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SI interview with Juanito Ibarra
By Zach Arnold | September 17, 2008
It doesn’t sound like he’s giving up yet on the MMA business.
SI.com: You worked to find champion fighters and create champion fighters. Do you think that opportunity will present itself again?
Ibarra: I’ll be honest, I doubted it for a while. I wish these young kids out there and these fans really know the passion that burns inside me. I respect the MMA guys unbelievably because they all respect each other. How hard they have to train, I love it. The phone calls I’ve gotten and the people that want me to work with them, I know that there’s a champion in that handful. And if it all works out, you’ll see me help create another champion.
Topics: Media, MMA, UFC, Zach Arnold | 10 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
Other than crazy-ass Tito and possibly still crazy-ass Rampage has anyone else said Ibarra is ripping fighters off?
Doesn’t mean he didn’t do it…
He contradicts himself right away, it seems.
“I’ll be honest, I doubted it for a while. I wish these young kids out there and these fans really know the passion that burns inside me.”
Why would you doubt staying with the sport if you had a fire burning inside you? I’ve never been an Ibarra fan ever since he started pointing fingers and accusing everyone of doing drugs and cheating only when Rampage lost. That’s weak.
Do they really need to say it? Everybody is leaving his camp. Actions speak louder then words.
Razzle – Many of the boxers that have trained under Ibarra in the past have leveled similar accusations at him as well. That’s why he always seems to be the former trainer of so many guys. He never lasts with anyone.
True, but it’s not as if Rampage lasts with his coaches either nor he ever leaves on good terms. He also criticized Pride (justifiably or not) after he left even though he was one of the promotion’s bigger stars. Ibarra might be shady, but it’s also true that Rampage is mentally unstable if not slightly deranged. All this fasting before (and after) big fights, his whacky interpretations of what Jesus and the Bible supposedly say, his “visions” of friends in danger and his downright erratic behavior do not make his accounts reliable.
Maybe I was off, looking into things a bit – I think he charges a bunch. Chieck Kongo left him too, but Kongo didn’t say anything bad.
The stuff Tito said – just sounds like he thinks Ibarra is over priced. As far as ripping people off, it seems like it’s just up to each fighter to decide if he’s worth what he charges.
There is no question that Ibarra has some talent as a trainer. If you look at Rampage’s record during the time he was working with Juanito, it’s ample evidence that Juanito was effective.
Juanito screwed up by trying to be a business manager on top of just being a trainer. Not everyone is built for both roles. You don’t see John Hackleman trying to manage Chuck’s business and be his agent. Hackleman just trains Chuck and the other Pit fighters. Ibarra needs to work with fighters who are managed/coached by other people, and he should just coach boxing. Juanito should receive his salary from the fighters’ managers and not have his hands in the till. Ibarra may have had good intentions with managing Rampage, and was just incompetent.
^^^
Ibarra claimed manager, trainer, and spiritual adviser. To hear him talk about their relationship after Rampage beat chuck you knew he was shisty and/or crazy. Never trust anybody who is willing to entertain such a conflict of interest.
Juanito has plenty of other fighters. He has never been without a line of students. The Blessing is that he is not working with a liar and a cheater like RAMPAGE. Rampage is the one that deceived Juanito. He owes Juanito alot of money. He came up with a lIE so that he would not have to pay him, so that he could get out of his contract! What a loser! Juanito is a man of God. A man of integrity and that made Rampage uncomfortable. Rampages’ was constantly hiding his lifestyle from Juanito because he knew that Juanito disaproved. He would hide his eating habits, women and much more. Rampage mislead Juanito! He lead him to believe that he wanted to pay him what he was worth a Dominating MANAGER & AN UNBELIEVABLE TRAINER. For all those out there that are listening to the gossip that Tito aka LOSER and Rampage, get the facts straight. Ask Juanito. There is NO proof that Juanito took money and it will never be proved….the only lies roll off the tongue of Rampage. He needed to lie in order to cover up his mistakes. Ask Rampage about not making weight for the Griffin fight! Ask him if he followed camp nutrition rules!Ask if he did what Juanito instructed him to do during training. If he is a honest man he will tell you NO. But he is NOT an honest man. He will lie!
Rampage is Dana’s new puppet. After all the work Juanito did to protect him so that he would not be used now he is a puppet! Congrats Rampage you sold OUT! You all should be discussing why Rampage is running from the championship bout???? Because he doesn’t train properly AND WHEY he is a COWARD!
He is not hurt….just another lie. Check the facts. Rampage is a talented fighter but LAZY AND A BUM!
Juanito has more class than any other in MMA. He is a great manager and not a YES man. That is why Dana White doesn’t like him. BECAUSE he spent hours of work and heart protecting Rampage. Juanito should have FIRED Rampage!
Rampage will never have a manager or trainer that loved him more than Juanito.
I know Rampage and Juanito and the TRUTH!
[…] Jackson. Jackson ended up having a meltdown after losing to Forrest Griffin by decision. Jackson would soon dump Ibarra. Ibarra went after MMA web sites that published comments made by Tito Ortiz in which Ortiz claimed […]