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| Bring the Pain |
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Written by Doug Jeffrey |
 Royce Gracie Gi
 Royce Gracie is honored with a poster
 Fighters from The Ultimate Fighter 3 store their equipment here, which is adjacent to an Octagon.
 You can't have posters of UFC fighters in the facility without Shammy ... Ken Shamrock,
 The Octagon
| Somebody call a cab?"
We looked up and saw a man-probably in his late-30s-shaved head, earrings, shades propped over his eyes, looked like he could handle himself if he got into a scrape.
"Yeah, that's us."
"Let's do it."
We threw our luggage in the back, jumped in to get out of the Las Vegas wind and headed off for the airport.
"So, this is where they are," said the cabbie. "My roommate and I are fans, and we have been trying to figure out where this place is."
Where they are is a nondescript industrial park, just a short cab ride from the glitz and glamour of the Las Vegas Strip. They are nestled neatly and inconspicuously in the back corner. The "they" the cabbie was referring to is of course the Ultimate Fighting Championship and their Training Center that is used in "The Ultimate Fighter."
We had a chance to tour the facility on Media Day for "The Ultimate Fighter 3." So, come on in.
What's Up, Kimo?
When you walk into the lobby, huge posters of Kimo Leopoldo-the man who gave Royce Gracie everything he could handle way back in an early UFC-Vitor Belfort, Tito Ortiz and Robbie Lawler greet you. To the right is a kitchen, which features, among others, posters of Frank Mir and Matt Lindland. Forrest Griffin-in person-pokes his head out of the kitchen and moves on to his next destination. The refrigerator is packed with bottled water that features Ultimate Fighting Championship labels. On this particular day, the counters are covered with take-out cartons, enough, hopefully, to feed a horde of hungry fighters.
To the left of the lobby are halls and administrative offices. The walls are lined with signed posters from their various events, including UFC 40 and UFC 47, among many others.
Stepping into the back is like stepping into a dream world. To the left sits the Octagon. There are no battles on this day, but the warriors are present. The coaches for Season 3, Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock, take turns posing for Maxim magazine. A crew of three instructs the fighters what to do.
Along one wall, there is a storage area that neatly holds all the training equipment for the contestants of "The Ultimate Fighter 3." One has written an inspirational message ("Bring the pain!") for himself on the masking tape that identifies his slot. Another warns, "Hands off!"
The ceiling above the Octagon is cluttered with seemingly a million lights that will shine on the contests when the TV cameras are turned on. Overlooking all this are enormous posters of GSP, Chuck Liddell, Randy Couture, Ken Shamrock and more. There are also posterized shots of Dan "The Beast" Severn and Royce Gracie.
Of course, there is plenty of training equipment. There are heavy bag and speed bag stations along another wall. On this day, the mats are being used for photo shoots, as each of the contestants takes his turn in front of the lens. On the other side, there is a ring and weight equipment, including a squat rack, a leg press machine, free weights, dumbbells, medicine balls, an Ab Bench and Schwinn Airdyne bikes. Adjacent to the weight equipment is the locker room.
In the darkness of the training area, the contestants lie around. Some are still eating, some keep quietly to themselves and others find a place to sprawl their bodies out. One has plopped himself on some weight equipment to rest while another uses the lower back of a fellow contestant as a pillow.
When it's their turn to shoot, they come alive. After a little touch-up by a make-up artist, they throw their best techniques in the direction of the photog. When they are done, the next one steps up and does his thing. The procession of fighters continues long after the crowd at the Training Center has thinned.
Tito and Shammy
As the cabbie rolls up to the airport on a cool January afternoon, he glances in the rearview mirror and says, "Tito is going to fight Ken Shamrock? That should be good. I don't want to miss that."
And you can bet that there are a whole lot of other people thinking the same thing.
The Scoop
Who: New contestants
What: "The Ultimate Fighter 3"
Where: Spike TV
When: Beginning April 6Show comments (1) - Add comments to this article: |
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I would love to check that place out! I really appreciate you giving us a little insight into the training center. Keep up the good work, and I love the magazine!!! Posted by Benjamin DeLeon, Whose homepage is http://360.yahoo.com/deleon1518 on October 25, 2006 at 8:17 | 1
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