Sean Salmon's Blog

Playing catch up again...

2007-01-08T09:32:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since my last post and I apologize. I will try and post about every 2 weeks now.
First, I want to say thank you to everyone that has sent me emails of encouragment. I really do enjoy getting them and I think I've been able to reply to everyone of them. MMA really does have the best fans.
I also want to thank my sponsors. The newest one being www.ufcjunkie.com. It is a great website that they update very regularly to keep everyone informed of what is going on in the UFC and MMA in general. Since signing with them I have gotten a lot of positive feedback from regular visitors to their site, which only makes me more excited than I already was to be part of the team. Also, Full Contact Fighter (www.fcfighter.com) has continued to support me, providing me with any training and workout gear that I need, as well as my gear for my upcoming fight.
We are approaching 2 weeks out from the fight and I couldn't be more excited. What a great opportunity for me to step into the UFC and straight into the main event!! My training has been going great. I just got back from a training camp at the Damage Inc. gym in Indianapolis where I spent most of my time improving my boxing with the help of Wes Ramey. I may keep this fight on our feet, we'll see. Either way, I have gained a lot more confidence in my hands.
My strength and conditioning are also right where I want them. I will not get tired during this fight at all.
Other than that, Missy is doing great. She has really taken to being a mom and doing a great job at it. Marcus is wonderful, almost 6 months old now and about to crawl anyday. They grow up so fast.
Take Care.

Signed with the UFC...

2006-12-12T12:10:00.000-08:00

Well, I finally get to let you know what the big announcment is....I have signed a 3 fight deal with the UFC (www.ufc.com). The contract was signed just over a month ago, but the UFC has to be the ones to make it public.
They are not wasting anytime bringing me along. My first fight will be against The Ultimate Fighter Season 2 winner Rashad Evans (12-0). On paper, he appears to be a heavy favorite. Rashad is undefeated and has a lot of experience in the Octagon. However, I am not training as hard as I am to further his carreer and have no intentions on taking a back seat to him or losing this fight. I believe this will be a very good fight for the fans.
My training has been going great. I am still at a stage in my carreer where I am improving and changing things everytime I workout.
I have so many people to thank for helping me secure this contract, that I am not going to go into right now. Just know that your help is not going unnoticed.
I will do my best to update my blog with my progress, so please keep checking back.
The Next Level.

Fight Fest Oct. 20

2006-10-30T17:57:00.000-08:00

I traveled to Cleveland, Oh on October 20 for a fight on the Fight Fest card. I always have a good time at the Fight Fest shows. The promotor Corey Fischer always takes really good care of the athletes and this time was no exception. We weighed in Thursday evening and had to do an interview for the prodcast of this show. The weigh ins went smoothly and I am starting to enjoy doing interviews. It was great after making weight, having my friend Jeremy Zemach drive down from Michigan and going to dinner.
The day of a fight is always uneventful. I like to lay around the room and watch movies. Usually, Troy, Boondock Saints, and Gladiator.
At 5:30 we walked over to the arena for medical checks and the refs meeting. I was excited to see the biggest cage that I have ever fought in, not to mention the floor of it was a wrestling mat.
The fight started and we circled eachother. Hershberger threw 2 puches and I was able to corner him on our feet. He took a shot at my legs for the takedown, I was able to sprawl and spin behind him. From there, I threw and landed several punches to his head that forced him to tap out, moving my record to 9-1. If you live in Ohio and have cable, check your listings for Sports Time Ohio and the show Fight Fest. They have been airing it every couple days.
I currently have no fights scheduled, my managment is "officially" in talks with a very high up MMA organization and we hope to be able to make an announcment within the next 2 weeks.
I will make sure to keep everyone updated.

Legends of Fighting...

2006-10-15T18:43:00.000-07:00

I am the new Light Heavyweight Champion of Legends of Fighting. I won by submission over 5-1 Bobby Martinez at 1:16 of the first round. I don't know how or when it happened, but I seem to have become more of a jiu jitsu fighter than a ground n pound guy. I am still early in my carreer so we'll see how it all plays out. Before I get going here, I have to thank my managment team, Damage Incorporated. Mike Camp and Scott McCorkle are the man!!!! They put on one of the most enjoyable, fan friendly fights that I have ever participated in. I also want to thank my friends, Brandy Albright and Adam Vaughn for getting some people together and heading to Indy to watch me fight. They should be in charge of after parties for these fights.
My trainers had me more than ready to go, Rex Holman, Josh Williams, Marc Cofer, BJ Hedger, and my brother Danny, and all the guys at Jorge Gurgel's MMA Academy in Middletown, Oh.
My managment is now in talks with a very prominant MMA promotion and I promise to keep everyone updated. I have only been fighting for less than a year, but big things are about to happen and I appreciate all the support and kind emails that I recieve.
Other than that, things are going great. My wife, Missy has really taken to motherhood and has become a GREAT mom. Marcus is getting bigger by the day (they grow up so fast). Although, I don't know what I would do without my in-laws, they have helped so much that "thank you" just doesen't seem like enough.
My next fight is this coming Friday the 20th of October at the Mosonic Temple in Cleveland, Ohio. It is another Fight Fest card that is part of the tv series and tournament. You can watch it every Sunday night at 10pm on Sports Time Ohio (basic cable).

Corpus Christi Fight Fest...

