By   Sat, Sep 19, 2009

"I love fighting, I love being out there. I get paid to do what I love for a living."

They call it MMA or “Mixed Martial Arts” fighting which leads you to believe you are going to see some of the balletic moves of a Jet Li, a Van Damme or even a Jackie Chan, but that’s far from the reality. MMA isn’t movie fighting. There is no direction, no choreography to it. In fact, for the most part, there really aren’t many rules. As practiced by Chuck Liddell, for instance, it consists of hard hitting, explosive action and like as not, quick submission.

     For nearly two decades Liddell has been one of the top fighters in a sport where longevity is highly unusual. Being at the top means somebody is always gunning for you, hoping to put your lights out as fast as they can. That prospect doesn’t ever occur to Liddell. He doesn’t think about losing, or quitting or tapping-out. He has one purpose: the destruction of his opponent. He loves the sport, “It’s the pure competition of it,” he says. “I love fighting, I love being out there. I get paid to do what I love for a living.”

     Since he began studying kick-boxing at age 12, Liddell has been a warrior. “I’ve been doing martial arts since I was 12, wrestling since I was 14. I was a wrestler through high school and college.” Liddell augmented his talents with training in Kempo and Koei-Kan karate and earned a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under John Lewis. While he did play some team sports, like football in high school, his first love has always been mano a mano in the ring.

     Raised by his single mother in Santa Barbara, California, Liddell has come a long way to the top. He did make it through college, Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, collecting a degree in business and accounting which he has never used.

     Following graduation in 1995, Liddell looked for a way to make money while avoiding having to sit in an office every day. “In college I did landscaping, when I finished school I was bartending. I did all those jobs. It let me know why I was in school. It reminded me I didn’t want to do that my whole life.”

     About the same time, MMA was just starting to be established as a mainstream sport. He decided to give it a shot.

     “Yeah, I’ve been fighting since I was a kid, and I’ve been in more street fights than I can tell you about. I knew you could make some okay money fighting and I was trying to get to that,” he remembered, “but it wasn’t happening – it was taking longer than I thought it would. When I finally got my first big fight, it was only a thousand bucks but it led to a chance to get in a tournament where the winner of a bout could get $20,000 – so I was hoping somebody would get hurt and I could get in the tournament. I won the first fight then got into the tournament and won two more for $20,000. So for those two fights I got $40,000. Now I get paid that to go drink in a bar for the night.”

     In a way, Liddell has grown up with the sport. From the early days he has fought under the auspices of the UFC (the Ultimate Fighting Championship) which was one of the first MMA organizations to emerge – although he has fought under the Pride banner as well.

“MMA was big in Japan and Brazil before it was here,” says Liddell. “A lot of guys came from Brazil and they started in UFC as a way to prove their style was better than other styles. Now, with what we have now in MMA, there’s no style that’s better than any other one.”

     His UFC debut in 1998 resulted in a decision over Noe Hernandez. Over the next few years he defeated such outstanding fighters as Tito Ortiz, Renato Sobral and Wanderlei Silva. Eventually, he knocked out the estimable Randy Couture in two minutes, 6 seconds, to win the Light Heavyweight Championship title. He defended that title successfully many times before surrendering it in May of 2007 at UFC 71 to one Quinton “Rampage” Jackson – a loss that weighs heavily on his mind as one he must avenge.

     Losing a fight in the world of MMA can happen in a split second. A footwork mistake, a loss of concentration, and it can all be over fast. However, it doesn’t mean your career is all over. So, rather than think of an L as a devastating loss, it’s really more proper to think of it as one episode in a long struggle, one battle in a long-term war. Liddell thinks about it all the time, “I want a shot back at that title. I know what I did wrong but you know hindsight’s always 20-20. I want to get back in there and get another shot at it.”

     There are several ways for an MMA fight to end: knock-out, TKO, decision, or tap-out, where the fighter lets the referee know by tapping his hand on the mat that it’s time to quit.

     Such a thing would never occur to Liddell, “No, I never thought about tapping-out. If I can think well enough to think about tapping-out, I can think well enough to fight myself out of there. There are, of course, certain situations where you can bust an elbow or bust a knee and I know when to tap and when not to – what’s risky – but generally, if I can think to tap, I can think to fight.”

Early on, Liddell came to be known as “The Iceman,” probably for his cool, unemotional demeanor in the ring. He actually seems relaxed during a fight, “It’s all about confidence and knowing what you’re doing.” He explained, “I’m known as a kick-boxer and I like to strike. I stay on my feet throwing punches and I hit pretty hard. I’m not an emotional fighter. That can help in training – if you really don’t like the guy you’re fighting it can motivate you to train – but during a fight I don’t use emotion as a tool. I actually think it clouds your judgment.”

     His mission is clear, “For me, the most exciting thing is knocking somebody out. It’s proving you’re better than somebody at what you’ve been training for. That’s why I always like to fight the best guys out there. There’s a lot of tough guys I’ve fought. I’ve fought them all. I’ve fought a big list of tough guys.” Obviously, knocking out some patsy does nothing for your rep or your self esteem.

     Liddell trains hard, “Two or three times a day, five days a week. Training is a mix of everything: martial arts, running, swimming, weights, sparring, and wrestling.”

     All of those seemingly disparate disciplines come into play because a fight might just come down to who’s more versatile. A fight that starts with both men standing up often ends with both on the ground in a tight tension-filled ball. You have to be quick, strong, agile and a master of many fighting techniques.

     It takes constant study, “We work on our techniques all the time,” says Liddell. “It’s a very technical sport that’s always evolving so you have to always keep up on what people are doing that’s new so you know how to defend it. Or, you maybe can use it as one of your own techniques.”

     Even watching a fight takes some experience. There’s a lot going on usually in that tight little ball. “I think it’s getting better and better now, too. Fighters are getting more educated on the bottom and more on the top,” offers Liddell. “It’s a more aggressive game on the ground now. And the fans are more educated, they know what the fighters are trying to do now – If they’re just laying down there or if they’re actually trying to get somewhere. It’s more exciting for the fans if they know what the guys are trying to do.”

     Liddell is one of the most recognizable and vocal proponents of his sport. For a long time, MMA was viewed as a barbaric anomaly in sport. But over time, and with some education, it has come to be respected. It may be a generational thing with the recent generations being a little more accepting than the older ones. It also helped that MMA lovers put on a massive PR campaign to gain acceptance. Liddell sees it as his personal calling to educate and expand the audience. He is to a certain extent the face of MMA.

     Liddell thinks the real breakthrough was, “Free TV. That was the big thing we needed. It’s a great sport it’s just that people needed to be able to try it for free. I don’t care how much you’ve heard about it, it’s hard to go out and spend $40-$50 to go see something you haven’t seen before.”

     “I’ve been traveling lately and doing a bunch of PR,” he told us. “I was in Canada for a little bit and then we went to the Philippines, they’re crazy about MMA there. I would train in a mall and 4,000 people would show up to watch me work out. It’s huge there and it’s getting a lot bigger in Europe. It’s still kind of weird for me the way people get. I’m just me, I’m just a guy. It just gets weird when they put you at that different level.”

     The problem with MMA, of course, has been the perceived danger to the participants. How do you sanction a sport that is so brutal and potentially lethal? Imagine letting a grown man train for three or four months and then allowing him to hit or kick you as hard as he can, wherever he wants. Not a prospect to be relished. Liddell, though, never thinks about the downside. “I’ve been fighting my whole life.” He says of the danger, “If you start worrying about that, you can’t do it. Besides, it’s not as dangerous as a lot of things we do. It’s a lot less dangerous than football, for instance. And boxers. They take a lot more abuse than us with hard fights, long fights. I got hurt more in college wrestling than I have in 15 years of fighting. A hamstring pull was probably the worst thing I ever had. I tore my MCL (knee ligament) 5 times, I have tendinitis in both shoulders, but I’ve had that from a kid.”

     Now that the sport has evolved to a point where it’s pulling in big audiences, the advertisers are starting to take notice and that means more money in the form of purses and endorsements to the winners. That’s because the demographics are in that much desired 18-34 age group. And though it’s mostly a male audience, Liddell assures us, “There’s quite a few female fans.” They’re attracted to anything that attracts that large male audience. For proof, Liddell offers, “I know a woman whose daughter is having a Chuck Liddell-themed birthday party.”

     Liddell himself has two children from a previous marriage. He is currently engaged to marry his girlfriend of two years, Erin Wilson.

     Though he is now 39 years old, Liddell gives no thought to quitting the sport. And he still fights 2 or three times a year. “Randy Couture is 45 and he’s still fighting,” Liddell explains. “Still, I don’t want to be one of those guys that they question, ‘Why is that guy still in the ring?’ As long as I can be competitive, as long as I still love it, I’ll keep on doing it.”

