Submission Underground: Nathan Orchard Loves Game of Death
Submission Underground: Nathan Orchard Loves Game of Death
A love for combat courses through Nathan Orchard’s veins. The Oregonian has been testing himself in martial arts for years. Orchard simply loves to get grit
A love for combat courses through Nathan Orchard’s veins.
The Oregonian has been testing himself in martial arts for years. Orchard simply loves to get gritty—that's why submission grappling has become one of his biggest passions. Orchard hits the mat with a kill-or-be-killed attitude, and believes that mindset is unfortunately losing its place in competitive jiu-jitsu.
That won’t be the case at Chael Sonnen’s Submission Underground, where Orchard is eager to throw down this Sunday at 5PM CST.
“In every competition, there should be a winner and a loser,” Orchard said. “Who wants to compete for a draw? What warrior wants to go to battle and fight to a draw? I know that’s not what I want. People want a winner and a loser so why would a combat sport be okay with it? Not to be overly dramatic, but it’s the game of death. When you play to the death, there is a winner and a loser.
“This platform is much grittier than a lot of jiu-jitsu competitions. It’s going to be inside of a cage so you better know how to fight off of a wall. I like that aspect because that’s a more realistic element to fighting. I remember B.J. Penn talking back in the day about finishing fights and how going to a decision is a loss because it’s true.
“A decision victory is just someone’s opinion of who won,” he added. “I want there to be no question, and I get the chance to do that at Submission Underground.”
To ensure the action reaches a conclusion, Sonnen will use the Eddie Bravo Invitational rules. Bravo’s system doesn’t allow stalemates, which will keep the action rocking at Submission Underground.
A high-stakes affair is what gets Orchard’s adrenaline pumping, and he wants to put on a show on July 17.
“This is what I do,” Orchard said. “I’ve been in four EBI’s and I’m always ready to go to work. When I got the call, I jumped on it immediately. Those rules are the closest thing to getting it right in this sport. If I had my way the only thing that would change would be the time limit. Let’s put two competitors out there and let them go until someone taps.”
Although Orchard was quick to answer the call, he’s also been faced with several twists and turns en route to Submission Underground. He was set to face Jens Pulver before the former UFC lightweight champion was forced to withdraw due to injury.
New Jersey native Michael Palladino stepped in to replace “Little Evil,” but was unfortunately bitten by the injury bug, as well. In a last-minute scramble, Guilherme de Vasconcelos Juliao accepted the challenge. Orchard and “Bomba” will square off in Portland.
“I was initially supposed to face Jens Pulver and I was fired up to get in there with him. I’ve been a big fan of Jens for years, have watched him since I was a kid and to compete with someone like that is a massive honor. I was stoked.
“I was happy my name was thrown in the hat for something like this, but at the same time I feel like I deserve to be here. This is what I do. There have been some changes but none of that matters to me. I’m coming there to compete, get my hand raised and put on one hell of a show.”
The Oregonian has been testing himself in martial arts for years. Orchard simply loves to get gritty—that's why submission grappling has become one of his biggest passions. Orchard hits the mat with a kill-or-be-killed attitude, and believes that mindset is unfortunately losing its place in competitive jiu-jitsu.
That won’t be the case at Chael Sonnen’s Submission Underground, where Orchard is eager to throw down this Sunday at 5PM CST.
“In every competition, there should be a winner and a loser,” Orchard said. “Who wants to compete for a draw? What warrior wants to go to battle and fight to a draw? I know that’s not what I want. People want a winner and a loser so why would a combat sport be okay with it? Not to be overly dramatic, but it’s the game of death. When you play to the death, there is a winner and a loser.
“This platform is much grittier than a lot of jiu-jitsu competitions. It’s going to be inside of a cage so you better know how to fight off of a wall. I like that aspect because that’s a more realistic element to fighting. I remember B.J. Penn talking back in the day about finishing fights and how going to a decision is a loss because it’s true.
“A decision victory is just someone’s opinion of who won,” he added. “I want there to be no question, and I get the chance to do that at Submission Underground.”
To ensure the action reaches a conclusion, Sonnen will use the Eddie Bravo Invitational rules. Bravo’s system doesn’t allow stalemates, which will keep the action rocking at Submission Underground.
A high-stakes affair is what gets Orchard’s adrenaline pumping, and he wants to put on a show on July 17.
“This is what I do,” Orchard said. “I’ve been in four EBI’s and I’m always ready to go to work. When I got the call, I jumped on it immediately. Those rules are the closest thing to getting it right in this sport. If I had my way the only thing that would change would be the time limit. Let’s put two competitors out there and let them go until someone taps.”
Although Orchard was quick to answer the call, he’s also been faced with several twists and turns en route to Submission Underground. He was set to face Jens Pulver before the former UFC lightweight champion was forced to withdraw due to injury.
New Jersey native Michael Palladino stepped in to replace “Little Evil,” but was unfortunately bitten by the injury bug, as well. In a last-minute scramble, Guilherme de Vasconcelos Juliao accepted the challenge. Orchard and “Bomba” will square off in Portland.
“I was initially supposed to face Jens Pulver and I was fired up to get in there with him. I’ve been a big fan of Jens for years, have watched him since I was a kid and to compete with someone like that is a massive honor. I was stoked.
“I was happy my name was thrown in the hat for something like this, but at the same time I feel like I deserve to be here. This is what I do. There have been some changes but none of that matters to me. I’m coming there to compete, get my hand raised and put on one hell of a show.”