2006-09-26T13:59:00.000-07:00

Finally winning again!!! It has been a very long 2 months, having my last fight be a loss. I would say that my loss to David Heath has bothered me more than anyother loss, in anyother competittion. But, I would also say that I learned more from and used that loss better than anyother loss.
I have to thank all the people that helped prepare me for this fight. My managment team, Damage Inc., specifically Mike Camp. All the athletes at Jorge Gurgel's MMA Academy in Middletown, Ohio and of course the mainstays of Buckeye MMA, Josh Williams, Rex Holman, Marc Cofer, BJ Hedger, and my brother Danny. Danny doesn't get enough credit for getting me where I belong, when I belong there on these trips.
We flew into Corpus Christi, Texas on Thursday afternoon. I had some weight to cut, so we ran up and down the ocean front. Friday morning, I still had a few pounds to go...nothing a quick trip up and down the coast line couldn't get off. Weigh-ins went smooth, I weighed in at 204.5, my opponent Lucas Lopes, a Brazilian from American Top Team weighed in at 202. I was surprised to see that he is all of 6' 4", which I figured could cause problems coming from a Jiu-Jitsu brown belt. Danny and I figured that this was just the test I needed at this point in my carreer.
We got to the arena at about 4:30 on Saturday, a full 3.5 hours before the fighting began. I can't blame these promotors for wanting the athletes there early, they need to know if someone isn't going to show up. It wasn't all bad though, we did get to watch the hour long concert by Quiet Riot, which was better than I thought it would be.
When I went back to my dressing room to begin my preperation I found out that my opponent was better than the 6-6 record I was told, he was actually 25-6. A big difference, but I would have still taken the fight, so it didn't matter at that point.
My warm up went great and it was time to fight. My game plan was to test his stand up. I have gotten very confident on my feet, however when we started to approach eachother and he threw a flying knee at my head that landed, I decided I had to make him pay and rather than try and reach his head, which would be difficult given his height, I would take him down and pound him out. I scored the takedown and had to quickly defend an arm bar and triangle choke, I did but was still stuck in his guard. Good thing I had spent a lot of time training there. I probably landed 50-75 elbows and punches to his head, but he seemed to be doing just enough to keep the ref from stopping it. The round ended with me on top.
The 2nd round started with him kicking, obviously trying to keep me off his legs. I got the takedown about 45 seconds in to the round. I continued to throw elbows from inside his guard. After about a minute of that, the ref stopped the fight and took a point away from me, saying that I punched him in the back of the head and stood us back up. I took him down again and this time passed his guard and got to side mount. He was facing away from me, but I thought I would go for a keylock anyway, I locked it in real tight, his elbow started popping and he tapped. It always feels good to beat a Jiu-Jitsu guy at their own game. I am very happy to rebound from my loss and move on.
After the fight, my brother and I ended up at Mulligans Pub on Chapparelle St. I have to say the owners, Amos and Ryan are two of the coolest guys I have met on any of these trips. Huge fight fans and very friendly. I hope I fight there again, just so I can go hang out with those guys. If you are ever in Corpus, don't forget Mulligans Pub and tell them Sean sent you.
Up next for Team Salmon...the Legends of Fighting Title this Friday night in Indianapolis, Indiana. I have several friends from Ohio making the trip and look forward to a fun night of fighting. I will have an update after that fight as well.

Catching Up....

2006-08-20T19:57:00.000-07:00

Lets get down to business... a lot has happened since my last update. I lost my last fight, I changed managment, I am training out of a new gym, and my wife and I had a baby.
First, I lost my last fight by armbar. It is a very hard thing for me to admitt. Up untill that point, I honestly believed that I would never lose a fight. I wish I could tell you I had a lot on my mind, I wish I could tell you that I was sick or injured, but I can't. I was prepared to fight and win. I came out and scored the takedown, I landed inside of his guard and played lazy...according to my game plan. He went for the armbar (which I wanted), instead of being patient and working through it, I stood straight up and made it tighter...forcing me to tap. Again, I wish I could tell you that this was a position that I was uncomfortable with, but I have trained for this situation many times and made a very big mistake. David Heath won the fight because he was better prepared. He has since been called up to the UFC and I have been told to win a few more. I can only hope to move on to bigger and better things or pray for a rematch. However, I do want to wish David goodluck in his UFC debut. You earned it David.
Secondly, I changed managment teams. I moved from Gary Marino to Damage Incorporated. However, I would like to start out by saying that this was nothing personal, it was purely a business decision. Gary Marino is an outstanding individual and a great manager, he is honest, hard working, and a good friend. Damage Incorporated was able to offer me and my family a solid future, great training facilities, and full time attention. I am very proud to associate myself with Damage Incorporated. I would also like to say that, if my son Marcus came to me and told me that he wanted to fight and needed a manager...there are only 2 people that I would let him talk to, Damage Incorporated and Gary Marino.
Because of Damage Incorporated, I was able to give my training situation an upgrade. I am now working out 2-3 times a week in Middletown, Ohio at Jorge Gurgel's MMA Academy. Working out with Jorge, Rich Franklin, Mike Patt, Dustin Hazelett, and BJ Hedger, as well as staying with Rex Holman and Josh Williams has turned me into a 100% different fighter. And, above all that Damage Inc. has an amazing facility in Indianapolis with wrestling, boxing, and jiu jitsu coaches. Honestly, there is no excuse for me to ever lose again.
That moves me to the greatest day of my life. My son was born on July 19, 2006. He was a healthy 7.6lbs and 19.8in. long. His name is Marcus Lee Salmon, my wife and I named him after my best friend Marcus David Forster. Never have I been so proud. My best friend Marcus passed away in 1997, but there hasn't been a day go by that I havn't thought of him. Marcus was the most loyal, hardest working, toughest, most dependable friend anyone could hope to have. I only pray that my son grows up in his foot steps.
Other than that, Missy is recovering nicely from the easiest labor that I have ever heard of and we are adjust quite well to our new lifestyle. It does make it a lot easier that Missy's family is so close. I do have to thank Rick, Kerry, Lindsey, Tori, and huncle Jeb (for watching over us), for making it a lot easier on us. I don't know what we would do without you guys, I love you all. Marcus however, was not so lucky...HE LOOKS JUST LIKE ME!!!! So, I have taken it upon myself to teach him some very dependable pick up lines for the girls. After all, I did marry above my head, so I am hoping that it pays off for him as well.