     In the meantime he’s been training fighters himself. To carry on his legacy. There are never enough fighters in the sport for Liddell, “I’ve been training my own guys for some time. There’s never too many guys in the sport – it’s getting bigger and bigger and I like to see that.”

     Of course, one of the nice things about being a well-known fighter is you don’t have to put up with wannabes. He is never challenged anywhere he goes, “It’s nice to be able to walk into a bar and not have to worry about anyone in there. I wouldn’t know what that was like to even think about that. It never crosses my mind. I’ve never been afraid to fight anybody. I don’t want to fight anybody – but I’m not afraid to fight anybody.”

     Wouldn’t it be prudent to have a bodyguard, though, just in case? Liddell does employ one on occasion, “It depends on what the situation is – where we’re at. Usually I have one somewhere where it’s really busy and I have my girlfriend with me. It’s more someone to watch her.”

     He’d never allow himself to be goaded into a street fight anyway at this point in his life, “I’m a pretty laidback person – it would take a real asshole to get me to fight in a bar.”

     Asked if there were any changes Liddell would like to see in his chosen sport, he says matter-of-factly, “I’d like to put ‘knees to the head on the ground’ back in, but that’s just me. That was the last thing they took out when they fully sanctioned it.

     “When they finalized the rules in New Jersey, they were allowed – then at the first fight they had – actually it was my guy, he was 6’10”, 280 lbs. – he was kneeing this guy in the head and I was watching the fight with Larry Hazard, the commissioner, who was sitting right next to me and he said to me, ‘I don’t know about those knees to the head on the ground.’ And the next thing you know they pulled ‘em.”

     Despite the lack of knees to the head, the sport will survive and prosper however, as will Chuck Liddell. And, if you were wondering, yes – his mother does know what he does for a living.

               Not only that, says Liddell, “She’s proud of me.”     

By   Wed, Nov 04, 2009

Age: 30
Height: 5’2”
Weight: 98 lbs
Measurements: 32C-22-33
Hometown: Dallas, Tx.
Relationship Status: Complicated 

Website: www.JenniferKorbin.com, and in 2009 www.JenniferKorbin.net

What are your hobbies/interests?

Dance, interior design, travel, wine, food, animal rights, anything outdoors, hiking.

What is your dream car?

A hybrid Hummer! God, if only….

Who is your hero/role model?

My 95 year old Grandmother

Who is your favorite performer? 

Dave Grohl….my next ex husband.

What do you do to keep in shape?

I’m a single mother! I eat right, take the stairs, yoga as often as I can…..No, but seriously, the best exercise is my stripper pole! I’m on the pole at least 30 minutes a day, sometimes a couple of hours a day.

Name an achievement you’ve made in your life that defied all the odds.

Natural child birth. My hips were so narrow and my frame so tiny, that a lot of people thought I couldn’t do it. Wrong! Maybe a little more relatable to your readers was my gymnastics career. I was an elite gymnast, TAAF and USGF Texas state champion, headed for the 1988 Olympics, until injuries and home issues prevented me. Worst heartbreak of my life.

What do you look for in a guy?

Honesty. He could be the biggest scumbag on the face of the earth as long as he’s honest. I have a very “intelligent” gut. When I’ve denied it, I regretted it. And a great pair of guns doesn’t hurt either.

What do you hate in a guy?

Arrogance. Nothing makes a hot guy more unattractive.

Is there a difference between a guy you’d marry and a guy you’d only date?

These days, yes. Being a single mom takes so much of my energy and focus. The guy has to be REALLY special to become part of my life these days….he has to pass the BOARD! Dates and weekend flings are much less complicated. :0)

What’s the first thing you’d buy if you won the lottery?

A house in the Hills.

 What’s something that nobody would guess about you just by looking at you?

 I’m a guy in a chick’s body….100%.

Give me some words to live by.
The more you think about it, the more you screw it up. Just live.

By   Tue, Nov 03, 2009

Age: 29
Height: 5'4"
Weight: 105 lbs.
Measurements: 34 / 24 / 34
Hometown: SoCal
Relationship Status: Newly Single (For the first time in a loooong time)

Who is your favorite performer?
I love Depeche Mode, The Cure, Morrissey, Social Distortion, Michael Jackson, Prince, and Britney Spears.

What are your hobbies/interests?
I love to read self-help books, healthy cooking, going out to eat, karaoke bars, shooting pool, going to concerts and spending quality time with friends and family and my bulldog Billy!

What is your dream car?
I'm really simple... I do love the new Audi A5 though! But a Gremlin or Yugo wil do. ;p

Who is your hero/role model?

Jesus Christ

What do you do to keep in shape?
I don't really do much cardio since I'm naturally very thin, so I mostly do weight training exercises at the gym for strengthening and toning. I also try to eat very healthy (at least at home) although I don't obsess over it.

Name an achievement you’ve made in your life that defied all the odds.
Living on my own is something I thought I could never do. I've always been so co-dependent most of my life and now I'm able to do more for myself. And, of course, landing Deal or No Deal is something I never thought would happen. Working on that show has been such an amazing experience for me... like a dream come true. :)

What do you look for in a guy?
A gentleman who opens doors, makes me feel safe, is faithful, honest, patient, naturally cool, affectionate, loves dogs, says "bless you" when I sneeze, has good hygiene, gets my sense of humor, appreciates my music, doesn't have a huge track record, can handle my job and believes in God. And he has to love to tickle and rub my feet and think I'm the most beautiful girl in his eyes. ;)  

What do you hate in a guy?

I hate men who cheat and can't control their liquor... be a man! I also can't stand when guys feel the need to brag in order to feel accepted.

Is there a difference between a guy you’d marry and a guy you’d only date?

Definitely! A guy I'd date wouldn't necessarily have to have all the qualities I look for in the "perfect man." I don't see a problem with dating Mr. Wrong(s) before finding Mr Right.

What’s the first thing you’d buy if you won the lottery?

I'd buy my parents a house and pay off my debts!

What’s something that nobody would guess about you just by looking at you?

Probably my nationality... which is Hungarian, Japanese and German.

Give me some words to live by.

Live, laugh, love :)

By   Tue, Nov 03, 2009

Age: 27
Height: 5’6
Weight: 110
Measurements: 34D/26/35
Hometown: Los Angeles

What are your hobbies/interests?

I’m a bookworm. I love to read,

What is your dream car?

Bugatti Veyron 16.4

Who is your hero/role model?

My Mom and Dad are my biggest heroes. They have supported and loved me through good and bad. I love them both very much.DMB, Carrie Underwood…

What do you do to keep in shape?

I go to the gym, love to swim, just playing outdoors is always a first pick.

What do you look for in a guy?

Respect, room to grow, eyes always get me

What do you hate in a guy?

Dishonesty.

How much is TOO much?

Never TOO much.

What’s the first thing you’d buy if you won the lottery?

I would invest, buy presents for friends and family and spend some time traveling abroad.

What’s something that nobody would guess about you just by looking at you?
I’m a HUGE football fan. Go Steelers!!

 Give me some words to live by.
“Life is one big road with lots of signs. So when you riding through the ruts, don't complicate your mind. Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy. Don't bury your thoughts; put your vision to reality. Wake Up and Live!” Bob Marley

By   Tue, Nov 03, 2009

Height: 5’5"
Weight: 103 lbs
Measurements: 34 / 23 / 33
Hometown: Grew up in Stafford Springs, CT (Now lives in Huntington Beach, CA)
Relationship Status: In a relationship

Website: www.officialmaryriley.com

What are your hobbies/interests?

Writing poetry, cooking, sewing, fishing, playing video games, tennis, batting cages, designing & making clothes, shooting, and working out

What is your dream car?

Oh, there's too many... I love old muscle cars!

Who is your hero/role model?

My sister Barbara, she's an amazing human being!

Who is your favorite performer? 

Phil Anselmo

Name an achievement you’ve made in your life that defied all the odds.
Just being where I am in my life right now was a dream I had when I was little, coming from a very small town in the back woods of Connecticut . . . literally cows were my neighbors. We lived on a dirt road and we’d get our milk & eggs from the farmer down the street. It was awesome, but definitely a far distant world from where I am at now. I’ve traveled all over the world modeling and I’ve been to every state in the U.S. except Alaska. I’m in a national Aflac commercial, Coke Zero commercial, Axe Body Spray commercial, and I did a few episodes of Monk on USA Network, the whole 2nd season of Criss Angel - Mindfreak on A&E, and also appeared in the movies Redline and Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle. I was a juggy on The Man Show, and also was Miss Makita and Miss Ridgid. I am the current Miss Hawaiian Tropic Super Bowl, and have been in over 50 calendars and several posters, and am the #1 Benchwarmer trading card girl. I followed my dream and made it happen and I’m so extremely grateful for all that I’ve done and seen. I have the best job in the world. I love what I do and I do what I love!

