Point fighters, athletes who made the move from a failed college football career and general washouts. They are here for the money. That’s how many people feel about fighters nowadays in the UFC, and so does Josh Barnett. Gone are the guys who fought for a few bucks for the honor and glory of fighting, those days are long gone.
“Everyone has what works for them. You are right though, that there are athletes and fighters. In this sport, I think there are more athletes than fighters now. It isn’t surprising; because of how easy it is to get into MMA today. There aren’t all of the barriers that we used to deal with to get a fight, get the training, or even get into a gym. I had to try out for AMC Pankration and I had already beaten one of their pros in my first fight ever! They said it was all well and good, but they wanted me to go through conditioning, training, and an interview. They judged me to see if I was worth their time to invest in. I was still paying a gym membership, too. I paid, I trained, and I was a fighter.”