Now Ye're Talking - to John Kavanagh

Ninja101

FYI

http://fightland.vice.com/blog/ufc-origins-victorian-london

:cool::cool::cool:

Outlaw Pete

You obviously have been around guys & girls getting all sorts of musculoskeletal injuries whilst grappling, fighting, training etc down the years..... and so was wondering if there were any alternative / complementary treatments, therapies etc (that in conjunction with mainstream medics obviously) you have utilized and felt quite useful .... such as chiropractors, osteopathy for example...... or do you think they're all a load of hokum?

pastorbarrett

One more, John...

What makes for a good sparring partner for Conor, particularly in reference to bringing in outside help? Aside from the necessary skill-set, what are the qualities you look for?

selectamatic

Now first of all I wouldn't exactly recommend buying a 1.4 golf, nor would I recommend going to cork but...

What do you make of this?

https://www.donedeal.ie/cars-for-sale/volkswagen-golf/15906451

dickwod1

Hi John,
Fair play for doing this ...

I was in Westpoint gym Blanchardstown many many years ago and a new group of lads had joined, I was in the jacuzzi and there was this yungfella sitting on the mosaic chair outside the steam rooms, he was really muscular not an ounce of body fat and was wearing tap out shorts.
A person in the jacuzzi to my left said "Do you watch UFC" I said I do, he said "Do you know who that is?" No I said, "That's Conor McGregor - He's gonna be in the UFC one day - You should check him out"
I said that I would and after speaking for a while I said I watch all the UFC fights, The ultimate fighters and was at UFC 93.
"Do you remember Tom Egan" he said,
Tom the tank Egan I replied.
A big smile came across his face ...
"OK I'll own up - I'm John Kavanagh" you said "I train/coach these fighters - normally when I speak to people about MMA I dont tell them who I am because I know there not going to look it up, but I know you will"
We spoke for a few more minutes about your gym. I was getting wrinkly said nice to meet you and headed for the steam room

(I went into the steam room and Conor was in there talking/predicting a lot of things - When Conor does a AMA I'll finish the story )

Q. Do you remember any of this?

big syke

Hi John you have said a few times that you tend not to worry as its not an effective use of time for anything. Have you always been like this?

Has training MMA helped if not?

Do you believe MMA would be a good output for stress, anxiety, worry etc. and have you trained any people who would have suffered mental health issues?

Fox Hound

Does Conor remember his boards password?

Mellor

ThinkProgress wrote: »

Judo, sumo, Jiu-jitsu... and many others, they are all Asian creations. No disrespect, but why would they require a coach from Ireland to teach them how to do something that they created?

Seriously, there is nowhere else on earth where martial arts is more widely practiced... and yet they are really struggling to produce top level elite talent.

Those 3 you mentioned were created in Japan. Which it's less that 1% of Asia. The other 2 billion people have nothing to do with it.
And even within Japan, the standard of jiu jitsu was essentially watered down 100+ ago and is not very good in general.

MrStuffins

Yizzer famous:

https://www.bloodyelbow.com/2017/6/28/15889308/conor-mcgregor-camp-to-protest-if-kenny-bayless-gets-ref-assignment-floyd-mayweather-fight-mma-ufc

weldoninhio

Hi John,

You said earlier in the thread that you like to read while travelling. What sort of books do you read? Have you a favourite book? Genre? Author?

What do you think of Sage Northcutt, do you think the UFC overpromoted him too hard too soon???

ThinkProgress

Mellor wrote: »

Those 3 you mentioned were created in Japan.

And...??

Japan is part of Asia the last time I checked... It has a huge population, many of whom love martial arts, who practice these and other skills from a young age. (And have for generations longer than other regions) And there are lots of MMA/UFC fans over there too.

My point still stands, why has Japan never produced any great MMA stars?

Which it's less that 1% of Asia. The other 2 billion people have nothing to do with it.

I never said they did...??

But most of those other countries in Asia have their own Martial arts and fighting techniques too, just like Japan!

