Andre Ewell is a mixed martial artist currently signed to the UFC bantamweight division who holds a victory over former bantamweight champion Renan Barao. He is also known for being former CES MMA bantamweight champion.
Transcript:
Andre Ewell mr. cast so like beyond excited at the moment: okay, okay yeah. So yes, they put me in a splint. So I’m like 100 % happy – and you know I’m in my garage and I am training – that’s all you can do man. Garage training is where it’s at right now, yeah how you doing I’m not too bad, not too bad. You know uh doing what I can being at home 24/7. Not much else. You can do it’s Korona thing so stuck at home, living the dream and trying to do as many home workouts as I can, but it gets pretty boring pretty quickly stuff like that. What are you uh so what’s uh? What’S your training like is it obviously gyms are closed and everything so minimal with the arm too so. Well, definitely, since the arm like process ended up happening, everything has been slowing down manufactures in that I had like a knee surgery as well, but as of this week, I’m 100 sent back with my old, basically whole body except the right arm, but the training it’s It’S starting to pick back up, I’m just happy that I actually started running this week, so everything’s getting back to normal and September, looks like I will definitely be back so I’m excited. Do you have any names in mind, anybody that piques your interest? Is there uh? Any names out there just anyone well right now, it’s just me getting in, but obviously I want to fight the best respect or obviously I want that super rematch with Chico Vera or even look. It doesn’t really matter just me getting in there and then, if I get a number, I’m happy yeah. Well, you had a big win. I saw him right that the decision went over Jonathan Martinez right and what made it big, you know. Some people are starting to catch on in hearing about it, but I broke, though you know and broke my forearm and literally in the first round. First, ten seconds and whatnot and I fought through it and no one like I stated, ended up knowing about it and tell like weeks at after and it’s kind of like messed up but hey, can we blame, you know, go Roby just how do you uh how’s, That feel in there at the end, where you’re like cuz, it was a split right. It was a split decision, so you got ta like you know, you were coming off a loss before that. If I’m I’m not wrong, ya know one. It’S like. Oh man, like one judge, could give me back-to-back losses or one judge could give me that win. You know it’s. How do you feel when you finally got that you know winner by split decision just spectres in um when it kind of like comes to it like? I know I put everything on the line and that fight you know, and just punches in, like I stated with the whole arm in everything that I continued, like most people were ended up stopping making front, but I had to put on my poker face and everybody If you don’t know actually suck at poker poker face on that whole fight becoming crazy, because you know I felt that I want. I know that I won and for it to come down to a split decision. It stuff happens, especially since there’s a soft base in the second homework whatnot, but it’s all love. You know. I thought that I won, but I went to the you know to the ref or not the rest of the judges, and then they day it’s three opinions that matter and it’s those three judges. You know yeah, I mean that’s the thing it’s if it goes to the judges I mean you saw with John Jones and and Dominic Reyes, you saw with yo. Well, you saw with UOL versus Adesanya, you leave it to the judges, man, it is anything’s up for grabs, they could go either way and especially with the state of the judging today. I really don’t know. That’S always push that factors in hey leave it with the judges, but it came up to it because you know, but like this and not broken, I finished the fight in the second round. That’S just how it is. That’S really built first, but everybody said the second. If anything, but a SUP happens. Well, it’s a big win. I mean, I think personally, your biggest win was obviously against Burrell yeah, your debut beat former champion a guy. Wait in his hometown. Remember all those and a guy who for for so long, was feared by the entire division yeah, it’s true so to come in and your debut and and hate you know it was. I thought that was remarkable like I was watching that fight. I remember watching and being like cuz I hadn’t heard of you. I was like Penan Burrell, like I know, he’s coming through some rough times. A rough patch he’s gon na win this comfortably and did not did not hats off to you, man. That was a. I was an incredible fight, so yeah, so I guess we’ll jump right back into the the coronavirus. I guess from a fighter’s perspective, how do you weigh the pros and cons of taking a fight right? Obviously, the con being all you can get Corona, but, pro being you know, it’s a paycheck yeah. Yes, so how? How would you weigh it like, for example, if you got a call – and you were 100 % armed was good, said: hey. We got a fight. 