To check out the audio interview with “Razor” Rob McCullough, click here.
“Razor” Rob McCullough of Huntington Beach looks to get back on the winning track after losing his WEC lightweight title to Jamie Varner when he takes on Kenneth Alexander on the main card at WEC 34 on Sunday at 6 p.m. on Versus from Arco Arena in Sacramento.
McCullough, a world-class Muay Thai striker who trains at H.B. Ultimate Training Center, had his nine-fight winning streak snapped by Varner at WEC 32 on Feb. 13 in Albuquerque, N.M.
McCullough hopes to be much more active this year and it all begins with a rematch against Alexander, who beat McCullough back in 2002.
Here is what “Razor” Rob had to say:
On getting back in the cage after a loss:
“I’m excited to get back in the cage and get busy. I trained hard for this fight. You know, coming off a loss, not that I have anything to prove, but I want to get back in there and go to work. I enjoy fighting. Being the champion, they kind of really stretch out your fights, so I didn’t get to fight as much as I wanted. Now, I just have to get my belt back. Kenneth Alexander, on the 1st, is one of the bodies in my way.”
On the first fight against Alexander:
“I fought Kenneth Alexander about five years ago (at Hitman Fighting Productions 1: Rumble on the Reservation at Cahuilla Creek Casino in Anza, Calif., in 2002), and it went to a double-overtime decision. He kept trying to shooot takedowns and I kept teeing off on him. At one point I choked him and I was pretty sure he was unconscious. I dropped him, the bell rang and I thought it was done. I tapped him on the back and said ‘good job.’ And then the whole crowd chanted, ‘One more round!’ It ended up going to double-overtime. I ended up suffering my first loss. I’m actually erasing a loss off my record when I’m done.”
On where he was as a mixed martial artist in that first fight with Alexander:
“Yeah, I had just gotten into MMA. I wasn’t really working to much on wrestling, more on doing Jiu-Jitsu and stuff. I knew that (UFC president) Dana White was there in the audience, so I was trying to show him how well-rounded I was. I was going for submissions and stuff on the ground. I caught him in an armbar early in the first round of the fight and he got out of it. And I went for some more submissions. He went for some. I kept getting back up. I didn’t fight my fight. It was more kind of showing off, trying to showcase some skills and he ended up getting a cheesy decision. So I’m going back to being the guy with the belt, just getting in there and getting busy.”
On where his skills are now compared to in 2002:
“Night and day. That was Rob. This is new and improved. I’ve definitely got some battle experience now. he may have battle experience out in Iraq, but that’s different, you know. You gotta give a guy props for being a soldier, but come June 1st I’m smashing him.”
On what he learned from the Varner defeat:
“You know, I sat back and I healed up. I suffered a broken ear drum during the fight. It kind of threw me off a little bit. I shut down his wrestling aand I hit him with a big shot. i was waiting for that the whole time. They ended up calling timeout and the ref jumped in my way and kind of stopped my whole momentum. And then after that he caaught me with a good shot and put me down and the ref stopped the fight.
“So, I sat back and thought about it and went OK, I should have just went in there and imposed my will on him. I kind of was methodically toying with him, like I’m gonna shut your game down and I’m gonna smash you. I should have just went out there and tore his head off.”
On having his nine-fight winning streak snapped and what it will take to get back to where he was:
“I’m working on it. I got home. I healed up and I was in the gym. I got a personal trainer to get back in shape. I cut out the partying and got straight to business.”
On who has been working with and the changes he has made to his training:
“I hired a personal trainer to keepmy body in shape. We’re do a lot of plyometric stuff and calastetic stuff. I hired Brady Fink as my submission Jiu-Jitsu coach and wrestling guy. I had Jon Fitch come down and train with me and Josh Thomson. And the regular crew was there.”
On his thoughts about how big of an event WEC 34 is turning out to be:
“This is a UFC-style fight. This is a big draw. I’m driving around Sacramento and there are billboards everywhere. I can’t turn on a TV anywhere without watching the Countdown to the WEC with Jens and everybody else. It’s a full-blown production. This is a big show. So, it’s cool, it’s really cool.”
On the WEC being ahead of schedule as far as its growth and popularity:
“I think it was just a matter of time. It needed to get out of the Hard Rock (Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas) for a minute and, actually, get some space. People want to watch this fight. You know, we’ve got some explosive guys in the WEC. People want to watch the fights. It’s cool that we went to a bigger venue out here. They are definitely going to sell the seats and people are definitely going to watch on TV.”
On this weekend being a huge opportunity to showcase other organizations besides the UFC with “CBS EliteXC Saturday Night Fights” and WEC 34:
“I think this just shows and proves that sport is growing. It has evolved. It’s no longer that thing you kind of talk about and people didn’t know what it was. I mean, it’s come full circle. I think this sport is about to take over and be the biggest sport in the world. I mean, I think it’s coming up right next to soccer, although soccer is not very popular in America. I mean, it doesn’t matter where you go, people know what it is. They are familiar with the fighters. They are familiar with technique. And it’s on major television shows and that’s cool. It’s great for the sport. It’s greatt for the fighters.”
