Interview with Gerald Harris
Gerald, what have you been up to? I heard you had a win in your last fight.
That was pretty cool. I was coming out of Rampage’s camp. I felt good. I was begging for the fight. After 6 weeks of camp you gotta fight somebody.
Any news on a fight?
Right now I’m fighting as much as I can. They can call me tomorrow I’ll be ready. That’s my goal to make it to the UFC.
What are your thoughts on being released?
They let us go after the season ended. I was a litle upset because I wanted to fight at the finale. I’m fine. It opened my eyes and makes me work harder. It fuels me when I get up and run.
I wondered how they picked the fighters that they kept.
I know I’m a better fighter. I know iIm going to have along career in the UFC. People came up to me and said how conme you aren’t fighting at the Finale and so and so is fighting. But I don’t worry about them. They can worry about them and I’ll worry about me. I don’t get jealous. I’m going to take care of myself.
I heard you were a standup comic is that true?
Yeah, I’ve been doing that for five years. I’m actually supposed to do a show in September. I don’t know if it’s going to happen. They don’t want to work with me so I’m going to do my own thing. We’ll just see what happens.
Why didn’t you use comedy on the show to get more screen time?
I was a clown but they didn’t show the crazy stuff I did because I didn’t win. If I had won you had seen more of me. They aren’t going to show a guy who doesn’t make it to the semi or quarterfinals.
They showed a lot of Amir. If I had beat him you wouldn’t have seen him again. I got a lot of screen time for some one who lost in the first round so it’s cool.
What are your thoughts on the fight with Amir?
I watched it and it was a good fight. He did his thing. He withstood the punishment and got his shot off. The thing people don’t understand is that I wasn’t tired and he didn’t knee me when I was shoting in. We were tied up and he threw a muay thai knee over my thigh and it hit me in the temple. It wasn’t like I was shooting a double leg and he kneed me in the face. A lot of people have it confused if you watch it again. He kneed me on the temple while we were standing up. It dazed me a little but didn’t knock me out. I didn’t black out. It hurt it made me dizzy. If I was knocked out I would’ve fell on my face.
You had a hard time with that loss didn’t you?
Yes, I was going through a lot. I was struggling. When I went on the show I was $5,000 in debt already. Then I went on there and won my fight to get on the show. Amir won the fight and got $5,000 and I got zero. My goal of winning the show wasn’t accomplished and I took it hard.
Did it make you feel any better knowing you lost to the guy who won the show?
Not really, I didn’t care about anything after that. The only thing that made me feel good was going to Rampage’s camp and learning to fight better.
I could’ve won the show but I don’t think that is a league you can’t grow in. You have to grow there on your A game. They are good at building guys. They know you’re not ready for Anderson Silva or Nate Marquardt. If you are the next Ultimate Fighter you have to be ready for those challenges. Maybe I wasn’t ready for that. I don’t know. I would rather have a long career than a short one.
So you’ve been training with Rampage?
I trained with him 5 weeks for the Forrest Griffin fight. Now I’m in Oklahoma working on boxing and improving my standup and I’m trying to make way back to the UFC.
What exactly happened with Rampage after the Forrest fight?
I can’t tell you the whole story. 99% of the stories are wrong. He’s fine. He was going through some stuff and he handled it like he handled. Everytime I tak to him he still has the same sense of humor. He didn’t do drugs. He made a mistake. He admitted it. I’m proud of him for the way he handled itlk to thim he still has the same sense of humor. I was worried because he has four kids.
I heard that the woman he hit had a miscarriage.
That came out of nowhere. It’s sad. I hope it’s not a false story. It was a week later when it was reported. I don’t want to sound rude but it was a week later when it came out. I hope it didn’t happen and it’s unfortunate if it’s a did. I’m a father and I can’t imagine losing a child but the timing is weird.
Did you got to the Ultimate Fighter Finale?
Yeah, I was there. I had fun. I wanted to see what it was like. I got to see what it is going to be like for when I do make it.
