|
Benji Radach's early MMA career was spent fighting out of the Great Northwest, but due to a series of unfortunate circumstances he was unable to compete for years, and his career was in jeopardy. June 1st he returns to compete in Washington for the first time in several years when he faces Bristol Marunde of The Seattle Tiger Sharks in his 3rd bout for The LA Anacondas. With a legion of friends, family, and fans in the Northwest, we knew this IFL interview series would not be complete without an interview from
"Razor"!
NWFS: Thanks for taking the time for the interview Benji!
BENJI RADACH: It's really my pleasure. Anything for the Northwest!
NWFS: From 2001 to June 2004, you were a very active fighter from the Northwest. Whether you were fighting locally, for The UFC, or wherever, you had a reputation for leaving the ring with a knockout, and you were building a solid fan base. Who did you train with in the NW? Can you tell us about that period?
RADACH: Well, I started training at the Straight Blast Gym in Portland, had one fight, then moved on to Dennis
Hallman's Gym, Victory Athletics in Olympia, WA. For the next several years, I drove an hour away to train every night while working full time as an electrician. I would get home about eleven
o'clock every night and be up at 7 to work all day before making the hour trip up to train again. I also would travel an hour south to train at Team Quest in Portland as well.
NWFS:
That's a lot of traveling! You fought in the summer of 2004, but then you
didn't fight until 2007 - when you signed with The IFL. Why the long hiatus?
RADACH: I had a string of bad luck come my way. First, a brown recluse spider bite that turned into staph infection. Then a broken jaw from the last few seconds of my fight with Chris Leben. After that I had a herniated disk in my neck and had surgery because a piece broke off and smashed a bunch of nerves, which atrophied my right tricep and right peck down to the bone. Then after all that I decided to make one last run at fighting again and got an offer to move out to American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida to teach wrestling to the competition team. Well, while training out there I tore my meniscus. Knowing I also had a completely torn ACL that I had tore when I was about 10, I figured I would get a cadaver graft ACL replacement as well, which ended up in a bad staph infection. I fought the staph for 3 months. I had a catheter in my arm and a nurse coming to the house giving me antibiotics twice a day. I had a 104 degree temp for weeks. Basically it was the worst time of my life. What doesn't kill you only makes you
stronger...
NWFS: Well,
it's great to see you healthy and fighting again-welcome back! And congrats on your streak right out of the gate! Do you still live in Florida now?
RADACH: I live with Mike Brown in Florida at the time. We are renting out a house and training full time out there. Right now I've been training with the Anacondas at Dan Henderson's Team Quest in Temecula, CA and now at Randy
Couture's Gym in Vegas. [I'm] getting lots of work in, and tearing the body down for another week.
NWFS:
You're set to fight June 1st against Bristol Marunde of
the Seattle Tiger Sharks. What are your thoughts on this match-up?
RADACH: Well, I think
it's a great match up. I think I should have the upper hand no matter where the fight goes. However, I am not taking him lightly because I know he is a tough opponent. I'm just going to fight him like it's for the world title. That's how I plan to fight all my fights from now on. No more
underestimating...
NWFS: How have you been preparing for
Marunde?
What can the fans expect with your bout?
RADACH: The fans can expect the same Benji Radach - coming out to throw some cinder blocks around. I plan to bring a lot of energy, and look for my chance to end the fight. I also have a few tricks up my sleeve that I've been waiting to let go of. So hopefully I can have the chance to show one off!
NWFS: Why did Sean Tompkins take over as the
Anacondas' head coach for Bas Rutten? How has it affected the team?
RADACH: Bas was blessed with a pay raise as being the IFL spokesperson and commentator, so Sean Tompkins took over as head coach. Sean is a great coach and has helped me a lot with my kickboxing. He is crazy like all of us so he fits in well.
(all laugh)
NWFS: How do you think the team match-ups will play out in Everett?
RADACH: I have told our whole team that the Tiger Sharks will be one of our toughest fights if not THE toughest. This fight could go either way in my eyes. I'm really anxious to see how we do.
NWFS: Are you fired up to be fighting in Washington again for the first
time in four years?
RADACH: I am very excited to fight in Washington again. I love fighting for my home crowd. It's way more adrenaline filled. I love the screaming energetic home crowd.
NWFS: How did you get your nickname,
"The Razor"?
RADACH: Well, Dennis Hallman gave it to me on a trip to Oregon when I fought Dennis Asche. I had been
KO'ing people and also cut a few, so Hallman gave me the name "The Razor". It also goes with the last name I guess.
(all laugh)
NWFS: Where will you be in five years? What are your goals?
RADACH: After all the smoke clears I just hope to be very respected as a fighter and have a few world titles around my waist, and finally get a little of the money back that I have put into this sport.
NWFS: Well, we certainly wish you the best! Thanks again Benji.
RADACH: Thanks for the opportunity and I hope to put on a hell of a fight at the Everett Event center. Face Smashing Fu baby!
Save 25% on IFL Tickets with Coupon Code
NWFS |
