UFC 200 weigh-Ins, T-Mobile Arena, July 8, 2016
Gig viewed the weigh-ins with a member of the media in the upper level, which is where Gig saw the above “Go with GIG” advertisement in the concourse area. Cox Communications is the local cable television provider who also provides internet access and GIG refers to the download speed.
T-Mobile Arena notes:
T-Mobile Arena is a $375 million multi-use indoor arena on the Las Vegas Strip named by and for T-Mobile. Opened on April 6, 2016, the arena is a joint venture between MGM Resorts International and the Anschutz Entertainment Group (AEG). Beginning in the fall of 2017, it will serve as the home arena for a National Hockey League (NHL)expansion team. Who could have ever imagined that the first professional sports team in the Las Vegas desert would be an ice hockey team.
The owner of the team needed to demonstrate to the NHL that Las Vegas could support a hockey team by acquiring 10,000 season ticket deposits. The owner received over 14,000 and beat out Quebec, Canada in being awarded the next NHL expansion team. The arena seating capacity will be 17,368 for an NHL game, which means that with the additional tickets allocated to hotel casinos to distribute to high rollers, this may be the first time in history that an expansion team has sold out prior the the assembly of the team members and coaching staff, and before a name for the team has been chosen.
Lower level seats have retractable armrests. The upper level has an extreme pitch. Both levels have viewing tables which are great places to view events, particularly if your seats are towards the rear of either level. Gig has not yet been to the lounges/nightclubs at the top of the arena.
Gig considered attending the opening event at the T-Mobile Arena, with an homage to local Las Vegas music artists The Killers, Shamir and Wayne Newton, but Gig knew he would eventually see the inside of the building for the UFC events in July. Gig was also invited to attend the Garth Brooks concert on July 4, 2016 in Hyde Lounge from the top of the arena, but Gig waited too long to reply to the offer to be able to attend. Garth has a part time residency at the T-Mobile Arena so additional opportunities to attend may arise.
————————————————————————-
Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Pena, The Ultimate Fighter Season 23 Finale weigh-ins, T-Mobile Arena, July 7, 2016
Julianna Pena, UFC women’s bantamweight, ranked #5, 26 years old, 5’6″, 135 lbs, 8 wins 2 losses, the first woman to win The Ultimate Fighter.
Gig was originally seated at a viewing table in the lower level of the T-Mobile Arena to watch The Ultimate Fighter Season 23 Finale weigh-ins. He was then personally invited to go down to the floor to watch, but he initially declined the offer. Gig then recanted and accepted the offer, and went down to the floor, which is where he met Julianna, after the weigh-ins concluded.
Update: Julianna the #5 ranked UFC women’s bantamweight defeated by unanimous decision the #2 ranked UFC women’s bantamweight at UFC 200 on July 9, 2016 which was one of the biggest events in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) history. Julianna is now requesting a title fight against the new champion who won the title in the main event at UFC 200 on July 9, 2016
—————————————————————————
Marc Ratner, UFC Fight Night 90 weigh-Ins, T-Mobile Arena, July 6, 2016
Marc Ratner– the current Vice President of Regulatory Affairs with the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Formerly, he was the Executive Director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Ratner joined the Nevada Athletic Commission in 1985, He became the Chief Inspector of the Nevada Athletic Commission in 1987 and Executive Director in 1992. Ratner left the Nevada Athletic Commission and joined the UFC as its Vice President of Regulatory Affairs on May 15, 2006.
He is a member of the World Boxing Hall of Fame, and was inducted into the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame in 2012 as part of the organization’s inaugural class of inductees
Gig reminded Marc that the first time they met was when Gig discussed working with Marc as an Inspector for the Nevada State Athletic Commission. That would have been sometime between 2002-2004. The meeting was scheduled through the efforts of Joe Cortez, who used to work for Gig’s father for the New Jersey Boxing Commission.
—————————————————————————
Khalil “The Warhorse” Rountree, UFC Fight Night 90 weigh-Ins, T-Mobile Arena, July 6, 2016
Khalil Rountree, UFC light heavyweight, 26 years old, 6’1″, 205 lbs, 4 wins 1 loss.
After watching the first episode of The Ultimate Fighter Season 23, Gig selected Khalil as his favorite fighter and rooted for him to win the show. Unfortunately, Khalil lost a fight on the show which immediately eliminated him from the competition, However, another fighter that won his fight could not advance due to an injury and Khalil was selected out of 4 losing fighters to return to the competition. When Gig met Khalil he told him he was his favorite fighter and then asked what happened in his return semi-final fight but then immediately said, “No, don’t answer that”. Participants of reality competition television shows are not permitted to divulge the results of their show until after it has aired. Khalil said he fights (airs on television) tonight. Gig also told Khalil he has heavy hands to which Khalil thanked Gig. Heavy hands means, someone that hits hard with a lot of power. Also known as knock out power.
