June 21, 2009

Yes, it's been a long time since I've written. I'll try to catch you all up.
Geeze... uh, where to start? Last November I fought in the UFC against Maia, an incredible fighter and ju jitsu expert. He was able to execute his gameplan and get me down and submit me in the first round. Although the fight was brief I was able to pull away with some things to work on. The thing that impressed me the most was his pure ju jitsu. He was not going to strike until he was locked in on a position and was not in any risk of losing it. When he was locked in then he would fire some shots to loosen me up and create openings for attack. It was truly an honor to fight such a great opponent and now I can say, I've been tapped and knocked out. Getting tapped is waaaay better.  :-)

More recently I faced Jason MacDonald up in Canada. It was obvious what Jason's gameplan would be, take me down and tap me. So we focused on takedown defense. At the bell we meet in the center of the ring and I throw an overhand right that lands. He clinches and drives me against the fence looking to pull my legs out from under me. I was able to wizzer and put him on his back where I started to throw some elbows. I land a right elbow that cuts him above the left eye. I could tell by the feel of it that it was solid and I could see the blood was going to start going into his eyes. I waited a few seconds and once that blood got in his eyes I start hammering away with elbows, opening a 2 inch cut vertically on his forhead. The ref jumped in and as I stood up I thought it was just to check the cut but when I realized that was it, I let loose with a yell. This was a big win for me against a tough opponent. Jason had gone into the 3rd round with Maia and past the 2nd with Franklin. He'd also beaten my boys Herman and Leben, so I knew he was tough. Nothin but love for Mac and I'm sorry to see him leave the UFC. He has quite a few fans and he always comes to fight. I'd look to see him back soon.

Since then it's been business as usual. Training and just in case my head would have gotten to big I decided to enter the Worlds Ju Jitsu tournament. What makes this interesting is that I've worn a gi to grapple probably 7 times in the past 8 years. I had visualized meeting a jits practitioner and even a wrestler, but it had never crossed my mind that I might meet a judo black belt. I've trained even less judo with a gi than ju jitsu. None in fact. That was pretty obvious as he threw 4 times, slamming me to the mat and on the fourth time landing in a reverse triangle. But for me I went down to support my friends at New Breed Ju Jitsu who were competing and just to have some fun. I got to enjoy the feeling of competition and not get injured so that's a plus. And as my opponent and I shook hands I notice his gi was Hayabusa brand. "Yes", he says. "That's my company." Oh, I reply, you sponsor me. "Yes, I know." So take it from me, Hayabusa gis are gentle on your skin as you're being choked out.
Next I've been working with Nuvasive quite a bit more. If you remember they are the company responsible for my back surgery and my return to fighting. We've started a whole outreach patient advocacy program called "The Better Way Back" in which we're reaching out to those suffering from backpain. Letting them know that they have options. They don't have to suffer. I spent a few weeks ago meeting with surgeons and nurses and patients and telling them my story. I really feel that this program is going to make a differance in people's lives and I'm excited to have a part in it. Over ten million people in the US alone suffer from back pain and I can speak from experience when I say that surgery is scary. When I had mine, I had no one to ask advice. No one to tell me the upside. I don't want people to have to go through that. And one of the really exciting things is that other patients want to join in and help. Soon we'll have a network where people can connect with others who have gone through surgery and have an ear to share their thoughts and fears. You can go to www.xlif.com and see the start of it all.
Busy as always but I'll try to do better in my updates. Tuesday I go down to LA to be on HD Net Fights. Should be fun. And I'll be wearing a Hayabusa shirt because they're the ones sponsoring me for the show. So the owner will be able to get some advertising and tell his friends, "That's the guy I tossed at the Worlds!"
Good times...

May 19, 2009

I'm on Twitter!!!! Follow me at www.twitter.com/NateRockQuarry

May 6, 2009,

OK, ALMOST TWO YEARS SINCE THE PAGE HAS BEEN UPDATED. NOT VERY GOOD. BUT, THINGS ARE DIFFERENT NOW. THE PAGE SHOULD BE UPDATED AT LEAST ONCE A WEEK, NOW, IF NOT MORE OFTEN.

SO, THERE’S BEEN THREE FIGHTS SINCE THE LAST UPDATE. KALIB STARNES, DEMIAN MAIA, AND JASON MACDONALD.

