Justin Buchholz TSN interview. Discusses TJ, Cody and leaving TAM

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https://www.tsn.ca/radio/toronto-1050/the-tsn-mma-show-episode-50-1.1154697
Discusses MM vs Cejudo, TJ vs Cody, and why he left TAM as well as some juicy stuff about TAM.
I have not listened to the whole thing twice yet, but some cliffs from first listen. most good stuff comes around 1:10 on. I kinda skimmed a bit and will listen to it again in full.

Claims he was just overdoing it because he was on a reality show in terms of the drama against Duane.

Says the belt "Walked out to colorado" because of a political situation instead of placing blame on TJ. Apparently it was a dark time for TAM because half the team was out training with Duane in Colorado, not just TJ.

Claims he himself pushed a TAM vs everybody role and that the gym needed an enemy to focus. But also claims yes he did tell TJ it would be best if he went to Colorado while the team did not even have a coach, etc during the dark years(Explaining the entire TJ yelling "what do you mean? You TOLD me to go" during TUF)

Ironically, apparently Cody was also splitting half his time with Jackson/Wink the same way TJ was splitting time in Colorado before Faber gave TJ the ultimatum and that is why Brandon Gibson was in Cody's corner for several 2016 fights.

Apparently in 2016 Cody was going at his training partners in TAM so hard he broke some of them, including smashing a teammates orbital bone broke to bits and they had to tell him to dial it back.

Some funny stories about Master Thong.

Cody did not look like the killer athlete he helped train this last fight and he blames the fact that instead of a head coach, they now have 7 coaches deciding things by committee with Faber injecting himself into coaching since he retired.

Downplays the entire thing about "TJ injuring holdsworth", claiming until Duane came and cleaned up the gym a bit it was pretty savage and they were wailing on each other a lot. Claims Chris should not be at the lower weight classes because cutting so much water heavily contributed to his problems now while getting smashed by everyone during those savage times at the gym.

Click to read more...

 

[crazychimp]

Sounds about right, I never did buy into the TAM rivalry. I do believe there is dislike and animosity between the fighters though. The coaches had to play there parts to get a bigger payday.

Not really buying into the Khabib Vs Conor thing either, the whole shit talking turn MMA has taken really irks me now, every now and again it's fun but everyone seems to be getting fights by talking and not really earning it through the rankings system it just doesn't seem authentic when everyone is doing it. Cody should never have gotten a title shot after a KO loss and never defending his title.

Sometimes I miss the old days where there was respect between the best, and hatred amongst real enemies like Big Nog Vs Fedor and Rampage Vs Wanderlei.

 

[tmurfin]

It's a shame really. TAM has some legitimate talent. They just need that head coach. But it's becoming increasingly obvious that Faber is the problem here, there's a reason these coaches keep leaving, although I still think Bang is a snake lol.

 

[zombie kopitar]

They're turning Sage into a real killer gotta say at least. And I thought that nice chap was basically set to be a gatekeeper for his career after they way he started in the UFC.

Conor blew everything out of proportion, it was funny AF though.

 

[pistolpete11]

TAM vs. TJ has always been childish bickering, especially on the part of TAM. Even if TJ decided to leave all on his own, who cares? Guys move camps all the time for various reasons.

I just wonder how much Cody realized the TAM vs. the world thing was being used to try and sell fights. I think he was too emotionally invested in those TJ fights. It would be a shame if that was built up by his coaches without him even being aware of it.

 

[pistolpete11]

Sounds about right, I never did buy into the TAM rivalry. I do believe there is dislike and animosity between the fighters though. The coaches had to play there parts to get a bigger payday.

Not really buying into the Khabib Vs Conor thing either, the whole **** talking turn MMA has taken really irks me now, every now and again it's fun but everyone seems to be getting fights by talking and not really earning it through the rankings system it just doesn't seem authentic when everyone is doing it. Cody should never have gotten a title shot after a KO loss and never defending his title.

Sometimes I miss the old days where there was respect between the best, and hatred amongst real enemies like Big Nog Vs Fedor and Rampage Vs Wanderlei.

For sure the shit talking has gone too far. I mean, case and point, nearly everything Colby Covington says.