Gig assumed Khalil won his fight and would be participating in the finals in two days at the MGM Grand Garden Arena because 1- Khalil was at a public UFC event, 2- Khalil was in a very good mood, and 3- to Gig, Khalil appeared to be in fighting shape.
Update: Later that night Gig watched the show The Ultimate Fighter with an episode title “Fight of the Season” and saw that Khalil won his fight by TKO (technical knockout) in the first round and will indeed be fighting in the finale in Vegas in 2 days.
On July 8, 2016 at The Ultimate Fighter Season 23 Finale, Khalil lost his fight by unanimous decision, which made Khalil The Ultimate Fighter Season 23 light heavyweight runner-up.
—————————————————————————
—————————————————————————-
—————————————————————————-
Pictured to the far left
Ken Shamrock, former WWF http://www.wwe.com/ wrestler and mixed martial arts fighter, UFC Hall of Fame member, nicknamed the “The World’s Most Dangerous Man” International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2014, Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 8, 2014.
If Gig writes a book, he says that he may include a detail about his encounter with Ken Shamrock.
Pictured in the center
Vince Neil, musician and songwriter, lead singer of the rock group Motley Crue, International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2014, Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 8, 2014
—————————————————————————-
Gig has attended many sporting events including The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fights, and was backstage for UFC 167 November 16, 2013 where Gig watched fighter walk-ins to the arena for their fight, pre and post fight interviews, and observed the fighter holding areas.
Gig was a guest of The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and Ultimate Poker at the UFC 162 weigh-ins July 5, 2013 and had approximately a 1 in 50 chance of winning a Harley Davidson motorcycle.
——————————————————————–
Dana White, UFC President, UFC 162 press conference, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 4, 2013
When Gig asked Dana when the UFC was going to come to Madison Square Garden (which is in New York City) Dana groaned and said something about “corrupt politicians”. Gig thinks it actually has something to do with the owners of the UFC not allowing unions to form in their hotel casinos.
Although mixed martial arts (MMA) has been one of, if not the fastest growing sport in the USA and the world, MMA is currently not sanctioned in the State of New York.
—————————————————————————
Karyn Bryant, anchor and reporter for Fuel TV, host of MMA H.E.A.T. 2012 MMA Journalist of the Year nominee, UFC 162 press conference, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 4, 2013
Gig told Karyn that he believes she has done a lot for the sport and for women in particular. He shared with her that although he was in the New Jersey Hall of Fame for sports, his sister was a much better athlete than he was. When the topic changed to boxing Gig shared his family background and Karyn shared her background saying that she came from Showtime Championship Boxing. Gig congratulated her on her success and said that he would like to see more women in the industry and particularly in combat sports to which Karyn thanked him and agreed.
—————————————————————————-
Burt Watson, UFC fight coordinator, from Philadelphia, Pa., former boxing promoter and manager, and was the business manager from 1985-1995 for Hall of Fame boxer and former heavyweight boxing champion “Smokin” Joe Frazier http://www.joefrazier.com/, UFC 162 press conference, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 4, 2013
————————————————————————-
Alistair Overeem http://www.alistairovereem.com/, UFC heavyweight 6’5″ 260 lbs 31 yo, former Strikeforce heavyweight champion, Dream interim heavyweight champion and K-1 Kickboxing World Grand Prix Champion. The only fighter in combat sports to hold a world title in both MMA and K-1 kickboxing at the same time, International Consumer Electronics Show CES 2012, Las Vegas Convention Center, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 10, 2012
—————————————————————————–
Matt Mitrione, UFC heavyweight, was also on the TV show The Ultimate Fighter, 6’3″ 265 lbs 32 yo 4-0, Red Rock Hotel and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2011
—————————————————————————-
Phil “Mr. Wonderful” Davis, UFC light heavyweight, 6’2″ 205 lbs 26 yo 9-0, Boost Mobile, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2011
—————————————————————————–
Ariel Helwani, mixed martial arts (MMA) journalist, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2011
—————————————————————————
Matt “The Hammer” Hamill, UFC light heavyweight and was on the TV show The Ultimate Fighter, 6’1″ 205 lbs 34 yo 11-2. The only deaf fighter in the UFC. A movie based on his life entitled “Hamill” a winner of 6 Film Festival Awards to be released in 2011. Fighting in the UFC 130 main event tomorrow, MGM elevator, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2011
—————————————————————————
Chad “Money Maker” Mendes, UFC featherweight, 5’6″ 145 lbs 26 yo 10-0, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2011
—————————————————————————-
Roy “Big Country” Nelson http://roynelson.com/, UFC heavyweight, 6′ 263 lbs 34 yo 16-5, fighting in UFC 130 co-main event tomorrow, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2011
