Fighters You've met and Found to be; An irritating or contemptible person

So in researching the Jeremy Stephens debacle, I came across an article that described him as an A-hole. As a matter of fact it was part of the name of the article, but anyway, I digress.

It made me think who else might be considered to be "An irritating or contemptible person" that also happens to be a figther. So please (because I am bored and don't care about the Saints vs Chargers, other than fantasy football implications), contribute your stories of fighters you met that may have acted in a manner you were less than fond of. Or fighters you met that were cool above and beyond the norm

Alex Caceres: One of the coolest guys I've met. Trained with him a bit and he was always great. One day after training and we were closing, a group of guys came to check it out, they happened to be pretty arrogant, one of them proceeded to tell him about how they used to school his brother in wrestling (which they didn't know was his brother at the time, it just happened to come up in the convo we all had out front) He was still kind and cordial and didn't disclose the situation to me until after they left. It struck me as a pretty good way for him to conduct himself. (This was pre-UFC)

Thiago Alves: Was cool took a bunch of pictures with me and my friends. Awesome guy.

Alexis Vila: Watched him suplex the shit out of a dude when he was teaching a wrestling class. It was way over the top and didn't particularly sit well with me.

I have a few more, but I'll add them later.

I met Frank Trigg at UFC 140. He completely brushed me off. Fuck that guy.

To add a little positivity to this post, Sean Pierson is a great guy

Jonahan Goulet and Nate Diaz weren't the friendliest people Ive met however I hold nothing againts either as not everyone is always at their best when you catch them off gaurd. Cote, GSP, Blecher and Mike Brown are easily some of the nicest people Ive ever crossed paths with though going above and beyond just saying hello. Ive talked to Jeremy Stephens on facebook a few times and he's real down to earth and cool, as is Gabe Ruediger.

I could see trigg coming off as a jerk, as well as Diaz. Goulet surprises me a bit. That is a very good point though, that you never know if you crossed someone at a bad time.

Alessio Sakara was pretty cool and helped me on my jiu jitsu a bit. He was pretty friendly.

My buddy met Cain Velasquez at the fan expo, he said he wasn't very friendly, but nothing necessarily bad happened. He said Gilbert Melendez and Ben rothwell were pretty cool.

Werdum took pics w/ my friends (i was stuck in hotel room looking for my wallet) in NOLA last year. very cool dude. Bader, Delagrotti & Mike Goldberg took shots w/ me & my friends during Rogan's show the night before the weighins, but i will admit I went & listened to the show instead of hanging out w/ Bader like a couple of my friends did. Wanderlei Silva has been super-friendly both times I saw him.
I've heard Belcher is an asshole, but i never met him. He wasn't fan-friendly at the weigh ins, but i cant imagine many fighters feel well after a big weight cut, so i'll give him the benefit of the doubt. FWIW,
Joe Rogan spoke to me for about 4-5 minutes outside of his show & he was such a gentleman. answered a couple of my questions & was very personable.

About 4 months ago I met Jon Jones in a bar....he obviously had a few, I offered him a ride home, only with the stipulation that he ride in the back seat....he seemed a bit irritated by that, I said there is no room in the front seat, because of my championship belt riding shotgun...huh, go figure?

I ran into Anthony Pettis at a mall in Milwaukee. He was buying some hats with his buddies. I went up and talked to him, he was approachable and very nice. He offered to sign a few items I had when I told him I was a huge fan. Great guy overall, took a bunch of pictures with me and my wife. Before he left, he told me to stop by his bar/resturant for dinner on the house. It was awesome.

frank trigg doesnt seem to care about his fans much i met him and he just was rude


Frank Mir was great he stopped and talked for a good half hour had great insight

forrest was cool seemed chill he gets alot of hate latley but if you meet him he seems legit

and gonzaga was an alright guy too


but eddie bravo was by far the best guy to chat with cool cool guy not a huge fan but he made me at least appreciate him a little more

Most recently I ran into Daron Cruickshank while watching UFC 150: Henderson vs Edgar II.
I can't say anything bad at all. Seemed really cool, we chatted for 5-10 mins, took pics from his phone and forward them to me.
I've seen some others before just never talked to them.

You guys are lucky. You've met a lot of fighters.

Never met a fighter, but met a shit ton of celebs and sports stars that were cool or assholes.