THE FIGHT WITH KALIB WAS ONE OF THOSE SUPER RARE OCCASIONS WHERE YOU THINK YOU’VE TRAINED FOR EVERY POSSIBILITY…WELL, WE DIDN’T TRAIN FOR THAT. WHAT’S MORE, IT CAN OFTEN BE VERY DIFFICULT TO TELL HOW THE FIGHT IS GOING. THERE ARE NUMEROUS REALLY GOOD FIGHTERS THAT BACK UP THE WHOLE TIME, AND PICK THEIR OPPONENT APART. LYOTO MACHIDA IS THE PERFECT EXAMPLE. BUT SOONER OR LATER, MACHIDA ENGAGES. WITH THE STARNES FIGHT, THOUGH HE KEPT MOVING BACKWARDS, HE DIDN’T ATTACK AT ALL. BUT YOU HAVE TO BE PREPARED FOR THAT AT ALL TIMES. SO THEN IT’S MENTALLY FATIGUING, BECAUSE YOU’RE CONSTANTLY TRYING TO BE READY FOR THE ATTACK. A VICTORY’S A VICTORY, SO WE WON’T COMPLAIN.

THE MAIA FIGHT. UGH. THE CAMP WAS A GREAT ONE, AND WE HAD EVEN BROUGHT IN SOME FANTASTIC BJJ BLACK BELTS FROM BACK EAST, AS WELL AS SOME JUDOKAS FROM JAPAN. THINGS WERE FEELING REALLY GOOD, AND WE HAD A WELL DEVELOPED STRATEGY. MAIA WAS JUST ABLE TO EXECUTE HIS PLAN QUICKER THEN WE WERE. HIS JIU JITSU WAS FANTASTIC, AND HE MADE REALLY QUICK TRANSITIONS. HE WAS THE BETTER FIGHTER THAT NIGHT.

FORTUNATELY THE MACDONALD WENT WAY BETTER. WE WERE PREPARED FOR HIS EXTREME REACH ADVANTAGE, THOUGH THIS WASN’T A TOOL HE HAD USED IN PRIOR BOUTS. JASON SEEMS TO PREFER THE GROUND, WHERE THE REACH IS NOT AN ISSUE. HE HADN’T REALLY DEVELOPED THE STRIKING SKILLS WHERE THAT REACH WOULD HAVE BEEN A BIG FACTOR. ONCE THE FIGHT WAS ON THE GROUND, WE KNEW THAT IT WOULD ONLY BE A MATTER OF TIME BEFORE THE STRIKING WOULD TAKE HIM OUT OF HIS PLAN.

AS FAR AS THE FUTURE GOES, WE’LL SEE WHAT’S NEXT. UFC 102 WILL BE HELD PORTLAND, OR. MAYBE SOME LOCAL BOYS WILL BE ON THAT CARD?

May 5th, 2009

April 26, 2009

Updates will be here real soon!

SEPTEMBER 23, 2007 - SUNDAY

FIGHT NIGHT SEPT 19TH

WHAT A WEEK IT HAS BEEN. WHAT A COUPLE OF YEARS...

FIRST OFF I HOPE EVERYONE ENJOYED THE FIGHT ON WEDNESDAY. PETE AND I FOUGHT OUR HEARTS OUT. I DON'T THINK I'VE EVER FOUGHT ANYONE AS HUNGRY FOR A WIN AS HE WAS THAT NIGHT. PETE IS A VERY TOUGH GUY AND IT JUST GOES TO SHOW HOW TOUGH THE UFC IS RIGHT NOW HAVING GUYS LIKE HIM WAITING IN THE WINGS.

I WAS LOOKING FORWARD TO A VERY TOUGH FIGHT. I KNEW PETE WOULD BE HUNGRY. BUT I WAS TOO. IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME SINCE I STEPPED IN THE OCTAGON AND I HAD A LOT OF QUESTIONS TO ANSWER TO MYSELF. HOW TOUGH AM I? WILL I STILL FIGHT TIL THE END? HOW'S MY TRAINING HOLD UP AGAINST AN UNWILLING OPPONENT? WHAT TYPE OF SHAPE WILL I BE IN? ANY HOLES IN MY GAME? ANY GIANT HOLES?

ALL QUESTIONS I NEEDED ANSWERING. SOME ANSWERS I WASN'T AS HAPPY WITH, BUT I'M HAPPY I GOT ANSWERS.

