When We Were Bouncers: Jason Day
“So I ducked and covered and I was thinking, ‘This is the end’, when I heard this banging noise getting louder — toonk-toonk-toonk-TOONK,” related Jason Day.
Actor/stuntman/fighter Paul “The Mauler” Lazenby has a tremendous Facebook page – When We Were Bouncers. Each week he presents a crazy new story from former security personnel who went on to become actors, comedians, pro wrestlers, stuntmen, or MMA fighters.
Recently he sat down with Canadian fighter Jason Dooms Day, who has nearly a decade of in-the-cage action against the likes of Michael The Count Bisping, David The Crow Loiseau and Jonathan The Road Warrior Goulet. in 2011 Day retired from the UFC to work in the entertainment industry; since he has worked in a number of film, TV and video game projects including Electronic Arts’ much-anticipated EA Sports UFC”.
Jason Day
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I FIRST STARTED BOUNCING IN Lethbridge. [Canadian MMA pioneer] Lee The Grampinator Mein got me my first few jobs, and he’s also the guy who got me into jiu-jitsu and MMA. I’m a big guy and a little bit intimidating but I’m also mild-mannered, so Lee figured I’d be good as a doorman and also a good guy to learn jiu-jitsu. Meeting Lee was the point where my fight career really took off.
Lee was a great doorman because he’s from the OLD, old school. He knows how to really fight, AND he’s huge, AND he doesn’t put up with any shit. When the gangs started moving down from Calgary, we were all worried, Oooh, they carry knives and shit. But Lee wouldn’t even hesitate, he’d just walk outside and start smashing guys! (laughs) I’m actually glad he’s out of it now, because time was not on his side. When you’re that fearless, sooner or later one of these guys is gonna pull a knife or gun on you and it’s game over.
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ONE NIGHT I WAS OUTSIDE in the parking lot, dealing with these guys who were a little older than me and HUGE, looked like they’d been juicin’ for a few years. I was still only 22 or so, this was before I had much experience in any kind of martial arts or contact sports, so dealing with these guys was a real problem made worse by the fact that I was the only doorman outside at the time.
Somehow, I got wedged between two cars with one of the guys on each side. This wasn’t like they were trying to fight each other and I was breaking it up — they were both trying to get ME. So I ducked and covered and I was thinking, This is the end, when I heard this banging noise getting louder — toonk-toonk-toonk-TOONK — which was the sound of Dan running along the top of one of the cars and leaving footprints in the metal! Like something out of the movies he came flying off [the car] with a Superman punch and BANG, knocked one of the guys out cold. Then he turned around and KOed the other guy with a big haymaker! One moment it looked like I was finished, the next there was these two huge guys just laid out, and I’m thinking, Okay, Dan — you’re my new best friend! (laughs)
That guy got me out of a lot of sticky situations — far more than I ever got him out of.
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Check out www.facebook.com/FamousBouncers for more bouncer stories from stars in a wide variety of pursuits. For UG Blog excerpts for MMA Fighters, check out:
When We Were Bouncers: Jerry Trimble
When We Were Bouncers: Gurdarshan Mangat
When We Were Bouncers: Enson Inoue
When We Were Bouncers: Dean of Mean
When We Were Bouncers: Ragin’ Kajan Johnson
When We Were Bouncers: Aaron Riley
When We Were Bouncers: Tom Erikson
When We Were Bouncers: Paul Cheng
When We Were Bouncers: Shayna Baszler
When We Were Bouncers: Gary Myers
When We Were Bouncers: Jonathan Goulet
When We Were Bouncers: Gene LeBell
When We Were Bouncers: John Lober
When We Were Bouncers: Paul Varelans
When We Were Bouncers: Pat Miletich (someone gets attacked with a pitchfork)
When We Were Bouncers: Renzo Gracie (he bounced in a brothel at 14)