What do you look for in a guy?
The whole package: Funny, smart and kind of dorky.

By   Fri, Nov 13, 2009

Age: 24
Height: 5’1"
Weight: 93 lbs.
Measurements: 32C / 23 / 32
Hometown: Orange County, CA
Relationship Status: Taken
Website: www.Tia-Kai.com

What is your dream car?
My dream car is a BMW M3. I’ve always been a fan of this car.

Who is your hero/role model?
My role model would have to be my mother. She has inspired me to go for my goals and live for my dreams. The world is what I make of it. She supported me in everything that I did and was my #1 fan. I couldn’t have done it without her. She passed earlier this year, but her heart still lives on.

Who is your favorite performer?
My favorite performer would have to be Madonna. She is an inspiration to anyone in the entertainment business. She has kept it strong and is ever changing with the times. If you don’t like her today, you might just like her in a year when she recreates herself again.

 What do you do to keep in shape?
Honestly, at this time I really do nothing. It’s sickening, isn’t it? I am totally dependent on my metabolism. One day I will give an answer like, "I do 100 sit-ups a day and at least an hour of cardio." For now, I’m just lazy.

 Name an achievement you’ve made in your life that defied all the odds.
One achievement I’d say defied all the odds would be finishing school. It felt like it was never going to end and that I’d be in it forever. I can now say I’m a college graduate with a successful career.

 What do you look for in a guy?
Intelligence. Since I’m a college grad, I also want someone who can keep up with my intellect. He doesn’t have to be a college graduate; he just has to have something going on upstairs.

 What do you hate in a guy?
I hate insecurities in a man. Only a confident man can be with me, especially with my modeling and independence. Not all men can handle it.

 What’s the first thing you’d buy if you won the lottery?
The first thing I’d buy if I won the lottery would be a McDonalds. I’d invest in a franchise and make my money back in full. I just need to find a good location and hope they will sell.

What’s something that nobody would guess about you just by looking at you?
If someone just looked at me, they would never guess I’m a nerd. Not only do I play video games, but I also dabble in tabletop Warhammer 40K. I also get together with friends to play some Magic: The Gathering. I have this killer cat deck! Roar!

 Words to live by:
If you don’t use it, you’ll lose it. Keep striving to be the best you can be. Don’t try to live up to anyone’s expectations. Only you can determine where your life is headed.

By   Mon, Sep 21, 2009

If you decide to buy a high-performance supercar, you'd be smart to first consult with our resident expert & instructor Roland Linder.

If you decided to purchase a new supercar, you’d be smart to first book a session with our friend Roland Linder. Roland teaches people how to drive high-performance cars. Indeed, he’s a World Class Driving Instructor with the certifications to prove it: SCCA Pro Racing license, Vintage Motorsports Council license, Mile High Racing event organizer Chaos Motorsport Team manager, Ferrari National instructor, Porsche Club St. Louis, MO. Instructor, Porsche Club Colorado instructor, NASA (National Auto Sport Association) National instructor. He has four podium finishes under his belt in Porsches (including GT1 and GT2) as well as in a McLaren M6. As a private instructor he’s helped drivers finish highly-placed in everything from Go-Karts to Formula racers. So when we needed someone to wring-out our hot supercars, the obvious answer was Roland Linder. First up, Roland gives us his impressions of two million-dollar babies: the Maserati MC12 and the Ferrari Enzo.

FERRARI ENZO
   While I was in Las Vegas for a track event with the Ferrari F40, I got a call from a friend who had just purchased a Ferrari Enzo in California. He asked me to help him drive it back to his home in Vancouver, British Columbia.
How could I refuse to do a chore like that? I readily accepted. But, then I needed to find a place to leave my truck and trailer in Las Vegas after dropping my car off at the Wynn Casino-Hotel. They just happened to be having the opening of the Ferrari dealership there and they wanted to exhibit my car. Perfect timing! Then it was time to get on my way to the West coast.

    Two of my friends were in Las Vegas with their cars, a Lamborghini Murcielago coupe and a Ferrari Modena 360 Spyder, so we decided to do the trip all together.

    Everything came together in no time and we hit the road that afternoon. The fastest way to get to San Francisco from Las Vegas was to run back on I-15 and take Highway 58 toward the coast. Those who have done the Highway 58 crossing know that’s the place to run at speed.

    It got dark way too soon and our drivers were left trusting their radar detectors. We made the crossing in no time. Besides a few detector alarms, we made it without troubles. The Murcie was fun to drive, but some fuel gauge trouble kept bugging us. The needle was going the wrong way while burning fuel. After a full turn clockwise, the needle went back to the empty position. Our buddy driving the 360 Modena wasn’t too crazy about keeping up with our speed, so we had to hold back and wait for him frequently.

    By nightfall, we’d arrived in the San Jose area and decided to stay there for the night. There was quite an uproar when we pulled into our little motel’s parking lot with these cars!

    The next morning we picked up the Enzo buyer at the airport and drove right to the dealership. When we pulled in, the Enzo was ready and waiting for its new owner. She was a shiny piece of art under the neon lights. What a sight! This is a big car; very long and low.

    I walked all around the car inspecting; opening everything to check her out while our friend took care of all the paper work. He also asked to have a two-way radio installed like the Murcie had to help us communicate along the way.

    I previously had a chance to drive an Enzo on the track in New Orleans, but never got an opportunity to check out all the details. This was the time to do that before the long trip north. Getting inside the car was my first priority. The whole interior is done in carbon fiber of the finest quality. It was very naked for a street car, looking more like a race car to me.

    This interior was meant for business – nothing was fancy at all. I was relieved to see that there was air-conditioning and a heater that would afford us some comfort. The seats were tight to say the least. I know they can be custom ordered, and I was glad that my rear end was almost the same size as the new owner’s. With these seats, you better not gain weight!

    The turn signals were right on the steering wheel, which made them very easy to operate.

    There was no radio to be found. I was glad to see that. Who needs a radio when you have a 600-plus hp V-12 engine singing right behind you?

    I took the time to adjust the electric mirrors since the rear view was pointed more toward the long engine than the road. While we were waiting, my Lambo-driving friend took a new Saleen S-7 for a test drive. That car was impressive to look at. Oddly enough, that car was going to come back to me in my life, but that is another story! I will say now it sure was more fun to try it out in person than read about it in some car magazine. Hands on is always better!

    After lunch, it was time to breathe some life into that Enzo V-12. What a sound when she fired up! The whole garage bay was vibrating, especially at first since the RPMs go very high when starting. After a moment, all pulses came down back down to a regular heart beat, including mine.

    Soon it was time to go. As we pulled out, all pedestrian traffic stopped. People were looking at us like we were movie stars. We hit the road north with the happy owner at the helm of his new toy.

    We crossed the San Francisco Bay Bridge and made a stop on the Sausalito side. There, a bus full of Japanese tourists assaulted the Enzo to take pictures. They totally forgot to look at Alcatraz prison as the Enzo was more important to them.

    We learned very rapidly how to raise the nose of the car at each gas station entry. The nose is so low that we had to react very quickly and press the button to activate the raising mechanism.

    At street speed, the engine wasn’t loud at all and the car behaved like any regular car. However, once on the open road, it was another story! The V12 suddenly wakes up and it gets very loud inside.

    We now proceeded with our escort toward I-5 to begin our trip north. That’s when I got a call from another friend who was in Los Angeles with his Murcie roadster and wanted to join our group for the long trip. One more crazy dude to make that trip a memorable one! The more the merrier!

    We decided to keep going another hour or so, then stop and wait for him at the hotel.

    He finally made it – but got two speeding tickets on the way. What a great start!

In the morning, we hit the road with Seattle being our goal for the day. It was quite a convoy under the blue skies! Our speed kept climbing so we placed our trust in the radar detectors. With them protecting us, we covered the miles in no time. We had a few close calls with the California Highway Patrol, but the detectors saved us every time.

    After a fuel stop, I jumped into the Modena 360 since that driver wasn’t keeping up with the convoy. We were then back on the road and in no time were at a speed around the 100 mph mark.

    About 20 miles from the Oregon state line a lone CHP car came out from the bushes without any lights and caught up with us. He passed everybody and turned his lights on in front of the lead Murcie. I made the mistake of stopping along with the others. After 3 more patrol cars boxed us in, we were cited for “convoying.”