"Untamed 5" write up...

2006-06-19T18:56:00.000-07:00

Team Salmon had another successful weekend. I moved my record to 5-0 with a win by referee stoppage at 1:27 of the first round. Overall, this turned out to be a very enjoyable weekend. My awesome manager Gary flew my brother and I into Boston on Thursday. I was able to meet one of the organizers of the show, Mike Varner right when we got to the hotel. Mike is a great guy and seems to know exactly what MMA fans look for in a show. I weighed in that night, with no trouble and got to bed early. I woke up and had lunch at the hotel with Gary, his nephew (who's band "Zion" was performing at the show), my brother, and Felix (the owner of Cage Fury, www.cagefuryfighting.com). I went back to the room and relaxed, until it was time for the medical checks. Right after "medicals", Danny and I began our warm up. I like to get a good hard warm up before I fight, I like to be catching my second wind when I fight.
The fight went exactly like I planned. I was fighting a former professional boxer, so I knew I wanted to take it to the ground. I quickly got the takedown, tied up both his arms, and punched him in the head until the ref stopped it. After the fight, I went back to the room and got cleaned up.
When I returned to the show, Gary had ring side seats for my brother and I. This is where things got a little crazy. The main event for the show was a title fight, in my weight class. Before that fight got started Mike Varner asked me, if I would accept a title fight against the winner. Gary and I agreed that we would. Right after Pat Schultz was given his belt, Mike anounced that I would like to fight him and called me into the ring. This was not planned and it is not my style to "call out" another athlete. I had no choice and did it as respectfully as I could... I thanked the fans for coming out, congratulated Pat on his win, and kindly told him that I wanted his belt. He is a tough fighter and I would like to fight him. As of this time, my challenge has not been accepted, I'll keep you updated.
Untamed is one of the best promotions that I have fought for, they really know how to take care of their athletes and create a show that the fans can really get into. I would also like to say that Massachusetts has some of the most knowledgeable fans there is. I will fight for "Untamed" anytime and can't wait to return to Massachusetts.
I have to thank my training partners for getting me ready...Rex Holman, Josh Williams, Freddy Parish, my brother Danny, and my manager Gary Marino. You cannot make it in this business without surrounding yourself with good people.
Up next for Team Salmon....I will be making an appearance at the Cage Fury show in Atlantic City on June 30, after that...I fight for the Reality Fighting (www.realityfighting.tv) Light Heavyweight Title on August 5, then I fight for the XFO (www.x-fighting.tv) Light Heavyweight Title on August 19. Big things are heading our way!!! It is a great time to be part of Team Salmon!!!

My Brother, My Friend....

2006-06-06T20:33:00.000-07:00

The problem with death, is that it is so final and too often comes with no warning. There is no writing on the wall. There is no list anywhere that you can check to see when your time is up. And, no matter your religion, your God won't tell you when He's bringing you home. This past week, I lost my 17 year old brother in law in a horrible swimming accident. Jered Pyles was everyones definition of a great kid. It is human nature in death, to make that person's life seem better than it was. To make them out to be a better person then they actually were. Save one. Jered was a kid that you didn't have to do that for. He was every bit as good, honest, friendly, faithful, talented, and pure as everyone spoke of this past week. His parents will never learn otherwise.
I could sit at this computer all day and write out everything that Jered had going for him. Why God should have taken a billion other people before him. However, I don't want to do that. I am not looking for more sympathy for this family...we are the lucky ones. We knew him best. We loved him and he loved us, as well as Alli.
I am not a very religous person, but the Pyles family makes me believe. I have a wife that I do not deserve, so I know there is someone watching down. His families stength is trully the most powerful thing I have ever seen and I don't think that anyone but God could have given them this type of power. My brother Matt flew in from San Diego to be with the family, my other brother Danny was there for me from the second I found out and it kills me to say this, but I think there were times that we were getting strength from Jered's parents. They seem so fixed on the good and there was a lot of it. I imagine that if I am able to raise my boy half as good as Jered turned out, I would be proud as well.
I find comfort in the belief that God brought Jered home to be with Him and it was obvious to all those who knew him why God wanted him. I cry for selfish reasons. I know that I am going to miss him till the day I die, but until the day I die, I will be thankful for knowing and loving him.
--Rest easy my brother, we finished it for you. Enjoy your new wings.

New Title Fight...

2006-05-30T14:13:00.000-07:00

I have been given a shot at the XFO (x-fighting.tv) Light Heavyweight Title. This fight will take place on June 17 in Lakemoor, Ill. Just north of Chicago. I will be fighting Eric "Red" Schafer a 6-2 submission specialist from Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
I have a lot of motivation for this fight. I have a lot of family between Chicago and Milwaukee, so it is a chance for them to see me fight, it is a title fight, but most of all I will be fighting a tough competitor.
On paper, Eric Schafer looks to be my toughest test so far. He is proven and we seem to have similar strengths. This has me training harder and smarter than ever. I have to put together and execute a very solid game plan for this fight. There is not as much room for error as there has been in past fights. It is no secret that I like to take fights to the ground and Schafer has proven he is very comfortable down there. It is a chance to test my skills against someone who has the ability to match them. I feel like this will be a good win for my carreer.
I would like to thank Monte Cox for thinking of me and getting ahold of my manager Gary, when the opportunity for this fight came up.
I hope that everyone had a chance to watch last weekends UFC "Hughes vs Gracie" ppv event. I was very impressed with Swick's win over Riggs, however I was also disapointed because I was looking forward to two strong boxers trading on their feet. I can say the same thing about the Vera fight. I was not surprised at all by the outcome of the Hughes vs. Gracie fight. There is no disputing the skills of Gracie, however Hughes seems to be on a different level from anyone else at 170lbs. I think Hughes vs. St. Pierre will be the fight of the year.
My wife Missy and I are now only 8 quick weeks away from the due date of Marcus Lee Salmon!
She is doing very well and the doctor assures us that everything is on track and the way it should be. I can't wait!!!

