really I don’t know much about my opponent. It’s like I tell everybody. “Don’t know, don’t care. I’m just in the ring to fight!” I’ve heard he’s good on the ground but I’ve been training both ground and stand up and I’m pretty confident either way so whatever he gives me, I gotta do what I gotta do, ya know.

Texas Fighting: Do you have any knockouts under your belt?

Aaron Lanfranco: Yeah, 1 knockout, 2 TKO’s and 1 submission. Fortunately no decisions.

Texas Fighting: Do you have any favorite fighters, anyone that you look up to?

Aaron Lanfranco: Roger Huerta. We went to the same high school. He was a senior when I was a freshman. We wrestled once and I called him out. It was like my first week of wrestling and I heard he was the big stuff. It was the new guy versus the experienced so I was trying to go all hard to prove something. I took him down and he didn’t like that, so he showed me real quick by cross facing me and roughing me up. I think I even saw stars. I felt his wrath, he took it up a couple levels, then after that I was like, “Good job man!” (laughter) I learned my lesson after that.

Texas Fighting: Have you ever been knocked out?

Aaron Lanfranco: Yeah, not like out cold but dazed where I fell it in my knees. It was a little back yard boxing match when I was in college. We were just passing time, it was off season not really much to do. Out of all the big guys I picked the smallest guy, next thing I know, we’re exchanging hands then “clock” I fall to my knees. I was ready to get back in and start again but my friend was like, naw, naw, naw you’re good. That feeling right there is nothing to brag about but it felt kinda weird (chuckles). It felt like waking up from being passed out or drunk. Yeah, but that’s the only time I’ve ever been knocked out other than being knocked out in football where I was knocked out cold.

Texas Fighting: Did you come from a background of fighters?

Aaron Lanfranco: Naw, my dad was what we’d consider a jock of the high school. He was well known down in the Vally because he was a big guy ya know. His brothers too. My uncles were into baseball. Out all his brother he was the only one to do football. He wanted me to play football or baseball and I wanted to try something different, like wrestling or maybe soccer. My family was very into sports, even my mom who was in track. She was a pretty good runner, a good athlete. She did cheer leading but mainly track, mainly running.

Texas Fighting: Have you been doing any special training to prepare for this fight?

Aaron Lanfranco: Naw, just train like always. I train boxing, jujitsu, I do some take downs, some wrestling, I work on some muay thai. I just work the basics, boxing standing, striking. I’ll work off my back, stuff like that. Phil Cardella is my trainer for jujitsu, Roy Garcia for boxing. Good people, (chuckles) good people. My thai training is with Phil and back in the day Randy Vera. Every bit of coaching is good in my opinion. It never hurts to learn a little bit more.

Texas Fighting: Do you get nervous before a fight?

Aaron Lanfranco: Oh yeah. That’s one thing I got to get over. My butterflies. I get butterflies like a mofo. Even in wrestling, before my tournaments. Even if the guy was a freshman and I was a senior and I already knew what I was doing, I’d still get nervous. It’s a mental thing. You just have to think clear and remember that you already know what you gotta do, you’ve trained for this and there’s no reason to get overly excited. In the gym it’s all technique, real crisp but once you get in the ring and the adrenaline takes over it’s a different story. That’s when you see fighters get sloppy and swing wild. You gotta relax and not let the adrenaline take over you. You have to work on controlling your adrenaline to work for you.

Texas Fighting: Do you have any special thanks you’d like to give to anyone?

Aaron LanFranco: Well my coaches, Phil Cardella, he’s been there training me from the beginning at Relson Gracie Academy. Roy Garcia for Puros Chingasos Fight Wear and sponsoring me with his fight wear. My family and friends for there support. They’re all traveling to San Antonio and spending money to go see me. My girlfriend here. Even though we’ve had some rough times, we’ve stuck together. She’s helped me out a lot, she’s really been there for me, I could on on about that – she’s really helped me out a lot. Everybody that’s helped me. My training partners, my neighbors who’ve made attempts and offers with little things even if it’s just offers and I refuse I’m still thankful to them for at least trying to help out. Too many people to name. If I do make it on to UFC, which I hope and I do win a belt on TV, I just want to say to all the people that doubted me – THANK YOU! I see myself thanking them while up in the ring being the champ saying, ” Thank you for doubting me, ‘cus it added fuel to the fire.” They know who they are.