My point still stands, that Asia has a very strong history and tradition in a great number of different martial arts... But they are not producing any top stars in the sport of MMA.

For some reason, the most skilled Asian fighters are not very competitive at the top end of the sport.

And even when you consider the sheer numbers that practice martial arts, and the huge population of Asia... They are not even producing a large quantity of average level MMA fighters that make the grade in the UFC etc either!

So it's not just the lack of star Asian fighters... it's actually a lack numbers in general too!

And even within Japan, the standard of jiu jitsu was essentially watered down 100+ ago and is not very good in general.

The skill level of jiu-jitsu and judo, in particular, are very good over there. And still hugely popular. So I don't really agree with you on that point...

Anyway, this really isn't a platform for you and me to discuss this. As much as I'm interested yours or anyone else's opinion on the topic... this is not really the place for it. And I'm much more interested in john's perspective. (No disrespect intended there)

Mellor

Fair enough. I won't clutter the thread. If you start a thread on the martial arts/MMA forum I'll contribute, if not no harm.

—————————————————

Another for you John.
Richie Cranny mentioned an Ireland v UK Wimp2Warrior finale, any date set yet?
How will you pick the "teams".

If you could only eat 3 foods for the rest of your life what would they be?

Do you see many guys drift away from jiu jitsu during their blue belt? Why are "blue belt blues" a struggle?

JohnSBG

LollipopJimmy wrote: »

Would training once a week be enough to get to know the basics of BJJ? I have no intention of ever fighting but I'd love to train to fight if that makes sense? But I work full time and I'm about to become a student on top of the work. Been through a journey of weightloss, over the last while, I was 126kg ane now just over 100kg. I'm also 33 but I did box for a year when I was 12 :pac: and I'd love to really raise my fitness levels

I love the movement and was especially intrigued and impressed with the introduction of Ido Portal.

honestly no. at least twice per week to make meaningful progress.

JahRama wrote: »

Thanks for doing this John

- Favourite UFC referee and why
- Best UFC referee and why (if different)

marc goddard - good friend
marc and bjm are pretty much flawless

Gamebred wrote: »

No its not too late go down on monday and check out somewhere local, plenty of people start later than you, dont need JK to tell you this.

start your own AMA instead of answering questions on mine.

ThinkProgress wrote: »

All however many billion of them, and not one superstar has emerged that can grapple?? lol

Judo, sumo, Jiu-jitsu... and many others, they are all Asian creations. No disrespect, but why would they require a coach from Ireland to teach them how to do something that they created?

you've an odd tone? you asked me a question and i gave you answer.
there is a very big show to be announced launching soon enough pretty much exclusively for the chinese market. the creators have been in touch with me about running training camps there to 'upskill' their coaches/fighters specifically on mma grappling. why? who knows eh?

Paully D wrote: »

1) Do you find it difficult to divide your time between your fighters or to give what you feel is a fair enough amount of time to each of them? How do you balance this?

2) Have you ever had a situation whereby a fighter has come to you to say he/she doesn't feel you are giving him/her enough of your time? If so, how did you deal with this?

3) What percentage of people in your gym would you estimate are people that are there to compete in comparison to those that are looking to keep fit or enjoy it as hobby without ever competing? What split is male/female?

4) Is there any ever difficulty in any way, shape or form with having some people in the gym who compete and some who just go recreationally? Or are the two groups kept completely separate at all times?

5) Do you ever have any bother in your gym with your members hassling the pro fighters, especially Conor, asking for pictures etc? What sort of policy do you have in place with regards to this, if any?

6) Have you ever had a situation in the gym where things have got heated between yourself and one of your students (aside from the Conor/Ais incident)? If so, what lead to it and how did you react/deal with this?

On a separate note, I know someone who enquired to SBG about taking up some classes. He contacted the gym and was called back very quickly. Invited in and shown around for about an hour by a lady who answered all his questions and the information pack he was given at the end was highly detailed too. Unfortunately he couldn't go ahead with it due to logistical reasons but the whole process from the initial enquiry right through was excellent. Just wanted to add this as people are often quick to criticise but not so quick to praise.