I was asked tonight....

2006-05-13T01:29:00.000-07:00

I was asked tonight, if I feel bad when I beat someone up in the cage? I was in a situation where I only had a couple seconds to answer, this was not someone that I was going to have time to explain competition too. My answer was an obvious, no I don't feel bad.
For those of you who don't know, this is a very noble sport/profession. Although I don't and never will feel bad for beating someone up (in the cage), I have never fought anyone that I have not respected. It takes a lot of courage to step in a cage with another human being that has been training for any given number of weeks or months to beat you. This is not a competition that you can take lightly or catch someone off guard. Everyone is ready.
....Close your eyes....picture yourself in a locker room, putting on gloves that only cover your knuckles enough to protect them, not what your going to be punching. You have the knowledge of all your strengths and weaknesses, but you know that this is a fight and can end up in any given number of situations. If you keep it standing...you could punch until you have nothing left and still have an opponent coming after you. You could score a takedown and pound him till the ref stops it, or he could tap you out with an arm bar. He could score a takedown and pound you till the ref stops it or until you are no longer concious. And either one of you could throw the best kick or punch of your life and end the fight in a matter of seconds. You have to believe that you can impose your game plan on your opponent, without any doubt. My point is...this is the most exciting sport on the planet. When you step in a cage to fight, there are no doubts, no second guessing, no problems, no thoughts at all. You get to be yourself and everything that you've been trained to do. You are in a situation where all eyes are on you. You can disapoint everyone you care about or you could bring an arena full of people to thier feet to cheer your name. And, after it is all over with... you can show class, or be a punk, bring the sport up, or tear it down, make fans, or doubters, hero or villian.
I pray that I always take the high rode. I have a wife, a family, friends, fans, and soon a son, and I do care what people think about me. I only want to fight for the competition, to make myself better, to impress people with my skill and words, and to test myself in the greatest arena since the gladiators....the cage.
I have said it before, I envite everyone to become a fan of fighting. There is nothing inhumane about it. It is competition at its best. Go to a local show, watch The Ultimate Fighter (on Spike tv), order a UFC on pay per view, and appreciate the skill and athletisism that these fighters have. Find someone you love, find someone you hate, either way...I promise you will love it.
Take it a step further and picture yourself in their shoes....to be in a cage facing every fear, joy, and human emotion between those two. It is the most unbelievable feeling in the world. I have known that I was made for this sport since day one and I can't imagine living without it and I can't imagine anyone watching it and not enjoying it.
The Next Level.

Fight Fest write up...

2006-05-08T13:51:00.001-07:00

I am back home from Royce Gracie's Fight Fest show in Youngstown. It went almost exactly the way it should have. I woke up Friday morning (the day of weigh-ins) to find myself 8lbs over weight. I am very disapointed in myself for that, because the only excuse for it was a lack of focus and dicipline. 205 is not a tough weight for me to make, so the 8lbs. came off as quickly as 8lbs can. My wife made the trip up with me Friday and we went straight to weigh ins, after that we found a nice Italian resteraunt where we had dinner and lunch the next day. I woke up Saturday morning very excited to be fighting. First I had to go back to the arena to weigh in again. In Ohio, you cannot put on more than 10lbs the next day or your off the card. I weighed in at 211. Went back to the hotel and relaxed as much as I could. I am not real nervous the day of a fight, so I like to watch movies and rest.
I had to be at the arena at 5 for physicals and medical checks. When we get to the arena is about the time I get that crazy nervous/anxious feeling. Its a good thing Josh Williams and my brother Danny were there to tell me where to be and when to be there. I tend to stop paying attention to things about this time.
Once we got all that done with, I began my warm up. I like to push a real hard warm up so that I'm catching my second wind by the time I step in the cage. While I'm warming up, two of my best friends pop out from behind a curtin. Jeremy Zemach and Rudy Elliott, Rudy flew from Texas the day before and drove from Michigan with Jeremy. Another friend, Brian Wells was driving from Phoenix, but didn't make it in time. I am guessing he is lost in one of the Dakotas' about now.
Walking down the ramp to the cage is amazing, everyone is cheering, my nervousness disapears, and I finally get to compete. A good reward for months of hard training. Jeremy and Rudy actually walked down with me, which was cool. I guess that was their reward for making the trip.
They slammed the cage shut and my opponent and I meet in the middle. We were circling eachother for a short time when I decided to force a clinch. I took him down and landed in side mount. I was landing short elbows to his head, when he left his far arm a little too far out. I locked up a key lock and slowly applied preasure and he tapped out. The ref stopped it at 1:47, I helped him up, gave him a quick hug, got my hand raised, and went back to the dressing room. I love this sport so much. Everything about it is exciting.
The coolest part of the weekend though, was having so many friends and family there. Other than Rudy and Jeremy, my father in law Rick, my sister in law Tori, and my brother in law Jered brought some of his friends up. It is nice to have a cheering section.
After the fight we went out and it was great to catch up with Rudy and Jeremy. Not that Youngstown is a bad city, but I can't wait to be doing post fight celebrations in Las Vegas.
I have to thank my trainers Josh Williams, Rex Holman, and Danny for getting me ready for this fight. Of course, thank you to my in laws for making the drive and my wife Missy for coming up early to watch over me. An extra thank you to Josh for getting me on this card so quickly after the Reality fight fell through.
I have a very busy time coming up...I am fighting May 20, June 30, and August ? all in Atlantic City. August will be the Reality fight for the Light Heavyweight Title. I am taking July off of fighting to await my son's birth, due on July 25.