    The Enzo kept going, but he was stopped further down the road and ticketed. Go try to fight that one! After conversing via our two-way radios, we stopped in a little restaurant to exchange our CHP stories. A lot of good that did!

    I got back into the Enzo. It was time to enjoy the supercar again. One thing is for sure. That car was uncomfortable to ride in for a long time. The vibrations from the carbon tub were huge and noisy. Every little rock hit the inner fenders with a loud bang. It sounded like a .22 caliber gunshot going off all time.
The controls were all perfectly placed, but after little more than an hour, I had to get out and stretch my legs. I wondered if it was because the seat was too tight for my wide rear end! Who knows, but this was the first time I can remember going to a gas station to switch drivers before we needed fuel. That says a lot!

    The paddle shifters were light, easy to use and precise. The next gear was engaged without delay and that felt great. The dashboard gauge array was easily seen. We did find it was difficult to talk in the noisy cabin.

    The 600-plus horses were there, but because it was a new car, we took it really easy; doing just a few “launches” and then letting the RPMs drop again. We kept leap-frogging each other and taking pictures. Three yellow cars and a red spyder. That was some parade!

    Often, the two Lambos were in front, like an escort opening the road for us to drive without having to push our way through the traffic. The Modena360 was always closing the road, but it was far behind.

    By evening we made it to Seattle and crossed downtown to get to the hotel. What a spectacle we were on our way there! People were taking pictures and we got many waves with thumbs up. Several made the well known gesture to have us spin the tires. Who were we to let them down?

    The next morning, as we were leaving the hotel, something funny happened. While we were rolling out of the garage, the vibrations of the four mighty engines made a bunch of car alarms go off. What a mess we left behind us there!

    We crossed the border and had to wait a long time to have the car’s papers checked out. Canadians apparently aren’t very happy to see cars like ours coming across the border.

    We finally reached our destination and it was time to drop me off at the Vancouver BC airport so I could return to Las Vegas. We made plans to take a longer road trip later when the Enzo would be broken-in and we could really play with her. That trip did happen two months after that:

    It was with high expectations that I rejoined the group with several other cars for a long trip across the Rockies. We had twelve Ferraris and eleven Lambos.  That was a serious display on the road! Talk about a convoy! One of my friends had a van that followed us to video all the cars. He even rented a helicopter to film us from above. That video was to be shown to us all by Christmas during a big party. I couldn’t wait to see that.

    Unfortunately we had rain during the trip, but that didn’t slow us down too much. There were no accidents, but we did have a couple of stops by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. They sure didn’t like fast cars there. Apparently, some people on the road had called the cops on us. One day, we had a radio call from three members of our group that ran into a road block further down the road. We decided to turn around and take a side road into the woods to hide. That didn’t last too long, though, and the RMCP found us. They said they were looking for an orange sports car. Well, we had several of them in the Lambo group but they couldn’t tell which one it was they were looking for. We got off with a warning. Some mentality!

    For five days we crossed very spectacular sceneries, and all these colorful cars made it very special. Way up north, we found a very fast road where we were tempted to let the Enzo cut loose. Some of the drivers chose to follow and some chose to drive at their more comfortable speed.

    My friend and I went for it, and after a few trials, we achieved a speed of 210 mph! The Enzo finally ran the way she was built to run! The car was screaming. As we hit each gear at 7000 rpm, she just launched herself forward. After touching 180, it took a while longer to pass the 200 mark. Only two Lambos stayed with us. The road was perfect and only had slight curves, so we decided to make several runs on it. We kept seeing the other cars as they too made the run on the same stretch of road. My friend had wanted to know how fast the Enzo could run, so now he was happy. (That didn’t last long, however. After our run, he decided to have the car modified to be like a Ferrari FXX, body wise and engine too. There is just no substitute for horsepower!)

    The car was very stable and we just took it a little easier in the long curves. This road could have been done a little faster, but safety was still in the back of our minds. The sound from the engine was unbelievable. We couldn’t say a word with all the noise, but taking a picture of the dash while driving was easy to do since the car held the road with ease.

    I will say that the supercar’s speed was effortless. The Enzo made it easy to run at any speed. Getting to 180 was no big deal, but it took a little longer and higher RPMs to achieve 200 mph. This should have been easier – and would be with better and less restrictive exhausts.

    The crosswinds didn’t seem to upset the car at all. The aerodynamics were perfect. Over 150 mph, we could feel the car being “pushed down” by the aero, and that feeling kept increasing as the speed went higher.

    The RPMs kept climbing very fast and the shifting became faster too as we went faster and faster. We kept the car in the regular mode to keep all the traction control on. This wasn’t a race track, after all! The engine sounded like an F1 engine, especially in the high RPMs. I didn’t want it to end. My friend and I had a blast! What a run! The brakes weren’t even tested at all. Maybe it’s a good thing that we didn’t need them, but I can tell you these carbon ceramic brakes are very powerful; I know they stop you in no time at all.

    In a surprisingly short time, we had to get some fuel. That car burns fuel like nothing else and we were far away from any stations. We had to slow down to look for fuel. I can’t wait to get back in the Enzo after this winter’s modifications. My friend hopes to add another 110-plus horsepower as well as the FXX look. Should be a great run!

