Fred Ettish: I’m never going to fail greatly again
UFC 2’s Fred Ettish: ‘I’m Never Going To Fail Greatly Again’ Over 15 years removed from his first and only…
UFC 2’s Fred Ettish: ‘I’m Never Going To Fail Greatly Again’
Over 15 years removed from his first and only MMA fight, 53-year-old Fred Ettish returns to the cage this Saturday with redemption on his mind.
Ettish, of course, is probably most remembered for reasons he would rather forget. His loss at UFC 2 in March 1994 for many was a clear example of how karate on its own could prove ineffective in a more realistic fighting situation.
Further, a position he utilized in the fight where he curled to his side for protection, became an internet in-joke and spawned websites in dedication of what is jokingly referred to as “Fred Ettish’s Fetal Fighting Technique.”
In this exclusive interview with FanHouse, Ettish talks about his desire to properly showcase his martial arts training to the best of his ability the way he would have wanted in 1994 and to finally put the UFC 2 performance to rest.
Why did you decide to return?
There’s a lot of unsettledness within me that’s been there every since UFC 2, and I’ve tried stuffing it down. I’ve tried working through it, I’ve tried a number of things to deal with the unsettledness of how I feel from what happened at UFC 2 and I haven’t been successful putting it away so I came to the conclusion there’s only one way to put that stuff to rest and that is to go out and actually perform up to my capabilities which I did not do the first time at all.
Are you unsettled about the loss itself or the ridicule that followed?
Neither. Everybody loses at some point. I happened to lose in my first and so far only fight. Losing is something we all have to deal with throughout our lives in any number of different ways. The manner in which I lost, the manner in which I perform — failed to perform — is what bothers me the most. At this point in my life what other people are saying about me, what other people’s opinions are: the jokes, the ridicule, that kind of thing, doesn’t really make any difference to me anymore. Sure it irritates me a little bit but that is not what drives me. I’m not driven to prove anything to anybody. I’m not driven to try and shut anybody up. People are going to say what they are going to say, they are going to have their opinions.
Were you surprised at how a single three-minute UFC fight became such a big running joke?
