John Gooden

Presenter. Commentator. Writer. Producer

John Gooden is an international presenter, sports commentator, voice over artist and writer

Filtering by Tag: combat sports

My lasting sentiments from Vegas

mgm It’s funny what some people’s take away are from historic events. I decided to write this sat in the MGM Grand in a fairly open spot to observe all the people recovering from the monumental week that peaked with UFC 194. There are a lot of glazed eyes, lazy feet and hoarse voices. Even on Monday afternoon, there are suited men with green, white and orange cloaks.

I originally thought I’d write this post as a bit of a fight week report, but as I recount the events of the week my hangover is being surpassed by high levels of adrenaline as I recognise and process the unbelievable achievements of my employers, Luke Rockhold and Conor McGregor. Dreams, hard work, smart work and ambition are prevalent in my assessment of the week that has been.

Mixed martial arts is still comparably young to ‘big sports’ and the UFC are the trailblazers. They continue to push boundaries and make huge gains on their mainstream cousins. I work with a lot of these people and I see, first hand, the effort they put in and the results. In fact as a presenter, commentator I see my role as a lucky representative of the many people behind the scenes and a secondary voice for the fighters. If I make errors, I haven’t delivered something that others have worked on for probably a significant time. If a fighter confides in me and I misrepresent their story, I have failed them. For me it’s so much more than calling a 1-2, single leg takedown, pass to side control sequence. I write this because attending as a spectator this week, I took time to watch others at work, considering their styles, pressures and success. I saw the stress, the joy, the effort and the scale of the operation. I have been inspired, I have taken notes and I’m excited to get back in the foxes dojo (my office) to start complimenting these efforts.

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A little about the three events then: After hanging out in a few bars and clubs (for purely research purposes) it quickly became apparent that I was in the company with not necessarily UFC fans, but Conor McGregor fans. It was a little bit like going to a local MMA show- people there probably don’t even know what the event is called, but they are there to support a friend or family member. My hopes in such situations is that they are drawn into our beautiful sport and invest in other athletes. A small side note, a benefactor of the McGregor effect was clearly Uriah Faber. I’ve been a fan of his since his WEC days. I’ve loved his ‘Californian ways’, business acumen and “Hi Mom” shout-out before his introductions (not to mention his fighting ability). The Irish fans like him as he was Conor’s friendly foe on The Ultimate Fighter. Correction, it wasn’t the Irish fans, it was the McGregor fans. They are made up of many different nationalities. I was with a couple of Geordies and also some Americans who were mad about The Notorious one and now Faber.

194 billboard

I am a neutral and I maintain that the best man or woman must win regardless of allegiances. However, it’s no secret that Conor’s success will benefit the European region. In the short term, it will probably cost Dan and I a show as when Conor returns to Ireland, it will of course be a PPV event. (One day, Dan, we will be Octagonside on a hallowed ‘numbered’ event!!).

It has been a pleasure to watch his rise. I wrote an article about this for UFC.com (http://www.ufc.com/news/UFC-194-Aldo-McGregor-conor-championship-mindset). For a fella that hasn’t picked up a degree in communications, Conor really knows how to deliver a message. I’m fascinated to know what his reading list has been over the last 10 years. He has inspired me both professionally and also athletically. Why should we settle with mediocre goals? And in terms of training, I was once told to stick to one thing, not diversify as it will have negative effects on my goals. They were wrong and I’m now enjoying a much more open relationship with my jiu jitsu and MMA!

Shortly, I will leave the desert with another planeload of McGregor fans and Vegas will miss them. Sure, the MGM Grand security staff will sleep well after a week of over time, but the soundtrack of the Irish fans was epic. Their colourful presence was seen up and down the huge strip. They have spent their hard earned on the gambling tables, in the bars and apparently at the mobility scooter hire centre (watching fans race round red perimeter carpets of the MGM like sin city Mario Karts was pure comedy gold). Their stamina for fight week was ridiculous- they most certainly out-worked any of my respective capabilities!

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To sign off, I must salute all those involved in this unbelievable fight week. Well done to all the fighters and teams who were involved. Finally, congratulations to Luke Rockhold and Conor McGregor. They deserve all the plaudits they receive. The history have been rewritten.

Cageside Podcast Special - Rosi Sexton

In the second edition of the Cageside podcast I speak with Rosi Sexton, who learned that her tournament final opponent, Shiela Gaff has been forced to withdraw from the contest.Any conversation with Rosi is always fascinating and in this podcast she speaks about performance enhancing drugs, the testing processes, her feelings about rescheduling a fight with Gaff, fight camp sacrifices and the future.

