Three months ago I started down my path in MMA training because everyone knows I’m training to be a cage fighter. I remember seeing Tiger Schulmann’s Karate commercials in the 90’s when I was younger and decided to expand and continue my path to become the true warrior by enrolling (at this time called Tiger Schulmann’s MMA).
My background in Tae-Kwon-Do and Kenpou Karate has helped me maintain focus, balance and self discipline through the time. It felt good getting back into training after a five year “retirement.” It was like riding a bike again. Albeit the rustiness.
Little did I know that my sensei was “El Terror,” Jimmie Rivera.
Jimmie first appeared on the MMA scene in 2007 at 18 years old, representing Team Tiger Schulmann. Nine years later, he holds an impressive 19-1 record in the UFC’s Bantam Weight class. After finishing up our cool down exercises, sensei(Jimmie) was kind enough to sit down for an impromptu interview about MMA, Tiger Schulmann’s and cool food spots in his home state of New Jersey.
Interview with MMA’s “El Terror” Jimmie Rivera
Slickster: What inspired you to start MMA?
Jimmie Rivera: I actually started when I was a kid when I was eight years old. My mom brought me in for discipline. We moved to a new town and I started at a new school. I was getting picked on so, usually when a kid gets get picked on, they act out at home. And I never really told her because bullying a lot of the times doesn’t get reported to parents.
I got into the martial arts because she (my mother) wanted discipline and… Let alone I was having a bullying problem which I was able to take care of and learn through Tiger Schulmann’s how to protect myself. I started at a very young age and fell in love with it after that.
So MMA… Mixed Martial Arts. Did you study any other styles specifically? Such as Tae-Kwon-Do? Karate?
No. We used to be called Tiger Schulmann’s Karate. The only thing we did traditional, at the time I started was katas (forms) and we used to do wood breaking. After a while, we took it away because, you know, as Bruce Lee said, “Boards…don’t hit back.” And forms were not something needed for self-defense. We stick strictly to self-defense and a good workout for adults and kids and self-discipline so they can build self-confidence and achieve goals.
With that said, the only other thing I ever did was wrestling. I wrestled in high school because my sensei and my boss at the recommended that I take up something else that correlates to MMA. So I didn’t really know what do, so my boss said, “Try wrestling. I think you’ll like it.” And I did it for four years in high school and I loved it! I had a great time!
Awesome! So your training and wrestling really helped out with your MMA training?
Yeah it helped out. I knew a few takedowns but I learned a lot more and was able to get a lot more experience. One of the things with self-defense, if you’re going to become a competitive fighter, you need to know how to stand up. You need to know takedowns and you need to now grappling.
We teach students the basics on how to defend themselves when someone gets them down on the ground and a little bit of stand up. And once you get into the intermediate level, a bit more stand up.
Got it. Now for someone starting in their MMA career, do you have any advice?
Yeah. Take your time. There’s no rush to get into the cage. The hardest thing is that people want to get in right away without getting good experience outside of the cage. You have to take your time. The first thing you have to learn is striking and then defense. You have to learn how to be able to get up off your back. You need to learn how to grapple.
There are a lot of different factors. It’s a little different than boxing. Boxing is just your hands. Here you have defense, hands, kicks, defensive kicks, takedowns and grappling. So take your time. Learn as much as you can. There’s never a rush to get in. Once you start doing your amateur career, take a long time there. Rack up a lot of fights and get a lot of experience before your go pro. Because that’s when it counts most (when you’re pro).
Two more questions. On your first ever UFC fight, what did it feel like? Was it surreal? What type of emotions were you experiencing?
Ah…It was fun. I was super excited! Because my two teammates were in the UFC already. I had shot on the Ultimate Fighter but I didn’t do so well. Then four or five years later, I get my second shot and I wasn’t going to take it for granted. Being part of it was fun. I didn’t have any jitters like a lot of people do. I was super excited to go in there and fight. You know, it’s like a dream come true.
Awesome. And finally, as a Jersey native, do you have any recommendations for restaurants?
[smile] Restaurants? There’s a whole bunch of restaurants. You can go to Cuban Pete’s if you want some Spanish food. There’s a lot of different places, depending on the type of food you like. Me? I’m more of the Italian and Spanish culture, so I’m a big fan of Cuban Pete’s and even some of the simple stuff like Miller’s Ale House. Something like that. Um… Hah, that’s a random question.
It is. Hah.
But yeah. Everyone has their own thing. You try all of these places, like being in the city, and you find the one you go to. It’s Friday night, you’re hungry, and the meatball shop…that’s your go-to. You end up going there.
So meatballs? Are they your guilty pleasure?
Ah no. Desserts are my guilty pleasure. I can eat healthy all of the time. That’s like a lifestyle. You get used to it. But desserts, like chocolate and stuff like that. Cake. I love it!
Jimmie will square off against Urijah Faber on September 10, 2016, for UFC 203 : Miocic vs. Overeem.