I've met a bunch of fighters over the last few years prior to events, here are some (sorry in advance if this becomes a novel lol)

Cool/Awesome - no problems taking pictures or having a brief convo with
Pat Barry - met him at the fan expo and he is everything you expect him to be: happy, friendly and full of life

Miguel Torres - one of the funniest people I have ever met. I met him in front of my hotel prior to 113 and he walked with me and my buddies from the hotel to the Bell Centre (5 min walk or so). He started off talking about how he thought poutine was French-Canadian slang for poontang and it somehow transpired to having sex with goats lol. I don't remember the process of how it got there as I was pretty baked but it was a great time

Jeremy Stephens - lobby of hotel after the weigh ins at 113. Me and my buddies just came back from a big sesh and I went up for a picture. Afterwards hes like "Man you smell like chronic" I'm like, "yeah man, you wanna join us later?" He responds with "I wish man but you know I cant. I hear you got some good shit up here though." I wish him the best and we part ways. Really chill guy.

Dan Henderson - night before 129 he was signing autographs and taking pics at some sportsbar. He took the time to answer each and every question people asked him (which was generally 1 or 2 each) but he never seemed to rush any answers. It was there where I found out that part of the reason for him leaving the UFC was that he wasn't getting a rematch with Anderson (he thinks Silva didn't want to fight him again) and that his potential fight with Fedor was in the works.

Michael Guymon - after the weigh ins at the hotel at 113 he was standing around but not many people went up to him. So I went over to say hi, take a picture and talk for a bit. He was very genuine and thankful. I instantly became a fan after this.

Kimbo Slice - he truly loves his fans and took the time to sign autographs and take pictures with almost everyone after his morning weigh in at the hotel (I assume the cut most of the weight around this time and then finish off the last couple pounds at the official weigh in).

Krzysztof Soszynski - met him at the fan expo prior to 129. Surprisingly almost no one was in line to meet him so I talked to him for like 5 minutes, took a picture and got an autograph. I liked him before, became a big fan afterwards. Really cool guy

Josh Koscheck - believe it or not, off camera he is a pretty nice guy. Me and a couple buddies went to his afterparty after 113 and he was not a dick to anyone, even when some guys started talking shit.

Dan Hardy - awesome guy, loves everyone, grateful for every fan. I've met him a couple times and he always took time to sign something or take a pic or answer a few questions. Fan for life

Gilbert Melendez - really nice guy, very friendly, and let us hold his belt (yes I am a sucker like that). A father took his son to the expo and was infront of me in line. The kid didn't really know who he was (prob between 8-10 years old) but Gil took his time and goofed around with the him.

Wanderlei Silva - even though I waited an hour to meet him, it was worth it. Awesome guy, pretty funny too. My buddy wanted to have a staredown with him...needless to say my buddy almost shit his pants lol

EDIT: forgot Jim Miller - great guy, chatted with him for a couple minutes at the expo. Pretty honest and humble guy. He tried not to sound impatient but he did say he wanted a #1 contender fight...he later got it and lost to Bendo. Epic stache though

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Posted by Bubbles

I've met a bunch of fighters over the last few years prior to events, here are some (sorry in advance if this becomes a novel lol)

Cool/Awesome - no problems taking pictures or having a brief convo with
Pat Barry - met him at the fan expo and he is everything you expect him to be: happy, friendly and full of life

Miguel Torres - one of the funniest people I have ever met. I met him in front of my hotel prior to 113 and he walked with me and my buddies from the hotel to the Bell Centre (5 min walk or so). He started off talking about how he thought poutine was French-Canadian slang for poontang and it somehow transpired to having sex with goats lol. I don't remember the process of how it got there as I was pretty baked but it was a great time

Jeremy Stephens - lobby of hotel after the weigh ins at 113. Me and my buddies just came back from a big sesh and I went up for a picture. Afterwards hes like "Man you smell like chronic" I'm like, "yeah man, you wanna join us later?" He responds with "I wish man but you know I cant. I hear you got some good shit up here though." I wish him the best and we part ways. Really chill guy.

Dan Henderson - night before 129 he was signing autographs and taking pics at some sportsbar. He took the time to answer each and every question people asked him (which was generally 1 or 2 each) but he never seemed to rush any answers. It was there where I found out that part of the reason for him leaving the UFC was that he wasn't getting a rematch with Anderson (he thinks Silva didn't want to fight him again) and that his potential fight with Fedor was in the works.

Michael Guymon - after the weigh ins at the hotel at 113 he was standing around but not many people went up to him. So I went over to say hi, take a picture and talk for a bit. He was very genuine and thankful. I instantly became a fan after this.

Kimbo Slice - he truly loves his fans and took the time to sign autographs and take pictures with almost everyone after his morning weigh in at the hotel (I assume the cut most of the weight around this time and then finish off the last couple pounds at the official weigh in).