Fight Fest write up...

2006-05-08T13:51:00.000-07:00

Week of the Fight

2006-05-01T19:08:00.000-07:00

We are now less than a week away from the fight and I feel like I have fire in my veins. I haven't fought in almost 3 months and that might be too long for me to go without being put in a cage. I am still very disapointed that I was not able to fight this past weekend for the Reality Fighting light heavyweight title, however it is turning out good for me to fight on the Fight Fest card (www.chevroletcentre.com). I am going to have a few family members there and 3 of my very best friends coming down from Michigan. Actually, only 1 of them is coming down from Michigan, Jeremy Zemach. The other two, Brian Wells is traveling all the way from Arizona and Rudy Elliott is coming from Texas!!! It's good to have friends !!! As a matter of fact, I heard that Rudy's father is considering making the trip, if it helps Mr. Elliott...this is my formal invitation to you, to come watch me fight. If you do come, I will throw in a free Team Salmon Fighting t-shirt. I grew up with these guys in Michigan and it is unbelivable how powerful friendship can be. Thank you guys for coming!!!
Other than that, my training camp for this fight has been everything it should be. My stand-up has improved greatly and I am now 100% comfortable fighting off my back. Always improving. My conditioning and strength are exactly where I want them and my weight is not an issue, which is good, because in Ohio I get to weigh-in the night before the fight, but I have to weigh-in the day of the fight and I can't be 10lbs heavier than my weight class or I'm off the card. I have been constantly working to improve my weaknesses, but my game plan is going to stay the same. I am a wrestler and want the fight on the ground. Once it gets there, which I feel is inevitable...no one can hang with me. My trainers have made sure of that. And, if you've been reading these blogs you know I have to thank them. Josh Williams, Rex Holman, Freddy Parish, and my brother Danny and you know I can't forget my manager Gary Marino.
So, here we go...Team Salmon is putting their undefeated record on the line May 6 in Youngstown, Ohio at the Chevrolet Centre. The Next Level.

Fight Fest May 6

2006-04-27T10:24:00.000-07:00

Alright, so you may have noticed that my shot at the Reality Light Heavyweight title is put on hold. Todd Going(my opponent) dislocated his shoulder and can not compete. It is a rough sport and sometimes surviving a training camp is an accomplishment in itself. I wish him a speedy recovery and hope that we can square off in the future.
I decided that I could not wait until May 20 to be put in a cage with someone. So my training partner Josh Williams got me a spot on the Fight Fest card in Youngstown, Ohio. So, on Saturday May 6 I will be fighting Jim Bundy(1-0) at the Chevrolet Centre in Youngstown. I am very excited for this fight, because it is in Ohio which makes it easier for my friends and family to see and since I had already been training for my Reality fight I was already in shape. Thank you Josh for getting me on this card.
On a side note, I have ordered Team Salmon Fighting t-shirts that will be done tomorrow(Friday, April 28). I will be selling them for $20. You can contact me at salmonsean@yahoo.com if you are interested.
My training camp this time around has been great. I have spent a lot of time focusing on my weaknesses, which has made me that much more confident. I feel that I am really at the point where, everytime I step in the cage, I am more and more comfortable.
After this fight, I will be fighting on May 20 in Atlantic City. This will be a big fight for me, I am being paired with someone that should make me a substantial underdog. I asked my manager to not tell me my opponent for that fight until after the May 6 fight. I would hate to get knocked out, because I was looking ahead. I will also be fighting on June 30 in Atlantic City on the Cage Fury card. I am really trying to put myself in the ideal position to get my shot at the UFC. So, keep checking back, I will post updates as I have them.
We are now down to less than 13 weeks before Marcus Lee is born!!!! Missy and I are incredibly excited and realize what a great time this is for us. Thank You to everyone that has wished us well and/or prayed for us. We really do appreciate it!!!
The Next Level

We are less than 2 weeks...

2006-04-18T20:02:00.000-07:00

Alright, here we go....As you may have seen on the front page, I have had a lot going on. My beautiful wife Missy and I found out last tuesday, THAT I AM HAVING A BOY!!!!!!! Obviously, most guys that I know want their first born to be a boy, however this was very important to me. My best friend Marcus David Forster was born on July 25, 1977, sadly he passed away in October of 97 and I always said that if I had a boy, I would name him Marcus. Well, my babies due date is July 25, so I would love it if my boy could not only be named after Marcus, but share the same birthday. I was also very proud to tell Marcus' parents that I was having a boy that was going to be named Marcus Lee Salmon. I love Mr. and Mrs. Michael Forster and my relationship with them means a lot.
Don't mistake this for weakness. I have been training just as hard as I have for anyother fight. How could I take anyone lightly in a sport like this? However, my opponent has changed. Todd Going (the guy I was suppose to fight for the LHW Title got hurt), I was offered another 205lb opponent or I could fight for the Heavyweight Title (where another guy was hurt and had to back out), of course I said that I would fight for the Heavyweight Title. I have said from the beginning, I want to compete against the best competition, afterall this is a sport and I want to test myself in. So on Saturday, April 29 I finally get to step in the ring again and fight.
I will also be fighting in Atlantic City on May 20, in a fight that I requested to be the underdog. It is hard for me to go from being a nationally ranked wrestler to a fighter trying to just get noticed. Maybe I am being over confident, maybe I'm not, but I want to find out either way. Fighting feels natural to me and I want to test myself against the best. Nothing short of top is acceptable.
On a quick side note, I have a very funny cousin Kevin Ervin and he has a very funny website. www.kalspals.com. It does have a lot of family jokes, but also very funny comentary on life. Check it out if you have free time.
So here we go again, Team Salmon putting the undefeated record on the line. My confidence comes from my training partners and friends, Rex Holman, Josh Williams, Freddy Parish, and my brother Danny. The Next Level.

