Mar-4-2009
Gray Maynard – Beware of The New Bully
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By Thomas Gerbasi
If there was ever anyone who looked happier to be in the UFC Octagon and throwing punches more than Gray Maynard, I haven’t seen him.
Freed from the constraints of the wrestling mat, the three-time All-American from Michigan State University competed in mixed martial arts with a joy that saw him come out guns blazing every time out, and his results in the UFC were immediate: a brawl with Rob Emerson that was only rendered a no-contest after Maynard knocked himself out with a slam as Emerson was tapping out, a nine second knockout of Joe Veres, an entertaining three round battle with Dennis Siver, and a one-sided decision victory over Frankie Edgar.
But despite the glossy unbeaten record, a growing fanbase, and a rising respect among peers and fight game insiders, the team at the Xtreme Couture gym were concerned about the progress of ‘The Bully’.
“After my fight with Siver, I talked with Couture, I got a coach – Gil Martinez – and they said ‘hey Gray, you’ve got to be a little more smart,’” recalled Maynard. “So I was like ‘all right, you guys are the bosses. I’ll do it.’”
The win over Edgar started the process of refining Maynard’s game, but the true test would come at UFC 90 against veteran Rich Clementi last October. Clementi entered the bout on a six fight winning streak that was filled with some of Maynard’s fellow prospects – Anthony Johnson, Terry Etim, Sam Stout, and Melvin Guillard. So if the Phoenix native was going to remain unbeaten, he would have to be on his P’s and Q’s from start to finish.
And he was, but it wasn’t easy.
“I think I surprised some people,” said the 29-year old Maynard. “Of course some people were saying ‘aw, that was a boring fight’, but with Rich Clementi, I just felt like he was trying to get that one kick, one punch, or choke – and he was just waiting. It was like he was saying, ‘okay, he’s gonna screw up here soon,’ and I knew it – so I was thinking ‘no, I’m not, I’m gonna keep to it.’ But he was tricky.”
When the three rounds were over, Maynard had scored a shutout three round decision. It wasn’t one for the MMA time capsule, but it did mark an important spot in his development as a complete mixed martial artist.
“I loved it because I found out that I could keep to a plan,” he said. “For a long time, it was ‘I’m just a brawler.’ Not anymore. It’s gameplans now, a lot of gameplans.”
And given the nature of this sport, if you’re in there swinging recklessly for the fences night in and night out, eventually you’ll find yourself waking up in the locker room.
“We watched Josh Koscheck and all these guys, and if you get caught in the right place at the right time, it’s done, it’s a loss, and you can’t take it back,” said Maynard, referring to Koscheck’s recent KO loss to unheralded Paulo Thiago. “You’re gonna go to sleep. They told me over and over, ‘don’t take a punch unless you have to.’ And I was like ‘I can take a punch from whoever in the gym, I don’t care,’ but that’s not the way to do it.”
That’s not to say the ‘old’ Maynard has been buried; it’s just that he’s not going to take two punches to give one back. That guy has been retired, and in his place is the type of fighter who is going to make for what should be a helluva match against New Jersey’s Jim Miller this Saturday night in Columbus, Ohio.
“He’s a real tough kid and I think a lot of people didn’t give him credit when he first came in,” said Maynard of Miller. “They were like ‘Jim who?’ and he came in and he was tough. So of course I’m prepared. I’ve had an eight week camp and I’m ready to fight.”
Reaaaaaally ready to fight.
“There are so many guys in the gym that the fights are easy,” he said. “I can’t wait to get in the cage. I’m done with this camp and Jay Hieron, and (Mike) Pyle, and Mac (Danzig). Enough getting my ass kicked, I want to kick some ass.”
After Saturday night, should he emerge victorious, he’s not holding back on where he sees himself and what he wants next.
“I see myself in the Top Ten,” he said. “There are a lot of guys that I’d like to go up against, like Diego (Sanchez) and Clay (Guida), but I gotta get past Jim of course, so we’ll see where it goes.”
Okay, let’s run down the list. No one wanted Frankie Edgar, no one wanted Clementi, no one wants Miller, and no one is beating down the door to take on Sanchez or Guida. Maynard wants all of them on his resume.
“I just want the best guys,” he laughs. “I want to see who’s good. Let’s fight.”
And if gets though everyone in front of him, standing at the end of the road just may be the man who got him into MMA in the first place – UFC lightweight boss BJ Penn.
Maynard pauses for a second before addressing that possibility.
“I started wrestling when I was three, and it’s been a journey,” he said. “He (BJ) is cool, but that belt would be cooler. (Laughs) He’s a great guy, but I’ve got a lot of goals.”
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