Did you get to see CB and Jesse fight?
No but I live in Phoenix and train with Riddle and CB.
I thought you were with Team Quest?
I’m not with them anymore. I knew JesseTaylor before the show. After the show I asked Matt Lindland to be released from Team Quest because I had to move. I was actually going to Arizona without knowing CB and them were there. I was going to Arizona in January and I didn’t know anyone there. I met CB on the show and he told me that he had a gym out there and I was excited.
Did you and Jesse ever talk about fighting each other?
I didn’t care. I’d fight him in a heartbeat. I didn’t want to fight Mike Dolce. That’s my boy. We trained together everyday. That was the only guy I didn’t want to fight. If we fought it would have to be in the finale.
How did you get selected for the show?
I got a recomendation from Ed Herman. They hear from so many guys that say they are tough. It always helps to have someone that has been in the UFC put in a good word for you. They watched my video and I had to figh to get on.
Coming into the house who did you think was the favorite to win?
I knew Tim, Amir, and CB were tough. I saw Amir fight in the beginning. He had Muay Thai and he caught the guy in a an arm bar. Amir was good. Tim, I had heard thathe had been fighting for a long time. I knew CB from college wrestling.
CB was on my team and I wanted to fight #1 on down but Tim but picked Riddle. I picked Amir because he was #2. It didn’t work out like I had hoped but it’s ok.
It seems like the editing favored Jesse, Tim, and CB but Amir won and was barely shown until the end.
Amir didn’t do much in the house. He didn’t drink or do any pranks. He didn’t do anything. He was good in confessionals and interviews. He was just kind of there.
Did you get along with Jeremy May?
Yeah, that’s my boy. He trains his ass off. He’s marketable. Everyone wants to fight him. It should be easy to find a fight for him.
I talked to Matt Brown and he still hates Jeremy.
Matt is the man. I still talk to him on Myspace. he’s doing really well.
Do you know where you are going to be fighting next?
I have 7 offers right now but peopole are BS’ing me on the money. They want to make me the main event because I was on the Ultimate Fighter. I’m doing all that for chump change. It’s a business. I’m picking the right fights. My goal is to get into the UFC. I’ll fight as much as I can until I get that phone call.
Would you be open to working for Affliction or EliteXC?
I can’t speak on that right now. I don’t want to be locked into anything for 2 and 3 years. I keep hearing that they want 2 or 3 year contracts.
Who are some of your favorite fighters?
BJ Penn, I like Fedor. I enjoy watching Rashad Evans. Josh Koscheck, Marcus Davis. I love Urijah Faber. Miguel Torres, he is amazing.
How did you get started in MMA?
I was broke (laughs). I didn’t like fighting I hadn’t fought since the 6th grade. I had a friend who offered me $600 for a one fight. They couldn’t find me an opponent so I had to go into a tournament and I won the whole thing. I was fighting to pay rent. I didn’t want to make a career out of it.
Then I fought Curtis Stout and everyone started calling. Stout used to be in the UFC. He fought Phil Baroni and went three rounds with him. He lost to Rich Franklin and Anderson Silva.
Does your family support your decsion to pursue MMA?
Yeah, my dad used to be a boxer. They come to every fight. They don’t care if the fight is under water. They’d go get a snorkel and they’d be there. My mom has been to all my matches from elementary school through high school and partially in college. She’s a big supporter.
It’s funny I’ve had some fighters tell me their mother’s get freaked out when they get hit.
Of course she doesn’t want to see me get hurt. It’s been good so far. I’m usually the one doing the beating. I’m trying to keep it that way.
Anything else you want to say to the fans?
I want to thank SportsSupplements.com, they were my first sponsor. I’m talking ot Alpha Electronics. That dude is very cool. I’ve been trying to work wtith Ecko. I’m a big fan of their clothes. I’m just taking the sponsors in. I’ve been sending out emails and doing everything I can. Also, check out my website, www.geraldhurricaneharris.com
