Kenny Florian Interview!
Kenny "KenFlo" Florian has it made. He's done what so many of us dream of – giving up his day job to fight full-time in the UFC.
Florian, who graduated from Boston College with a communications degree, made the decision to dedicate his career to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu after a near death experience on a cliff in Brazil. His success can be attributed to his willingness to take risks to pursue his goals, as well as the hard work that comes with training and competition.
In addition to his wins in BJJ competition and the Octagon, Florian has served as an excellent ambassador for MMA, appearing on such shows as "The Dr. Keith Ablow Show" and PBS' "Greater Boston."
I spoke with Florian during a break from his training as he prepares to fight Dokonjonosuke Mishima on the UFC Ultimate Fight Night on SpikeTV on April 5.
When did you decide to dedicate yourself to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu full-time?
I had wanted to do it for a long time, but I had other responsibilities. Condo payments. All the other bills that come with everyday life. It wasn't feeling like a viable possibility to me. I couldn't drop my job and teach Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu for beans.
But one day in Brazil I fell off a cliff and almost died. I realized how fragile life is, and didn't want to have any regrets – like "could have" or "should have done that."
Honestly I would be lying if I said I thought I would make money fighting in the UFC. My original goal was that if I could wake up and put a gi on everyday, and make money at doing it, I'd be a pretty happy guy. My original goal was to teach jiu-jitsu – it helped me so much, I wanted to be able to do that for someone else.
When did you feel that you could make a career fighting MMA?
It wasn't until after "The Ultimate Fighter." It all happened so quickly – one day I was fighting Drew Fickett and Dana White was there, and asked me to be on the show. After "The Ultimate Fighter," I realized that despite fighting two classes above my natural weight, against guys with tons of MMA experience, I could do it, and decided to give it a shot. I always love a challenge.
Did you have any idea that "The Ultimate Fighter" would be such a success?
No. Before the show, I wasn't even very familiar with SpikeTV. But once we started to have drama in the house, with the whole concept of fighting against the guys that you're eating with and training with, I had a hunch it would be a hit.
Sure enough, it took off. I still get emails from people in places like Hong Kong and Croatia who are seeing the show for the first time, saying that I changed their lives!
Did you take a lesson from this experience – to take a chance on things even if the payoff isn't clear?
For sure. How many opportunities do you have to be on a reality show and go for a UFC contract? And train with people like Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell and all those other great fighters, and be on TV? We all need to take certain risks in life.
When the UFC first started, most of the fighters appeared to have day jobs. Is this still the case?
Now most people are training full-time. The money is better. The sponsorships are better. All of the fighters that I know are training full-time.
What kind of impact did your appearance on "The Ultimate Fighter" have on your ability to secure sponsorships?
It solidified the existing partnerships that I had and made them stronger. I got paid more from my existing sponsorships, and it created the opportunity for new ones.
What do people who haven't had the opportunity to appear on "The Ultimate Fighter" need to do to secure sponsors?
The main thing is getting your name out there by competing as much as possible. People want to see results. Sponsors want to see that you are the kind of person that fans will turn out to see fight, and the kind of person who promoters will choose to headline at tournaments. The only way is to build a good reputation and develop buzz about yourself.
But people do it in different ways. Some do it negatively by talking trash. Others do it by winning fights.
What are some of the good experiences that you have had thus far in dealing with the media?
One of the best was appearing on "The Dr. Keith Ablow Show." It was a really great experience. They weren't looking for a crazy angle, trying to see how crazy we are. They just wanted to see how we are, what motivates us to fight, and learn about our lifestyle. So that was a really positive experience.
What are some of the negative experiences that you have had in dealing with the media?
After "The Ultimate Fighter," I appeared on a television show as part of a panel where they were trying to cut down MMA and show how brutal and violent it was. But it backfired on them.
They had a boxing commissioner on there who was talking about the negative aspects of MMA. I knew who the guy was, and I pointed out that the same commission that oversees our UFC fights in Las Vegas oversees boxing as well. After that, he said he didn't know enough about MMA to comment any further.
The host tried to get me pissed off by saying the sport is homoerotic. I just said that if someone isn't educated about the sport, I can see how they'd say that, but MMA is like wrestling – it's a sport, and people have been doing it since before Christ. I did my best to stay composed and didn't get rattled.
There were some people, particularly around the time of the first season of "The Ultimate Fighter," who said that it was more lucrative for fighters to bypass the show – is there any truth to that?
Well, I still have another four fights on my contract. We didn't know how big the show was going to be, and signed long term contracts. Now we're the most visible fighters, outside of people like Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture. You live and learn. But the company has treated me very well. They give us bonuses and do other things to help us out.
Would you advise aspiring fighters to appear on the show?
Well, it's tough to say. I would just suggest that they stick to shorter-term contracts.
A long-term deal does not necessarily guarantee security. If you sign a long-term deal, they may still cut you, particularly if you lose a couple of fights. Your best bet is to sign a short-term contract – you need to be winning anyway, and then you can negotiate better deals as you go along.
Any final words for aspiring fighters?
The main thing is to expand your knowledge and seek the best training. Loyalty is great, but once it becomes blind loyalty, it can hurt you in the long run, especially if you don't expand your game.
If you're a Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu guy, and your jiu-jitsu instructor tells you to only train jiu-jitsu, you can't do that. You need to go out and train with the best boxers and wrestlers, as well as the best jiu-jitsu guys. If you want to be the best, you can't just train with white belts and think you're the best.
If that means you need to travel to another state, then do it. If you want to go for it, you need to jump it the water all the way and go underneath – you can't just put your toe in.
--
Florian, who graduated from Boston College with a communications degree, made the decision to dedicate his career to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu after a near death experience on a cliff in Brazil. His success can be attributed to his willingness to take risks to pursue his goals, as well as the hard work that comes with training and competition.