—————————————————————————-
Jon “Bones” Jones http://www.jonnybones.com/#1, UFC light heavyweight champion, Gig predicted he would be champion 2 years before it occurred, 6’4″ 205 lbs 23 yo 13-1, The Gun Store, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2011
—————————————————————————
Cody McKenzie, UFC lightweight, on TV show The Ultimate Fighter, 6′ 155 lbs 23 yo 12-1, The Gun Store, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2011
—————————————————————————
Randy “The Natural” & “Captain America” Couture , 6’1″ 205 lbs – 225 lbs 47 yo (June 22, 1963) 19-10, UFC Hall of Fame member, 5 time UFC champion (3 time heavyweight champion and 2 time light heavyweight champion, first of only 2 UFC champions to simultaneously hold titles in 2 weight classes, actor i.e. the movie series starting in (2010) with http://sylvesterstallone.com/, , , http://www.dolphlundgren.com/, , , http://www.schwarzenegger.com/, and , Affliction Clothing. A store employee said to Gig that she was frightened because the face off “looked so real”. Hard Rock Hotel, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 5, 2011
—————————————————————————
Tyson Griffin, UFC lightweight 5’6″ 155 lbs 26 yo 14-5, Krzysztof Soszynski http://www.imdb.com/name/nm3170830/, UFC light heavyweight 6’1″ 205 lbs 33 yo 21-11-1, Anthony Njokuani, UFC lightweight 6′ 155 lbs 30 yo 13-3, Las Vegas Fight Shop, The Fashion Show Mall, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 5, 2011
—————————————————————————
Paul “Tellys” Kelly, UFC lightweight, 5’9″ 155 lbs 26 yo 12-3, photo taken right before Paul went into the locker room for his fight that night against Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, Paul lost, UFC 126, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 5, 2011
—————————————————————————
Cain Velasquez, UFC heavyweight champion, 1st ever Mexican heavyweight fighting champion in any fighting sport MMA, kick boxing or boxing, Gig predicted Cain would be champion 2 years before it occurred, 6’1″ 240 lbs 29 yo 9-0, Cox cable, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 31, 2010
If Gig writes a book he will probably include a detail about Cain.
—————————————————————————-
Anthony “Showtime” Pettis, WEC lightweight champion, 5’10” 155 lbs 23 yo 11-1, UFC 125 weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 31, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Nick Diaz, Strikeforce welterweight champion, 6’1″ 170 lbs 27 yo 23-7-1, UFC 125 weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 31, 2010
—————————————————————————
Nate Diaz, UFC welterweight, 6′ 170 lbs 25 yo 13-5
At a future fight, Gig met with Nate after his fight while they were both still in the arena when Nate went into the stands where Gig was. The fans called out to Nate, cheered him and asked for photos. Gig told Nate that the fans love him, to which Nate responded with, “then why did they boo me at the weigh-ins yesterday?” Nate and his older brother Nick are very controversial fighters that evoke strong emotions from fans.
UFC 125 weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 31, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Mike Goldberg, UFC commentator, UFC 125 weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 31, 2010
—————————————————————————–
Jake Shields http://www.jakeshields.com/, UFC welterweight, 6′ 170 lbs 31 yo 26-4-1, UFC 125 weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 31, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Brad Tavares, UFC middleweight, 6’1″ 185 lbs 23 yo 5-1, UFC 125 weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 31, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Mike Brown, UFC lightweight and former WEC featherweight champion, 5’6″ 145 lbs 35 yo 24-6, UFC 125 weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 31, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Dana White, UFC President, UFC 125 press conference, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 29, 2010
——————————————————————————
Burt Watson, UFC fight coordinator, from Philadelphia, Pa., former boxing promoter and manager, and was the business manager from 1985-1995 for Hall of Fame boxer and former heavyweight boxing champion “Smokin” Joe Frazier http://www.joefrazier.com/, UFC 125 press conference, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 29, 2010
——————————————————————————
Frankie “The Answer” Edgar, UFC lightweight champion, from Toms River, New Jersey, 5’6″ 155 lbs 29 yo 13-1, UFC 125 press conference, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 29, 2010
Gig flew back on the same plane with Frankie from Newark Liberty International Airport in Newark, New Jersey to McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 14, 2011
—————————————————————————
Dong Hyun Kim “Stun Gun”, UFC welterweight, 6’1″ 170 lbs 29 yo 13-0-1, UFC 125 press conference, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 29, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Quinton “Rampage” Jackson http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1961693/, former UFC light heavyweight champion, actor in the movie The A Team, 6’1″ 205 lbs 32 yo 31-8, Town Square, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 11, 2010
Gig had an interesting exchange with Rampage and says that if he ever writes a book he may include the details.