I like shit talking, but I don't like the UFC caving into to make fights as much as they do. Shit talking can be fun if it's natural, but guys that aren't naturally shit talkers are forced into trying to do it which is lame or they get skipped over.

I wonder how much of it is to do with the PPV model. Would it be different if all of their events were on ESPN/ABC?

 

[m9]

For sure the **** talking has gone too far. I mean, case and point, nearly everything Colby Covington says.

I like **** talking, but I don't like the UFC caving into to make fights as much as they do. **** talking can be fun if it's natural, but guys that aren't naturally **** talkers are forced into trying to do it which is lame or they get skipped over.

I wonder how much of it is to do with the PPV model. Would it be different if all of their events were on ESPN/ABC?

Promoting your fights is part of the job.

Besides, these are really bad examples for the UFC caving to make fights. Conor v Khabib is a perfectly fine fight. I would be fine with Ferguson in there somewhere, but whatever. Colby Covington said a bunch of stupid ****, but also went on a great winning streak to get to where he is.

 

[pistolpete11]

Promoting your fights is part of the job.

Besides, these are really bad examples for the UFC caving to make fights. Conor v Khabib is a perfectly fine fight. I would be fine with Ferguson in there somewhere, but whatever. Colby Covington said a bunch of stupid ****, but also went on a great winning streak to get to where he is.

You don't need to talk shit to promote a fight. That's one way to do it, but it seems that is the only way the UFC recognizes nowadays.

I never said anything about Conor vs. Khabib.

I also never said anything about whether Covington deserved to fight for the interim title or not. I just used him as an example of how the shit talking has gone overboard in the UFC.

 

[m9]

You don't need to talk **** to promote a fight. That's one way to do it, but it seems that is the only way the UFC recognizes nowadays.

I never said anything about Conor vs. Khabib.

I also never said anything about whether Covington deserved to fight for the interim title or not. I just used him as an example of how the **** talking has gone overboard in the UFC.

But nothing has really changed. There will always be a small percentage of guys who talk their way onto a bigger stage. If you look at the UFC rankings, there are maybe a handful (Covington, Diaz, Conor, Iaquinta) who have really talked their way up a bit higher than they should be. And for at least two of those guys (Conor & Covington) they have backed it up by winning almost every fight.

 

[pistolpete11]

But nothing has really changed. There will always be a small percentage of guys who talk their way onto a bigger stage. If you look at the UFC rankings, there are maybe a handful (Covington, Diaz, Conor, Iaquinta) who have really talked their way up a bit higher than they should be. And for at least two of those guys (Conor & Covington) they have backed it up by winning almost every fight.

There's a lot more guys than that. Brock hasn't won a fight in 8 years and has been busted for steroids in his last fight and he's going to fight for the title. Cody talked his way into a rematch with TJ despite never defending his belt. Heck, he even talked his way into the fight with Dom. He took advantage of it and good for him, but who did he beat to deserve that shot? Till is going to be fighting for the belt even though his only big win is against Wonderboy when he missed weight by 3.5 pounds. Lee fought for the belt after only beating Chiesa. Dom will probably talk himself into the next title shot even though he lost his last fight nearly 2 years ago. It goes on and on.

Or what about the other side of the coin? Assuncao has won 11 of his last 12 fights with the only loss coming to TJ AND he beat TJ before that. Nobody even mentions his name. What about Maia? Look at the run he had to go on and he literally had to get down on his knees and beg Dana for a title shot. Or Jacare. Or Blades.

It all adds up. So now these new guys like Covington, Usman, Till, Stylebender, Costa, Vick, etc. think they need to talk shit to get fights. Or even vets like Woodley, DC, Gus, etc. start talking shit because it gets them attention.

I'm not saying it's everybody either. You still have guys like DJ, Max, Ortega, Whittaker. I'm not even saying I don't like some of those guys. I like Conor, Nate, Bisping...I'm just saying it's gone too far in that direction for my liking and it's only getting worse.

