Question Time: Barry Oglesby

mark.leonard

Next up for interrogation is the Ropery one Barry Oglesby!


Barry, you are the promoter of the Fight Before Christmas - what is the biggest drawback to running shows in Ireland right now?

MMAIRELAND.ORG

Who in your opinion has been the most influential person in Irish MMA up to this point?

cowzerp

Would you prefer to win a title or get your hair back?

Outside the well known talent in Irish MMA is there any unknown fighters that have caught your eye that you see as ones fro the future?

Barry.Oglesby

mark.leonard wrote: »

Next up for interrogation is the Ropery one Barry Oglesby!


Barry, you are the promoter of the Fight Before Christmas - what is the biggest drawback to running shows in Ireland right now?

Hey nice to be here. I have my feet up right now thanks to a wee injury so expect me to bore you to death answering questions that weren't asked.

The biggest drawback to running shows is undoubtably putting the card together. With injuries at any level it's bad enough, but when stuff comes out later about guys just not even bothering then it becomes a bit irritating to say the least. I sound like a parrot now but there are too many shows, not enough fighters. A close second is getting people off their internets and in the door of shows. Lots of people out there would really enjoy a local show if they went.

Barry.Oglesby

MMAIRELAND.ORG wrote: »

Who in your opinion has been the most influential person in Irish MMA up to this point?

For me it's actually Mark Leonard. With all due respect to the great coaching talents of Patterson, Ryan, Kavanagh, Jones etc, I don't know of anyone else who is involved at so many levels from the bottom up. Mark has introduced a great many guys thanks to the MMA League and does a lot of promotion of the game throughout Ireland for little or no money. I can't begin to list the variety of roles he's had and he's always a positive voice for the game.

Barry.Oglesby

cowzerp wrote: »

Would you prefer to win a title or get your hair back?

It's a little known fact that I actually had a fuzzcut. It grew out like a Caucasian Fro. I do not wish to see it back. I'll take the title but only if I can retire and not bother me arse defending it.

Outside the well known talent in Irish MMA is there any unknown fighters that have caught your eye that you see as ones fro the future?

Alan Philpot is about 8 or 9 I think (:)) and he looks really good, one for the future, the very near future I reckon. I'd also like to see Liam O'Toole back in the cage who probably not many outside of the BJJ circuit would know.

John Ferguson

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

getting people off their internets and in the door of shows. Lots of people out there would really enjoy a local show if they went.

Very fair point, how would you recommend we achieve this?

Barry.Oglesby

fightie wrote: »

Very fair point, how would you recommend we achieve this?

By not having guys fight maybe Only half joking there, but I've seen some guys so underprepared for fighting on shows that it made me angry. Everyone has an off day or just comes up against a better man but there should be some fundamentals in place before anyone goes in. Some random things I'd ensure people knew.

1. How to strike (basically, I'm not looking for Anderson)
2. How to pummell for underhooks instead of trying to punch the guy in the body/head when he has doubles
3. How to defend a guillotine
4. How to defend on bottom, or, why not to punch upwards to the body when mounted
5. How to behave like a sportsman when you're a debutante and not act like you're Phil Baroni.

The average punter is used to the UFC, which makes them somewhat cultured. when they watch guys throwing punches from their ar5eholes and turning their back when they're getting punched, they know they're not prepared. This reflects badly on the scene as a whole, and Joe Public is not going to shell out 20/25/30 bills for more of the same next time.

The domestic scene is a whole lot better than what gets on to top end shows right now. I train and spar with great guys all the time who fight once or twice a year, possibly less.

John Ferguson

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

By not having guys fight maybe Only half joking there, but I've seen some guys so underprepared for fighting on shows that it made me angry. Everyone has an off day or just comes up against a better man but there should be some fundamentals in place before anyone goes in. Some random things I'd ensure people knew.

