Josh Koscheck on 'Little Errand B---H' Dana White, New Home in Bellator

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jason73

Yuri Bezmenov was right
First 100
Jan 15, 2015
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When the UFC announced that Josh Koscheck would be returning to the Octagon this past March to face Erick Silva, it seemed a little strange to MMA fans. Koscheck had just lost to Jake Ellenberger in February, and he was returning to the Octagon less than three weeks later.

That's an insanely short turnaround time for anyone, much less a veteran on a four-fight losing streak. Wouldn't it be better for Koscheck to go home and rest up, to get his bearings and put in a good training camp before getting back in the cage?

Maybe. But Koscheck had a reason for wanting to get back in the Octagon so quickly: The fight against Silva would be the final fight on his UFC contract, and he wanted out as quickly as possible.

"I was in shape. I was like, OK, I’m out," Koscheck told Bleacher Report. "This is my last fight. Let’s just go out there and see what happens."

From the moment he signed his final UFC contract a few years earlier, this was always the plan. Koscheck knew that longtime friend Scott Coker would be back in the business of promotion eventually; at the time, Coker was under an exclusive agreement with the UFC after selling Strikeforce to Zuffa in 2011. But Coker is a promoter, and those closest to him knew that he wouldn't be able to sit on the sidelines forever. He would eventually get back to promoting fights, and Koscheck knew he wanted to be there with him.


Jeff Chiu/Associated Press

"I knew that Coker was going to get back in the game at some point, and he was going to make it right for every fighter. I knew that was my plan for quite some time: to get rid of my UFC contract," he says. "Even if I never fought again, I wanted out of my UFC contract. Even if I never stepped in the cage again, I wanted to fight out my contract and be done with them."

His words may come as a surprise to those who used to believe Koscheck was a Zuffa company man for life, like fellow original The Ultimate Fighter veteran Forrest Griffin. But the truth is that Koscheck has always been his own man, even if the public rarely saw him push back against the company that helped make him famous.

But now, freed from his affiliation with the UFC and happily ensconced in a new deal with Bellator, Koscheck is free to say whatever he chooses without fear of raising the ire of UFC President Dana White.

Koscheck and White had a contentious relationship for much of his tenure in the UFC, mostly because Koscheck isn't the kind of guy who allows himself to be pushed around. They played nice in public, but privately, Koscheck was subjected to the same angry phone calls others receive whenever they do or say something White considers out of line.

"If I were to say anything bad about Reebok, the first thing that would happen is I would get a phone call. 'You f-----g piece of s--t, what the f--k are you doing? You’re talking s--t about Reebok. We’re gonna fire you.' OK, fire me then," Koscheck said. "I don’t have to worry about those things now. I’m not employed by them. I have no affiliation with them. I can say what the hell I want and have no repercussions."

White, never a passive figure in anything, has been under fire from the mixed martial arts fan community as of late. First, there was the firing of beloved cutman Jacob "Stitch" Duran, who was coldly terminated after he discussed how the UFC's new Reebok deal would cost him money in sponsorships. And then White went on an epic Twitter tirade against his own fans, answering anyone who had the temerity to ask him about Duran or Reebok by making fun of their looks.



"How can you respect a guy that runs a company and goes on Twitter rants, who calls people all the names that he calls people? I think it’s childish," he says. "He’s supposed to be the president of a major company, a billion dollar company, and that’s how he acts? You don’t see Roger Goodell doing things like that.

"And you won’t see Scott Coker going on Twitter and telling people they look goofy or fat. Or, ‘we got that many years out of you, thanks for your money.’ Come on. It’s embarrassing. I don’t want to work for a guy like that."

And then there was the weird interview on Fox Sports 1 last Saturday following the UFC's event on Fox, where White answered a question about Duran by saying that he and Duran were never friends and that maybe Duran needed to learn the meaning of the word "friend."

White receives the most heat from fans and media, and rightly so, because he is the most visible member of Zuffa's management team. It long ago structured itself so that White would be the only one speaking for the company, with CEO Lorenzo Fertitta chiming in on rare occasions.

Koscheck believes White is even more of a front man than fans believe.

"This is just my opinion, but I think Dana is just the front boy for the Fertittas. He’s their little errand b---h. They’re losing fans every day because of the things he does," he said. "The UFC has done a great job. They built this sport. They put a lot of dollars in, and they took a lot of risk. I can respect the fact that he works his ass off. But there are other things that I can’t respect."

Koscheck is thrilled with his new home. He sounds reinvigorated, ready to return to the cable channel that made him a star back during the first season of The Ultimate Fighter. He's ready to help put together his walkout package for his first big fight on Spike TV and spends time imagining what music he'll use, what will be displayed on the big PRIDE-style video wall at the top of the entrance ramp.

To Koscheck, Bellator is all of the good parts of World Wrestling Entertainment, albeit with real fights at the end. And since he considers himself an entertainer and a fighter, well, it's a perfect fit. But he does have one goal he's reaching for above all others: a rematch with Paul Daley.

Koscheck owns a win over Daley from back in 2010, when he wrestled the great striker to take a unanimous decision. But it's what happened after the bell that still motivates Koscheck to this day: Daley, frustrated, walking over to Koscheck after the bell and then punched him. It was the final nail in the coffin of Daley's UFC career; he has not been welcomed back to the promotion.