~Interview End~

~Interview Start~

Texas Fighting:  First off, are you a family man?

Gilbert Jimenez: Yes, I’m married with 3 boys.

Texas Fighting:  How old are the boys?

Gilbert Jimenez: 14, 12 and 8.

Texas Fighting:  If they ever wanted to train in mma would you be okay with that?

Gilbert Jimenez: Absolutely, my 14 year old trains with me. He’s really good at Jujitsu. He’s still a white belt but I show him a few things here and there. He’s tapped out quite a few people. He’ll be getting into wrestling in highschool to prepare him for mma.

Texas Fighting:  What interests you about fighting and when did you start fighting?

Gilbert Jimenez: I’ve always been a rough house type of guy and have been around crazy sh!@ all my life. I’m from “the street” and don’t come from a real nice neighborhood so, I’ve always gotten into tons of sh!@.  This is not what everyone wants to hear but this is how I grew up. Living in the south side of San Antonio often had me getting my a@@ kicked or kicking some a@@ every day. It’s rough out there but mixed martial arts has allowed me to channel it in a way where I can benefit from it.  It’s kept me out of trouble and, oddly enough, out of jail – most of the time. (chuckling under his breath)

Texas Fighting:  Is Mixed Martial Arts your full time gig?

Gilbert Jimenez: Yes, I’ve sacrificed a lot the past year and a half and committed myself 100% to training. Ever since I did that I’ve been on a pretty good streak. I’ve got two titles so I’m pretty proud of that.

Texas Fighting:  How long ago did you start training in Mixed Martial Arts?

Gilbert Jimenez: Let’s see… Brazilian Jujitsu, MMA and Muay Thai… about two and a half years.

Texas Fighting:  Earlier you mentioned that you had a rougher start growing up, how old were you when you got into your first fist fight?

Gilbert Jimenez: I was probably about 9 years old at the time. I would get my a@@ kicked every day. This bully use to always pick on me, he’d always just fu*# with me. I really hated it, this is so weird because nobody knows this about me, but that actually brought out the pitbull in me – so to speak. One day I had about all I could take and the next day I planned it out and ended up beating his a@@ with a 2×4. I was a young elementary kid and he was some high school drop out. I got such a rush beating up this giant fu*# that I decided that I’d never take sh!@ from anyone again. From there I got into any sh!* I could and just loved it!

Texas Fighting:  Now Gilbert, you’re a great street fighter but have you ever lost a street fight?

Gilbert Jimenez: Oh hell yeah! Being that I’m the kinda person that doesn’t back down from sh!@ I’ve had my fair share of beat downs as well as giving them. Whether it’s one guy or ten guys I still look at it the exact same way. I look at it this way, if I have a problem I don’t care how many of you there are, somebody’s gonna get knocked the fu*# out. Now sometimes if it was more than five it was often me that was getting beat down but I didn’t care. I made sure to at least hurt one of the guys, usually the biggest, bad enough to where they’d remember they’re not dealing with just some regular dude. If they fu*# with me someones going to get hurt!

Texas Fighting:  (chuckling) Nice!

Texas Fighting:  So you started two and a half years ago training in MMA, when did you have your first amateur mma fight?

Gilbert Jimenez: My first fight was in September of 2007 and my opponent was Phil Detrizack from the Grapplers Domain and I ended up taking that win by decision with only four months of training under my belt.

Texas Fighting:  What is your amateur record right now?

Gilbert Jimenez: 7-2

Texas Fighting:  Were the losses in the beginning of your career?