1. How to strike (basically, I'm not looking for Anderson)
2. How to pummell for underhooks instead of trying to punch the guy in the body/head when he has doubles
3. How to defend a guillotine
4. How to defend on bottom, or, why not to punch upwards to the body when mounted
5. How to behave like a sportsman when you're a debutante and not act like you're Phil Baroni.

The average punter is used to the UFC, which makes them somewhat cultured. when they watch guys throwing punches from their ar5eholes and turning their back when they're getting punched, they know they're not prepared. This reflects badly on the scene as a whole, and Joe Public is not going to shell out 20/25/30 bills for more of the same next time.

The domestic scene is a whole lot better than what gets on to top end shows right now. I train and spar with great guys all the time who fight once or twice a year, possibly less.

Thats great for getting repeat business, but how do you appeal to the general public to get them there in the first place?

sul10

Hi Barry,
Imagine a governing body was set up in the morning (assume all clubs are on board) that had responsibility for the development of mma in this country........you are its king :cool:..............what would you do?
Cheers,
Ronan

Martin Walker

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

By not having guys fight maybe Only half joking there, but I've seen some guys so underprepared for fighting on shows that it made me angry. Everyone has an off day or just comes up against a better man but there should be some fundamentals in place before anyone goes in. Some random things I'd ensure people knew.

1. How to strike (basically, I'm not looking for Anderson)
2. How to pummell for underhooks instead of trying to punch the guy in the body/head when he has doubles
3. How to defend a guillotine
4. How to defend on bottom, or, why not to punch upwards to the body when mounted
5. How to behave like a sportsman when you're a debutante and not act like you're Phil Baroni.

The average punter is used to the UFC, which makes them somewhat cultured. when they watch guys throwing punches from their ar5eholes and turning their back when they're getting punched, they know they're not prepared. This reflects badly on the scene as a whole, and Joe Public is not going to shell out 20/25/30 bills for more of the same next time.

The domestic scene is a whole lot better than what gets on to top end shows right now. I train and spar with great guys all the time who fight once or twice a year, possibly less.

This is the biggest problem the sport in Ireland faces. So many new clubs push fighters into shows when they are not ready.

With regards to this do you think it would benefit the sport if clubs made fighters compete in the MMA League for a year before offering them to Promotions?

Barry.Oglesby

fightie wrote: »

Thats great for getting repeat business, but how do you appeal to the general public to get them there in the first place?

I dunno you tell me you're the promoter!

I think it's very hard to get bums on seats in anything. League of Ireland versus premiership being the most common analogy.

There's probably two methods- the KAPOW! where you advertise heavily and glam it up to make a single event the greatest show ever, or the slow build where you use good quality fights and gain a reputation slowly as a good show that provides. Probably a 50-50 split would be best. All the KAPOW and production values with all the quality of the slow build.

Barry.Oglesby

sul10 wrote: »

Hi Barry,
Imagine a governing body was set up in the morning (assume all clubs are on board) that had responsibility for the development of mma in this country........you are its king :cool:..............what would you do?
Cheers,
Ronan

I am it's King eh? Well first of all I don't like crowns so I would commission a medallion arrangement to be made at great expense so everyone would know I'm the boss.

After that I would do something very simple. I would ensure proper safety standards medics/docs at each event, that referees and judges got all the help they needed to develop themselves as refs and train others to ref and judge etc.

Most importantly I would formalise rules and the level that an "entry level" fighter would be forced to come in at. I don't like seeing young boys getting beaten and humiliated in front of large crowds. I would like to see a carding system in place but I doubt it would ever happen. You would have a card/book to fill and you would have to have x amount of amateur fights before taking a pro. A panel could decide if someone could jump ahead of the queue in special circumstances.

This is the word of your king, go forth and do my bidding... oh sorry got carried away there.

Barry.Oglesby

Martin Walker wrote: »

With regards to this do you think it would benefit the sport if clubs made fighters compete in the MMA League for a year before offering them to Promotions?

