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Transcript of Mayhem Miller’s ‘don’t be scared, homie’ challenge to Nick Diaz; Update: Diaz/Noons II booked
By Zach Arnold | August 24, 2010
A classic interview that the transcript cannot do justice, so read the transcript and watch the video. 53,000 views in one day for a non-UFC MMA-related video is off-the-charts.
ARIEL HELWANI: “I think is referencing a famous line said by the great Nick Diaz with this t-shirt, right?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “The best unintentional comedian of our generation. I mean, we don’t have an Andy Kaufman. What we do have is an Nick Diaz. Unintentional comedian. It’s like he never breaks character and I’m not, but somebody is. Don’t be scared, homie.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Now is your way of campaigning for a fight against Nick Diaz some time in the future?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “I just want to let it be known that, dude, I’m not scared. I’m ready to go! Like I’m ready to go any time. Let’s do it. Let’s make it happen. BUT, obviously, for some reason, the fight’s not happening. I don’t have a contract in front of me and everybody wants to see the fight. I’m ready to do the fight.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Why isn’t the fight happening?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “I don’t know.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Well, you want to do the that. Does that mean that he doesn’t want to do the fight?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Obviously. I mean… that’s what I’m getting because everybody wants to see the fight. Everyone’s like, ‘hey man, when you’re going to whip Nick Diaz’s ass?’ I hear that like 10 times a day, you know, and that’s just at my dinner table. You know? But… it’s just like one of those things like I’m in the middle of this weird publicity war where people think that I don’t want the fight. I want the fight. Hell yeah I want the fight. Of course I want the fight because I will whip his ass and make him look bad doing it.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Do you feel as though you now have to go to the public here and campaign to get the fight because maybe behind-the-scenes things are happening where they’re trying to not make the fight happen?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Well, if the fight doesn’t happen, we know why. We know why?”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Why?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “I ain’t no bitch.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “So you’re saying that he’s perhaps scared of you or scared to fight you?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Apparently, because I want the fight.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Have you talked to his camp?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “What do you mean? I don’t talk to those guys. They don’t even speak English. They speak mumbling gibberish. Haven’t you seen (the flipping middle fingers) on Youtube? I saw it.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Have you talked to Scott Coker about the fight?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “YEAH! He wants it, I think. I think that he wants it. Scott Coker wants the fight. I’ve heard directly from the line Scott Coker wants the fight. Of course, why wouldn’t he want the fight? Two exciting guys who talk smack and fight hard. I know. I respect him as a fighter, BUT as a person man he’s running scared.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “You seem a little fired up.”
MAYHEM MILLER: “My upper lip is sweating, that’s how fired up I’m getting. All right, let me calm down a little bit. NO, I don’t want to calm down!”
ARIEL HELWANI: “All right. You’re a 185’er, he’s a 170-pounder.”
MAYHEM MILLER: “NO, NO, NO, NO, let’s squash that right now. The whole 170 thing, he made that up. He fought, what, Frank Shamrock at 183. He fought Scott Smith at 182. All of a sudden when he has to fight Mayhem, he’s a 170-pounder, Oh, okay, very convenient that you’re a 170-pounder now. All right, cool, he a 170-pounder.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Would you be interested in going back down to 170 to fight him?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “No, man, I haven’t made 170 in six years. He knows that and the reason I stopped making 170 is because I was emanciated (he means emaciated), that means I was really sick and tired. It’s like, I couldn’t do that. He knows that. That’s why now all of a sudden he’s switching around, ‘oh come to 170.’ C’mon dude. You fought all these old men at 185, now all of a sudden when it’s a tough dude, now you’re a 170-pounder. All right, I see how it is.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “And do you think this is maybe an excuse that he is using to not fight you?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “MAN, Ariel Helwani, I thought you were a smart dude. You went to college, right? Maybe you’re not reading in between the lines here. YES!”
ARIEL HELWANI: “I just wanted you to say it.”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Oh. Yeah.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Is your suspension over with the Tennessee athletic commission?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Man, I think I sent the check out a couple of days late after I got the notice, you know, I’m pretty bad at paying my bills. I got an assistant now.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Congrats.”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Big ups, Amy. Thank you, I appreciate you. Make sure to pay my bills. But, yeah, September… I can’t remember the date, 13th or something like that, maybe before that, I get off suspension and I”m ready to fight. I mean, I’ve been training hard. Like I’ve just been training all the time just to be ready for whatever and as soon as that three months come up, man, you know I have a few different offers. Dude, Tokyo’s calling. So..”