—————————————————————————-
Gilbert “El Nino” Melendez, Strikeforce lightweight champion, 5’9″ 155 lbs 28 yo 18-2, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 3, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Gerald “Hurricane” Harris, UFC middleweight, 5’11” 185 lbs 30 yo 16-2, photo taken soon after his spectacular knock out win, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 3, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Bruce Buffer http://brucebuffer.com/, UFC ring announcer, the veteran voice of the UFC, catch phrase “It’s Time”, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————–
Jacob “Stitch” Duran http://stitchduran.com/wordtest/, cut man for boxing, kickboxing and mixed martial arts (MMA), UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————–
Marc Ratner, UFC VP of Regulatory Affairs and former Executive Director of The Nevada State Athletic Commission. Gig originally met Marc in 2003 to discuss working as an Inspector for the Nevada State Athletic Commission, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————–
Chris “Lights Out” Lytle, UFC welterweight, 5’11” 170 lbs 35 yo 38-17-4, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Court “The Crusher” McGee, The Ultimate Fighter season 11 middleweight winner, 5’11” 185 lbs 25 yo 11-1, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Dan Hardy, UFC welterweight, 6′ 170 lbs 28 yo 23-7-0 1 NC, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————–
Kendall “Da Spyder” Grove, UFC middleweight, 6’6″ 185 lbs 27 yo 13-7-0 1 NC, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Kenny Florian http://kennyflorian.com/, UFC lightweight, 5’10” 155 lbs 34 yo 15-4, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal, Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, 5’11” 205 lbs 29 yo 7-0, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————
Seth “The Silverback” Petruzelli, UFC light heavyweight, 6′ 205 lbs 30 yo 14-5, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Tom Lawlor, UFC middleweight, 6′ 185 lbs 27 yo 6-3-0 1 NC, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin post weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 2, 2010
—————————————————————————
Nate “Rock” Quarry, UFC middleweight, 6′ 185 lbs 38 yo 18-4, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin press conference, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 1, 2010
—————————————————————————
Left of Gig – UFC heavyweight champion Brock Lesnar’s training team in red
Right of Gig – Chris “The Crowbar” Tuchscherer, Jon Madsen and Robbie “Lawless” Lawler
Update: Robbie “Lawless” Lawler later went on to become the UFC welterweight champion.
UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010
—————————————————————————
Shane Carwin, UFC interim heavyweight champion, 6’2″ 265 lbs 35 yo 12-0, main event fight Saturday July 3, 2010 for Title, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010
—————————————————————————
Chris “The Crippler” Leben, UFC middleweight, 5’11” 185 lbs 29 yo 20-6, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010
—————————————————————————
Robbie “Lawless” Lawler, former UFC middleweight and EliteXC middleweight champion, current Strikeforce middleweight, 5’11” 184 lbs 28 yo 19-6, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010
Update: Robbie “Lawless” Lawler later went on to become the UFC welterweight champion.
—————————————————————————
Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub, UFC heavyweight, 6’4″ 245 lbs 27 yo 6-1, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Stephan “American Psycho” Bonnar, 6’4″ 205 lbs 33 yo 14-7, UFC light heavyweight, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010. On November, 20, 2015 Gig saw Stephan at his gym and asked if he was still fighting to which Stephan responded with, “No, I’m 38 now and it isn’t fun anymore.”
