Matt Hughes Looks Back on Legendary Career
Matt Hughes Looks Back on Legendary Career
Former UFC welterweight champion and Hall of Famer Matt Hughes looks back on his legendary career.
By Tony Reid
FloCombat: A large part of your life is being a hunter and an outdoorsman. What has that lifestyle meant to you over the years?
Matt Hughes: I was born and raised on a farm. That, coupled with the fact I grew up with a twin brother, really made me who I am today. My dad guided my brother and I like machinery. We worked all the time. In my time off, I could go out, grab a gun and go hunting or fishing, or do whatever I wanted. That hard work and competition with my brother really made me who I am in the fight world. When I got in the UFC and became half-way popular, I got asked to be on a few hunting shows. Eventually, I was asked to host, and then came out with my own show, “Uncaged with Matt Hughes.” I got my feet wet in the outdoor industry and love it. I am a lucky man.
What fight is the most meaningful from your amazing career?
My win over BJ Penn. He took my belt and really surprised me with his athleticism in our first fight. It was big for me to beat someone who beat me before. He put me in some bad spots in the first few rounds of our second fight. It was really a good mental exercise for me to beat BJ and get that win. Everybody thinks it should be when I beat Carlos Newton for the title or my win over Royce Gracie, but my win against BJ was huge for me. At the end of the fight, I remember having him in the crucifix position. I was throwing punches and thinking, “John, why aren’t you stopping this fight? He’s not defending himself.” Then Big John finally stepped in. I wanted to finish 30 seconds before that.
With your legendary, hall-of-fame career in the books, what was the one fight that got away?
When I was champion, I wanted to combine the belts—the 185-pound belt and the 170-pound belt. The reason it never happened was because I wouldn’t fight Rich Franklin after he won the belt. I would have fought the champion before him (Evan Tanner), but I would not fight Rich because we were such good friends. I was old enough in the sport where I was not going to fight my buddies. There are too many other people to fight out there, but I would have loved to put the belts together and have one champion for both weight classes.
Being one of the all-time greats in an all-time great camp, the legendary Miletich Fighting Systems, what is the most memorable story from your time there?
The Miletich days are some of my fondest memories. I had so much fun there. To narrow it to one is tough, but I will tell you this one. We were down in New Orleans on Bourbon Street. I was drinking with Pat, and we both had false teeth at the time because our front teeth had been knocked out in the past. We both had what we called flippers. It was a piece, like a retainer, with a tooth on it in the front that you put in your mouth. Pat ended up puking his out on Bourbon Street. We had to go back and sift through the puke to dig his flipper out of the piles of puke and put it back in his mouth. That is the story I think about most.
What are your thoughts on the resurgence of Robbie Lawler? What do you think when you see him in the Octagon defending that welterweight title you held for so long?
The maturity is the big thing with Robbie. He’s become so smart with his training. He's always had the tools. When he first won that belt, I was lucky enough to put it around his waist. Pat was there. We went to the back and had a couple of good photos taken, and that was huge for me. A good friend, someone that could be considered a brother to me, won the world title. It’s something he has always wanted. It was big for me, for Pat; and it was huge for Robbie.
FloCombat: A large part of your life is being a hunter and an outdoorsman. What has that lifestyle meant to you over the years?
Matt Hughes: I was born and raised on a farm. That, coupled with the fact I grew up with a twin brother, really made me who I am today. My dad guided my brother and I like machinery. We worked all the time. In my time off, I could go out, grab a gun and go hunting or fishing, or do whatever I wanted. That hard work and competition with my brother really made me who I am in the fight world. When I got in the UFC and became half-way popular, I got asked to be on a few hunting shows. Eventually, I was asked to host, and then came out with my own show, “Uncaged with Matt Hughes.” I got my feet wet in the outdoor industry and love it. I am a lucky man.
What fight is the most meaningful from your amazing career?
My win over BJ Penn. He took my belt and really surprised me with his athleticism in our first fight. It was big for me to beat someone who beat me before. He put me in some bad spots in the first few rounds of our second fight. It was really a good mental exercise for me to beat BJ and get that win. Everybody thinks it should be when I beat Carlos Newton for the title or my win over Royce Gracie, but my win against BJ was huge for me. At the end of the fight, I remember having him in the crucifix position. I was throwing punches and thinking, “John, why aren’t you stopping this fight? He’s not defending himself.” Then Big John finally stepped in. I wanted to finish 30 seconds before that.
With your legendary, hall-of-fame career in the books, what was the one fight that got away?
When I was champion, I wanted to combine the belts—the 185-pound belt and the 170-pound belt. The reason it never happened was because I wouldn’t fight Rich Franklin after he won the belt. I would have fought the champion before him (Evan Tanner), but I would not fight Rich because we were such good friends. I was old enough in the sport where I was not going to fight my buddies. There are too many other people to fight out there, but I would have loved to put the belts together and have one champion for both weight classes.
Being one of the all-time greats in an all-time great camp, the legendary Miletich Fighting Systems, what is the most memorable story from your time there?
The Miletich days are some of my fondest memories. I had so much fun there. To narrow it to one is tough, but I will tell you this one. We were down in New Orleans on Bourbon Street. I was drinking with Pat, and we both had false teeth at the time because our front teeth had been knocked out in the past. We both had what we called flippers. It was a piece, like a retainer, with a tooth on it in the front that you put in your mouth. Pat ended up puking his out on Bourbon Street. We had to go back and sift through the puke to dig his flipper out of the piles of puke and put it back in his mouth. That is the story I think about most.
What are your thoughts on the resurgence of Robbie Lawler? What do you think when you see him in the Octagon defending that welterweight title you held for so long?
The maturity is the big thing with Robbie. He’s become so smart with his training. He's always had the tools. When he first won that belt, I was lucky enough to put it around his waist. Pat was there. We went to the back and had a couple of good photos taken, and that was huge for me. A good friend, someone that could be considered a brother to me, won the world title. It’s something he has always wanted. It was big for me, for Pat; and it was huge for Robbie.