Gene LeBell was doing mixed martial arts 50 years ago, long, long before it had a name. And you still see him in the corner of top fighters like Ronda Rousey.
“Judo” Gene appeared on Ariel Helwani’s The MMA Hour for a wide-ranging discussion, that included details on his fight with boxer Milo Savage on Dec. 2, 1963 in Salt Lake City, Utah, the first televised mixed rules fight in the US. LeBell choked the boxer out. LeBell was also the referee in what remains the most viewed mixed rules fight in history, Muhammad Ali vs. Antonio Inoki in June 26, 1976 in Tokyo, Japan.
“When I went to went the ring the guy had what looked like speedbag gloves with a little metal in it, in other words, brass knuckles you could say,” said LeBell as transcribed by MMAFighting’s Dave Doyle. “During the bout, and it shows it in the film. when he hit me in the stomach and I had a judo suit on with a brand-new black belt, he broke it right in half. … He put my hand in his mouth and started to bite, and I said ‘hey Milo, you bite me and I’m going to take your eye out.”
“I don’t remember stepping on the man. But other people in the audience thought I did and started throwing chairs and pillows and couches and all that. It was interesting trying to get out of the ring, one guy tried to stab me. It was very nice. Salt Lake City didn’t show me much respect. The very act they threw chairs at me, that means they had a good time.”
LeBell also offered advice to Ronda Rousey, who has faced fan criticism for taking a part in the latest Exendables movie, while training for a fight.
“I’ve done stunt work 55 years,” said LeBell. “In residuals alone when they replay it, I make over six figures a year. When Ronda gets older, she’ll get that $7-8,000 check every month. I’ve got lifetime insurance, you don’t get that from MMA. I’m not telling her to walk away from it. Do what’s in your heart.”
And he offerd sage advice for the rest of us.
“If you’re going to be a martial artist, don’t criticize, learn,” exhorts LeBell. “You’ve got to have an open mind. When I went to a boxing gym, someone would beat me up. Then I went to the judo school, someone who was a lot better than me when I was young, I’d hit him with a punch and knock him to the nickel seats and get kicked out of these places.”