Krzysztof Soszynski - met him at the fan expo prior to 129. Surprisingly almost no one was in line to meet him so I talked to him for like 5 minutes, took a picture and got an autograph. I liked him before, became a big fan afterwards. Really cool guy

Josh Koscheck - believe it or not, off camera he is a pretty nice guy. Me and a couple buddies went to his afterparty after 113 and he was not a dick to anyone, even when some guys started talking shit.

Dan Hardy - awesome guy, loves everyone, grateful for every fan. I've met him a couple times and he always took time to sign something or take a pic or answer a few questions. Fan for life

Gilbert Melendez - really nice guy, very friendly, and let us hold his belt (yes I am a sucker like that). A father took his son to the expo and was infront of me in line. The kid didn't really know who he was (prob between 8-10 years old) but Gil took his time and goofed around with the him.

Wanderlei Silva - even though I waited an hour to meet him, it was worth it. Awesome guy, pretty funny too. My buddy wanted to have a staredown with him...needless to say my buddy almost shit his pants lol

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That stare down idea is pretty cool lol. I've thought about asking to take a picture squaring off like the weigh in photos but never have. Better than the traditional tool pose of holding a fist up while taking a pic with the fighter. Which, if you check my profile, is exactly what I am doing in my picture with Chuck. lol wish I had thought of something like that at the time

dicks/not friendly
Frank Trigg - by far the biggest dick I have met, fighter wise. He was at the same sportsbar Hendo was at but he was more off to the side but still able to meet with. My buddies and I went over and tried to talk with him and get some pictures, but he was very dismissive as if he didn't want to be there...and he would only take one picture with us as a group, not individual shots.

Sam Stout - really surprised with this one. I met him at the hotel before 113 and I was like "Hey Sam! I'm a big fan from Hamilton!" (maybe 90 min drive to London where he lives/trains). He actually was one of my favourite fighters but he almost seemed distracted and not very approachable. I guess he wanted to go to his room and gameplan or w/e but almost every other fighter was out shaking hands, taking pics and whatnot.

Cain Velasquez - didn't seem all that interested in being at the fan expo. Either that or was tired from being there for long hours 2 days in a row

Frank Mir - I'll give him a bit of a pass as he literally just finished signing autographs and pictures for 3 hours. Shook his hand though...the guy is huge, looked bigger than Carwin

Shane Carwin - mumbled more than talked to us, not overly friendly. Basically the way he describes a fight on TUF in a monotone voice, that was him at the expo

Fighters/Personalities that fall in between
Shogun and Machida - I'll lump both together as they kept getting mobbed and swarmed by everyone

Marcus Davis - I think he was on his way somewhere but stopped to take a picture with me before taking off

Frankie Edgar - didn't seem like the outgoing type, or not used to all of the attention just yet (he recently kicked Penn's ass and took the title). Still took time to take pictures...sadly his belt wasn't with him

Ninja Rua - spoke maybe 5 words of English but took pictures with me and my buddies. As we first met him, we're like "Hey Ninja! Can we get a picture?" He's like "I Ninja...Shogun my brother"...as if we didn't say that lol

Jonathan Goulet - don't really remember him but I am in a group picture with him

James Wilks - decent guy, didn't stick around much though

Arianny and Chandella - Arianny = smokin hot, Chandella looked pretty decent in person

Kendra Perez - smokin hot and not an airhead. I may have been one of the few who knew she hosted the "Best of PRIDE" series as she was a little surprised, and thankful, when I mentioned it. In hindsight, I probably should have made a move

Mario Yamasaki - I kinda stole him away from whoever he was talking to just to get a picture

Papa Machida - he missed the elevator with Lyoto and his brother and some other people so he took the elevator up with me and a couple buddies. Spoke next to no English but he understood that I was cheering for his son

Mike Goldberg - too stoned to remember much of this meeting but he definitely has a normal voice and a commentator voice

Burt Watson - no idea who he was (still don't to an extent) but my buddy did so we got a picture with him

Anthony Pettis, Carlos Condit, Eddie Wineland, Brendan Schaub, Dustin Poirier, Big Nog, Donald Cerrone - lumping them all into one as it's basically the same: good guys but couldn't stay past a picture as there was a shitload of people in line behind me. Although Schaub did confirm that the Jones/Evans beef was real

Seth Petruzelli - was walking in the lobby the Sunday after the fights and my friend saw him and called him over. We may have been the only people that morning to know who he was as his initial reaction was like "holy shit someone recognizes me." Decent guy to chat with

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Posted by NE-1
That stare down idea is pretty cool lol. I've thought about asking to take a picture squaring off like the weigh in photos but never have. Better than the traditional tool pose of holding a fist up while taking a pic with the fighter. Which, if you check my profile, is exactly what I am doing in my picture with Chuck. lol wish I had thought of something like that at the time

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I try not to do the fist pose but I only do it when the fighter does it first. I either am in a fight pose, like at a weigh in, or have my arm behind them as if we are friends.