Koscheck says he watches the video of that fight every day, and he smiles, because he knows he's in Daley's head. And since he's an entertainer and a businessman, Koscheck also smiles because he knows the rematch will bring eyeballs and line his pocket with cash.

"That’s what I’m striving for. It’s what I wake up every day and go to the gym for: to get that opportunity to put another beatdown on Paul Daley," he said.


Alexandre Loureiro/Zuffa LLC/Getty Images

There is a clear lift in Koscheck's voice. He has historically been a difficult and surly interview, but today he is bright and upbeat. He laughs, which comes as a surprise because Koscheck never laughs in interviews. His departure from the UFC has clearly been a good thing for him personally.

And he has a message for the other fighters still on the UFC's roster.

"At some points, hopefully they all become free agents and they negotiate with Bellator. In my opinion, I think every fighter needs to step up, fight their fights out and negotiate," he says. "Because they’re never going to know their market value until they put themselves on the market."

LINK: Josh Koscheck on 'Little Errand B---H' Dana White, New Home in Bellator | Bleacher Report
 
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dacofty

Yea..Ok..Whatever
First 100
Jan 15, 2015
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I bet he has alot more stories that will come out about the bald baby
 

Splinty

Shake 'em off
Admin
Dec 31, 2014
44,116
91,095
Man, I'm not gonna lie. I keep waiting for the lining, for the moment I can point out SOMETHING good with the UFC as of late. I definitely don't want to just sit around hating on the UFC all the time.
But its just not there right now.
They remain with the largest stable of fighters. I like Joe Rogan better than most for commentating.
But other than that, I'm just not that impressed. And it's detrimental to the image of the entire sport if they continue to act this way.
 

dacofty

Yea..Ok..Whatever
First 100
Jan 15, 2015
9,485
9,454
Man, I'm not gonna lie. I keep waiting for the lining, for the moment I can point out SOMETHING good with the UFC as of late. I definitely don't want to just sit around hating on the UFC all the time.
But its just not there right now.
They remain with the largest stable of fighters. I like Joe Rogan better than most for commentating.
But other than that, I'm just not that impressed. And it's detrimental to the image of the entire sport if they continue to act this way.
The best thing going for the UFC is the fighters. Rogan is a great pbp guy indeed and yes that pretty much sums up the UFC. the rest is the romper room called Zuffa
 

Wild

Zi Nazi
Admin
Dec 31, 2014
85,004
123,330
I love Koscheck. He did it the right way, in my opinion. He saved and invested his money. And fought out his contract, so he could go work in an environment where he felt more comfortable. A big part of life is getting to a point where you have "fuck you" money, so you don't have to work somewhere you don't want to. Kos did that.
 
P

Punch

Guest
Kos is no saint, but i think in this situation he's the lesser of two evils. If he were to KTFO Dana he'd launch immediately into legendary status with a lot of people.
 

jason73

Yuri Bezmenov was right
First 100
Jan 15, 2015
72,781
134,158
Man, I'm not gonna lie. I keep waiting for the lining, for the moment I can point out SOMETHING good with the UFC as of late. I definitely don't want to just sit around hating on the UFC all the time.
But its just not there right now.
They remain with the largest stable of fighters. I like Joe Rogan better than most for commentating.
But other than that, I'm just not that impressed. And it's detrimental to the image of the entire sport if they continue to act this way.
same here. i dont want to just shit on them all the time but they dont exactly have a lot of positive news coming out these days
 

jason73

Yuri Bezmenov was right
First 100
Jan 15, 2015
72,781
134,158
fought out his contract, so he could go work in an environment where he felt more comfortable
it would be great if more guys could do this but they seem to want to renegotiate multifight contracts with the fighters before they sign their last fight.its like they constantly keep them either under contract or else your going to rot on the shelf.kos was smart but i think they tought he would just retire and never considered he would go to bellator.i have never been a fan of kos after the way he and southwarth treated leben and after the TUF vs gsp but ifd like to see him get a second wind in bellator and end on a high note.
 
P

Punch

Guest
same here. i dont want to just shit on them all the time but they dont exactly have a lot of positive news coming out these days
I hate that the ufc is run in a manner that i absolutely loathe. I'd muuuuch rather never shit on bad promotion because it was a non-issue.
 

dacofty

Yea..Ok..Whatever
First 100
Jan 15, 2015
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I hate that the ufc is run in a manner that i absolutely loathe. I'd muuuuch rather never shit on bad promotion because it was a non-issue.
I have to agree, the way the UFC is ran you cant help but to criticize it, I know people out there ask, could you run it? probably not, but i wouldnt a corrupt piece of shit neither.
 

BJTT-Sgt606

borojunior's Master at Arms
Jul 21, 2015
61
134
I am into UTVs a little bit because I own one. I follow the UTV underground on Instagram. A few weeks ago, I saw a photo of Josh K in a racing suit on their feed. He was signing autographs for some kids. I thought that was cool as hell that he is racing in between fights. I hope he does well at Bellator. He is definitely one of the pioneers of this great sport.