Reality Fighting Title Shot

2006-03-22T10:05:00.000-08:00

On April 29 I will be fighting in the co-main event for the Reality Fighting Light Heavyweight Title Belt in Atlantic City, New Jersey against Todd Going (2-1). This is my first shot at a belt, so I am very excited. There is added enthusiasm for me in this fight, since my manager Gary Marino has been talking to me about Reality Fighting since I met him and he has a couple other guys on this same card. It will be nice to have a group of us there to help eachother out. Not to mention fighting outside of the midwest, to hopefully earn more fans that might not have heard about me. My training is going to remain the same...always improving my strengths and bringing up my weaknesses. With my main focus on mentally performing to the best of my abilities. My main problem in wrestling was my consistincy. I would beat a highly ranked wrestler one match and lose to a lesser wrestler the next. The problem was never physical, it was always my mental preperation. So I have spent a lot of time and energy on the mental aspect of fighting in order to be ready everytime out and give my best performance. With both the mental and physical training going so well right now, I couldn't be more excited for this fight. Even though it is not the UFC, it is where I belong right now. What more could I ask for, only going into my 4th professional fight.
I will continue to update my progress leading into this fight. Also, if you have free time and would like to come to Atlantic City to watch some great fighting, my manager has tickets and can be reached at ufcfan@comcast.net.

Big News Coming...

2006-03-12T21:32:00.000-08:00

There is a lot happening at Team Salmon recently. Without a doubt I have surounded myself with the right people. I know you here me say that a lot, but it is true. At Team Salmon, we are striving to make it to the top of the UFC in as short amount of time as possible. With that goal in mind (and a 3-0 record), Gary is searching out the best possible fight for me and the next 3 are sure to be big ones. We are no longer focusing on the short term success, we are putting ourselves in a position to rise to the top. We are putting ourselves in a position to make a move into the UFC and then the top of the UFC. You have heard me say this before as well, this is a team effort, I could never do this without my wonderful wife Missy (who is over 5 months pregant now), my training partners Josh Williams, Rex Holman, Fred Parish, Dorian Price, Brian Keefe, and Danny Salmon, and my manager Gary Marino who has a cell phone bill with a comma. So please, if this is your first time reading this, tell your friends about teamsalmon.com. If you are back again, keep checking. If you have never heard of fighting as sport, read this website and check out, mmaweekly.com, ufc.tv, sherdog.com, and mma.tv, you will become a fan in no time. The next handful of months are going to be HUGE!!! Also, if you have free time, send me an email at salmonsean@yahoo.com and let me know what you think or if you would like me to air my opinion on anything else.

What's going on...

2006-03-08T17:49:00.000-08:00

Alright, the quick update....I have resumed training. Lifting heavy, submissions, and plan on starting and working on a lot of boxing within the next week. My manager Gary Marino is working on a deal for my next fight with Reality Fighting out of Atlantic City, New Jersey. Obviously, I will have the details posted as I get them.
I said when I started these blogs that I would talk about things other than fighting. So here it goes. I just had one of my best friends get in touch with me after 2 and a half years, Jeremy Zemach. The thought that comes to my mind the most is a lyric from a song called "wear sunscreen". Some of you may remember it as the comencement speech that they put to a beat. Anyway, the line in the song reads, "the older you get, the more you need the people you knew when you were younger." I was reminded of this fact when Jeremy called. Jeremy has been one of my best friends for as long as I can remember. He was the friend that would always travel to U.S. Nationals in Vegas and spend the next couple days out there with me. Jeremy lives in Michigan and has made more trips down here to Ohio to visit me than anyone else I can think of. Everyone should be so lucky to have a friend like Jeremy in their life. So back to the meaning of the song lyric...last Sunday night when Jeremy got ahold of me, we fell into talking the same way we always did. It was like we never lost the 2 and a half years. The best part however was the stories we talked about. You don't realize how many memories you forget as time goes by and Jeremy gave some back to me, as I'm sure I gave some to him and some that I remembered, he remembered differently. I can count the number of people on one hand that I still keep in touch with from when I was younger, so I can't explain how happy I was when Jeremy found me. Thank You Jeremy. I guess I am putting this out there as a reminder to people...if you have an old friends phone number or address, get in touch with them. It will be worth it.