THE WEEK STARTED WITH ME HEADING TO VEGAS WITH MY MMA COACH AND TRAINING PARTNER GREG THOMPSON. WHEN I LEFT QUEST HE WAS THE ONLY PERSON THAT STOOD BY ME 100%. HE GAVE SO MUCH OF HIMSELF TO HELP ME GET READY FOR THIS FIGHT IT'S JUST INCREDIBLE. HE PUSHED ME IN EVERY WORKOUT. WITHOUT HIM IN MY CORNER THIS JOURNEY WOULD HAVE BEEN SO MUCH HARDER. I ALSO CALLED ALEX KARALEXIS TO SEE IF HE WOULD CORNER ME. IN CASE YOU DON'T REMEMBER HIM, HE WAS ON TUF 1 WITH ME AND JUST HAS A GREAT ATTITUDE FOR FIGHTING. AND MY BUDDY DAVE CAME DOWN FOR MORAL SUPPORT.

IT WAS TOUGH GETTING READY FOR THIS FIGHT. I GOT SICK 3 TIMES IN JUST A COUPLE MONTHS. I ACTUALLY GOT A PRETTY BAD HEAD COLD JUST A WEEK AND A HALF BEFORE TEH FIGHT. PART OF IT WAS HARD I WAS PUSHING BUT A LOT OF IT WAS THE STRESS OF EVERYTHING I WAS TRYING TO ACCOMPLISH. THAT WEARS ON A MAN. THEN THERE WERE THE INJURIES. SEEMED LIKE MY ANKLES WERE ALWAYS STRAINED OR MY RIGHT ARM WOULDN'T STRAIGHTEN ALL THE WAY.

THE WEIGHT CUT WAS A TOUGH ONE TOO. I WANTED TO BE A LITTLE BIGGER AND STRONGER THAN USUAL BUT THAT BENEFIT WAS NEGATED BY THE PAIN OF THE CUT. I CUT TEN POUNDS ON THE DAY OF WEIGH INS AND I'D BEEN CUTTING ALL WEEK. THE CUT ACTUALLY WENT GREAT. LOST ALL MY WEIGHT WITH PLENTY OF TIME. IT WAS JUST PAINFUL. I LIKE TO CUT WEIGHT ALL SUITED UP WHILE WALKING ON A TREADMILL. MY BODY WAS WORKING SO HARD THAT MY HEARTRATE WAS CLOSE TO 150 BPM WHILE WALKING 2 MPH. BUT THE WEIGHT CAME RIGHT OFF SO IT WAS ALL WORTH IT.

GETTING INTO THE CAGE I FELT A DEEP INTENSITY AND NEED TO WIN. FOR ME THIS ONE FIGHT MADE OR BROKE MY FUTURE. MY FAMILY WAS DEPENDING ON THIS. MY LITTLE GIRL HAS NEEDS THAT I HAD TO FULFILL. SO WE SET ABOUT THE BUSINESS OF WAR. PETE HITTING ME MORE THAN I WOULD LIKE AND ME HITTING HIM LESS THAN I WOULD LIKE. IN THE SECOND ROUND HE BLASTED ME WITH A STRAIGHT RIGHT THAT DROPPED ME. IT WAS EXACTLY LIKE YOU SEE IN THE MOVIES. FIRST I SAW THE LIGHTS ABOVE THEN THE CANVAS THEN PETE MOVING IN ON ME. I KNEW IF I STAYED DOWN HE COULD FINISH ME SO I NEEDED TO GET UP. THE FIRST THOUGHT ON MY MIND WAS, "NO! I'M NOT DONE! WHERE'S THE REF? KEEP HIM AWAY FROM ME!"

COMING INTO THE THIRD I LOOKED ACROSS THE RING AND FOR THE FIRST TIME HE WASN'T JUMPING AROUND. I KNEW THEN THAT THIS WAS THE TIME TO PRESS THE ACTION. HE HAD HIT ME AS HARD AS HE COULD AND I KEPT COMING. I JUST NEEDED TO DO IT AGAIN AND DO IT RIGHT. I LANDED A STRAIGHT RIGHT THAT SENT HIM TO THE CANVAS. FOR MONTHS I'D BEEN FANTASIZING ABOUT DROPPING HIM AND THEN MOTIONING HIM TO STAND UP SO THERE WOULD BE NO CONTROVERSY THIS TIME. SO I DID. I MOTIONED FOR HIM TO STAND UP. THEN THE SMARTER HALF OF MY BRAIN SAID, "SHUT THE HELL UP! JUST HIT HIM BEFORE HE DOES STAND UP AND BEAT ON YOU SOME MORE!" SO I LANDED THE SAME RIGHT HAND THAT THE LAST FIGHT ENDED WITH.