 

[m9]

There's a lot more guys than that. Brock hasn't won a fight in 8 years and has been busted for steroids in his last fight and he's going to fight for the title. Cody talked his way into a rematch with TJ despite never defending his belt. Heck, he even talked his way into the fight with Dom. He took advantage of it and good for him, but who did he beat to deserve that shot? Till is going to be fighting for the belt even though his only big win is against Wonderboy when he missed weight by 3.5 pounds. Lee fought for the belt after only beating Chiesa. Dom will probably talk himself into the next title shot even though he lost his last fight nearly 2 years ago. It goes on and on.

Or what about the other side of the coin? Assuncao has won 11 of his last 12 fights with the only loss coming to TJ AND he beat TJ before that. Nobody even mentions his name. What about Maia? Look at the run he had to go on and he literally had to get down on his knees and beg Dana for a title shot. Or Jacare. Or Blades.

It all adds up. So now these new guys like Covington, Usman, Till, Stylebender, Costa, Vick, etc. think they need to talk **** to get fights. Or even vets like Woodley, DC, Gus, etc. start talking **** because it gets them attention.

I'm not saying it's everybody either. You still have guys like DJ, Max, Ortega, Whittaker. I'm not even saying I don't like some of those guys. I like Conor, Nate, Bisping...I'm just saying it's gone too far in that direction for my liking and it's only getting worse.

Cody didn't talk his way up the rankings, he added life to a dead division by knocking guys out. I agree I would've liked Assuncao to get that title fight instead of the rematch.

Has Till talked his way up? I agree he doesn't deserve a title shot, but I don't think it's due to talking. They are also passing up the "talker" in Covington who deserves it far more, so bringing up Till is a weird choice.

Lee was a last minute thing because a main event fell apart and they needed a headliner "interim" belt fight.

Maia got a title shot at 185lbs and put on an embarrassing performance that ruined a card that was a major deal for the UFC at the time. I understand why they were in no rush to give him a title shot. Then once he got there, he was brutal again. So why was the UFC wrong there?

I won't really comment on the stuff that you are just guessing on like Cruz, Blaydes, etc.

Bottom line is this - it's been going on in combat sports forever. If you don't like it that's fine, but I don't think this is some "new" thing. You have like 750 fighters in the UFC, you are going to get a diverse set of personalities.

 

[pistolpete11]

Cody didn't talk his way up the rankings, he added life to a dead division by knocking guys out. I agree I would've liked Assuncao to get that title fight instead of the rematch.

Has Till talked his way up? I agree he doesn't deserve a title shot, but I don't think it's due to talking. They are also passing up the "talker" in Covington who deserves it far more, so bringing up Till is a weird choice.

Lee was a last minute thing because a main event fell apart and they needed a headliner "interim" belt fight.

Maia got a title shot at 185lbs and put on an embarrassing performance that ruined a card that was a major deal for the UFC at the time. I understand why they were in no rush to give him a title shot. Then once he got there, he was brutal again. So why was the UFC wrong there?

I won't really comment on the stuff that you are just guessing on like Cruz, Blaydes, etc.

Bottom line is this - it's been going on in combat sports forever. If you don't like it that's fine, but I don't think this is some "new" thing. You have like 750 fighters in the UFC, you are going to get a diverse set of personalities.

Cody KO'ed a couple guys nobody ever heard of and was ranked like #6 or something when he fought Dom. TJ defended the belt twice, lost a split decision to Dom, and then he beat Assuncao. Yet he got jumped by Cody and had to fight Lineker on the same card as Cody-Dom.

Yes, Till is absolutely a talker.

Maia's previous title fight was 7 years prior in another division against arguably the GOAT in the middle of arguably the greatest run ever in the UFC. Then he had to win 7 fights in a row against a lot of legit guys (Magny, Nelson, Brown, Condit, and Masvidal). Regardless of how exciting his fight was against Woodley, that's way above and beyond deserving a title shot compared to Cody, Covington, Till, etc.

I'm not sure about Cruz. It seems that TJ and Cejudo are trying to make that fight, so Dom might have to wait. But would it really surprise anyone if he was the next bantamweight to get a shot? Blades, though, has won 5 in a row in the HW division against the likes of Overeem, Hunt, and Oleinik and now is in talks to fight Francis again. Even then, he might not be next in line.