It's not a bad idea, but dificult to enforce. I think new gyms should compete almost exclusively in the league for a couple of years before considering the next level. We did it and it gave us a great guage of where we were at in our development. I'd be happy putting a pro or semi-pro in a show now but only because we have a bank of experience to call on to guage whether he's ready for that level or not. A lot of clubs in Ireland don't have the benefit of that experience. A season in the MMA League would be the way to go for them I think and especially for teenagers.

stevemc01

Just the reverse of Martins question here. How do you feel about guys who have been successful in the ring/cage who go back to compete against guys less experienced than them in the league? or guys who enter nogi competitions as beginners when they have been training for a few years?

Barry.Oglesby

stevemc01 wrote: »

Just the reverse of Martins question here. How do you feel about guys who have been successful in the ring/cage who go back to compete against guys less experienced than them in the league? or guys who enter nogi competitions as beginners when they have been training for a few years?

Dirty sandbagging mofos.

I'm not too sure about the league thing and Mark would probably be best placed to answer that. There are very few competitive opportunities in Ireland of a sort of just-turn-up variety so I would say as long as a guy was honest about his competitive record and was just looking to jump into the league this would be okay. Obviously his opponents would have to be cool with that too.

As for the nogi thing, I just can't understand it. What is competition about? For me it's about the test. I want to go against the best in the country and know where I stand in relation to them. The whole point of grappling competitions, for me anyway, is going against guys there's a chance you'll lose to. Otherwise, what do you learn? I think 90% of guys are honest and some guys genuinely don't know their level or aren't confident about it, but there are some guys who I've seen for years at tournaments and they still seem to be novices or intermediates!

Some people seem to be in it to collect medals. I'm in it for the road, not the goal, so I can't understand that attitude.

stevemc01

Yeah just to clarify, I wasn't having ago at anyone who runs competitions be it nogi tournaments or the league. Its very hard over here to categorize people if they are just dishonest.

The idea of competition to me is also to test yourself against different people not just your training partners (as we know what our training partners strengths and weaknesses are and can adapt our game to them) and find out what level you are at. If you win, thats great, if you lose you know what you have to work on and you get your ass back in the gym.

I compete at intermediate myself, but I know there are guys more experienced than me competing at beginner levels, but in my opinion they are just trying to collect medals and are kidding themselves in the longrun.

mark.leonard

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

Dirty sandbagging mofos.

I'm not too sure about the league thing and Mark would probably be best placed to answer that. There are very few competitive opportunities in Ireland of a sort of just-turn-up variety so I would say as long as a guy was honest about his competitive record and was just looking to jump into the league this would be okay. Obviously his opponents would have to be cool with that too.

Back in the earlier days of the League we were more open to people that had fought in full rules competing at the League.
These days there are generally extenuating circumstances, the key is that often people who have fought full rules weren't ready, the League is the perfect place for them to build confidence back up.

Problems can arise when someone has fought full rules and doesn't flag it to me, with so many shows going on I don't know every fighter like I once would have, so I have to extend a certain degree of trust to people that enter, like in every amateur competition.

I am delighted to have the opportunity to point out something about the League here - the Veteran division is NOT for people who have a load of C and higher class fights to keep busy, people in that category are not allowed to compete in the League. The Veteran division is purely for graduates of the Rookie division.

Barry.Oglesby

Thanks for the clarification Mark. It's a full year since I've attended a league event now (for shame!) but I have some teenagers very interested and the MMA League is a vital cog in the Informed Performance MMA Plan for Two Thousand and Ten, or IPMMAPfTTaT for short.

Sid_Justice

What kind of influence has the Drysdale affiliation had on your club/team so far Barry? Has it had a strong influence with very direct and sudden changes to the way you operate or is it a lot, longer, subtler influence?

If you were look on yourself the athlete from the point of view of yourself the coach, how would you rate your improvement over the last 3 years in MMA/BJJ? Do you think coaching has made you a more technical competitor with a better understanding of the game or has it hindered your improvement?