Gilbert Jimenez: No, actually, one of the losses was from a kid by the name of Luis Luna from Odessa Texas – big name in the Texas circuit so look out for him. The guy is an awesome fighter.

Gilbert Jimenez: He came out to bang, I came out to bang. The problem was that I underestimated the kid and he ended up catching me in an arm bar – literally beating me at my own game. I definitely learned a lot from that fight. Another thing is that I had five other fighters that I was corner man for so I wasn’t able to give 100% focus emotionally as I needed to. That was the first time and the last time I’ll ever do that again.

Texas Fighting:  Would you fight Luna again?

Gilbert Jimenez: Absolutely. I’d love to fight him again.

Texas Fighting:  What is your fighting background mainly based in?

Gilbert Jimenez: Well, Brazilian Jujitsu is what I love, but I’ve been fighting on the streets as mentioned before since I was a kid. I’ve always stayed physically fit and kept mentally clear headed as well.

Texas Fighting:  Two and a half  years isn’t really that long to be involved in MMA, but if we add in your street credibility, I guess we could say that your experience is a lot broader than just the experience you have in the gym. Would that be fair to say?

Gilbert Jimenez: I don’t think I’d be where I am today if I hadn’t experienced what I have out on the street. Also, it’s been about a year and a half since I stepped in the gym and received my blue belt. That’s one of my greater accomplishments.

Gilbert Jimenez: Coming from the street and going into the gym for the first time I had a hot head and thought, “I’m ready to fight, I’ll kick anyone’s a@@.” My instructor was like, “Okay, why don’t you go ahead and wrestle this guy.” five seconds later, I was like,”okay, okay, tap, tap tap.” I figured it was bullsh!* but again five seconds later I’m tapping out. I’ve definitely grown since then.

Texas Fighting:  Do you have any MMA goals – where do you see yourself in the future in this sport?

Gilbert Jimenez: It’s a funny thing you mention this. Being that I’m 34 years old, I’m not thinking about how far I’m going to take this, all I’m thinking about is where I’m going to go and how I’m going to get there. My mind is focused on getting on the WEC or UFC. Whichever comes first. I’m looking at making it big. Right now I’m also just training for this fight but I’d also like to eventually open up my own MMA/Jujitsu school.

Texas Fighting:  Do you have any favorite professional fighters?
Wanderlei Silva. The man is bad a@@ and he’s still bangin’. That’s me right there, that’s the guy I look up to.

Texas Fighting:  How did the nickname “The Pitbull” come about?

Gilbert Jimenez: It’s a name I’ve had for over fifteen years now. I’ve had several nicknames like “psycho Gilbert,” “crazy Gilbert,” even “naked Gilbert” but pitbull just stuck. Out in the street that’s what people know me by. To be honest, I don’t remember where the name originated but people would see me fight and be like, “Man you’re just like a little Pitbull, you don’t stop.” And the name stuck, even up to my fighting career my trainer was like, “dude, you’re relentless, you don’t stop till you get what you want.” You can’t teach that in a gym, I believe that’s just something you’re born with.

Texas Fighting:  Do you have any sponsors?

Gilbert Jimenez: I’m managed by B3Sports. I normally hang with three guys from my school that are also sponsored by B3. You’ll be seeing and hearing a lot about us within the Texas area.

Texas Fighting:  When is your next mma fight?
This Saturday, August 29th at King of Kombat. It’s going to be a pretty stacked card – come check it out!

Texas Fighting:  Who are you fighting?

Gilbert Jimenez: Another B3 fighter by the name of Jace Pitre out of Travis Tooke’s school – Team Tooke.

Texas Fighting:  Have you ever met the guy?

Gilbert Jimenez: No, and that’s the way I like it. I’ve never met him or seen him. I like to look at my opponent as my enemy and don’t want to meet him until we get in the cage. Right now my only concern is to train, drop weight and focus on demolishing my opponent.