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Posted by Bubbles

Shane Carwin - mumbled more than talked to us, not overly friendly. Basically the way he describes a fight on TUF in a monotone voice, that was him at the expo

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I remember looking at fans pics with fighters on UFC's FB page, Carwin hates guys, every pic he took with a dude just a dull look or close to a mean look on his face, if it was with a girl or a kid, instant smile.

I haven't met any fighters.....but a ton of big musicians, surprisingly the coolest dude is portrayed by most as a complete A Hole. Philip Anselmo of Pantera....hung for 30 minutes in shitty bar drinking and watching a football game with me talking about boxing. Good times!

I'll steal Bubbles idea and do an cool and not so cool list.

Cool:

Terry Etim, I've met him a few times now and he even remembers my name. Cool guy always willing to talk and offer insight on the fights he's interested in. Posed for a picture the first time I met him and was honestly shocked someone knew who he was.

Paul Sass, almost exactly the same as Etim but Sass actually came for a drink with us while he killed time waiting for his friends. Honestly the coolest guy I've met posed for pictures and comes over to say hi when he sees me. He also apologised after his recent loss to because he knew I had some money on him. Completely unwarranted but what a humble guy.

Randy Couture, went to his book signing in Liverpool. Not many people knew to much about MMA so when me and my friends asked questions he spent some time answering them. Spent a solid 10 minutes talking to us in the queue and even hung around after just to talk to us about his retirement and the plot for the new expendables.

Andrei Arlovski, I saw him in Heathrow airport in London and I've always been a huge fan. He was in a rush for his plane but took the time to pose for a picture and sent me a message on his site wishing me luck for my masters!

Rampage, met him once in Manchester he was on his way for a meal with what I assume was his girl at the time but still stopped took pictures, chatted and even invited us out to a club he was going to be at later that night. Took our names and got us in for free. He spoke to us for a while once we where in there but he was with his girl and a few friends so he left not long after.

Jason Tan, I see the guy every week and he's a gent. Helped me no end with my grappling and goes out his way to make a novice like me feel welcome in his gym.

Not so cool:

Marcus Davis, was a complete asshole. Was rude to almost everyone and event tried to slap a camera out of some guys hand. I walked away after that.

Paul Kelly, the guy is an outright tool. He came to to the gym I go to and basically tooled everyone except Jason Tan, eventually he was asked to sit out and left soon after. Wouldn't pose for pictures with the people that asked and was bragged too much about how awesome he was.

Ken Shamrock, met him at a Cage Rage event. Said hi and asked for a picture. He said come back later and turned around. Other than that he could be a nice guy.

Matt Hamill: Very sweet and cool dude.

GSP and Kenflo: total douche lords (they didn't accept my facebook friend request 4 years ago...that's about it)

lol Arianny. She had been kicked out of a club the night before I met her & she was not in a good mood. One local told me she was fighting with another chick. Anyways, she was rude as shit to all my friends & others around, but I screamed "Arianny, I love you! Will you sign my magazine?" She walked up. Signed my magazine. Ignored everyone else & walked off. She's def not cool, but I got lucky lol!

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Posted by airkerma

Matt Hamill: Very sweet and cool dude.

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When I was at Koscheck's afterparty, a couple of my other friends were at a bar that Hamill was at. According to them, he was quite drunk but loved everyone and took pictures with whoever. At times he forgot hes a beast and the fans are average Joes and may have grabbed or hugged people a little too strongly, but not in a dick way.

I'm not 100% sure but I think I have ran into Cole Escovedo in a casino before. I played on a poker table and sat next to a fellow who was talking about mma. I chimed in on the conversation and found out he was a professional mma fighter. I never asked for his name. Years later, I just put 2 to 2 together and came to the conclusion it was a good chance it was him, Cole Escovedo. The fellow I met was light skin and skinny with Mexican or Spanish blood just like Cole. And BTW, he was sort of a dick.

Honestly

Mir acted like a snob
Guida straight out lied to my face
Cain rubbed me the wrong way
Evans also acted like a sissy
Frank trigg acted high and almighty

Fighters who have I enjoyed
Met Bader a few times cool dude
Fitch impressed me with his humbleness
Sat next to Diego Sanchez on a plane he was way cool
And dos santos was cool as hell


Met chael sonnen a few years back. And he is the real deal

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Posted by prozacnation1978

Honestly

Mir acted like a snob
Guida straight out lied to my face
Cain rubbed me the wrong way
Evans also acted like a sissy

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Care to elaborate?

Met Bas Rutten and Don Frye....both were very very cool!