Interview by Mike Valentine
Few Texas fighters have had the polarizing effect on the MMA community like Ira Boyd. Love him or hate him, you always know where he stands. Tonight I discussed with him his upcoming appearance in Steele Cage 3 in Frisco, TX, and the current state of the Texas fight scene.
Let’s get right into it. Your opponent this Friday night is Shawn Smith, 1-1 out of the Chop Shop in Greenville. What do you know about him?
– You know more about him than I do. I don’t know much about him, I don’t think it matters. I do applaud him for stepping up last minute and taking this fight. I was supposed to fight Clay Hantz, but he d*cktucked on me at the last minute.
On that topic, after your victory at the last Steele Cage event, he (Hantz) called you out, and we haven’t heard about that since.
– There’s not much to talk about. It rubbed me the wrong way, his getting in the cage during my 15 seconds. He was respectful about it; I’m just upset that he turned down the fight afterwards. This sport is full of warriors. I’ve fought anybody and everybody, just get me a ring. To call me out in front of all those people and then d*cktuck on my like that, I don’t want to fight him.
Your last performance in Steele Cage was a decisive victory over a Janjira student with a new dynamic of your game, a submission victory. Is that something that has been a part of your preparation since?
– Believe it or not, I came in with every intention of banging with him (Chase Green). Things got a little heated at the weigh-in, and I was hyped up. When that bell rang and the ref told us to fight, I walked over to this kid, and he looked like a deer in headlights. He was scared. So I threw a little fake, took him down, and put him out of his misery.
Going back to Steele Cage, this is their third event in our area. How do you compare them to other promotions you have been a part of?
– Dr. Pepper Arena is a big ticket to fill. If anyone can do it, Mr. Steele can. I see good things for this promotion, and I’m glad to be a part of it.
Despite Dallas being a major metro area and touting both top notch instructors and fighters, local shows have still had difficulty in getting the attendance we would like to see.
– MMA in the DFW area is cliquish. I believe the talent is here. Once you affiliate with a team here, whoever runs that gym sometimes frowns upon cross-training, and I think that’s a part of the problem. I’ve never affiliated myself, except when I worked with 10th Planet. I didn’t like it, nothing against them, because the jiu-jitsu was top notch, but it made me nervous fighting under someone else’s banner. I’ve always walked in the cage on my own two feet. I was scared to lose for the first time, and that’s never been the case.
No one would argue that you have been one of the most polarizing characters in Texas, from the days of Steve Armstrong’s Fight Nights. Someone equally controversial right alongside you is Felipe Espinoza. There has been talk of you two facing each other for a long time. Do you think that will ever happen?
– I would love to fight Felipe Espinoza. I would like to end his very existence in MMA. In fact, it’s funny you brought that up, because I have been putting on weight to fight him next. The problem with Felipe is nobody likes him. Not just fans and fighters, but promoters. The ones that have showed interest to put him on the show, he wants a ridiculous amount of money. You know, he’s fought the same guy twice, and that’s his only experience in MMA. Once amateur and once pro, he beat the same guy who knew absolutely nothing about MMA. If Felipe wakes up and grabs his balls, right now my walk-around weight is 185. I’ll fight him next month.
– Mike Valentine, TXMMA