Texas Fighting:  What weight class do you fight in?

Gilbert Jimenez: Lightweight 155

Texas Fighting:  As far as training is concerned, how much do you train?

Gilbert Jimenez: I train five to six days a week. Monday-Friday I do morning Jujitsu from 10:30-2:00 and on Tuesdays and Thursdays, on top of morning Jujitsu, I do Muay Thai and MMA classes from 6:00-9:00. And finally, Saturdays we do sparring sessions.

Texas Fighting:  Are weights a part of your training?

Gilbert Jimenez: No too much. We do a lot of plyometrics and use our teammates body weight by carying them across the gym floor.

Texas Fighting:  Do you hold any titles?

Gilbert Jimenez: Yes, two to be exact. I hold the lightweight 155 TAMMA Title and the USACA Title for my weight division of 155.

Texas Fighting:  Anyone you’d like to thank?

Gilbert Jimenez: Jaimie Miller my trainer and friend over at Texas Powerhouse, all my Team at Texas Powerhouse, Furious fightware another one of my sponsors, Chaos City, my parents for doing their best by me and last but not least, my supportive wife.

~Interview End~

The other day I had the privilege of interviewing Billy Buch of the Gladiators Academy.  Billy is an up and coming fighter who has a growing fan base in his home town of New Braunfels, Texas.  Enjoy the interview!

~Interview Start~

Texas Fighting:  Where are you from?

Billy Buch:  New Braunfels, Texas – born and raised.

Texas Fighting:  What do you do for a living?

Billy Buch:  I’m a Ninja… seriously.

Texas Fighting:  How long have you been involved in Martial Arts and what is your martial arts background based in?

Billy Buch:  I started out doing Karate when I was 6 and have always done some sort of combat sport.  Later on I joined Soryu Karate/ Kickboxing. I’ve been involved in martial arts most of my life.

Texas Fighting:  Where do you train?

Billy Buch:  The Gladiators Academy in New Braunfels Texas with Kyle Cress and Jeff Bonugli. Come on by and check it out!

Texas Fighting:  What weight class are you in?

Billy Buch:  I’m a bantamweight fighter at 135

Texas Fighting:  What’s your fight record?

Billy Buch:  3-0 MMA.

Texas Fighting:  Have you fought in any other fights?

Billy Buch:  Some Kickboxing matches and Jujitsu tournaments.

Texas Fighting:  Did you get promoted to a new belt recently?

Billy Buch:  In Soryu Karate/ Kickboxing I’m a black belt. Just because you get a black belt in something doesn’t mean you stop. Belts to me, basically mean nothing. I mean it’s nice to be recognized and all but just because you have a certain rank in any discipline doesn’t mean you ever stop being a student. You should always be learning. Anyone can wear a belt but can you compete and win. That’s what really matters.

Texas Fighting:  Did you have to do a lot of forms in Soryu Karate/ Kickboxing?

Billy Buch:  We strayed away from the katas and forms and focused more on Muay Thai style kickboxing. Eventually I trained in a Muay Thai academy then ran into Kyle Cress and trained on the ground. The sport of Mixed Martial Arts has evolved so much that you can’t just be trained in one thing. You can’t just be a stand up guy or just a ground guy or even a wrestler.  You have to be trained in all three. It’s a basic triangle of martial arts that you have to have. MMA is a mix of everything. Even if you don’t like submitting people you have to know it. To be great you have to learn all three aspects of the game. As a fighter you can’t be great at one thing anymore, you have to be great at everything – well rounded.

Texas Fighting:  Do you consider yourself a well rounded fighter?

Billy Buch:  Yes, I think I’m pretty well rounded. My stand up is there, my ground game is there. We train in everything and we train hard.

Texas Fighting:  As an amateur you’re obviously not paid so what motivates you to want to fight?