249! No fans, how do you weigh it like you know we’re? How would you? How would you take that hey? I love what I do so reality. I hundred percent take the fight, I’m the understand in there and if I die indicate. Obviously people are gon na, be like really sad about it, but just know that I’m like go down with a smile. So it’s like a straight down, be like hey, hey Kobe. I feel, like Kobe Bryant, calling for the coffee ball, but straight up, shoutouts to our EP Kobe as well, but um, it’s one of those things you end up. Knowing what you love to do. You know sacrifice basically what you can to jump up in, and this is what I honestly love to do so I’m in there you know, but I end up understanding that, but people are not getting the full information, it’s heat that honestly kills the virus, so in Other words, you training and I you know saunas and whatnot end up like burning that out, but a lot of people probably don’t know about that. But now I just gave you that rabbit out, that out the Hat or is the cat out the bag? One of the other there you go yeah, there’s a yeah, I mean there’s a lot of people with that mentality, like I think Diego Sanchez is probably the best example of it where you’d much rather die in. There then lose, and it’s something that’s unheard of. I mean I’m, I don’t have an MMA upbringing. I did a little Jitsu but, let’s be honest, like I’m, not I’m not ready to die anyway right. Someone asked me to choke I’m tapping or right away like I don’t I don’t. I don’t play around so different mentality from I mean I’m gon na count and so on. Accountant has much different mentality. So it’s unusual for people like like me. I guess who don’t have that same sort of mentality but and that’s what that’s? What drew me to the sport, the fight that did it for me. Well, I guess the event I guess was a Rashad and rampage when I saw a rampage tear that door down. I was like yo I like that guy, so that that’s what got me into it was there any particular event your martial artist or, I guess, fight that really drew to the sport and, if so, which one it’s like a coin flip. I guess you can say. Well, obviously, growing up, I was like a super fan of a freaking. You know bruce lee muhammad ali roy jones, my favorite boxer, so it was just one of those things like you know. When you pick up things, i picked up things like really fast, especially since it’s like growing up with like life-and-death situations and everything, so everything just kind of like wasn’t read it into me. You know like forced down my throat type thing you know, but what honestly really did is, i guess you could say is when Mighty Mouse didn’t like super flying armbar, where you just do dude in there and I trap them. I was like whole step push nope. He is my favorite fighter right now he’s like number one, and here comes John John, who was John until Mighty Mouse. Did that and like clip the corn and truth be told, I really didn’t watch a lot of basically cage fight at all. I didn’t watch it. You know so I kind of like kept to myself in a way boxing boxing was the close they’ll ever get for me enough so like when I fight hidden brow. I didn’t know nothing about him, but everybody might captain. My family knew and they’re telling me it’s Hannon, Brown and I’m like okay, but today so come on. You know that’s my mentality for everything. Yeah, that’s uh! I mean, I guess, that’s a good mentality. I mean it’s probably better, especially with a big name like that. To not, I guess know who he is, so the pressure is almost down a little bit or you know knowing who he is, may motivate you more. I guess depending on on who it is another question I have predictions for 249. Hmm gon na be pretty tricky, but babe I’m becoming more and more a fan. Every time you fight, but if anybody has a chance, it’s his opponent master right now, like you know, it’s pretty decent he’s sneaky not only sneaky. It’S one of those situations. He’Ll, take a beating just the honestly gross stuff up, you know, but well my brother always stated he stated that uh he’s like based off of a crowd like you know, and now you take away the crowd. Does he still have that superpower now, which I feel like he does, but my brother kind of threw that out there that he might not. You know yeah everything kind of it’s: a flip corn right there yeah the fight for me that did it or the fight. That’S making me like almost set on khabib was watching him get dropped, bailando Hinata and I mean no disrespect to land of inada, but I mean if Lando is gon na drop. Tony, I feel like if kabhi shouldn’t drop him, I don’t think could be blood. Some recover and I’ve only ever seen could be rocked at one time by Michael Johnson. Who’S got a heck of a right hand and a heck of a left hand. So I don’t know I think it’s it could go either way. I think the one thing that we haven’t seen kebede in is a lot of danger and that’s something that Tony can offer is elbows off about the bottom, we’ll crack them open. There’S blood house could be be going to react as a has a fighter. What does blood do like like when you start seeing blood flow down into your eyes, like as an accountant, I’m thinking like I’d, be I’d be out of there, like the second, I saw blood flowing in my eyes, I’d be like, oh, this isn’t for me, but From someone who’s been in there, someone who’s fought. What would blood do? Does it motivate you to bite down on your mouthpiece move forward and motivation like like what I end up saying blood is like I actually go. I turn red. It’S like you know. Oh, I got ta get it back, oh I got it, you know, but it’s like a like a survival. Kick that you know just kicks in right, not like I remember it was like in one of my spine, go spike 2011, making my nose and my nose like far to the right side. I’M not thinking that a broken toy. What I’m saying is, I saw blood on my gloves, you know and then my mindset was oh, we got ta, go like you know, so I might throw on with the person and then I think I ended up making it worse. You know so but, like I said, I see you when I see blood, it motivates me to go harder, a lot harder yeah when kicks in but yeah man – I I don’t understand it Susumu, who