WHAT A GREAT NIGHT. THAT WAS THE FIGHT I NEEDED. I HAVE FOOTAGE OF MYSELF NOW TO SEE WHAT I NEED TO WORK ON. I HAVE A REMINDER THAT I CAN TAKE A PUNCH AND STILL FIGHT THROUGH IT. I KNOW I CAN DELIVER KNOCK OUT PUNCHES AS WELL.

SO MANY PEOPLE TO THANK. AND BUSINESSES.

NUVASIVE. THE COMPANY THAT HAS BEEN PIONEERING BACK SURGERIES. THINK ABOUT THIS, WITH THEIR PROCEDURE I WENT FROM BARELY BEING ABLE TO WALK I WAS IN SO MUCH PAIN TO FIGHTING AGAIN IN THE UFC.

SPORTS LAB. MY COACH PHIL CLAUD REALLY TOOK MY TRAINING TO ANOTHER LEVEL. I OWE HIM MY FITNESS. HE'S IN NORTH PORTLAND SO LOOK HIM UP.

HUMAN PERFORMANCE SPECIALISTS. WWW.HPSI.US. THEY HELPED TO TAKE MY BODY TO ANOTHER LEVEL WITH VITAMIN TREATMENTS AND THERAPIES TO HELP REPAIR MY INJURED JOINTS. SO MANY PRO ATHLETES GO THERE IT'S AMAZING.

YOK'D CLOTHING. WWW.YOKD.COM JOHNNY SPONSORED ME FOR THIS FIGHT. AND BELIEVED IN ME BEFORE MY SURGERY. BEFORE I WENT UNDER THE KNIFE HE SENT ME A CONTRACT TO SIGN GUARANTEEING ME A MONTHLY INCOME WHILE I WAS HEALING. WHILE SOME SPONSORS RAN, JOHNNY RAN TO HELP.

METABOLIC ADAPTATION. WWW.FIGHTMA.COM BASICALLY THE SAME THING. ANTHONY AND STEVE LOOKED TO BRING ME ON BEFORE MY SURGERY AND WITHOUT THEIR SUPPLEMENTS MY TRAINING WOULD HAVE BEEN A LOT HARDER.

ZEBRA MATS. WWW.ZEBRAMATS.COM ZEBRA STEPPED UP AND GAVE ME MATS TO TRAIN ON WHEN ALL I HAD WAS THE LITTLE RUBBER MARTIAL ARTS MATS. EVER BEEN DROPPED ON YOUR HEAD ON THOSE? SUCKS. THANKS, ZEBRA.

OAKLY SUNGLASSES. AGAIN, STEPPED UP AND SUPPORTED ME WHEN I NEEDED IT MOST.

TOYO TIRES. LET ME EXPLAIN HOW BADLY I NEEDED TIRES. DRIVING ON MY SPARE WITH THE STEAL WHEEL AND THE THE OTHER BACK TIRE IS FILLED WITH FIX A FLAT. THANKS GUYS, YOU SAVED ME.

WWW.MMAWAREHOUSE.COM CAME THROUGH TO SPONSOR ME FOR THIS FIGHT. GET YOUR GEAR THERE.

SPRAWL SHORTS. BEST, TOUGHEST, LONGEST LASTING SHORTS AROUND.

ALL OF THESE PLACES CAME THROUGH FOR ME WHEN I NEEDED THEM. SO PLEASE, SUPPORT THEM. AND EVEN IF YOU DON'T LIKE ME, SUPPORT THEM BECAUSE THE STUFF THEY HAVE IS THE BEST. METABOLIC ADAPTATION IS ACTUALLY GIVING A 40% DISCOUNT IF YOU TYPE IN FIGHTNIGHT AS THE PASS CODE. TRY THEIR STUFF. IT'S AMAZING. AND YOK'D GEAR AND EVERYTHING ELSE IS JUST COOL. SO CHECK EVERYTHING OUT AND PLEASE TELL THEM THAT I SENT YOU. SPONSORSHIPS HAVE CARRIED ME FOR THE PAST TWO YEARS. WITHOUT THEM I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN ABLE TO TRAIN LIKE I DID.

AND THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO BELIEVED IN ME. YOU ALL GAVE ME THE ENERGY TO TRAIN WHEN I DIDN'T THINK I HAD ANY LEFT. NOW I'M OFF TO FLORIDA TO FILM A FISHING SHOW CALLED THE SALTWATER EXPERIENCE. IS THAT COOL OR WHAT? FISHING FOR LEMON SHARKS. A NICE REWARD FOR GETTING PUNCHED SO MANY TIMES I GUESS.

THANKS AGAIN EVERYONE.


-NATE “ROCK” QUARRY
FORTITUDINE VINCIMUS!