Billy Buch:  I like to compete – bottom-line. This is basically the most competitive sport out there, you don’t rely on anyone else but yourself. It’s one human being vs another human being to see who’s the best fighter that day. I believe that’s the best competition you can get.

Texas Fighting:  What does your workout consist of and how many days and hours do you work out?

Billy Buch:  I usually work out Monday-Saturday for 3 hours a day. Come close to fight time, I’ll usually do two 3 hour classes and head out to the football field to run sprints. I do a lot of cardio and sparring.

Texas Fighting:  Who do you train with?

Billy Buch:  Mostly I train with Kyle Cress of the Gladiators Academy.  I also train at Rodrigo Pinheiro Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Academy. Pete Spratt at his place. Mike Rangel of kNOw Pain Mixed Martial Arts. It’s also fun to do drop ins at other schools. Great way to pick up some new techniques.

Texas Fighting:  What are your thoughts on the future of MMA?

Billy Buch:  It’s definitely growing fast. I’m pretty sure it’s overtaken boxing. Most people that train in some sort of a combat sport don’t just train in one style, they train for Mixed Martial Arts, which has become a style of it’s own.

Texas Fighting:  What are your goals in MMA?

Billy Buch:  I’d like to take it as far as I can take it. I don’t see myself quitting anytime soon. I’m 28 now so I’ll go as long as I can compete.

Texas Fighting:  Do you think you’ll ever become a full-time trainer?

Billy Buch:  Eventually yes. I already do a little now here and there. I would love to be able to make a life out of this but I will always be a student. There is never a top spot. You can be a black belt at whatever but there is always something to learn from someone else. When it’s my time to give back full-time to the sport then it’s my time to give back.

Texas Fighting:  Do you have any advice for young kids wanting to be Mixed Martial Artist?

Billy Buch:  I would have to say, start as early as you can. 6-7 years old is a good time to start in Collegiate  Wrestling or a Jujitsu class. Maybe around 12 is a good age to start for stand up. Get a good base in Jujitsu or wrestling. Anything is definitely possible.

Texas Fighting:  What do you think of women in Mixed Martial Arts?

Billy Buch:  There are some good girls who are top athletes competing now, so good for them.  I don’t mind women fighting, some may say they are against it but if they want it and put in the effort, why not?

Texas Fighting:  What are your thoughts on drinking and smoking?

Billy Buch:  Close to fight time I wouldn’t recommend any drinking or partying. In Mixed Martial Arts, cardio is everything. Smoking is definitely out of the question.

Texas Fighting:  How much does weight lifting play a part in your training routine?

Billy Buch:  Personally I don’t do a whole lot of weight lifting. I’ll do a few weight exercises with kettlebells and dumbbells but mainly a lot of combat training like running, sprints, caring other peoples body weight, hammer drills. Then again I fight at a lighter weight class so I do my best to stay lean by doing lots of cardio.

Texas Fighting:  With your experience as a fighter in the ring, do you find yourself getting into fights on the street as well?

Billy Buch:  No comment.

Texas Fighting:  What is your favorite way to finish a fight?

Billy Buch:  I don’t like the straight brawler crazy style. I like to use technique as much as possible. If I’m going to go for a submission I don’t want it to be a boring submission, I want to use nice technical stuff that people haven’t seen. On the flip side, who doesn’t like a good head kick knockout.

Texas Fighting:  Who’s your favorite Pro Fighter?

Billy Buch:  I’m definitely a BJ Penn fan, Miguel Torres and Nick Diaz.

Texas Fighting:  Do you have any sponsors?

Billy Buch:  MMAOverload.com, 210 Fight Gear, Honor Fight Gear, Kingpin Fight Gear, and Mr. Lucky’s Tattoos.

Texas Fighting:  Any shout outs or thanks to anybody? Anyone you’d like to give credit to?

Billy Buch:  Anyone that’s helped me or trained me. Chris Lopez, Jeff Bonugli, my trainers, NSC, people that have been there to support me. My friends and family.

~Interview End~