 MASERATI MC12

   I had been hired to find a 2005 Maserati MC12 and deliver the car to my friend in Canada.  Last summer, we located the car in the Southeast and I flew there to check her out.
   The car was in a very special location, surrounded by many other supercars.  It was difficult not to take time to look at that unique display, but the MC12 stood out like a diamond on a pebble-strewn beach.
   After a stringent inspection, the purchase was made and we were off on our adventure.
   The owner and I decided to have the car shipped to the Midwest and from there, to drive the car across the Canadian border.  All this happened in less than a week’s time and I was anxious to make that long trip North with a new 350-kilometer car!
   I'll never forget how excited I was while waiting for the arrival of the Maserati MC-12.  I was dreaming about the long trip north and waiting to hear from the truck driver who I was going to meet in a Wal-Mart parking lot to unload the new supercar.  This was done to have a lot of room and to avoid a lot of distraction from onlookers.  I was thinking just how cool it was going to be to drive such a car that was worth in excess of $1,000,000, on such a long trip.  I'm a very lucky guy and have had many opportunities to do such "deliveries," but this was very different because this was such a rare car, especially in the United States.
   I have quite a list of cars that I have had the pleasure of driving, but I had never gotten the chance to drive an MC-12.  This was definitely going to be an exciting trip; a once in a lifetime experience.  
   Finally the moment arrived!  The truck rolled into the parking lot and I was about beside myself.  The much anticipated moment arrived and she finally rolled off the trailer.  I took the time, and the moment for appreciation, to look at her from every angle.  I was searching for any damage, but I must admit, I was also absorbing the spectacular lines of the car!   
   The first thing I noticed was how long the MC-12 is! With the pearl white color, she looks even longer and flatter than with other colors.  And the wing!  It's huge!  It is different from all the wings I have seen on the race cars I have driven.  This is a very special design to say the least.
   I must admit that I felt very privileged when it was time to open the hood and look at the heart of the car.  Gorgeous and menacing were what came to mind.  I couldn't help but wonder what it would be like to drive the car’s Ferrari V-12 with its 600-plus horsepower.  No time like the present to find out.  It was time to wake the monster!  I checked all the levels and fired her.  WOW!  What a sound at first fire!  The rpm's went high at first and then rolled down to a normal heart beat of 950 rpm's.  Very smooth inside the car.  No vibrations at all.  I wasn't sure what was beating faster, my heart or the rpm's.  I checked the mirror and the seat.  Right away I liked the shoulder harness.  It was very easy to slip them over my shoulders and secure them around my waist.  
   By now the water temperature gauge started to show some life and it was time to get the beast in motion.  The pull on the right paddle shift to engage the first gear was very light and the MC-12 was now alive and ready to roll on to her new life.  It definitely didn’t feel right to start it up in town, but we weren't planning to stick around very long.  Leaving the parking lot wasn't too easy.  By now, a small crowd was surrounding the car and many camera phones were clicking while I started out.  I received many thumbs-up and of course they made me smile.  
   The sun began to shine and the pearl white came to life and sparkled.  What a spectacular combination with the blue brilliantly accenting the white.  The body was rounded everywhere.  This is in major contrast to the Ferrari Enzo which has close to the same mechanical background.  The MC-12 looks much more friendly and sexy than the Enzo and invites you to come closer and be drawn in to the beauty.  I do like the MC-12 shape more than the Enzo.  It reminds me of the shapes of the sport prototypes of the 70's and 80's.  Basically this car is an Enzo with a different skin and the Maserati logo on the nose.  
   Under those sunny skies, we hit the road with the escort of a Ferrari friend. Right away, I felt very comfortable in the bucket seat.  The ergonomics were simply perfect even for a 6”3’ guy.
   We decided to remove the roof panel since the weather was going to be good for the coming days.  The question was: where to put that removable roof panel?  No storage space is built in the MC12; so we decided to ship it to our destination by FedEx.  We had to just hope that the weather forecast was right, and that the irreplaceable top would arrive at our destination.
   Another advantage of having the roof off was that it was easy to get in and out and slip ourselves in the safety harness. The lack of luggage space allowed us only a simple small bag that we stuffed behind and between our seats.  No room for a big bag!
   I drove around just to get the oil temperature up and to get used to the controls.  The steering was very firm and precise, yet light.  Definitely not a race car feeling!  When the oil reached operating temperature, I went to the freeway to make a little run.  Going through the gears was fast and precise and I didn't have to lift my foot off the throttle while up shifting.  And while downshifting, WOW!  What a sound! The engine's electronics made the engine give a loud blipping sound between gears that made it sound like I knew what I was doing.  
   It was time to get some power down.  The response was direct and fast.  Both needles of the speedometer and tachometer came up fast and climbed accordingly.  I couldn't resist opening the window to listen to the engine, but the wind noise was too much.  With the window down a bit, it was enough to listen to the V-12 playing a musical sound that no other engine can duplicate.  It was the perfect symphony.  I had to watch the rpm's since this was, after all, a new car.  Even if these engines are run on the factory dyno, it's still necessary to break them in to assure a long life.  
   What a sight while driving the city streets!  Passing cars slowed down by us just to look and give us some thumbs up signs.  At least that's what I thought they were doing.
   It was now time to start the trip north and enjoy the spectacular power of the machine.  The electronic clutch shifted very fast and the shifting was smooth.  Going through the gears wasn't brutal at all, unlike the Ferrari Scuderia that I’m driving now!  We were soon cruising along at about a buck fifty and it felt like we were going 80.
   Immediately we were annoyed by a buzzing sound.  We checked everything possible that could provoke it but could find nothing obvious.
   My feeling was that this could be a warning sound at a certain speed (150?!).  The wind noise covered it, however, and we kept going with our faces in the sun. Our speed was always around 150 mph but seldom had the radar detector given us a warning. Later, we found out that indeed the buzzing sound was a warning that our speed was too high.
   We didn’t go very far before we were busted for speeding. You can get to 160 kph in no time and with no sensation of speed (that was the excuse!)
   The first afternoon we covered 580 miles and spent the night way north of our starting point.  We were not very tired from the trip and with the afterglow of the spirited drive; we slept with the howl of the wind from the day’s drive in ours ears.  The engine sound was never loud enough to overpower the wind noise.  But even at speed, the turbulence inside was not bad at all.
   You can’t imagine what an attraction the car was in the little western town where we stopped for the night. People actually stopped their cars in the middle of the street to take pictures.
    By the second day, we had enough miles in her to get our speed up even higher.  After the morning checkup, we started to ask more from the engine.  The response was direct and since the roads were empty and straight, we started to push it up.  We couldn't get past 300 kph (186 mph.) I think this was because of the low miles on the engine.  Both needles started to climb in concert, but after several tries, maximum speed was still a little below 300 kph.
   From the driver’s seat, I had a very good view in front of the car, but some of the instruments were hidden by the steering wheel.  It felt like a regular car if that can be said of such an incredible machine.  The suspension wasn't too hard, but I sure knew it when I hit the concrete joints in the road.  The driving position was comfortable.  Much more comfortable than the Enzo.  I had no cramps at all during the long trip.  All in all, everything was in the perfect place and easy to manipulate.  
   The speedometer being in kilometers, it always took us some time to calculate our mileage and MPG, with a range of around 250 miles being the most we dared try on a full tank.
   The next morning, we still had many miles to do before crossing the border.  We were on the road at daybreak and without a roof I can tell you that we weren’t too warm even with the heater on at full blast. At first, it took us a while to figure that out, too, since, of course, we did not take the time to read the manual before departing.
   Our speed was quite fast and our eyes were constantly scanning for any sign of deer that could be along the road.  Only one tried to cross but my co-driver was able to avoid that situation. That was where we tested the huge ceramic brakes. They worked well, but they were too cold from the speed and lack of use for them to be super effective.
   Unfortunately, a 25-mile road section of the road was chipped and sealed and we had to crawl at 20 mph to avoid damaging the paint.  But that didn’t work too well and we still got some on the edges of the spoiler and air scoops.
   Mechanically speaking, all went well. We just needed to coordinate our movements at each gas station to be sure that the co-driver pushed the button to raise the front suspension to avoid scraping.
   We crossed the US-Canadian border late in the morning and had to seriously reduce our speed since we found ourselves right in the middle of a campaign against speeding in Canada. Bad timing!
   When we stopped to get some food, a TV camera crew followed us and they offered us lunch in exchange for an interview.  Not even 1 hour and we were already on the news! It was very interesting to see how the population is against fast cars!  On the news, they were asking people to call in if they spot a speeder.  
   We finally made it to our destination in the early afternoon and immediately had the car detailed.
   That evening, we had an official introduction of the car to all, since this was the first MC12 north of the border.  Many friends with their supercars were there to welcome us.
   A total of 1,300 miles were done, no oil burned but lots of receipts for fuel, food, and many smiles along the way.
   The car is reliable and just had a clutch change after some drag tests.  She is now being driven daily and is definitely not a garage queen. Of course, recently the car logged almost 20,000 kilometers and I can tell you that 300 kph top speed is long past by now!  
   I even have a picture of her in the snow! I think that one day the car will be sold with the most mileage ever on such a car.  I am proud to have been part of her first 1000 miles.  What a lifetime souvenir I have.  Driving such a car is a privilege and a rare chance that very few will ever have.     
   The MC12 was superior in comfort and never was I in a rush to get out, stretching cramped legs like in the Enzo. I am still smiling about the great camaraderie on the trip and the Maserati MC12—as the great Le Mans driver Alan Mcnish would say, this was Mega!

Ciao,

Roland Linder

By   Mon, Sep 21, 2009

"When I work, I work very hard. I am persistent about what I want to do and I go after it."

There are many paths to success and if you asked ten successful people how they got that way, you’d end up with ten different answers. But if you ask someone who’s extraordinarily successful the same question, those answers would carry a lot more weight. The person we have in mind is Dr. Khosro Khaloghli, Chairman and President of Pacific Rim Holding Corporation. Luckily, he’s known as “Dr. K” or “KK” and that’s what we’ll call him.

 It can be a bit of a chore finding KK. He has houses and projects all over the world. But we found him at a charming 100 acre ranch on the California coast. He’s been building a house there for the last 14 years and, if you saw it, you’d know why it took so long. His nearest neighbor is San Simeon, also known as the Hearst Castle, a 165-room private home which took opulence to a whole new level.

KK’s house isn’t on that scale, but it rivals its audacity. Rather than a showplace, however, it has been built as a sanctuary. It’s a house he designed from the bottom up and built with doting care to detail and artisanship that shows throughout. The story is, when the muralist complained about the noise of construction elsewhere in the house, construction was halted until the muralist finished.

KK sounds like a proud father when he says, “I have built several houses this good — but this is probably one of the best I have ever created.”

He lives on the property with his wife and his horses.

The horses are the fulfillment of a dream he once had, “As a young man I wanted to come to America to become a cowboy. I lived in Iran but my father was an immigrant from Azerbaijan—Russia and my mother was an immigrant from Turkey—Istanbul. I always enjoyed watching cowboy movies. I worked in the oil fields and had many American friends that also worked there and they all told me that, ‘you have to come to America.’ They talked about, ‘the younger women, older whiskey, faster horses and lots of money.’ But that wasn’t the reason I came, I came because there was opportunity. At the end of the day, if there is no opportunity, nobody can make it.

“I was lucky in that I was a good wrestler and I knew I could get a scholarship to go to school. So I began paying my dues. I always believed, if you pay your dues, it will come back to you. When everybody else was playing, enjoying their nice homes and playing with their toys or visiting with their girlfriends or visiting friends to talk and gossip, I was wrestling, I was practicing, training, getting bruises, and losing and winning.

“At that time I was an athlete more than anything else and you learn in sport that you can’t lose. Of course, you do lose some of the fights—but there is always the chance that you can come back and win again. Play again and win again and that became my philosophy in the business world.”

