Besides being a champion in the most hotly contested UFC category, the lightheavyweight Jon Jones is one of the most feared fighters nowadays. But not for the Brazilian journalist Mario Filho, who owns a sketch in the "Sensei Sportv" TV show called "senseinoção" in which he challenges the UFC champions for a fight with specific rules. In January, when he was in Brazil to participate in the broadcast of UFC 142, "Bones" was invited and accepted the challenge from "Marinho", which is only 1.64m and 134 lbs, and to everyone's surprise, the fighter who never was overthrown in the UFC, suffered a takedown on the first attempt of the Brazilian. The program will air this month of February.
To defeat Mario Filho in the show, the professional fighter has to finish the bout with his most expertise. Previously, Marinho had faced the UFC heavyweight champion that, to defeat him, had to knock him out with his famous upper, although every MMA movement are allowed. To Jon Jones, the goal was to knock out with his powerful spinning back blows, kicks, punches and elbows, in three rounds of three minutes.
As at the end of three rounds, Jones failed to knockout Mario Filho with his spinning back blows, Brazilian journalist was declared the winner for the first time in the history of the show. In the past, Marinho had been defeated by Junior Cigano dos Santos, Lyoto Machida and Acelino Popo Freitas (boxing world champion). The next on the list should be the UFC middleweight champion Anderson "Spider" Silva.
Check out the interview with the winner of the challenge, Mario Filho.
PVT: How was the experience of training with Jones?
Mario Filho: What's the chance to fight the UFC lightheavyweight champion inside an octagon if you're not Shogun or Machida? None. Just to have this opportunity I was done personally and professionally (as an active reporter of course. Not a fighter, because I train a lot, but recreationally). In the "Senseinoção" challenges, I've always been annihilated, and this time wouldn't be different. I just wanted, really, really wanted to takedown Jon Jones. And this was done, photographed, filmed, and seen by several witnesses who cheered a lot there. Even Jon Jones laughed when he fell!
PVT: Were you familiar with Jones, what was your impression of him as a person?
Mario Filho: Didn't know him. Before be introduced to him, I had seen various reports and interviews with him and considered him a very special guy, who had a natural talent to conquer people with sweet jokes, friendly, always very calm, and always with intelligent and positive answers. Didn't get why people booed when the weighing in Canada, for example. But finally, in Brazil I doubt he has even received any boo. Everyone in Brazil loved the giant Jones for his receptivity, humility and good mood. Zero star status. And me, in particular, he fully entered into the spirit of the challenge, put himself in disposal to meet a person he did not know, four weight divisions below, and literally captivated everyone in the Nogueira brothers CT. Very funny, caring, and in my opinion the fighter who has the greatest potential to become the most charismatic of the world, in any culture, because his joy is universal!
PVT: How many rounds were fighting and what were the rules?
Mario Filho: For each Sensei Noção, the challenge highlights a specialty of the champion. Example: Cigano only defeat me if knocked me out with the upper. Although are allowed any movement of an MMA fight. For JJ, he must knock me out in two rounds of three minutes with any of his spinning back blows: spinning back kick, elbow or punch. The rules are the same as the UFC, striking, takedowns, ground, ground and pound, but of course that common sense helps, right? He's a very clever guy, and knew wouldn't need to use the same strengh he applies against a lightheavyweight to knock me out. And in the fight time, I had to ask him not to use the lower leg to block my low kicks, because is hard as concrete, and I just could hurt me in my first kick attempt, and there wouldn't be any fight. And of course, always wearing a helmet, mouthguard and groin cup, because otherwise it's suicide and too much recklessness.
PVT: What is your graduation and how long training ?
Mario Filho: I train jiu-jitsu for 18 years, I am black belt from Master Ricardo De La Riva (who graduated Rogerio and Rodrigo Nogueira). Train boxe almost daily with Gilvan Pequeno and Rodrigo Totti for over 5 years. I returned to judo last year with Professor Julian Leon, and started in kickboxing just to Sensei Noção with Jon Jones. It was a great adaptation, I found it easy because I practiced capoeira and karate before know the jiu-jitsu.
PVT: What athletes have participated, what were the objectives of each one and what were the results?
Mario Filho: It started with Lyoto Machida, who was the least affected fighter in the UFC. Both in punches and takedowns, "very elusive" became a mantra at the time of the "Era Machida". So, the first Sensei Noção, was my mission to hit the Dragon with a punch, a kick, corner Machida, take him down or pin him. Same thing: two rounds of 3 minutes, all safety equipment, and 0 point for me. I took kick, flying kick, punch, knee, three takedowns, two arm bars, but I managed to make the defense in these two. I didn't find Lyoto even once. Then we challenged Cigano dos Santos to knock me out with an upper in 6 minutes. He did not believe in seeing a small guy urging him to drop the upper without mercy, no money in the fight. It was before he go to TUF. Our UFC heavyweight champion tried to hold a little, but Rodrigo and Rogerio did not want the fight, "as Cigano do not know how to play, he does not know what is to take it easy", Rodrigo spoke seriously. But it happened, and Cigano knocked me down three times, before knock me out in the final seconds of the fight. Before Jon Jones, Sensei Noção had Acelino Popo Freitas, 4 times world boxing champion. And the challenge came from him! He asked me if I would not do a Sensei Noção against him. And I was "oh god! yes", another opportunity! But he imposed his conditions: no takedowns, kicks, or ground. All in the boxing rules, even the gloves were up 16 oz. His specialty are blows to the waist line, and after 17 punches in the liver, I could not get up. It turns out that Popo has 14 knockouts in the first round, and I just took apart in round 2.
PVT: Who will be the next guest?
Mario Filho: We had already done the challenge to Anderson Silva, who accepted well excited! You see he's just the belt owner (laughs). Anderson is unmatched in any area, but we found honest choose the jab as the weapon to knock me out, since he gave that show knocking out Forrest Griffin with the jab and going backwards. Aside from the ultra fast and dry jabs he hit Okami and Demian. So that's my challenge: to survive six minutes of Spider jabs. And it seems to me, should roll in the X-gym octagon, which is the size of a phone booth! The more freak, the better, right?
