[buzzsprout episode='144418' player='true']
Raf's Recollection | It's always a good time when our friends drop by to say hello.
This week, we were joined by two Verbal Tap favorites (Cody Bollinger and Marcus Kowal) and a dude who promises to be a welcome addition to the Verbal Tap family (Dmitry Gerasimov).
Cody Bollinger
Just hours after picking up the win in his debut match at the World Series of Fighting 8, Cody stops by the podcast to give us an EXCLUSIVE interview about his win and the crazy couple of weeks he had leading into his fight against Tyson Nam.
What I always like about talking with Cody Bollinger is that he doesn't try to hide anything. He doesn't give us any spin or PR speaking points, this is a fighter who speaks clearly and honestly about his training regimen, the difficulties he faces, and even what was really going through his head just moments before the judges rendered their decision last Saturday night.
More than anything, we're happy to hear the hard work and perseverance paid off. To some, Cody may only be known as the guy who missed weight on The Ultimate Fighter.
But around here, he's known as a friend of the podcast who never that set back get him down. We were stoked to see him pick up the win, especially when you hear the kind of mental endurance the guy had to channel to make it to the fight AND THEN go three grueling rounds with a widely respected opponent like Nam.
Don't Sleep on the Beasts at Systems Training Center
Verbal Tap faithful will know Marcus Kowal as a correspondent for our show. But there's much more to the guy than just a strange Swedish accent and subversive videos where he interviews himself (he's been called the "Eddie Murphy of MMA" by absolutely no one).
Not only is he the owner of a fantastic gym out in Hawthorne, California (Systems Training Center), but he also happens to be a pretty solid MMA fighter in his own right. He fights against Zac Chavez at this Friday night's Resurrection Fighting Alliance 12 in Los Angeles.
And he's not the only Systems Training Center fighter to step into the cage, he'll be joined by teammate Dmitry Gerasimov—a Taekwondo black belt with some serious power and rage—who will take on Jordan Isordia on the RFA 12 pre-card.
I mean, just look at the guy. Everything about Dmitry screams "this. is. SPARTA!!!"
I've had the pleasure (/misfortune) of being friends with these guys for some time and can vouch for their talent and dedication. The stuff that they're doing over at Systems is truly incredible.
I'd wish them luck in their respective fights, but they each possess a great work ethic that's not the type that really needs the wish of luck. Rather, I wish them the full opportunity they deserve to display the crazy skills they have in the cage this Friday night.
On the podcast, we talk about their training, their close relationship, and even why the hell these two jokers would even remotely want to do stand up comedy when punching people in the face is so much cooler!!!
I'll be covering the events live this Friday night, so keep it locked down to VerbalTapCast.com and our Twitter for updates all night long!
But Wait, There's More
- Kev also debuts his new movie reviewing segment called 'Nuff Said.
- I update my ongoing feud with BJJ Podcast Nemesis, Paul Moran, after Paul double booked one of our guests from last week on his "podcast," Open Mat Radio. And with full journalistic integrity, I provide a thoroughly comparative analysis between our interview with Matt and Paul's interview with him. You can head to the following link here to listen to Paul's podcast and quickly realize how right I am about the whole ordeal.
- While you're at it, don't forget to contribute to Matt Kirtley's IndieGogo campaign to help fund a kick ass Reverse Omoplata Instructional.
- Also, be on the look out for my BJJ Training Journal blog later this week, as I attempt to give you all an honest look at my training, as we embark upon the never-ending journey that is trying to discover why I continue being so terrible at the sport of jiu-jitsu.
You can find me on the online directory of BJJTrainingJournal.com at Raf Esparza.