Interview: JOE talks to bantamweight contender Brad ‘One Punch’ Pickett

JOE spoke to UFC bantamweight contender and fan favourite Brad Pickett as he prepared for UFC: Nottingham.

By Fergus Ryan

UFC on Fuel TV 5 or UFC: Nottingham is still a little under two months away for the fans but preparation has begun for the fighters. JOE spoke to UFC bantamweight contender, Brad Pickett as he waited for his plane in Heathrow Airport.

He may not have won The Ultimate Fighter (TUF) like Michael Bisping and Ross Pearson, or fought for a UFC title like Dan Hardy but Brad Pickett has been near the top his weight class for as long as he’s been fighting. His move to bantamweight coincided with joining Zuffa and fighting in the big show. Since then he has gone 4-2 in the WEC/UFC (21-6 for his career) holding notable victories over Demetrious Johnson, Ivan Menjivar and Damacio Page.

MMA Nomad

Pickett is one of the most dedicated fighters around. While he has 2 championship belts (Cage Rage and Ultimate Challenge MMA) and 3 ‘Fight of the Night’ bonuses from Zuffa, he has not complicated his civilian life with material trappings. He doesn’t own a car or a house and ploughs everything he earns back into his fighting life. In addition to training there’s travel expense as well. Pickett splits his time between the UK and the US.

"My day-to-day life is in the UK, obviously I live here when I'm not training for a fight. I'm a professional athlete so I keep myself in good shape all year 'round with Team Titan, I'm always training. With about 8 to 10 weeks left before a fight I head over to the State to American Top Team to finish off my training and get ready for the fight."

Given Pickett’s busy schedule this means he has spent about half of the last 3 years paying rent and training in the US.

Photocredit: bradz2000

Pickett affectionately refers to his style of fighting as ‘man-beasting’. While the name might seem crude the above YouTube clip shows how complete and well rounded a fighter Pickett is.

One Punch’s #1 fan - Dana White

After being highly critical of his own performance against Renan Barao at UFC 138, Pickett received praise from the brass at the UFC and was assured from a job security point of view that he had nothing to worry about. After Pickett won at UFC: Sweden, White gushed over ‘One Punch’ - “I love Brad Pickett’s personality, I love his style, I love the way the guy fights, I love the way the guy carries himself. I’m a Pickett fan,” White told Telegraph sport.

The praise is not lost on Pickett but he appreciates he is still has to keep impressing the boss - "Dana White's my boss so obviously I'm trying to keep him happy. It's great when you hear that he's saying good things about you and that gives me an extra incentive to try harder and do better. We do talk sometimes but he doesn't communicate directly with me to tell me I'm doing a good job. There's no league table, so you don't you know where you’re at in the division but it's cool that he's a fan."

Having committed his life to date to the fight game, it doesn’t seem much will change for Pickett when he hangs up the gloves. During the press conference at UFC: Sweden, Pickett’s name was being tossed about as a possible coach for the upcoming TUF Smashes. “100%, I would have loved to have been a coach on TUF and I think I would have been a good coach too. I see that (coaching) as the natural progression for my career, to coach some up and comers. Maybe one of the problems was there is no Australian signed (to the UFC) in my weight division.”

Turning attention to his next opponent at UFC: Nottingham, Pickett remains focused on what he can control regarding his preparation. “Every fight I try to make myself a better fighter. Whether I have a fight or not I’m trying to improve all year ‘round. Recently, I’ve been to some pad work with one of David Haye’s coaches called Gary Logan, but that’s not because I want to stay standing with Yves Jabouin, I just want to get better.”

Still that fighter

Pickett is one of the most humble and welcoming people you could meet in MMA.

In the few brief encounters we’ve had, Pickett was never too busy to share a salutation, shake a hand and sign an autograph with any fan. Though his stock has risen since he debuted in the sport in 2004, the man himself has remained firmly grounded. “I’m still that fighter at heart from my Cage Rage days, the desire and enjoyment is still probably the same. I am technically better and more of a well rounded fighter having had so many fights at this stage but I’m still that fighter.”

When you’re positioned highly in the division and in the good books with your boss, it’s only natural to start thinking of a title shot, but Pickett has been here before and won’t count his chickens, “Title shots are not my decision. I’ve been a little bit unlucky, I’ve had a few stumbles at the final hurdle. After I beat Demetrious Johnson (WEC 48, April 2010) I was due to fight Miguel Torres with the winner getting the title shot, but I got injured so Johnson fought him (Torres) and won and got the shot. Then I was told the winner of my fight with Barao would be in the title picture, but I lost that one.”

Pickett is philosophical about the future. He’s been close to the top before but come up short. His commitment to his fighting life will, no doubt, see him return to title contention and maybe all he needs is a little “rub of the green” - “I think I’m in the mix. If lady luck is kind to me and I can string a few wins together I think I’m there or thereabouts at the top of the division but like I said it’s not my decision if I get a shot.”

The UFC returns to the UK on 29th September at the Capital FM Arena in Nottingham. Tickets are available from www.UFC.com.” at the end of the Brad Pickett article.