- i dont find it difficult. the more time they are in the gym the more time they get from me.
- no haven't experienced that
- i'd say 1 in every 10 compete, rest just for fun. about 50:1 male to female
- no all train together. never an issue. i've had times where conor, who's pretty well known pro is training with a +60yr old in a jiu jitsu class.
- never really an issue. he's just a team mate to them.
- for pro mma class you've a mat full of alphas trying to prove themselves. its always on verge of happening. thats just reality of any group of competitive guys in their 20s. my job to manage that.

JohnSBG

pastorbarrett wrote: »

Hey John, do you still check in on the MMA board these days? Obviously you'll be busy, but please drop by there again nearing fight week!

i'll try

Outlaw Pete wrote: »

You obviously have been around guys & girls getting all sorts of musculoskeletal injuries whilst grappling, fighting, training etc down the years..... and so was wondering if there were any alternative / complementary treatments, therapies etc (that in conjunction with mainstream medics obviously) you have utilized and felt quite useful .... such as chiropractors, osteopathy for example...... or do you think they're all a load of hokum?

if its just pain/uncomfortable (which is usually +90% of time) then try anything. most;y pseudo nonsense but its not serious anyway and will pass with time.
if its an actual injury (rare) then go to sport surgery clinic in santry. expensive but will get it right.

pastorbarrett wrote: »

One more, John...

What makes for a good sparring partner for Conor, particularly in reference to bringing in outside help? Aside from the necessary skill-set, what are the qualities you look for?

in a nutshell they need to be skilled boxers, not random brawlers.

dickwod1 wrote: »

Hi John,
Fair play for doing this ...

I was in Westpoint gym Blanchardstown many many years ago and a new group of lads had joined, I was in the jacuzzi and there was this yungfella sitting on the mosaic chair outside the steam rooms, he was really muscular not an ounce of body fat and was wearing tap out shorts.
A person in the jacuzzi to my left said "Do you watch UFC" I said I do, he said "Do you know who that is?" No I said, "That's Conor McGregor - He's gonna be in the UFC one day - You should check him out"
I said that I would and after speaking for a while I said I watch all the UFC fights, The ultimate fighters and was at UFC 93.
"Do you remember Tom Egan" he said,
Tom the tank Egan I replied.
A big smile came across his face ...
"OK I'll own up - I'm John Kavanagh" you said "I train/coach these fighters - normally when I speak to people about MMA I dont tell them who I am because I know there not going to look it up, but I know you will"
We spoke for a few more minutes about your gym. I was getting wrinkly said nice to meet you and headed for the steam room

(I went into the steam room and Conor was in there talking/predicting a lot of things - When Conor does a AMA I'll finish the story )

Q. Do you remember any of this?

honestly its not in my nature to strike up a random convo with someone about ufc/fighting. i actually dont like talking about it and cant remember once ever doing it. i'm pretty shy/introverted also so find it very hard to believe i'd do that.
however i'm sure you're not lying so maybe i was dehydrated or something haha

big syke wrote: »

Hi John you have said a few times that you tend not to worry as its not an effective use of time for anything. Have you always been like this?

Has training MMA helped if not?

Do you believe MMA would be a good output for stress, anxiety, worry etc. and have you trained any people who would have suffered mental health issues?

cant say as i've only ever had this life where i did mma. but yes as a kid i was always pretty quiet and mindful.
yes i think it would be. pick up the herald today haha

Fox Hound wrote: »

Does Conor remember his boards password?

yes

weldoninhio wrote: »

Hi John,

You said earlier in the thread that you like to read while travelling. What sort of books do you read? Have you a favourite book? Genre? Author?

What do you think of Sage Northcutt, do you think the UFC overpromoted him too hard too soon???

book - a brief history of nearly everything. best book ever written. genre - pop science.
ufc dont twist arms. he made up his own mind what he wanted to do.

Mellor wrote: »

Fair enough. I won't clutter the thread. If you start a thread on the martial arts/MMA forum I'll contribute, if not no harm.