I must thank Rosi for her time and I hope this podcast helps spread awareness about PEDs and how the sport can move forward in ridding their usage.

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Cageside Podcast - Episode 1 Shock n Awe XII

[wpvideo qXMnVLva] Well has taken about 15 attempts through various different means to get this out, but we're finally there.  Apologies to the guys who featured and were waiting ton hear it back and to Shock n Awe as it would've complimented the show's build up.  However, the wider idea of this podcast is to bring you live recordings of fighters, coaches, referees, promoters and many other interesting people from the world of mixed martial arts, so all is still relevant.  Episode 1 focuses around top UK show Shock n Awe and welcomes Addicted MMA's Ben Farrelly (1-33), promoter and coach Brian Adams (33-1.04) along with fighters Phil Else (1.04-1.33), Luke 'El Nino' Dalmedo (1.33-1.51) and Alexei 'Boom' Roberts (1.51-2.3).

Ben speaks about Addicted MMA and his take on the SnA card

Brian Adams talk frankly about the South coast scene, Phil Harris at the UFC and his motivation behind SnA

Phil Else gives a very honest account of his worrying injury and how he has prepared for SnA

Luke Dalmedo talks us through his training and his regrets about the aftermath of the Callum Jones fight

Alexei will entertain you with his fine way with words, his confidence and his admiration for his coach. Enjoy and let me know your thoughts Thanks, John

#cwfc48

The posterThis show was going to be different for me and for the viewers, as a new production company was responsible for the broadcast.  As presenter and commentator, I can’t deny that I was a little nervous, after all producers have their own ideas and I needed to make sure I met expectations.  Those nerves however quickly turned to excitement as the new producer, Ian, went out of his way to communicate with me his new vision and way of delivering the show.  Couple this with the new Cage Warriors roaming team of Brad Wharton and Tommy Lakes and this show was set to be stacked with the usual action…and lots more! Whilst preparing research I had also managed to help my good friend and coach, Max (Denniston Sutherland) get onto the Cage Warriors bill.  How cool would this be; commentating one of your coach’s fights? I was to later learn it can also make you feel quite sick! check out my interview with Max http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s5VxF7Rzg_o

On the Saturday I felt unusually relaxed before a CW show.  This was surprising given the new dynamics etc, but I was happy for it.  Being too nervous is energy sapping and when the main event is after 10pm, there’s no room for slacking!  I had managed to get hold of most of the fighters and I particularly enjoyed new introductions like Hardiman, Pariente and Danny Roberts…he signs off his emails Hot Choc- gotta love that!  I’ve had quite a few conversations this year about getting across the individual fighter’s message and building characters.  I heard an interview with the WWE’s Jim Ross which spoke about how they managed to become mainstream and a lot is spoken about entertainment.  When you add to this the real people behind the fighter, Joe Public can relate, follow and support.  Cage Warriors recognise this and are trying to get this across.  I think Kris Edwards is a really good example of someone with bags of talent and potential, but also is a young dad working a shift job trying to realise his dream.  Some will relate to that and those that perhaps don’t can respect that.

There was definitely an air of anticipation around CWFC48.  The fight card was top drawer (of course), it was a remarkable anniversary celebration and a new production team.  It made you feel like something really big was about to happen.  I had selected an appropriate bow tie and jacket, so all that as left was provide informative commentary!  After a quick interview with Brad and Tommy it was time to go to work.  It was a great show and although we had pretty significant technical problems the show looked great.  Oh the joys of live TV!  I managed to hold it together for Max’s fight (just) although I lost a pen whilst flailing my arms and also frightened a cameraman (yes I did, I can be scary y’know…in an unpredictable rather than intimidating sort of way).  It was a really good experience working with a new crew and I look forward to getting to know them better in the future.

Now here’s something properly significant… #cwfc48 was the top trend in the UK! Above the UFC!! On a Saturday!!! This is such good news for the sport, let alone the organisation.  Its evidence that the sport is growing and that UK MMA is in some way moving in the right direction.  Certainly in terms of physical promotion and establishing media links, we are ticking a lot of the boxes.  I reserve judgement about the way some shows go about their promotion, but that’s an aside to the point.  MMA is out there, being watched, heard and read.  Now it’s there, we need to make sure its positive, coherent and representing positively.

Keep stopping by over the next month as I’m hoping to bring some new stuff to this blog including more videos and my new injury blog which will detail my journey back to fitness using an American technique advocated by the awesome, Rener Gracie.

Photos by me and Dolly Clew.  Poster from Cage Warriors.  Check out the following clips from Brad and Tommy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21yZESCplgg&feature=relmfu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vfrnf9W36Ow&feature=relmfu

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2zvdyrCWg0&feature=relmfu