Well, I am sure a lot of you probably thought I wouldn't have the marbles to come back and finish my blog after having a disappointing fight Saturday night. I am a man. And I can take what people dish out because I am by far my worst critic so anything you have is only motivation for next time.
First, I want to congratulate Brad Blackburn on his win. It was his night. He was the better man plain and simple. He controlled where the fight went and I fought like crap. So big props to him on his first UFC win!
I woke up Saturday morning (fight day) feeling good and relaxed. I mostly just relaxed the entire day leading up to the fight. I ran a few errands to pick up some gear from my sponsors, but other than that I just hung out in my room.
At 2 p.m. I had to report to the arena for my fight. When we first got there they took us down to the cage so we could feel it out. To be honest I thought it would be bigger than it was. I asked Kevin [Burns] if it was smaller than the ones they use in the big arenas, but he said it was the same and he should know. One thing that I did forget to mention is that there are like eight flights of stairs you have to go down to get to the cage.
Back up stairs, I got my hands wrapped and started warming up. The warm up went pretty well. It was weird not having Kevin there because he has cornered me for my six-fight win streak. Then it was time to go to the Octagon -- we got down there and had to wait. Before I knew it was time to make my way toward the cage. It was a good feeling to finally be there. I am usually focused and don't really realize what is going on right before but this time I realized.
When the fight started, we exchanged some punches and I dislocated my thumb. This is not an excuse either, things happen in fights. I went for a takedown and wasn't able to finish it -- I just couldn't grab very well with that hand. We separated and that is when I made the stupidest decision ever in my fight career. I decided to fight his fight instead of my fight.
BIG MISTAKE!
The exchanges were going well until he clipped me once and it put me down. Most of you don't know what it is like to get punched so I will provide a brief description. As you feel the contact, your eyes close naturally and you see a bright white light. The pain of the punch itself isn't that bad. I can tell you that it is the first time I have ever been put down in a fight. We went to the ground and I controlled him but was unable to get a submission.
The ref stood us up and we started trading again and that is the last thing I remember really about the fight.
I must have got a concussion that second time he hit me. I do remember a doctor asking if I was okay during rounds and saying yes. The next thing I remember is being back stage sitting in a chair. So I fought for three minutes on instinct and heart without having a clue what was happening.
I had to go to the hospital after to get a CT Scan ... no big deal. Let's just say that I was not alone -- a lot of fighters where there win or lose. I had to find out how Kevin did by phone play-by-play because the hospital didn't have Spike. I got back in time to watch the last two fights, which was nice.
I really enjoyed my experience at the UFC and really hope to get another chance to prove myself real soon. I want to thank MMAMANIA for allowing me to share the experience, the UFC, my teammates, my fans and my sponsors: TapouT, Warrior Wear, Eternal unltd, MMAwarehouse, Zappos.com, Stagr and Vegas.com. Thank you guys and girls for reading my blogs. Hopefully I have some new fans!!
James Giboo (11-2) is a professional mixed martial artist and Iowa science teacher who will make his Octagon debut against Brad Blackburn at UFC Fight Night 14 on July 19. He has competed extensively (and successfully) in the Midwest circuit, which has earned him a rare opportunity to now put his skills to the test against the top fighters in the world under the UFC banner. James will frequently detail his journey to the big time right here at MMAmania.com this week, providing our readers and his fans with a behind-the-scenes account of what it’s like to fight for the biggest mixed martial arts promotion on the planet for the first time. To check out more from James here at MMAmania.com click here.
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