King of the Cage

2006-02-21T07:56:00.000-08:00

Well, the King of the Cage is now over, I won by TKO (referee stoppage) in the 2nd round. The whole weekend was very professional. I got to the hotel at about 4pm on Thursday, three hours before weigh ins. I had already lost the neccasary weight to make the 205 limit, so my brother and I just relaxed.
We met up with my manager Gary Marino and another one of his fighters Carlos Neieves(who came to enjoy the show), and headed over to weigh-ins. The weigh-ins were held at a bar, which was a little strange, but there was an announcer, people watching, and Sherdog.com taking pictures and video. After weigh-ins, we all went and got something to eat, before heading back to the hotel.
The day of the fight was great, I love having all day to relax before competition. Especially, since I knew that I had done the work and was ready to fight. I also enjoy watching movies before I fight, we watched Boondock Saints, Without Limits, and most of Troy. Despite being in Moline, Illinois I did have a few fans on hand. My parents were able to drive down from Rockford and my sister in law Tori was nice enough to drive my 4 months pregnant wife the 7 hours from Columbus. I am sure it was not an easy drive for Tori, but I appreciate it and loved having Missy there.
I had also found out during the day that Bryan Zanders (the guy I was suppose to fight), never showed up and wasn't answering any calls. Monte Cox (the promoter) assured me that he had fighters ready for circumstances like this and that I would be fighting. This close to the competition, I couldn't let it bother me at all. It wasn't like my game plan was going to change. So a guy named Josh Tabile took the fight. He told me after the fight that he had been training and was ready to fight, but you still have to admire a guy who takes a fight in a pay per veiw show on same day notice. I told him that I owed him a rematch for what he did.
So finally, it was time to head over the the arena. When I walked in, I was blown away. It was a huge 10,ooo seat venue, they had the cage elevated with spotlights on it, they had a ramp for the fighters to walk down, and the huge jumbo-tron was playing the action and replays. The dressing rooms were huge, with tv's playing the fights so you knew when you were gonna be up. I was the 4th fight of the night, so I started my warm up early. When it was my turn to fight, they walk you to a backstage area. They stopped me at the bottom of a small flight of steps that my opponent was on the top of. They announced him and I walked to the top of the steps. When I got to the top, I was at the top of the ramp leading to the cage, about 35 yards away. I could see the whole crowd, it was amazing. Then the music started playing, they put a spot light on me and turned on the smoke machines, I had to stand there until the camera man said to walk forward. As I walked down the ramp, all the fans that lined in were giving me the high 5 and cheering. I tried to put on my tough guy face, but it was too much fun, I smiled all the way to the cage.
Finally, after 6 hard weeks of preperation and everything else that goes into it, I was in the cage facing a real opponent. I watched them slam the cage door shut (my favorite part for some reason) and Referee Herb Dean (of the UFC), looked at me and said "Are you ready to fight?" I nodded yes and the fight was on. I took him down right away and began working a key lock, when that didn't come easily I punched him in the ribs and head. I would have loved to throw elbows, but it is illigal in Illinois. I did'nt know that untill about 2 hours before the fight and a lot of my game plan revolved around elbows. It worked out anyway. So the first round ended with me on top. When I got to my corner, Carlos suggested that I mount him and just punch him till the ref stops it. That sounded like a good idea since he kept slipping out of my submission attempts. I looked across the cage before the 2nd round started and could see that I opened up his right cheek pretty good and he just looked beat. So, right at the start of the 2nd I rushed over, threw a couple punches, then took him down. When we got to the ground, I threw a few short punches to his stomach, mounted him and began throwing punches to his head and gut. It didn't take long after that for the ref to stop the fight. I got my hand raised and walked out of the cage.
Probably, the coolest part was walking back to the dressing room. They don't let you go back up the ramp, you have to walk through all the ring side tables. All the fans high 5ing you, asking for pictures, and offering you beer. It was awesome. I wish I could fight there every week!!!
As usual, I have to thank the people that got me ready to fight. My training partners Rex Holman, Josh Williams, Freddy Parish, Brian Keefe, and my brother Danny. My manager Gary Marino, there is no way that I could do this without him. He takes care of everything, more than you could ever expect. Carlos Neieves was real helpful keeping me relaxed and suggesting technique. My sponsors Full Contact Fighter and Spice Bar and Lounge.
Also, thank you to my sister in law Tori for coming to support me and bringing my wife Missy!!
This fight will air March 10 on Pay Per Veiw, it was a great show, with a lot of good fights.

11 Days Out

2006-02-06T06:38:00.000-08:00

Alright, I am now only 11 days out from my 3rd fight. King of the Cage: Redemption on the River in Moline, Ill. and on pay per veiw on March 10. Everything is right on track....my training could not be going better, my conditioning is right where it needs to be, and my weight is under control. I am very excited for this fight as it is a great chance for me to show marked improvment over my last fight and it is a step up from my first 2 fights as far as the size of the venue and the number of quality fighters on the card. It is a sign that my carreer is heading in the direction that I intended it to when I started fighting. I feel that I have really put myself into a great situation as far as training and managment goes.
This is my favorite time leading up to a fight. Less than 2 weeks out, either the work is done or its not. If you havn't put in the work, there is no catching up. If you have done your work, you can relax and enjoy the competition. Thanks to my manager Gary Marino and my normal training partners Rex Holman, Josh Williams, Brian Keefe, my brother Danny, and new partner Fred Parrish I am enjoying the competition. There's really nothing left, but to keep my nutrition and supplementing correct and my mind focused on my best possible performance.

I hope that everyone was lucky enough to catch Saturday nights UFC pay per veiw, Couture vs. Liddell 3. I had to work, but my father in law Rick taped it for me. It would have been great to see a 5 round battle between those two, but Liddell's game plan and striking is just too good right now, Congradulations to him. I didn't want to believe it, but Randy Couture did retire. Retiring as one of the greatest fighters ever and a true legend while still competing is a great way to go out. He trully deserves every accolade he gets. I also really enjoyed to Diaz vs. Riggs fight and agreed with the judges that Riggs was the winner. I am now looking forward to Liddell vs. Babalu Sobral. Sobral has really distanced himself from the rest of the pack with a big win over VanArsdale. VanArsdale is a very tough fighter and Sobral made the win look somewhat easy. He deserves a title shot and is someone that could give Liddell a very tough fight.
I want to thank everyone who supports me and continues to check up at Team Salmon Fighting. My next post will be immediatly after my fight.