The question above sounds quite weighted and I must explain my bias in that I think all coaches suffer as competitors.

Barry.Oglesby

Sid_Justice wrote: »

What kind of influence has the Drysdale affiliation had on your club/team so far Barry? Has it had a strong influence with very direct and sudden changes to the way you operate or is it a lot, longer, subtler influence?

I think in the 6 months since we've hooked up, being exposed to Robert's attitude has changed the way we operate in the very short term. He's very competitively focussed as you might expect and that has refelected itself immediately. Long term we're looking forward to a long relationship with Drysdale Jiu Jitsu that will involve lots of cross polination with us going there and Robert sending over his guys here too. It's been a great move for us so far.

If you were look on yourself the athlete from the point of view of yourself the coach, how would you rate your improvement over the last 3 years in MMA/BJJ? Do you think coaching has made you a more technical competitor with a better understanding of the game or has it hindered your improvement?

Yeah this is a tricky question to answer. My rate of improvement is undoubtably slower than if I was just a student of the game. Even in my own training in my gym, if there's an odd number it's up to me as a coach to be the odd man out. I've taken some steps to improve how I coach and train, the most important one is that 8pm onwards is my training and while I coach and help people after that time I don't coach technique unless it's just a pointer. I get to roll more now. The one thing that's really lacking when you're a coach/athlete is drilling. I don't get to drill technique like the other guys do and it really hinders me. Thankfully with more time on our hands with the new gym I get to do that a bit more now.

But that being said, I wouldn't have it any other way. I only started training BJJ on my own because I had no real choice in the matter. I was too busy to train elsewhere so starting a training group was the logical step for me. I'm no sure how much better a competitor I'd be if I didn't start coaching, but I know that I wouldn't have had the same time to dedicate to it. So I suppose I've gained something on the roundabouts. From conversations with people I think I have a better technical understanding of the game than most guys at my level would have, but that just comes from having to explain stuff a lot, I'm also a bit OCD when it comes to fighting and I like to know why things work and why they don't. I find myself thinking about sweeps when I'm watching TV or lying in bed, or why I couldn't finish a certain choke the night before.

The question above sounds quite weighted and I must explain my bias in that I think all coaches suffer as competitors.

No you're exactly right and having spoken to a lot of guys in my position they would think the same.

stevemc01

On the point you raised earler Barry, about the guys who are not prepared properly for fights. Where does the blame lie?

I've seen guys at a few shows who should have been nowhere near a cage, for 2 reasons.

1) They were not in shape, guys who can fight and have won before turning up in bad condition and gasing after a minute

2) Some guys who are not ready to make the step up to the cage. Just completely overwhelmed, overmatched and beaten easily.

Is it up to the fighter to know when they are ready or in shape? OR Should the coach have any responsibility to look at it maybe 3 weeks out and say "you're not ready for the fight yet" or "you're not in good enough shape to take this fight" and let the promoters have a bit of time to organise a replacement match?

Clive

Barry,

1) You've run an in-house event before with headgear - any thoughts on expanding this into some sort of amateur interclub format a la muay thai?

2) If you could train with any of the big name teams (from any era) where would you go?

3) Can I have a free t-shirt?

Barry.Oglesby

stevemc01 wrote: »

Is it up to the fighter to know when they are ready or in shape? OR Should the coach have any responsibility to look at it maybe 3 weeks out and say "you're not ready for the fight yet" or "you're not in good enough shape to take this fight" and let the promoters have a bit of time to organise a replacement match?

The coach of course. There seems to be some sort of mini "fighter power" sub sect in this country where people think fighters should be allowed to enter themselves and so on. It's bollocks. There are a few people out there who for geographical or experience reasons (as in they have a lot of it) could call themselves independent, but they're in the 1%. Ultimately, as a coach, you need to take responsibility for who you enter in competition. If someone is telling you what they're going to do then you're the tail, not the dog.