KK has earned his undergraduate degree in Urban Planning, his Masters in Business Administration and holds a PhD in Urban Economics.  “I have been in real estate one way or another since I graduated from school.

KK has parlayed that background into a considerable fortune, one that he himself can’t accurately value. It gives him a lot of freedom. He doesn’t have to, but he still enjoys working. And he’s happy to tell anyone who asks how he did it.

“I have no idea how much I’m worth. I never look into that. That becomes a way to inferiority feelings and such. You are not inferior or superior to anybody because of wealth. I’m one of those people who measure my success only by what I am as a person and that has nothing to do with wealth. I could work on this ranch and be just as happy. I could have a little room in the barn and be just as happy.

KK is a philosopher at heart, “I will start by telling you there’s no shortcut, I never have been able to take a shortcut, never in any field, sport, or relationship, from the business world to travel. The old saying is that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. So if you deviate from that line you are making it longer, because you eventually have to come back to that line.

 “So sometimes when I talk to young people in high school or university or even older, I tell them that: You are looking for the shortcut and there is no shortcut.

“If your goal is to be, let’s say, financially successful, then first you have to find out what direction you want to take.  Even a shoe repairman could be successful if he opens twenty or thirty shoe repair stores and franchises that. Who says the shoe repairman is not successful? Or, if someone is looking into garbage collection, well, they are some of the most successful companies in the world. So one has to look at what he wants to do, and then he has to pay the dues—which is a long time working in the field.”

KK is a believer in first building relationships—creating friendships by helping others.

“I worked as a lifeguard when I first came here and was teaching swimming on the side. If some of the kids couldn’t pay—because it was a public pool— I would teach them, too, it didn’t matter to me. As a result they would bring me little flowers.”

That theme of giving a little first—for benefits later—comes up often in KK’s life lessons.

As does the athlete as businessman, “You look at me and I’m seventy, but I don’t act like it. It’s not the way I look, it’s the energy level. It’s actually your mind and your speed of decision-making that makes the difference between young and old.

“Young is supposed to be faster than old, but guys I deal with who’re twenty or thirty, they all know that I’m faster. They all know that I’m strong and no different from them.

“And that’s the best thing I can hear. They go, ‘KK, what’s happening, baby!’ and treat me as one of them. My friends are mostly young, I have nothing to do with the old frustrated guy that has nothing to do but complain. I do have some older friends that are very up-to-date, very active, so I don’t see them as old. My energy level is my greatest happiness because I haven’t slowed down physically or mentally. My desires are all the same as when I was twenty.

“Athletic ability was always one of my biggest assets and I have used it very well, even up to today. I know that when I go to some meeting with a bunch of other professionals that are very knowledgeable and well-established—but maybe the night before they had a couple extra glasses of wine and they had less sleep because of the late night. At the very least, their energy level is not as high as mine.

“I go to bed at nine and I sleep ten hours. For me, there is nothing to do after nine except waste time, so I don’t waste it, I sleep. Then, when I get up after ten hours, sometimes nine hours, but no less than that, I have a very, very good breakfast with a lot of carbohydrates and protein and vitamins and minerals and fresh herb juices and fresh vegetable juices. Then when I walk to my office or I walk to some meeting, I’m ready. There’s no ifs or buts. I have fed my muscles, I have fed my brain. I have rested my brain and my body—there’s no excuse for them not to perform.

“Now if somebody goes to bed at one-thirty or two and gets up at six-thirty with some alcohol in his brain and grease in his body from the food he has been eating and he probably couldn’t sleep well, either. He’s tired; he gets up and lights a cigarette, the first thing he does and he has a cup of coffee and comes to that meeting—who is he to challenge me. I’m not saying he isn’t as smart as me or smarter, I’m not saying he’s not more experienced. He’s just not prepared. So to achieve success you first look at how physically and mentally prepared you are. You must have mental as well as physical preparation. So you compromise the night life, which is not a compromise in my opinion because I don’t like those things so much—it’s not important to me.

“That’s why when people ask me have you seen such and such on TV? No. I haven’t watched it; I don’t know what you’re talking about. Or, do you know such and such actor? No I don’t know him. While he may be a very important man, there is no guilt that I don’t know him. He doesn’t know me either.

So when they ask me, have you seen such and such a show? No, I haven’t, but I can tell them I was riding my horses that weekend or I worked on my ranch or built a stall for my horses. That’s not important to them but that other life isn’t important to me, either.

“I create the rules and live with the rules. That’s how we establish our way of life. I know that physically, genetically I am very strong. For me, physical conditioning and strength has been my priority.

“Because I know, then, if I lose everything, I can go back to the same contractor that’s working for me now and he would give me a job, I can pour the concrete, I can drive the truck. I can do anything. I can make ten, twelve, fourteen dollars an hour. And if I need more money, I would work two jobs. But physically you have to be capable of that. So that is my asset.

“Tomorrow, I can go to Los Angeles and get a job in a service station at night for seven bucks an hour. Nobody wants to work late at night. After taxes that week, I’ll have a hundred dollars. I don’t have a hundred dollars worth of expenses… Carl’s Jr., chicken sandwich, $3.50!

“If I have five thousand dollars I can double it in short time. Ten years, five years later, I’m a millionaire again. So it’s not the money that you should watch to make or to lose, it is you that you have to watch not to lose. So, the reason that I don’t go for the nightlife and the shows is, I am afraid of losing that asset.

Diligence is paramount in KK’s life, “I work long hours in my business. I work carefully I’m a very good time manager which is much more important than money management. People have no idea of time management—they just go around in a circle. I don’t waste my time. When I have extra time, I come to my ranch, which isn’t a money making place but it feeds my soul. I regenerate, rejuvenate. So rather than going around in a circle trying to push a button that wouldn’t move anything, I just come here.

“When I work, I work very hard. I am persistent about what I want to do and I go after it. You cannot stop me from going through you until I am dead. But I never was greedy in my life.

On the contrary, KK has a generous soul and has found a certain peace in his existence that he shares with his life partner, “A good partner is God’s gift, a bad partner is a hell. My wife is my partner—but in life, not in business. She has too much responsibility outside of business— just taking care of me. She has too much to do to make sure KK will not lose. And if I did lose, I would be hurt because I’d be afraid she’d be sad. I personally wouldn’t be hurt because I know I can come back. But I do everything I can not to hurt her. She is such a humble, wonderful woman that I have chosen. Marriage is the biggest partnership in the world. People go after different things in a partner. They go after what they think is ‘best” but maybe that ‘best’ isn’t right for them. What is the best? The beauty? The fame? The money? No, none of them.

“I would rather have someone for a partner with a soul, an eye of the tiger, integrity and loyalty and honesty and good health. You cannot make someone who doesn’t have those qualities a good partner. My wealth is in my good wife and my good family life. She takes care of me and I’m just a kid to her. She takes care of that kid. She was well educated, she was in very big business, the president of one of the biggest companies in Japan but when we married, she said, ‘I’m going to take care of you.’ And I said, ‘Oh, thank you.’ I wouldn’t have asked her to quit. That was her life.

Having that support has allowed KK to concentrate on his business. “I have so much more time to laugh with my wife, to enjoy the tranquility and peace in life than anyone else I know because I take that time. 

“Any man in the world, even the poorest man, could find peace in his own environment if he chose to. Unfortunately, people don’t look at that issue. They are always looking for more complicated societal and community groups to live with. And, that takes away from them their time. Time is much more valuable than you think. The truth is, success in life is in the lifestyle you have, not really how much money you have. You don’t always need money, you just have to want to do things. I have lived a very, very full life. If I could bargain with God, I would ask him to give me another thirty years—but with the same energy.

KK is at peace because he knows that if it came down to it, he could do it all over again, he knows the secrets now,  “I don’t have much confidence in those people who sell books on how to live. I want to challenge them, what is your expertise? I say take both of us to different countries, give us five hundred dollars apiece, give us two years and neither of us speak the language.

My first move is to become part of that community. Give me my clothes and a broom. By the end of the day I would have a hundred more dollars. How? Easy. Go in any neighborhood; go to the front of a store and start sweeping. Those sidewalks nobody sweeps. The people inside the store think they’re too good for that. You know how long it would take you to sweep fifty store fronts? Less than two hours. And you might get a dollar a store. Then you go to the windows.

“Nobody should have ego about that. Nobody is above, nobody is below anybody else. What does it take away from me to do it? But, I don’t do it for the money.  I am investing in a relationship. Five, six weeks later, I’m working for one of those guys. Six months later I’m managing the place. A year later I’m his partner. In the end, it’s you that has the value not your money. But, first you have to give a little.

