Jul-15-2008

Reese Andy – Aiming to Spoil Vera’s 205 Debut

By Thomas Gerbasi

In the best sense of the phrase, Reese Andy is a no-nonsense type of guy. There’s no false bravado or beating around the bush – he gives it to you straight and isn’t afraid of how his words may be perceived.

Take his thoughts on nerves in the fight game for example, and consider that despite the fact that he’s making his UFC debut this Saturday (Spike TV 9pm ET / 6pm PT) against Brandon Vera, this is someone who has wrestled at the elite level both internationally and in college, competed in the Abu Dhabi submission wrestling tournament, and who fought his first pro fight in front of 8,000 people. He’s also cornered the likes of Josh Barnett and Bob Sapp in their biggest fights in Japan, but having gone through the fire doesn’t mean you still can’t get burned.

“Just being around those guys sometimes isn’t enough,” said Andy. “I cornered Josh Barnett in PRIDE against (Mirko) Cro Cop, and man, I got nervous walking out there with the guy. Then I cornered Bob Sapp in the first Heroes show they ever had against a judo silver medalist (Min Soo Kim). I was like ‘Bob’s a big guy,’ and I’m out there and I’m getting a little nervous for him.”

Andy laughs, knowing that all the mental preparation in the world could very well be for naught when the bell rings on fight night. So to compensate, he supplements his mental training with a conditioning regimen that will have him in top notch shape once the initial adrenalin rush has subsided.

“I think the best thing is to have plenty of notice so you can start preparing for how you’re going to react ahead of time, and that’s what I’m doing now by just staying calm,” he said. “Each night gets a little bit easier, the workouts get more fun, you’re picking up more things, start building more confidence, so come fight night, you should have done all the work, so going in there, you should have less anxiety and not let the crowd, the emotions, or the organization affect you the way it has other people. But I haven’t done it yet, so who knows – maybe there is some kinda hoopla, mumbo-jumbo out there. (Laughs) I think everybody gets those little butterflies. But if you’re in shape, I think your heart rate goes back to normal better than for somebody who’s not prepared.”

After years of competition, Andy knows all about preparation, and his success reflects it. He’s not going to dazzle you with flying triangles or head kick knockouts, but he will outwork you and, to put it bluntly, beat you up to get the victory.

What may be the most amazing part of the story is that his MMA career almost didn’t happen thanks to a serious car accident in 1998 and then another accident two months later that saw him hit by a drunk driver while crossing the street. Prior to that, Andy – a three-time All-American for the University of Wyoming – had his sights on competing for a spot in the Olympics, but when his father was stricken with cancer, he decided to forego that goal in order to stay close to home.

“The decision to get into the work force and not chase some thing that happens every four years was tough,” he admitted, soon getting into work force as a trainer in a health club and a high school wrestling coach. At the school, once he had recovered from the injuries suffered in the two accidents, fate intervened in the form of renowned trainer and ex-fighter Matt Hume, who was coaching along with Andy at the time. Hume brought a couple of fighters who were competing in the UFC at the time, including Lance Gibson, into the gym, and asked Andy to work with them.

“I got armbarred and heel hooked and kneebarred, and I thought it was pretty cool,” recalled Andy. But isn’t ‘cool’ an odd way to describe being on the receiving end of some painful maneuvers?

“When you’re competitive and a wrestler, you say ‘you’re not gonna get me in these holds,’” he explains, and after following Hume’s advice to check the sport out on the internet, he was hooked.

“I saw Dan Henderson holding a big poster check from a show in Japan,” he laughs, knowing that he now needed to get a taste of this new sport. Eventually, after years of training and competing in grappling competitions like Abu Dhabi, Andy – who now owns his own gym – made his pro debut in front of 8,000 fans at the Blaisdell Arena in Hawaii, decisioning hometown favorite Kala Kolohe Hose on April 9, 2005.

By 2006, Andy was in the IFL, beating notable names like Mike Ciesnolevicz, Jamal Patterson, Justin Levens, and Krzysztof Soszynski, while only losing once – to Aaron Stark. An impressive run to say the least, but to add to his degree of difficulty, Andy has compiled his 7-1 pro record while jumping from weight divisions from middleweight to light heavyweight to heavyweight and back again.

“The difficulty is if you’re doing it with too short of notice, you’re gonna either give up weight or have a hard time getting down to weight,” said Andy. “But I typically float around 210 to 215. Two years ago, I used to hold my weight around 202 because I was always thinking that I was going to 185. Once I got talked into going to 205 permanently for the IFL, I just let my body grow, started lifting more and eating more. Then I got talked to going to heavyweight and I ate more and let my body grow, and lifted more. It was natural and I didn’t have a controlling weight issue.”

So when the topic of Brandon Vera dropping from heavyweight to 205 for this upcoming fight comes up, Andy knows better than most what ‘The Truth’ is going through.

“It’s a tough challenge for him,” said Andy. “I don’t know what he normally walks around at, but when you try to drop in class at four to six weeks notice, it’s a little bit of a scramble, even for a wrestler that’s done it before. I’m 35, and for me, cutting weight, I don’t like doing it, and I don’t think you can find very many people that enjoy cutting back on calories, watching what they take and drink, getting into the plastics and hitting the sauna and their roadwork, because it’s not pleasant. It’s one of those necessary evils that you gotta do to compete for some of these guys because they can’t compete in a higher class. I was able to do it and get wins in all weight divisions, and it would be beneficial for a lot of guys to move up or down in weight, but that’s for them to decide.”

It would obviously be a good thing for Andy if Vera has had trouble cutting to the light heavyweight limit, but as a longtime combat sports veteran, the North Dakota native is preparing to fight the best possible Vera on Saturday.

“I watched some film on him – he’s an explosive guy, and with his reach, if you’re stuck at the end of it, it’s not good,” said Andy. “But I think that the guys that stayed on him and kept him close and who didn’t let him bang and get away have done well. I watched the (Tim) Sylvia fight and replayed it a few times, and there definitely was some opportunity. He comes forward with such aggression that he presents himself to be tied up. So I don’t think he’s going to be able to just tag and run. But he’s a talented kid.”

And after a two-fight losing streak at heavyweight, one in dire need of a win. But despite being the new kid on the block, don’t expect Reese Andy to be handing Vera anything on a silver platter.

“There are definitely people who don’t know who I am, and I’m under the radar for sure,” said Andy, “but on July 19th, the fans are going to see something they’ve never seen before.”