And this idea of pulling guys for not being in shape? If they're not in shape, what the **** are they doing taking a fight in the first place? If they're still tubby 3 weeks out, then you give them more cardio when everyone else is doing the stuff they like and see how long that lasts.

Barry.Oglesby

Clive wrote: »

Barry,

1) You've run an in-house event before with headgear - any thoughts on expanding this into some sort of amateur interclub format a la muay thai?

yes I have lots of thoughts, none of which are showing any sign of coming out of my head and into the real world. I did entertain the thought of an interclub but unfortunately, when I went looking, most of the clubs had fighters tied up with amateur matches on big shows. I think people are coming around to the idea a little more now so it may be time to have another stab at it. Watch this space.

2) If you could train with any of the big name teams (from any era) where would you go?

I'd love to go to Chute Boxe 8-10 years ago, BTT 5 years ago, and Jackson now.

3) Can I have a free t-shirt?

We are currently t-shirtless, sans shirts, shirts no more. We are delegating the tee shirt thing and hopefully we'll have some soon. We just have to see how many skulls we can fit on them. I say 45, the guys say more.

Sid_Justice

Who would you say has had the greatest impact on the way you approach martial arts as a martial artist? A previous coach, teacher or student?

John Ferguson

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

I dunno you tell me you're the promoter!

This is true!!:) But I like to get ideas and views from others so that I can improve what I do!

Raze_them_all

Is there anyone you've fought that you'd like to fight again?


What do you think is the most exciting Irish weight class?

Who in your opinion that is competing in ireland has the best all around skill set, and the same for the Irish competing outside of Ireland?

Barry.Oglesby

Sid_Justice wrote: »

Who would you say has had the greatest impact on the way you approach martial arts as a martial artist? A previous coach, teacher or student?

I don't think there's any one person. I've been influenced by a lot of people and I definitely stand on the shoulders of giants. MMA wise, for all the technique I've learned nothing has improved me more than sparring with my friends and team mates. I've also taken something from everyone I've ever trained with, attended a seminar with or sparred. I like to kid that I invent stuff on the mats but it's all been done.

We're all just an amalgamation of our experiences and the collective experiences of others. I don't try to reinvent the wheel or to claim ownership of any method. I've read the same books, watched the same DVDs, trained with most of the same guys as most people in Ireland, and all there is between us is how we bring it all together. All you can do is inject some art into what you know and make it a coherent method that you can teach to others.

My wife (not to bring her into it ) hates when I talk like this and says I should make more of what I do and what I know. But I find that difficult. There are enough personality cults in Martial Arts in Ireland without me adding to the pile.

Barry.Oglesby

Raze_them_all wrote: »

Is there anyone you've fought that you'd like to fight again?

Everyone that's ever beaten me?:) So a lot of people! I think everyone wants to go back when they get beaten and change that mistake they made or prepare differently, but I'm 32 this year and I've no interest in rematching anyone. I've had fewer fights than I've wanted so I'd like to keep fighting different people until I'm done.

What do you think is the most exciting Irish weight class?

Featherweight, if they were all still active! Roddy, Murphy, Leonard, McAlonan, Davis... I won't go on I'd say you get the point!

Who in your opinion that is competing in ireland has the best all around skill set, and the same for the Irish competing outside of Ireland?

Outside Ireland, Greg Loughran. Inside, Tom Maguire. Both those guys can stand up, clinch and ground and if you wanted to show a kid what a fighter should be I'd point to Greg.

Will Heffernan

How high can you box jump?

Successfully that is?

Barry.Oglesby

Will Heffernan wrote: »

How high can you box jump?

Successfully that is?

Apparently, not high enough. I think you should make the most of this opportunity to mock me as even I can see the funny side.

Will Heffernan

Barry.Oglesby wrote: »

Apparently, not high enough. I think you should make the most of this opportunity to mock me as even I can see the funny side.

That's only because you are full of antibiotics and painkillers...were you lucid...even you wouldn't be dumb enough to see the funny side