doesn’t experience, and I mean I’ve been hit in the face. A couple times took a couple body shots, and I was like this is: let’s stick with jiu-jitsu Muay Thai is not fun. Kickboxing is definitely not fun, not someone who likes body shots at all. So that’s yeah, but I mean I guess it’s it’s good to hear from from the fighters perspective, to see what exactly they’re going through um I had. I had Mike Mike Rodriguez light heavyweight. I had him on yesterday and one of the questions that uh that I asked him was when you’re in there and someone is. You know that you could be a second away from lights, going out or a second away from knocking someone out when you’re in there. He said it’s almost like a chess match where you’re like almost zone out, you don’t realize, like you know, I could get hurt or I could hit them. It’S just you’re in there and you Blanc. Do you find that similar with you or do you sit there? Thinking like oh man, like I hit him he’s going out or like do those thoughts cross your mind at all I’d say: yeah. Everything comes like a coin flip on that, like my eyes, it’s why I end up saying I like vision, it’s that that anything obviously can’t happen, but be first, so you know got to worry about it. You know: stop that’s like one thing like how Conor he’s so great at what he does is because he’s always first like he’s trying to be first and they’ve done that he was a second late. You get a different outlook. Yeah, you know hey you’re, a second. I’M behind you know so kind of like floats in that direction, but my little egos be first, and that becomes your chest. You know good offenses, a great defense, just like a great defense, could be your great offensive. Like depends on what’s going on, you know, but most time blacking out. Obviously you got ta zone out. Everybody, that’s around you. You know but yeah. Well, the guy is just just a nice fun place inside the cage, so you’re saying like when you’re in there do you you zone out the fans. Do you think there’d be a difference? Would you notice a difference if you were to compete in an empty arena? Uh, like yeah, what mid fight I’ll, say, yeah just practice in or not for me, I could obviously see for other people because, like i standed everybody kind of feeds off of a crowd like me, I’m like no, like I said, for instance, I had a boxing Background so when fighters like would fight you’ll get some crowds, were they won’t say nothing like you know: they’re, just quiet the watch unless, obviously that one side has a family and then they’re screaming and everything, but you get somewhere fans don’t have like you know. People are from a different uh, you know country, so I stayed in everything. So don’t have a fan, so it’s the crowds just really quiet, or sometimes you might be the first fight where the crowd I ain’t there, like you know, like everything kind of like depends so being kind of going or coming from, like the cage, fights and everything That I fight in front of you know crowd that was less and then I thought in a crowd. That’S it was just like straight back down, so you know yeah. Well, okay, it is it’s go time, it’s fun time. Let’S have fun, you know on the show. So it don’t matter so in Brazil, when you were competing against brow. If I’m not, if I’m not mistaken, that’s the only time you’ve fought outside of the states is that correct yeah, so that must have been different getting in there and just getting food simply because you weren’t Brazilian, that I want to say no cuz the fighting before That I end up fighting a guy named Dennis Paiva which was his hometown and I it was Lincoln Rhode, Island, Rhode, Island, Rhode, Island. So I was there, everybody I didn’t like you know I like walked into it, but it was like the superhero of all superheroes out there like this, like cuz, you know over there. It’S like literally it’s fighting, that’s all they do so that was their guy. Like you know, and when I got into the cage, there was nothing but boos. When I was walking to the cage it was a hundred percent silent like it was so silent like that, I don’t think they played my music, so they kind of like you know they played my system and everything, and so every time you find any time he Did something they’re screaming any time? I do something I was quiet, so I was like already used to it. So my mind said again: it’s like in the cage, it’s your house, so it doesn’t matter. You know so me going to Brazil. I wasn’t thinking everybody screaming or bullying me because at the end of the day after I got done getting booed and then like Chen will kill you and all that other stuff, though saying people are taking pictures with me talking about me love, you know that other Stuff, you know, like I think, like majority of my fans is from Brazil. You know yeah, I mean I think people ways, but the exception of people like Matt Brown. It would flip off the crowd. I think, as long as you’re respectful there I mean, I think, from what I hear. I mean Connors loved in Brazil and he’s had a lot of issues with Jose Aldo. So I think, as long as you’re respectful and whatnot in Brazil, I think for the most part, it’s all love and respect, and I find that the one thing about MMA fans is that there is always love and respect to you that to the fighters, regardless of Where they’re from that is really true and that’s why I end up because it’s that guy, you stated exactly how they are. It’S like it don’t matter who it is just know that we’re cheer for people, but after we’ll buy you a beer, and it’s like, I think, okay, you know like you know, can’t get mad at that. You know yeah is uh yeah, so you competed