ARIEL HELWANI: “DREAM?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Yeah, so I have a contract out with them.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Who are they offering you?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “What are you looking for, the scoop?”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Yes.”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Oh my God.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Remember you called me many moons ago Scoop McGillicutty?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “You are Scoop, yeah. Now I got a new name for you. I thought it was smart but it’s not. I was thinking the K-N-O-W-S because you know everything, THE KNOWS.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “THE KNOWS that knows. What are you trying to imply?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “No, no… nothing.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Oh man, you’re stealing jokes from Forrest Griffin?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Oh, he did that joke?”
ARIEL HELWANI: “He already did it. I expect more from you, Mayhem.”
MAYHEM MILLER: “He’s a smart dude, though, c’mon. Forrest Griffin is a smart, witty, funny dude, so I could imagine he thought about it before me.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Strikeforce’s next big event is October 9th in San Jose. Will you be fighting on that card?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “I hope so. I mean I’m ready. I want to do it. I want to fight. Like I want to fight. I’m finished filming Bully Beatdown Season 3. I’m finished filming that. I’ve been doing commentary for HDNet, you know, I’m keeping busy and I’m keeping training.”
(snip)
ARIEL HELWANI: “Strikeforce is saying that they’re doing a Middleweight tournament. Perhaps kicking off in October, will you be a part of it?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “Dude, I mean, I’m a Middleweight.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Have they asked you to be a part of it?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “I haven’t gotten anything in writing or anything signed, so no scoop here. I want to fight and I think that I should be the title holder. I know I can wear the strap around my waist and I know I can carry it for a long time, I just to got to get in the right fights so that I can show everybody that.”
ARIEL HELWANI: “Is there a part of you that’s disappointed that Jake Shields signed with the UFC and you never got that shot?”
MAYHEM MILLER: “OF COURSE, MAN, I have the infamous line, ‘where’s my rematch, buddy’ and now he scoots off to UFC for less money. That’s OK, I mean, sure, I hope he makes it up in sponsors, good luck to him. You know, I’m here in Strikeforce with the contract, Strikeforce is putting on fantastic shows, Showtime just keeps pumping out the content and you know I’m ready to get here and be part of it.”
Topics: Media, MMA, StrikeForce, Zach Arnold | 8 Comments » | Permalink | Trackback |
That was fantastic stuff. Too bad the fight won’t happen, though.
Is Jake really getting paid less in UFC? Did he fall for the “THERE MAY BE SOME POSSIBLE BONUSES~!” speech? He couldn’t be that dumb since he has to know he’s getting steamrolled once he hits the Koscheck, Fitch, Alves, GSP portion of the division where the real money might be, right?
When Strikeforce decided to cut the negotiations with him and let him fly to the UFC, he lost his ability to jack up his value. Its kind of a canny move on the part of Strikeforce – you always hear about how the UFC is wise to not overspend on guys it shouldn’t because they aren’t draws or whatever (see also- every defense of Dana threatening to cut Silva). Shields isn’t a draw.
I don’t think he got totally screwed though. The UFC’s opening offer was probably pretty decent.
The fight purse isnot the only thing that matters. With Strikeforce’s relationship with CBS as tenuous as it is, and especially because of Shields’ track record on CBS, he’s probably going to get more money from sponsors fighting in the UFC than fighting in Strikeforce.
The potential maximum pay is much greater in the UFC.
Sure, very few get it, but if Shields is truly confident in his skills, then the UFC will be the place to make the most money long term. And those pay levels just aren’t available to Strikeforce fighters.
1) More sponsorship money.
2) UFC pays their champions much more.
3) Higher level of exposure which can lead to other forms of compensation.
One thing this Jake Shields situation does show is that going the route from Strikeforce to UFC doesn’t pay off. If a fighter is going to win a lot, it is much more profitable for him to go on TUF and work his way through the UFC that way.
I doubt the part about him getting paid less in the UFC is accurate.
I wish Diaz would just move to the UFC already. Him fighting Mayhem would be kinda fun, and I’m sure that he really wants a chance to avenge his defeat to Noons. But neither bout really makes care. If he fights Mayhem he’ll probably beat his ass on the feet. If he fights Noons he’ll probably get a takedown, and work to a sub in the first.
Hopefully if he fights Noons they won’t do a catchweight…
It was good until he said emanciated….then proceeded to define it, which made him look a bit of a twit. I like mayhem though.
he was emancipated.
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