—————————————————————————
Krzysztof “The Polish Experiment” Soszynski, UFC light heavyweight 6’1″ 205 lbs 32 yo 20-10-1, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010
—————————————————————————
Jon Madsen, UFC heavyweight, 6′ 245 lbs 30 yo 5-0, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Chris “The Crowbar” Tuchscherer, UFC heavyweight, 6’1″ 260 lbs 34 yo 18-2-0 1 NC, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Caol Uno, former UFC lightweight, 5’7″ 155 lbs 35 yo 27-13-5, UFC 116 Lesnar vs Carwin workouts, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 30, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Anderson Silva http://spidersilva.com/, UFC middleweight champion, arguably the best pound for pound MMA fighter in the world and the most popular athlete in Brazil since the soccer player Pele, 6’2″ 185 lbs 35 yo 26-4, Las Vegas Fight Shop, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 30, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Chael Sonnen, UFC middleweight & Oregon State Representative (Republican) primaries winner, Chael fights Anderson Silva for the UFC middleweight championship in 68 days, 6’1″ 185 lbs 33 yo 26-10-1, UFC 114 Evans vs Jackson, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 29, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal, Strikeforce light heavyweight champion, 5’11” 205 lbs 29 yo 7-0, UFC 114 Evans vs Jackson, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 29, 2010
—————————————————————————
Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort, UFC middleweight, former UFC light heavyweight champion as well as UFC 12 heavyweight tournament champion, 6′ 195 lbs 33 yo 19-8, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Mike Goldberg, UFC commentator, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————–
Herb Dean http://herbdean.com/, arguably the best MMA referee, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Mark Coleman, UFC Hall of Fame member, former UFC and Pride heavyweight champion, 6’1″ 205 lbs 45 yo 16-10, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Lyoto “The Dragon” Machida, former UFC light heavyweight champion, arguably one of the best pound for pound MMA fighters in the world, 6’1″ 205 lbs 31 yo 16-1, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Bas Rutten, former UFC heavyweight champion and Pride commentator, current host of the TV show Inside MMA, 6’1″ 205 lbs 45 yo 28-4-1, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
DeMarques “Darkness” Johnson, UFC welterweight and The Ultimate Fighter cast member, 6’1″ 170 lbs 27 yo 16-7, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Clayton “Money Shot” McKinney, The Ultimate Fighter season 11 middleweight cast member, 6’2″ 174 lbs 27 yo 4-2, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Nate “Rock” Quarry, UFC middleweight, 6′ 185 lbs 38 yo 18-4, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Jon Fitch, UFC welterweight, 6′ 170 lbs 32 yo 25-3-0 1 NC, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Kit Cope, 4 time Muay Thai World Champion, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Justin Wren, The Ultimate Fighter season 10 heavyweight, 6’3″ 251 lbs 22 yo 10-1, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Manny “The Anvil” Gamburyan, WEC featherweight, 5’5″ 145 lbs 29 yo 13-5, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
————————————————————————–
Jose “Junior” Aldo Jr., WEC featherweight champion, World MMA 2010 Fighter of The Year, 5’7″ 145 lbs 23 yo 17-1, arguably the best pound for pound MMA fighter in the world, Gig believes he is, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Joe Henle, The Ultimate Fighter season 11 middleweight cast member, 26 yo 3-0, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
————————————————————————
Wes Sims, The Ultimate Fighter season 10 heavyweight cast member, 6’8″ 258 lbs 30 yo 22-13-1 2 NC, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Minotauro “Big Nog” Nogueira, former UFC and Pride heavyweight champion, current UFC heavyweight, 6’3″ 240 lbs 33 yo 32-6-1 1 NC, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
————————————————————————-
Stephan “American Psycho” Bonnar, UFC light heavyweight, 6’4″ 205 lbs 33 yo 14-7, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010. On November, 20, 2015 Gig saw Stephan at his gym and asked if he was still fighting to which Stephan responded with, “No, I’m 38 now and it isn’t fun anymore.”
—————————————————————————-
Ross “The Real Deal” Pearson, The Ultimate Fighter season 9 winner, UFC lightweight, 5’8″ 155 lbs 25 yo 13-3, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Leonard “Bad Boy” Garcia, WEC lightweight, 5’10” 145 lbs 30 yo 18-5-1 and Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, WEC lightweight, 6′ 155 lbs 27 yo 11-3-0 1 NC, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Krzysztof “The Polish Experiment” Soszynski, UFC light heavyweight, 6’1″ 205 lbs 32 yo 20-10-1, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Junior “Cigano” Dos Santos, UFC heavyweight, 6’4″ 238 lbs 26 yo 11-1, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Junior “Cigano” Dos Santos, UFC heavyweight, 6’4″ 238 lbs 26 yo 11-1 & Minotauro “Big Nog” Nogueira, former UFC and Pride heavyweight champion, current UFC heavyweight, 6’3″ 240 lbs 33 yo 32-6-1 1 NC, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Jens “Little Evil” Pulver http://www.jenspulver.com/, former UFC lightweight champion, current WEC featherweight, 5’7″ 145 lbs 35 yo 22-13-1, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Miguel Angel Torres, WEC featherweight, 5’9″ 135 lbs 29 yo 36-3, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Gray “The Bully” Maynard, UFC lightweight, 5’8″ 155 lbs 31 yo 10-0-0 1 NC, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Thiago “Pitbull” Alves, UFC welterweight, 5’9″ 170 lbs 26 yo 22-5, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Din “The Dominator” Thomas, former UFC lightweight, 5’10” 145 lbs 33 yo 25-8, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy, UFC welterweight, 6′ 170 lbs 28 yo 23-7-0 1 NC, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Matt “The Terror” Serra, former UFC welterweight champion, 5’6″ 170 lbs 35 yo 17-6, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————
Dan “The Outlaw” Hardy, UFC welterweight, 6′ 170 lbs 28 yo 23-7-0 1 NC, & Matt “The Terror” Serra, former UFC welterweight champion, 5’6″ 170 lbs 35 yo 17-6, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 28, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Anderson “The Spider” Silva http://spidersilva.com/, UFC middleweight champion, arguably the best pound for pound MMA fighter in the world and the most popular athlete in Brazil since the soccer player Pele, 6’2″ 185 lbs 35 yo 26-4, Las Vegas Fight Shop, Fashion Show Mall, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2010
—————————————————————————
Cain Velasquez, UFC heavyweight, 6’1″ 240 lbs 27 yo 8-0, LX Fight Shop, Luxor, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2010
If Gig writes a book he will probably include a detail about Cain.