2006-01-18T08:41:00.000-08:00

I am now 1 month out from my next fight...a King of the Cage pay per view in Monline, Illinois. Everything is right on track. I have been working extremely hard on my conditioning and submissions. My boxing is coming along nicely, thanks to Brian Keefe and I have been keeping up on my weight training. I will continue to go hard everyday and 2 a days three times a week until I am about 2 weeks out, then I will start the peaking process. I am still in a unique situation being so new at this fight game, that there is just so much for me to learn, but I have to learn each technique at a pace where I will have the neccasary amount of time to drill it and be able to execute it in a competition. It would do me no good to be taught everything possible and not retain any of it. I think my background as a wrestler is helping me with the submissions and jiu jitsu, as all three are very similar and I am surprisingly starting to enjoy the boxing.
I am now waiting to find out who my opponent will be. I was scheduled to fight Chris Harrison, but he had to back out, because he was selected as an alternate for the 3rd season of The Ultimate Fighter. A legitimate reason and I wish him the best of luck. I will post my opponent in my schedule/results section as soon as I find out.
Now would also be a great time to thank my new sponsers. Full Contact Fighter* (www.fcfighter.com) has been great to me. They took a chance on me and sent me gear to wear for my very first fight. They carry a great line of fight clothing, I was actually wearing thier t-shirts before I was even a fighter. I also have all my brothers, my father, and father in law wearing their clothes now. On their website they also have a huge fighter database, pictures, news, and pretty much anything else associated with fighting.
Spice Bar and Lounge* (www.spicebar.net) in downtown Columbus, Ohio is an upscale bar and resturant. The atmosphere is amazing as well as the food. They have great happy hour specials from 4-8 daily and a dance club on Friday and Saturday nights. I encourage everyone in the Columbus area or visiting Columbus to check it out at least once, you won't be disapointed.
*On a side note, I would not associate myself with any product or company that I did not believe in.
Most importantly, I have to thank my manager, Gary Marino. I was put in touch with Gary by Joel Gold from Full Contact Fighter. 5 days after my first fight, Gary flew me out to Boston to meet Dana White, on his own money no less! He took time out of his day to pick me up from the airport, put me up in a hotel, get me to and from the audition, and back to the airport. He did all that before I had even signed!! During the past 2 weeks, Gary has been in Italy on a family vacation, yet I get a phone call almost everyday to let me know that he is taking care of everything I might need for my upcoming fight. I have never met her, but I imagine his wife is absolutly wonderful to let him do all this. I have never had any doubt in my mind that I made the right decision to sign with Gary Marino.

Happy New Year

2006-01-05T09:18:00.000-08:00

I want to say Happy New Year to everyone and thank you if you are reading this and keeping up with Team Salmon. You might have noticed I redid my biography, I just didn't like the way that it read. I have also added captions to all my pictures, so you know where they are from or what is going on in them. We are still also going to be updating pictures on the front page, so keep checking back.
Please, keep checking Team Salmon as I am constantly updating all over the place. 2006 is going to be the year of The Fish. My confidence is as high as my goals this year. I will never over-extend myself, but I am going to keep moving forward in this fight game. I plan on taking it one step at a time, all the way to the top. As confident as I am, I realize I have a world of learning to do and I want my learning to take place in training and not in a cage. I hope that everyone is on board with me. If you know me, you had to see this carreer move coming. I have to say that I have the greatest family in the world. Not all of them feel that they can watch me fight, but I don't question their support. Everyone in my family is behind me 100%.
I swear, I think that this is the greatest sport in the world. I pray that I never do anything to bring disrespect to the sport of fighting or the athletes that compete in it. Naturally, in a sport like this some athletes take fights for personal reasons, I never want to do that. If I ever feel the need to challenge an athlete by his name, I hope that I challenge him because his skills as a fighter and not out of anger or disrespect. What a great sport, please follow me into the new year.
I hope that everyones holiday season was as good as mine. My brother Matt was able to come back into to town and I was able to convince my wife that Wisconsin is where she wanted to spend Christmas. We had a great Christmas Eve at my Grandparent's house in Milwaukee and then spent Christmas day on my other grandparent's farm, the greatest place on earth. Maybe some week, when things are slow I will write about "The Farm."
So, I started training this past Monday for my upcoming fight another, King of the Cage on February 17, a pay per view in Moline, Illinois. It is being held in a 10,000 seat arena, so needless to say I can't wait. The only thing I am not happy about is that it won't air on pay per view till March 10, but after the pay per view it moves to DVD to be sold in Best Buy and Walmart. Not bad for only being on my 3rd fight.
I am applying the lessons I learned in my last fight, to my training for my next fight. I have been working harder on my conditioning and submissions, although I enjoy the fighting it is always good if you can end it quickly. I have also stepped up my weight training this time around. I think I may have backed off the weights and started my diet too early which may have left me a touch flat. That is what I am most encouraged about from my last fight(other than the win), is that all my mistakes were correctable. I am working with the same people as my previous 2 fights, Josh Williams, Rex Holman, Brian Keefe, and my brother Danny. A very good training situation.

first blog

2005-12-20T18:38:00.000-08:00

This is my first writing on my new website. I want to thank everyone who is reading this. I hope that some of the fans that I was able to make as a freestyle wrestler will follow me into my Full Contact Fighting carreer.
I am sure that some of you are wondering why, after so long I would retire from wrestling and take up the equally demanding sport of fighting. For those of you who are not sure yet...fighting is a sport. Honestly, I am not sure 100% why I commited myself to this. It might have something to do with Rex Holman. If my memory serves correct...I had decided to do 1 fight, just to see if I liked it. Rex had all but decided he was going to give this a very serious shot. I remember calling him right after his first fight and he had this sound in his voice, I can't explain it, but I knew I had to fight.
So I started training with him and I loved it. I won my first fight and I loved it even more. I won my second fight and now I'm hooked. This is my new carreer. I am going to put everything that I have into this. I want to win every fight that I'm in and I want to climb to the top of the UFC. That is my goal...The light heavyweight Champion of the UFC.
I have surrounded myself with great people. Josh Williams for the technique aspect of it, Rex Holman for the balls out, I think I'm going to puke training, my brother Danny to help with the hard training, but also the mental support, and Detective Brian Keefe of the Columbus Police Dept. for the boxing. Most importantly, my wife Missy for keeping me on the straight and narrow with everything from training, to diet, to that unwavering support that I need.
So I envite everyone to follow me as I begin my climb to the top of the UFC and MMA world. If you won't follow my carreer, at least keep checking my website, because I will voice my honest opinion on topics other than fighting and wrestling. And, trust me....I have a lot to say.