By   Mon, Sep 21, 2009

   This is essentially a job application for our good friend Rick Slaton. The man needs work. What Slaton does for a living is he hits people, very hard. As hard as he can, in fact. Slaton is an MMA striker. So far nine men have been hit and nine men have fallen. But for some reason the invites have stopped coming. Lately, he’s had some trouble finding anyone willing to fight him.

    He really can’t explain it, “For some reason a lot of people don’t want to fight me. I don’t know if it’s the way I look or because I hit real hard. I get them to sign a contract and then when it comes down to it, they always back out. It’s happened to me numerous times, three times already this year!”

    To be perfectly candid, Slaton did lose one fight. His official record is 9-1-1, “My one lost is to Shane Carwin who’s 9 and 0 and he’s had two fights in the UFC and he’s bigger than Brock Lesnar. I shouldn’t have even fought him. I only walk around at 215 lbs., so I should be fighting light-heavyweights. I might eventually end up going to 185 but I figure, at that weight, people would be really scared to fight me. So I’ll probably stay at 205 like I was for my last two fights.

    “At 185 I’d be just too scary to fight for those guys. I’d be too big and too strong. Whereas at 205 we’d be pretty much the same. I’ve been fighting heavyweights and they’re always bigger than me. But I’m really too small for that division.

    "It doesn’t matter, though.  I just hit too hard. You can’t really train for me. I’m always coming forward, I don’t stop throwing punches.”

            Unlike a lot of MMA fighters, Slaton didn’t hone his skills in someone’s gym, “I was strictly a street fighter when I started. I started with Team Punishment when they were putting on amateur fights, I did like seven fights—then they asked me to turn pro and I did—then I met Ken Shamrock and he brought me over there. I went from being a street fighter to having…a little skill!”

            Slaton is rebuilding a life that got sidetracked by a “mistake” that cost him 4 years as a guest of the state, “I’m really restarting my career. I’m going to open a gym for doing stuff with kids—like after-school programs and stuff.

            Currently he is teaching and training MMA, “I have about 15 pro fighters that I manage also; a couple of them are in the UFC or on their way. One is in Affliction.

“We have some good fighters and we have a real good team. We’re training right now at Alliance over at Brandon Vera’s gym.

How does one go about building a stable of MMA prospects?

“A lot of them have actually called me,” says Slaton, “I have a pretty decent reputation in the MMA community for being honest and I’m always there for my fighters; so people come to me.”

Slaton is, at 38, nearing the high end for fighters. His gym plans and crew of fighters point to a switch to another line. Management or being an agent. The switch though has already been made, “I’m a fighter and an agent. Lately, I’ve been more agent than fighter. Usually I’m fighting a lot but lately I haven’t been.”

“I can fight another three, four years, maybe. I’m going to make one more push at it—see what happens. I’ve told every promoter, I’ve called everyone out. I will fight anybody that they throw at me. I don’t care who it is, I just want to fight.”

Slaton keeps in top shape meanwhile. He’s ready at a moment’s notice. He does have his eye on a future date, “My next fight will be January 23^rd in San Diego in the Convention Center. I don’t know who yet. I told them I didn’t care, just put someone in front of me, I don’t care who it is. K.J. Noons is on the card, he’s the EliteXC featherweight champion, He’s the main event, I’m going to be the co-main event. It’s a one-time card they’re doing for the ASR, the Action Sports Retailers convention. They’re doing it as an after-party. K.J. asked me if I was available to fight on that card and said he would make sure they paid me real good.”

            Slaton knows he has to keep busy, if for no other reason than to be seen by the promoters. His style is unique and the style usually makes the fight, “I’m pretty much a stand-up fighter. I like to stand and trade. That’s what the crowd likes and that’s what I try to give them. If a guy ends up on the ground—I’ve let people back up, because I’d rather just stand and bang with'em and see who comes out on top. They try to out-strike me but I just hit so dang hard.”

By   Mon, Sep 21, 2009

John Huntington is probably having way more fun than you are.  After all, his idea of work is to throw a party. And John has thrown some of the biggest parties you’ve ever seen. He’s the force behind the big party with Chuck Liddell, featuring his Iceman Rx Hummer Giveaway, after the UFC 92 fight on the 27^th of December at the MGM Grand.

“I’ve been doing Chuck’s parties for eight years now” he told us, “and this is the one I’m most looking forward to—being close to the New Years’ weekend and the big after party following the Forrest Griffin/Rashad Evans fight. We’ll have a championship fight at the MGM Grand and then the party afterward with Chuck Liddell and the DJs, the Hummer giveaway. It’s going to be bananas, I can’t wait.”

Huntington didn’t start out giving parties. First he learned the ropes, “I started washing dishes at 15 in a restaurant. I’m 42 now and I started as a bar back-up when I was twenty years old. I’ve done every job in this industry. Humping the ice all night, spraying the mats at four in the morning—I know the industry from point A to point Z.  I’m not some college grad that came out and walked into promotions. I’ve been the bar backup, I’ve been the bartender, I’ve been the manager, the general manager, the waiter, the busboy. That type of experience just can’t be beat. It’s a road of hard knocks but it’s brought me to a good place."

Knowing the ins and outs of the restaurant and entertainment business is starting to pay off for Huntington. And the friends he has made over the years help to contribute to his success. His experience in the fight game also helps, “Back in the day, I was fighting Jiu-Jitsu and Muy Thai and I started a production called the World Fighting Alliance with John Lewis. We started that in 2000 and did four shows. Then, in 2003, we sold it to the UFC and, after that, I just continued producing after parties for all the fighters and that’s kind of how I stayed involved with it. So I’ve been part of it for a solid eight years now.”

He has seen MMA grow up over the years though his own involvement has been, thankfully, minimal, “It started when I was younger and then had a resurgence when I was too old— I was beyond thirty then. Now it looks like the UFC is blowing back up again. I have to say I never wanted to be a fighter anyway, that doesn’t seem to be much fun to me, training for nine weeks, dieting like mad, getting hit in the face about 50 times—no thanks, I’ll find something else to do.”

The “something else” has taken many forms over the last few years, “I do a lot of things. I really enjoy working. It’s always something new, that’s just the way I do things.”

Currently he’s been expanding his employment opportunities to include a flourishing DJ business, an offshoot of his party promotions, “I got so sick of telling DJs the kind of music I wanted them to play. They never quite understood exactly what I wanted so I said, ‘Screw it, I’ll just start playing it myself’—so I talked to some of my DJ friends and learned how to DJ and worked my ass off at it. Now I’ve been touring all over the place playing, I’ll be at Lake Charles, Louisiana this weekend at a big French Casino up there. It’s a fun thing to do.

“I like Rock Mash-ups, Rock riffs with Hip-Hop lyrics over the top, different breaks in the music—I just like to control the music and see the crowd get off to it—where you drop this bomb and the whole place goes off—I love that— that’s such a great rush. I’m really into the music and the style of music that I play. For me to get up there and turn other people onto it—that’s just so damn cool.”

Huntington knows his audiences. He’s been studying them for a long time. In one of his many enterprises he consults with nightclub owners, “On product control, spillage, really understanding how much is coming in and what’s going out, point of sale systems, bartender training, server training and I do a lot of consultations on promotion of nightclubs, getting people in their doors.”

He has his ear to the ground for new trends and knows well how they can change overnight, especially in Las Vegas, “If you want to be a player in the night club game,” he says, “you’ve got to be in Vegas, which is right now the night club capital of the world. That’s hilarious to me, because ten years ago when I came here, there were literally three-four clubs in Vegas—now there’s over seventy.

 “And big isn’t any good anymore. All these clubs are all going small. Little lounges with bottle service, nobody’s going for these huge dance clubs anymore.

“People seem to like the small lounges with tons of seating—where you can sit down, buy a bottle, hang out with your friends—that type of thing. The turnover isn’t that great. You don’t have to secure them as much. Security is one of the major costs in the night club industry—security and advertising. Ten years ago it was all about massive clubs now it’s like small lounges with a catchy theme.”

When the Las Vegas drumbeat gets to him, Huntington’s own restaurant is his escape valve, “I own a sushi restaurant, 57 seats, in Jaco beach, Costa Rica called Tsunami Sushi. It’s a great restaurant—we have fishermen that determine what we’re going to serve that day. Whatever they catch that morning, that’s what we serve that night. Our sushi chefs are actually Japanese surfers. We get a lot of people who go down for the surf because the waves are so incredible there. That’s paradise down there!”

Still, his favorite place to work is Las Vegas and he’s putting the finishing touches on a new idea that he thinks will mark a new stage in his life, “Now I’m 100% fully-focusing on my new tattoo shop opening in the Palms Casino called Huntington Ink. It’s just going to blow people’s minds, I’ve been on the phone all morning with my designers and it’s going to be the most incredible tattoo shop anyone’s ever seen. We’re planning a huge grand opening in April with a major band and all kinds of cool stuff. It’ll be my major focus for the next three four months.”