—————————————————

Another for you John.
Richie Cranny mentioned an Ireland v UK Wimp2Warrior finale, any date set yet?
How will you pick the "teams".

If you could only eat 3 foods for the rest of your life what would they be?

Do you see many guys drift away from jiu jitsu during their blue belt? Why are "blue belt blues" a struggle?

- probably do trials
- coco pops, lamb and mango
- in short. humans like short attainable goals. to be rewarded often for effort. this doesnt happen with bjj with promotions taking years. most people cant handle that.

JohnSBG

last day boardsies!

Boom_Bap

I see that Dana White is saying the next fight is Khabib in Russia.

Would you see this going the same way as the Alvarez bout. The gameplan for them being to take Conor to the mat but getting into stand up instead?

Boom_Bap

Who controls the music in the gym?

ThinkProgress

JohnSBG wrote: »

you've an odd tone? you asked me a question and i gave you answer.
there is a very big show to be announced launching soon enough pretty much exclusively for the chinese market. the creators have been in touch with me about running training camps there to 'upskill' their coaches/fighters specifically on mma grappling. why? who knows eh?

No tone. Just a very curious mind... I'm sure you can appreciate that, right?

It's okay John... you don't have to have all the answers.

I asked you a very difficult question. I'm sure there are lots of other great minds in the game, that also don't have a definitive answer on why Asia is not producing great MMA fighters!

Best of luck with your endeavours in china, and hopefully you can help unearth a few great Asian MMA stars for the future! It would be great for the sport...

(Don't forget about Japan... you can teach them about the grappling arts too!:P) <-- Okay, yes there was a bit of a tone to this one.. I'll admit it!! :pac::pac::pac:

Peace!

Mellor

JohnSBG wrote: »

- in short. humans like short attainable goals. to be rewarded often for effort. this doesnt happen with bjj with promotions taking years. most people cant handle that.

Following on from that.

- How many training hours does it take the average person to earn their blue, purple, brown and black belts?

- Gunni obviously earned his black in only a few years, but was his "mat time" significantly different than a typical guy?


(Those are my last ones now, promise)

Zero-Cool

Thanks for the time John, some brilliant q's and a'. Best of skill with the Mayweather fight, gonna be fascinating to watch.

With Woodley vs Maia now set for 214, I'm hoping Maia strangles him, would love to see him become champ but then would love Gunni to have another crack.

If they did have a rematch and it was for a belt, would you advise Gunni to try keep it standing after how the 1st fight went?

I know Gunni said he didn't feel himself during that fight so maybe he would do better on the ground against him next time?

It would be epic if he became WW champ!

Swashbuckler

A few more before you leave so!

What was your favourite fight from Fight Night in Dublin 2014 Conor v Brandao card?

Your guys excluded, who do you think is the GOAT in MMA?

What has been your most shocking MMA moment where your jaw hit the floor as you watched (aside from Aldo 13s ko)?

Thanks for taking the time out to do this.

JohnSBG

Boom_Bap wrote: »

I see that Dana White is saying the next fight is Khabib in Russia.

Would you see this going the same way as the Alvarez bout. The gameplan for them being to take Conor to the mat but getting into stand up instead?

i see this like rocky iv. currently we're training for rocky iii

Boom_Bap wrote: »

Who controls the music in the gym?

whoever is coaching the class

ThinkProgress wrote: »

No tone. Just a very curious mind... I'm sure you can appreciate that, right?

It's okay John... you don't have to have all the answers.

I asked you a very difficult question. I'm sure there are lots of other great minds in the game, that also don't have a definitive answer on why Asia is not producing great MMA fighters!

Best of luck with your endeavours in china, and hopefully you can help unearth a few great Asian MMA stars for the future! It would be great for the sport...

(Don't forget about Japan... you can teach them about the grappling arts too!:P) <-- Okay, yes there was a bit of a tone to this one.. I'll admit it!! :pac::pac::pac:

Peace!

its not a difficult question and i gave you the answer. they dont have much of a grappling pedigree. why is a different question.

japan has a grappling pedigree. as you listed 'asian' martial arts. they were japanese. however the elite in judo/sumo for example make a lot more money in judo/sumo than they would in mma so no motivation to do it. tends to be judo guys not good enough for elite judo or at end of career who try it.

you strike me as someone who would think because someone looks chinese "they're probably a bit handy at the aul kung fu".