—————————————————————————-
Jake Shields http://www.jakeshields.com/, Strikeforce middleweight champion, currently negotiating a move to the UFC, 5’11” 185 lbs 31 yo 25-4-1, Luxor, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Jamie “The Chosyn 1” Yager, The Ultimate Fighter season 11 middleweight cast member, 6’1″ 185 lbs 26 yo 2-1, LX Fight Shop, Luxor, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2010
—————————————————————————
Josh “Kos” Koscheck http://www.kosmma.com/, UFC welterweight, 5’10” 170 lbs 32 yo 17-4, LX Fight Shop, Luxor, Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Jenna Jameson http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0001398/ & Tito “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Ortiz http://www.titoortiz.com/, longest reigning and former UFC light heavyweight champion and owner of Punishment Clothing, 6’3″ 205 lbs 35 yo 16-7-1, UFC 109 Q&A and weigh-ins, Punishment Clothing Store, Hooters, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 5, 2010
—————————————————————————
Urijah “The California Kid” Faber, former WEC featherweight champion, 5’6″ 145 lbs 30 yo 23-3, UFC Q&A and weigh-ins, House of Blues, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 5, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Mike “Quick” Swick, UFC welterweight, 6’1″ 170 lbs 30 yo 14-3, UFC 109 Q&A and weigh-ins, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 5, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Jon “Bones” Jones http://www.jonnybones.com/#1, UFC light heavyweight, Gig predicted Jon would be champion 2 years before it occurred, 6’4″ 205 lbs 22 yo 9-1, UFC 109 Q&A and weigh-ins, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 5, 2010
—————————————————————————
Josh “Kos” Koscheck http://www.kosmma.com/, UFC welterweight and The Ultimate Fighter season 1 middleweight, 5’10” 170 lbs 32 yo 16-4, UFC 109 Q&A and weigh-ins, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 5, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Don House, boxing and mixed martial arts (MMA) cut man, UFC 109 Q&A and weigh-ins, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, February 5, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Georges “Rush” St- Pierre http://www.gspofficial.com/, UFC welterweight champion, arguably the best pound for pound MMA fighter in the world, 5’11” 170 lbs 28 yo 19-2, UFC 108, Affliction, Hard Rock, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 2, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Randy “The Natural” Couture http://www.randycouture.tv/, UFC Hall of Fame member and former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion, 6’2″ 205 lbs 46 yo 17-10, Hollywood action series actor such as the movie series The Expendables with Sylvester Stallone http://sylvesterstallone.com/, UFC 108, Affliction, Hard Rock, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 2, 2010
—————————————————————————
Joe “Daddy” Stevenson http://www.joestevenson.com/, The Ultimate Fighter season 2 lightweight winner UFC lightweight, 5’7″ 155 lbs 27 yo 36-10, UFC 108, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 2, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Chris “The Polish Hammer” Horodecki, WEC lightweight, 5’8″ 155 lbs 22 yo 13-2, UFC 108, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 2, 2010
—————————————————————————
Joe Rogan http://joerogan.net/, UFC commentator, Fear Factor TV show host, News Radio TV show actor, stand up comic performing at The House of Blues, Mandalay Bay, 42 yo, UFC 108, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 1, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Forrest Griffin, former UFC light heavyweight champion and The Ultimate Fighter season 1 light heavyweight winner, 6’3″ 205 lbs 30 yo 17-6, Joe Rogan’s comedy show at The House of Blues, Mandalay Bay, UFC 108, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 1, 2010. Years later Gig and Forrest worked out at the same gym.