In addition to his wins in BJJ competition and the Octagon, Florian has served as an excellent ambassador for MMA, appearing on such shows as "The Dr. Keith Ablow Show" and PBS' "Greater Boston."
I spoke with Florian during a break from his training as he prepares to fight Dokonjonosuke Mishima on the UFC Ultimate Fight Night on SpikeTV on April 5.
When did you decide to dedicate yourself to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu full-time?
I had wanted to do it for a long time, but I had other responsibilities. Condo payments. All the other bills that come with everyday life. It wasn't feeling like a viable possibility to me. I couldn't drop my job and teach Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu for beans.
But one day in Brazil I fell off a cliff and almost died. I realized how fragile life is, and didn't want to have any regrets – like "could have" or "should have done that."
Honestly I would be lying if I said I thought I would make money fighting in the UFC. My original goal was that if I could wake up and put a gi on everyday, and make money at doing it, I'd be a pretty happy guy. My original goal was to teach jiu-jitsu – it helped me so much, I wanted to be able to do that for someone else.
When did you feel that you could make a career fighting MMA?
It wasn't until after "The Ultimate Fighter." It all happened so quickly – one day I was fighting Drew Fickett and Dana White was there, and asked me to be on the show. After "The Ultimate Fighter," I realized that despite fighting two classes above my natural weight, against guys with tons of MMA experience, I could do it, and decided to give it a shot. I always love a challenge.
Did you have any idea that "The Ultimate Fighter" would be such a success?
No. Before the show, I wasn't even very familiar with SpikeTV. But once we started to have drama in the house, with the whole concept of fighting against the guys that you're eating with and training with, I had a hunch it would be a hit.
Sure enough, it took off. I still get emails from people in places like Hong Kong and Croatia who are seeing the show for the first time, saying that I changed their lives!
Did you take a lesson from this experience – to take a chance on things even if the payoff isn't clear?
For sure. How many opportunities do you have to be on a reality show and go for a UFC contract? And train with people like Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell and all those other great fighters, and be on TV? We all need to take certain risks in life.
When the UFC first started, most of the fighters appeared to have day jobs. Is this still the case?
Now most people are training full-time. The money is better. The sponsorships are better. All of the fighters that I know are training full-time.
What kind of impact did your appearance on "The Ultimate Fighter" have on your ability to secure sponsorships?
It solidified the existing partnerships that I had and made them stronger. I got paid more from my existing sponsorships, and it created the opportunity for new ones.
What do people who haven't had the opportunity to appear on "The Ultimate Fighter" need to do to secure sponsors?
The main thing is getting your name out there by competing as much as possible. People want to see results. Sponsors want to see that you are the kind of person that fans will turn out to see fight, and the kind of person who promoters will choose to headline at tournaments. The only way is to build a good reputation and develop buzz about yourself.
But people do it in different ways. Some do it negatively by talking trash. Others do it by winning fights.
What are some of the good experiences that you have had thus far in dealing with the media?
One of the best was appearing on "The Dr. Keith Ablow Show." It was a really great experience. They weren't looking for a crazy angle, trying to see how crazy we are. They just wanted to see how we are, what motivates us to fight, and learn about our lifestyle. So that was a really positive experience.
What are some of the negative experiences that you have had in dealing with the media?
After "The Ultimate Fighter," I appeared on a television show as part of a panel where they were trying to cut down MMA and show how brutal and violent it was. But it backfired on them.
They had a boxing commissioner on there who was talking about the negative aspects of MMA. I knew who the guy was, and I pointed out that the same commission that oversees our UFC fights in Las Vegas oversees boxing as well. After that, he said he didn't know enough about MMA to comment any further.
The host tried to get me pissed off by saying the sport is homoerotic. I just said that if someone isn't educated about the sport, I can see how they'd say that, but MMA is like wrestling – it's a sport, and people have been doing it since before Christ. I did my best to stay composed and didn't get rattled.
There were some people, particularly around the time of the first season of "The Ultimate Fighter," who said that it was more lucrative for fighters to bypass the show – is there any truth to that?
Well, I still have another four fights on my contract. We didn't know how big the show was going to be, and signed long term contracts. Now we're the most visible fighters, outside of people like Chuck Liddell and Randy Couture. You live and learn. But the company has treated me very well. They give us bonuses and do other things to help us out.
Would you advise aspiring fighters to appear on the show?
Well, it's tough to say. I would just suggest that they stick to shorter-term contracts.
A long-term deal does not necessarily guarantee security. If you sign a long-term deal, they may still cut you, particularly if you lose a couple of fights. Your best bet is to sign a short-term contract – you need to be winning anyway, and then you can negotiate better deals as you go along.
Any final words for aspiring fighters?
The main thing is to expand your knowledge and seek the best training. Loyalty is great, but once it becomes blind loyalty, it can hurt you in the long run, especially if you don't expand your game.
If you're a Brazillian Jiu-Jitsu guy, and your jiu-jitsu instructor tells you to only train jiu-jitsu, you can't do that. You need to go out and train with the best boxers and wrestlers, as well as the best jiu-jitsu guys. If you want to be the best, you can't just train with white belts and think you're the best.
If that means you need to travel to another state, then do it. If you want to go for it, you need to jump it the water all the way and go underneath – you can't just put your toe in.
--
Kenny Florian would like to thank trainers: Keith Florian, Mark DellaGrotte, Kevin Kearns, and everyone at Sityodtong; as well as sponsors: Sprawl Fightshorts, Total Gym, Tourtellote Solutions, NHBGear.com, Shoyoroll Clothing, and Beyond Appraisals.
For more Kenny Florian info, check out his website and MySpace site
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