in Brazil once is. There is travel inch like an interest for you, or is it’s much rather stay in the States? Oh, no! No. I want to be traveling. The country I want to, like you, know, cuz the way I look at it is. I want to be worldwide. I don’t just want to be hey, we know you in the United States now or the us like, whatnot or California or Vegas. I want to be known around the world like, like, I tried everything I can before I took the fight with cheat, though, that I was trying to get on the Japan tour to China. Car like that was the car I really wanted to be on. I was like doing everything I can to get on it like even got to the moment. I even worked on my Mandarin just to get out there. You know so. I was like fully committed trying to get out there, but people didn’t want to fight me. So ended up coming out to the moment. Ugh I hate fighting cheetah, which is uh, should have been like great before I even got got the chance to even fight him, and not only that that it kind of like came down to a number like a lot of people, wouldn’t accept me. Accept fighters like cheetah that’s down to throw and that or right, like you know, so it kind of like open up the doors on there. Yeah. That’S the one thing that I mean, I’m I like the the rankings and one aspect because for us it’s easier to see like okay, he’s number two he’s number three, but at the same time some guy he’s ranked number fourteen. Why would he fight someone who’s? Just those odd it really makes makes things complicated. I find for people just outside to get a shot. Obviously, if you had beaten, cheeto you’d likely be in the top fifteen, but now to get a shot right like to get a shot at someone. That’S hot fifteen. It’S it’s difficult simply because they don’t view you as a guy in the top fifteen. Everyone wants to fight up in the rankings. So how do you feel about rankings? Are you a fan of it or is it something that you wish? They didn’t have uh told Rankin. Is there for reason? So I like the rankings, but the rankings become favorable. Is they actually go by it? You know and be honest. It doesn’t really matter unless you’re, like top four, that it really matters. You know yeah cuz. It’S that’s like shows as it who’s getting the next title shot, but right now, it’s like showing miles like how USC kind of do it. It’S that whoever is the no name if you’re, the no name and people love you just like this, like a like. Oh, that’s like a high chance out of everybody in the van weight class. That will be probably the next of the newcomers that will have a title shot will be O’Reilly and why him this effect is in that the people love like you know. He has a good following base, so they’ll probably definitely skip him all the way up, just how they did Cody. They skipped them all the way yeah like you know, and for me to get there I’m glad to be pita or fighting beetle. Oh my they or cause the keep building my uh, my uh, you know my life and my background. They, I honestly get there yeah nobody. I was saying it comes down as and who you find, who you, because I – and this is nothing going back to cheat bill – I go I’m a big fan of him, it’s effective than that or a fan of his his fighting spirit is the factors in that. It don’t matter what rank he is. He will fight you because it’s what he loves to do here now and you know, besides all the stuff on the outside, it is what it is, but as a fighter inside the cage he’s he’s that guy, like he does mine just like me, if I was Ranked number eight hey, I’m like I saw the mentality. I want to fight everybody in anybody, so let’s kind of make this happen put on the show for the fans. Let the fans love it. They’Ll love! You will keep moving. It’S just like that. Yeah think about my two losses were against people that did not want to fight. You know. No one wanted to fight cheap, though so it was kind of like hey, Andre sure no Nathaniel would to is no joke. I mean he just forgot his first loss. He was undefeated up until John Dodson, so I mean ii got the two studs, the two guys that you have losses to so i mean three and two in the UFC beating former champion in your debut I mean: what more could you ask for right at what Point, do you decide, you know what I’m gon na start doing a kolbe to get the fights? What what point do you say you know what I’m gon na start talking mad to everybody, to see what I can get or do you just stop and say you know what That’s not me, I’m gon na be myself and fans love me. They love me exactly how it is yeah. Okay, I can’t push an ad like I’m, not a good talker like wig people. That know me. They know I suck at it. You trying to talk like a character and talk, so I try to keep everything normal, but people go end up loving what I do cuz it’s a kind of hard to not like me. Like you know you hear me you talk to me. You hold a conversation with me. You end up loving me, you know, like I’m not here, to be like community loved and eventually everybody’s gon na love me even the ones they end up. Hating me they’ll turn around and say well, he did put up. You know he’s a good fighter. You know it’s like. Oh, it’s always gon na dump going in that little. You know that statues. You know all right men well now, just that huge fan thanks for thanks for taking the time and there, the fourth fourth guest on my podcast so appreciate it appreciate you coming on and best of luck, good! Hopefully you recover, and hopefully I’ll see you in September. All right awesome appreciate you, man, thank you for having me and you know nothing but love to you and everybody else. That’S watching all right. Man keep washing your hands and stay safe.