—————————————————————————
Joe “J-Lau” Lauzon http://www.joelauzon.com/, UFC lightweight, 5’10’ 155 lbs 25 yo 17-4, fighting tomorrow on UFC 108 card with his brother, The House of Blues, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 1, 2010
—————————————————————————
THE STARE DOWN, Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva, former Pride MMA middleweight champion and current UFC light heavyweight and middleweight, 5’11” 205 lbs 33 yo 32-10-1-1 NC, UFC 108 Q&A with Wanderlei Silva and weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 1, 2010
—————————————————————————
Anthony “Rumble” Johnson, UFC welterweight, 6’2″ 170 lbs 25 yo 8-3, UFC 108 Q&A with Wanderlei Silva and weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 1, 2010
—————————————————————————-
Marc Ratner, UFC VP of Regulatory Affairs and former Executive Director of The Nevada State Athletic Commission. Gig originally met Marc in 2003 to discuss working as an Inspector for the Nevada State Athletic Commission. UFC 108 Q&A with Wanderlei Silva and weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 1, 2010
—————————————————————————–
Mike Goldberg, UFC commentator 45 yo, his first day taking pictures with eye glasses, UFC 108 Q&A with Wanderlei Silva and weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 1, 2010
—————————————————————————–
Bruce Buffer http://brucebuffer.com/, UFC ring announcer, the veteran voice of the UFC, catch phrase “It’s Time”, UFC 108 Q&A with Wanderlei Silva and weigh-ins, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, January 1, 2010
—————————————————————————–
Dana White, UFC President, 40 yo July 28, 1969, UFC 108 media event, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 29, 2009
—————————————————————————–
“Suga” Rashad Evans, former UFC light heavyweight champion and The Ultimate Fighter season 2 heavyweight winner, 5’11” 205 lbs 30 yo 18-1-1, UFC 108 media event, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 29, 2009
—————————————————————————
Dustin Hezelett, UFC welterweight, 6’1″ 170 lbs 23 yo 14-4, UFC 108 media event, MGM, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 29, 2009
—————————————————————————
Ben “Smooth” Henderson, WEC interim lightweight champion, 5’9″ 155 lbs 26 yo 10-1, WEC Pearl at The Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 19, 2009
—————————————————————————-
Alex Karalexis, UFC lightweight, 5’8″ 155 lbs 32 yo 10-4, WEC Pearl at The Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 19, 2009
—————————————————————————
Sky Skrape (Tim Katz), one of the owners of Tapout Clothing, WEC Pearl at The Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 19, 2009
—————————————————————————-
Roy “Big Country” Nelson http://roynelson.com/, The Ultimate Fighter season 10 heavyweight winner and former IFL heavyweight champion, 6′ 263 lbs 33 yo 14-4, won fight the following night winning The Ultimate Fighter season 10 Heavyweights vs Brendan Schaub 5-0, weigh-ins, Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 4, 2009
—————————————————————————-
Brendan “The Hybrid” Schaub, The Ultimate Fighter season 10 heavyweight finalist and former arena football player and NFL practice squad member with the Buffalo Bill’s, 6’4″ 240 lbs 26 yo 5-0, lost fight the following night vs Roy “Big Country” Nelson, weigh-ins, Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 4, 2009
—————————————————————————
Frankie “The Answer” Edgar http://www.frankieedgar.com/ from Toms River, New Jersey, UFC lightweight, 5’6″ 155 lbs 28 yo 10-1, won fight the following night vs undefeated Matt Veach 11-0, weigh-ins, Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 4, 2009
—————————————————————————
Houston “The Assassin” Alexander, UFC light heavyweight, 6′ 208 lbs 37 yo 9-4-1, lost fight the following night vs The Ultimate Fighter season 10 Heavyweight Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson, 3-1, weigh-ins, Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 4, 2009
—————————————————————————
Marcus “Big Baby” Jones, The Ultimate Fighter season 10 heavyweight and former NFL defensive end for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for 7 Years, 6’6″ 262 lbs 36 yo 4-2, lost fight the following night vs Matt Mitrione 0-0, Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 4, 2009
—————————————————————————
Matt Mitrione, The Ultimate Fighter season 10 heavyweight and NFL player for 6 Years with the NY Giants and Minnesota Vikings, 6’3″ 255 lbs 31 yo 0-0, won fight the following night vs Marcus “Big Baby” Jones 4-2, weigh-ins, Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 4, 2009
—————————————————————————-
Jacob “Stitch” Duran http://stitchduran.com/wordtest/, cut man for boxing, kickboxing and mixed martial arts (MMA) and another cut man Leon Tabbs, Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 4, 2009
—————————————————————————
James “The Hammer” McSweeney, The Ultimate Fighter season 10 Heavyweight, 6’4″ 235 lbs 28 yo 12-5, won fight the following night vs undefeated The Ultimate Fighter season 10 heavyweight Darrill Schoonover 10-0, Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 4, 2009
—————————————————————————