Huntington isn’t a tattoo artist, but he has been a customer before, “I won’t be doing tattoos, but I’ll definitely be there running the business side. Mostly I’ll be doing my forte which is promoting the business. I mean, that’s what I do best. I’ll go out and make the business very well known and I’ll let the artists do their thing.”

If promotion had a hall of fame, John Huntington would be in it. But he has no illusions about his ultimate success in any venture, or what it takes to achieve it, “It takes patience first of all. You have to have the right timing, get into the game at the right time. And, you’ve got to be willing to take the knocks. I mean, I’ve written some big checks on failures, you know. But I’ve had a lot bigger upside than I’ve had downside.”

By   Thu, Nov 05, 2009

MMA Agent Ed Soares and his partner Jorge Guimaraes are basically in the import business. They are bringing in truckloads of fantastic fighters from Brazil to fight in matches in the US.

Just consider this lineup: Anderson Silva, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira , Andre Galvao, Chase Gromley, Daniel Nova, Diego Nunes, Fabio Maldonado, Fabricio "Morango" Camoes, Junior "Cigano" dos Santos, Luis "Sapo" dos Santos, Lyoto Machida, Lucas Rota, Paulo Filho, Pedro Rizzo, Rafael "Feijao" Custodio,
Will Ribeiro. All are from the camp of Soares-Guimaraes

“Ninety-five percent of our guys are Brazilian,” says Soares, “my partner lives in Brazil. We find our fighters in Brazil and we bring them up here. There are great fighters who come from all over the world but there’s just a lot of talent coming from Brazil. And at this moment that’s our niche.”

Why so many from Brazil? It’s the mother lode according to Soares, “It’s just that the sport has been around there a long time. That’s where the Mecca of all this stuff is, where MMA originated. It’s that and I think it’s the culture – they come from a much rougher life, they have different motivations. I’m not saying all Brazilian fighters are necessarily poor, I’m just saying it’s a hard life out there and for someone to come to the United States and get the opportunity to bring themselves to another level in their life is always a very motivating factor.”

So does that mean the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu fighters have the edge? Not necessarily, cautions Soares, “In MMA nowadays you have to be very well-rounded in every martial art, you have to have very good jiu-jitsu skills, wrestling skills, boxing skills, Muy Thai.

“The sport now is truly mixed martial arts. If you go in with only one dimension, you’re going to find yourself pigeon-holed and people will put strategies together that are going to concentrate on your weaknesses. Nowadays, you really have to be able to be put in any situation and take care of yourself. Most of the fighters who are at the top level feel very comfortable in all situations.”

            Most fans know who the top level fighters are though the ranking system is pretty loose. It’s not like boxing, for instance. “Basically you’re ranked through people’s thought processes and who you’ve beaten,” says Soares. “You take someone like a Brock Lesnar who’s basically had three MMA fights and just fought for the UFC Heavyweight title and won! I’m sure there are a lot more fighters who are more experienced that could be possibly ranked much higher than him but didn’t get that opportunity. But at this point in time, styles make fights and on any given day in this sport, anybody can beat anybody.

“So, what it’s really all about now is: it’s run by the promoters and the promoters put on the fights that the world wants to see. The Brock Lesnar/Randy Couture fight they were saying would be the biggest pay-per-view ever. So whether Lesnar was ranked number one or not, he was put in that position.”

There is no question that audiences for MMA are way up especially in Las Vegas where boxing used to be king. But Soares doesn’t think there is any comparison, “It has nothing to do with boxing being on the downswing, I think it’s just a more exciting sport. It just needs time, and an increase in the exposure frequency. I know people are saying that it’s blowing up, it’s getting huge. Well, it’s not huge yet. Anderson Silva’s a big name, yeah, Chuck Liddell’s a big name, yeah. But if you asked ten people on the street who Anderson Silva is, I would say maybe 3 of them would know. If you asked people on the street who Shaquille O’Neal is, probably all ten of them would know who it is. So that’s when it’s mainstream – when all ten people will know.”

            “I think, within the next ten-twelve years,” Soares predicted, “it’s going to be the biggest sport on the planet — mainly because everybody likes to watch fighting — it’s just in the DNA of the human being. And now, MMA is finally getting the exposure it needs. I always thought it was the greatest sport,  it’s just that now people are able to see it.”

By   Mon, Sep 21, 2009

Jervis Cole brings a different sensibility to his work as an MMA agent. He is most interested in what the fighters do outside the ring.  As the agent for top-ranked heavyweight Rashad Evans among others, he concentrates on building up the fighters as a brand and selling them to sponsors and advertisers. He thinks long term and, rather than building a huge stable of fighters, he looks for key players whose commercial reach he can improve upon over time.

Because of his background in professional basketball, the 6’6” forward is very familiar with the world market in athletics, “I used to play semi-pro in Argentina and France for more than ten years. I was recruited right out of high school. Now I do the recruiting. And it’s pretty much the same parameters of going out and looking at which of the top guys that I could find that I’d want to represent.

“When I started out, that guy ended up being Rashad. I didn’t want to have more than seven or ten guys at one time so I’m midway at that point now with five fighters, Rashad and trainer Greg Jackson.

“I kind of know what I want and because of my background in business and marketing I kind of know what I have in mind when I go after a guy.

“There’s a heavyweight kid that I’m talking to right now whose name is James McSweeney. He fights over in the UK, holds several belts, he’s working with Greg Jackson right now and he’s going to be fighting here in the US and so that’s one of our big investments now, that kid.”

            “I’d like to have a guy in every weight class—but that’s not what I go after. I go after the guys that I think are the most marketable. Of course, you want them to win, but the people I work with in this business—we look at guys where we can build a face, a name and build a strong Q rating so we can make the transition from inside the ring to outside the ring. Once you’re able to market a guy outside the ring, it really helps the fighter and my company as a whole.

            “The questions I have to answer are: Is it a guy I can get along with, is it a guy that I know sponsors and fans will be receptive to?

            “Once you get to the point where a guy has at least an 80 win record, a 75 win record, that guy can be built. Take Rashad Evans. Though he was undefeated, he wasn’t really pushed outside the ring besides what the UFC had done. So, what we did is hire PR people, we went out and I spoke to people I know outside the MMA world—that’s just basically in entertainment and marketing and what we did was put together a marketing plan and that’s how we were able to land a Microsoft—you know him in a Microsoft commercial.

Getting Rashad Evans in a Microsoft commercial was a major coup for Cole, “We were just fortunate that there was someone there that understood MMA—because he’d done some training—and knew that the guys that participate in MMA are world class athletes.

“He was one of the top guys in marketing for Microsoft, so what ended up happening was Rashad doing the commercial and through that commercial we were able to put together sponsorship for the last fight. And that’s why you saw Rashad walk out in the ring in a Bill Gates mugshot shirt.

“We’ve done a lot of different things like that. Surprisingly, not one sponsor we’ve had in a Rashad Evans fight had ever sponsored before in MMA. That says a lot.”

The reason Cole has such a special perspective comes courtesy of his own playing days, “Being an ex-athlete and knowing what you have—and what you don’t have once you stop playing—I think it opened my eyes a long time ago. So, when I had an opportunity to start working alongside fighters, that’s what really came out.“You know most fighters live from fight to fight. They make pretty good money on the fight purses, but when you start paying out your living expenses, your corner, your manager, whatever you have to pay out—then that money’s going to get whittled down pretty quick.

            “It’s hard for some guys to understand because a lot of guys honestly haven’t had great management. So outside the UFC or whatever league they’re in, once you leave that professional atmosphere, you’re looking at how can I get this guy magazines, how do I get a particular television show, how can I get a TMZ to come out and watch?

            “You know the question has been asked why Rashad Evans is in a Microsoft commercial and not some other bigger-named fighter and it’s because we’re going out and working our asses off to get our guys exactly what they deserve. I’m surrounding myself with people who are not in MMA, but they’re business people and I’m reaching out to people and  they’re reaching back and we’re helping each other out in any avenue we can.

            “Our goal is: we want our guys to be able to go into fights with a clean mind and not worried financially. I came into the sport with that attitude: how can I build my guys out side of the ring? How can we get paid more than one time for this fight? We want to do three fight deals, we want to do appearances, we want to do commercials, we want to do photo shoots, we want to do all that. I would never sell my guys short, I’m going to build your brand I’m going to get you what you’re worth and, if people offer you anything less, I’m not going to accept that.