JohnSBG

Mellor wrote: »

Following on from that.

- How many training hours does it take the average person to earn their blue, purple, brown and black belts?

- Gunni obviously earned his black in only a few years, but was his "mat time" significantly different than a typical guy?


(Those are my last ones now, promise)

assuming traiing 3-4 times per week
2yrs blue
another 3yrs to purple
another 4 to brown
another 1 to black

Zero-Cool wrote: »

Thanks for the time John, some brilliant q's and a'. Best of skill with the Mayweather fight, gonna be fascinating to watch.

With Woodley vs Maia now set for 214, I'm hoping Maia strangles him, would love to see him become champ but then would love Gunni to have another crack.

If they did have a rematch and it was for a belt, would you advise Gunni to try keep it standing after how the 1st fight went?

I know Gunni said he didn't feel himself during that fight so maybe he would do better on the ground against him next time?

It would be epic if he became WW champ!

you dont neccessarily have a choice of where fight goes with maia. me just saying 'stay up' doesnt mean it'll stay up. we have to be ready everywhere. but if it happens we'll see a very different gunni. really hope it does.

Swashbuckler wrote: »

A few more before you leave so!

What was your favourite fight from Fight Night in Dublin 2014 Conor v Brandao card?

Your guys excluded, who do you think is the GOAT in MMA?

What has been your most shocking MMA moment where your jaw hit the floor as you watched (aside from Aldo 13s ko)?

Thanks for taking the time out to do this.

- i think the paddy one. got us off on right foot.
- jon jones
- machida crane kicking randy

Zero-Cool

JohnSBG wrote: »

a

you dont neccessarily have a choice of where fight goes with maia. me just saying 'stay up' doesnt mean it'll stay up. we have to be ready everywhere. but if it happens we'll see a very different gunni. really hope it does.

Thanks John, one last follow up Q please.

How do you see the Maia v Woodley fight playing out? I think it's gonna be a fascinating watch, people already giving out about it that it will be boring.

cloudatlas

Are there any talks/podcasts you would recommend?

What tips would you give someone going to their first BJJ class?

Have you ever put money on your fighters? Have you made a profit?

Is Dana blowing smoke up our ass about Khabib?

Favourite whiskey?

weldoninhio

JohnSBG wrote: »

i see this like rocky iv. currently we're training for rocky iii

If this is Rocky 3, won't Conor be battered in the first fight??? Clubber Lang destroyed Rocky at first. Also have you had a medical check-up, being his trainer and all. RIP Mick.

Edit: Does this also mean that Aldo's coach will train Conor if there is a Mayweather rematch lol.

Might be taking the Rocky reference a little too literally. Hahaha

MrStuffins

This thread is causing waves all over the MMA world............

Ireland7777

Hey John,do you expect mayweather to be more aggressive against Conor than in his previous fights?Will you be involved in the press conference because in boxing the coaches are asked questions.

The White Feather

Thanks again John for taking the time to answer everyones questions.

1. Why do Irish people tend to think we have to go elsewhere to train? SBG Ireland fly the flag for Ireland by training here and doing it well. I mean other sports too. I read Sonia O Sullivan's book who is an Irish legend but she spent loads of time running around London and I couldn't understand why she couldn't do it here. Not asking you to speak for her, just that inferiority complex mindset some people have here.

2. What rule change would you like to see the most in MMA?

3. What do you think of those crazy Russian team MMA fights? Who would you pick on an Irish one?!!!

4. Favourite 80's movie?

5. Do you agree with me that Ireland's religious blasphemy law is embarrassing and silly?

6. How nervous do you get before fights?

Depp

No real questions other than what others have asked, just wanted to say cheers for doing this, great insight!

Anyway best of luck with the fight and the rest of the camp!