Justin Wren, The Ultimate Fighter season 10 heavyweight, 6’3″ 251 lbs 22 yo 10-1, lost fight the following night vs Jon Madsen, weigh-ins, Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, December 4, 2009
—————————————————————————-
Bruce Buffer http://brucebuffer.com/, UFC ring announcer, the veteran voice of the UFC, catch phrase “It’s Time”, UFC 106, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 20, 2009
—————————————————————————-
Mike Brown , former WEC featherweight champion, he just lost his title 3 days earlier, 5’6″ 145 lbs 34 yo 22-5, UFC 106, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 21, 2009
—————————————————————————
Dustin Hazelett, UFC welterweight, 6’1″ 170 lbs 23 yo 14-4, UFC 106, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 21, 2009
—————————————————————————
Frank Mir, former UFC heavyweight champion, 6’3″ 265 lbs 30 yo 12-4, Gig later became friends with his Publicist, K-Mart, UFC 106, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 20, 2009
—————————————————————————
Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva, former Pride MMA middleweight champion and current UFC light heavyweight and middleweight, 5’11” 195 lbs 32 yo 32-10-1-1 NC, UFC 106, K-Mart, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 19, 2009
—————————————————————————
Clay “The Carpenter” Guida, former Strikeforce lightweight champion and current UFC lightweight, 5’7″ 155 lbs 27 yo 25-7, Pearl at The Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 18, 2009
—————————————————————————
Jamie Varner, WEC lightweight champion, 5’8″ 155 lbs 25 yo 16-2-2, WEC, Pearl at The Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 17, 2009
—————————————————————————
Brian Bowles, WEC bantamweight champion, 5’7″ 135 lbs 29 yo 8-0, WEC, Pearl at The Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 17, 2009
—————————————————————
Ed Ratcliff, WEC lightweight title challenger, 5’10” 155 lbs 26 yo 7-1, WEC, Pearl at The Palms, Las Vegas, Nevada, November 17, 2009
———————————————————————-
Diego “The Nightmare” Sanchez, UFC The Ultimate Fighter season 1 middleweight (185 lbs) winner and current UFC lightweight title challenger, 5’11” 155 lbs 27 yo 23-2, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 11, 2009
————————————————————————
Forrest Griffin, former UFC light heavyweight champion and The Ultimate Fighter season 1 light heavyweight winner, 6’3″ 205 lbs 30 yo 16-5, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 11, 2009. Years later Forrest and Gig worked out at the same gym.
—————————————————————————
John Hackleman, trainer and best friend of Chuck Liddell UFC Hall of Fame member and former UFC light heavyweight champion, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 11, 2009
————————————————————————-
Jason “The Athlete” Macdonald, former UFC middleweight, 6’3″ 185 lbs 34 yo, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 11, 2009
——————————————————————-
Keith “The Dean of Mean” Jardine, UFC light heavyweight title challenger, 6’3″ 205 lbs 33 yo 14-7-1, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 10, 2009
———————————————————————
Clay “The Carpenter” Guida, former Strikeforce lightweight champion and current UFC lightweight, 5’7″ 155 lbs 27 yo 25-7, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 10, 2009
—————————————————————————
Gray “The Bully” Maynard, UFC lightweight, 5’8″ 155 lbs 30 yo 9-0-0-1 NC, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 10, 2009
————————————————————————
Pete Sell, UFC welterweight, 5’11” 180 lbs 26 yo, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 10, 2009
—————————————————————————
Gabriel “Napao” Gonzaga, UFC heavyweight title challenger, 6’1″ 242 lbs 30 yo 11-4, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 10, 2009
——————————————————————–
Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, WEC lightweight title challenger, 6′ 155 lbs 26 yo 10-1-1 NC, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 10, 2009
——————————————————————–
Paul Kelly, UFC lightweight, 5’9″ 155 lbs 24 yo 10-2, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 10, 2009
———————————————————————–
Shonie “Mr International” Carter, The Ultimate Fighter season 4 “The Comeback” welterweight, former holder of 12 national and international titles, self proclaimed “best dressed man in the sport”, 5’9″ 170 lbs 37 yo 66-13-7, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 10, 2009
——————————————————————–
Kevin “The Monster” Randleman, former UFC heavyweight champion and former Pride heavyweight and light heavyweight, 5’10” 205 lbs 38 yo 17-13, Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, July 10, 2009
———————————————————————-
Wanderlei “The Axe Murderer” Silva, former Pride MMA middleweight champion and current UFC light heavyweight and middleweight, 5’11” 195 lbs 32 yo 32-10-1-1 NC
This 2 shot may have aired live on ESPN TV. The ESPN cameraman asked Gig to stand with Wanderlei so he could film it. Gig stood with Wanderlei for quite a long time while the cameraman aimed his camera. Gig thought he was filming the entire time. But just as Gig tired of posing and started to walk away he noticed that the red light on the ESPN camera came on.
Fight Night Boxing and MMA, Thomas & Mack, Las Vegas, Nevada, June 20, 2008
———————————————————————————————————
resume writer.