I realize this is not new in combat sports, but it's getting worse in the UFC. That was my opinion that got this whole back and forth going in the first place.

 

[m9]

Cody KO'ed a couple guys nobody ever heard of and was ranked like #6 or something when he fought Dom. TJ defended the belt twice, lost a split decision to Dom, and then he beat Assuncao. Yet he got jumped by Cody and had to fight Lineker on the same card as Cody-Dom.

Yes, Till is absolutely a talker.

Maia's previous title fight was 7 years prior in another division against arguably the GOAT in the middle of arguably the greatest run ever in the UFC. Then he had to win 7 fights in a row against a lot of legit guys (Magny, Nelson, Brown, Condit, and Masvidal). Regardless of how exciting his fight was against Woodley, that's way above and beyond deserving a title shot compared to Cody, Covington, Till, etc.

I'm not sure about Cruz. It seems that TJ and Cejudo are trying to make that fight, so Dom might have to wait. But would it really surprise anyone if he was the next bantamweight to get a shot? Blades, though, has won 5 in a row in the HW division against the likes of Overeem, Hunt, and Oleinik and now is in talks to fight Francis again. Even then, he might not be next in line.

I realize this is not new in combat sports, but it's getting worse in the UFC. That was my opinion that got this whole back and forth going in the first place.

I understand Cody jumped the line - I am saying it was because of what he was doing in the cage (knocking guys out) as opposed to anything he was saying outside of it. They saw Cody as a way to add some excitement to the top of the division and to their credit, they were right.. he did.

Let's break down the Maia thing a bit, because I hear people talk about his situation often. Before the 7 wins he had lost two in a row. I think that the first time he could have been in the mix for a title shot was after his fourth win in a row when he beat Gunnar Nelson in December 2015. At that time they went with Woodley over Maia for title shot - I think it could have gone either way, but it was completely defensible. Then the only other guy that Maia got "passed over" for was Thompson, and again I don't really have a problem with that one. There's an issue here in that the belt hasn't been defended enough and the rematch delayed things, but I don't think the UFC really did anything wrong or screwed Maia here.

It wouldn't surprise me if Cruz got the next shot, but I agree with you it shouldn't happen. We'll see. As for Blaydes, he has worked his way up nicely but having him in another top contender match is perfectly fine given where he's at.

That's fine that it's your opinion - I just think a) there's always more to situations than just "one guy likes to talk" and b) this type of stuff has gone on forever.

 

[pistolpete11]

I understand Cody jumped the line - I am saying it was because of what he was doing in the cage (knocking guys out) as opposed to anything he was saying outside of it. They saw Cody as a way to add some excitement to the top of the division and to their credit, they were right.. he did.

Let's break down the Maia thing a bit, because I hear people talk about his situation often. Before the 7 wins he had lost two in a row. I think that the first time he could have been in the mix for a title shot was after his fourth win in a row when he beat Gunnar Nelson in December 2015. At that time they went with Woodley over Maia for title shot - I think it could have gone either way, but it was completely defensible. Then the only other guy that Maia got "passed over" for was Thompson, and again I don't really have a problem with that one. There's an issue here in that the belt hasn't been defended enough and the rematch delayed things, but I don't think the UFC really did anything wrong or screwed Maia here.

It wouldn't surprise me if Cruz got the next shot, but I agree with you it shouldn't happen. We'll see. As for Blaydes, he has worked his way up nicely but having him in another top contender match is perfectly fine given where he's at.

That's fine that it's your opinion - I just think a) there's always more to situations than just "one guy likes to talk" and b) this type of stuff has gone on forever.

I don't know if they 'made' him, but Maia fought Masvidal after Woodley-Wonderboy 2.

I don't have a problem with Blades fighting another top contender in and of itself. Actually, that's kind of my point. Guys should earn their title shots. My problem is more with the UFC letting some of these guys that talk their way into title fights.

 

[m9]

I don't know if they 'made' him, but Maia fought Masvidal after Woodley-Wonderboy 2.

I don't have a problem with Blades fighting another top contender in and of itself. Actually, that's kind of my point. Guys should earn their title shots. My problem is more with the UFC letting some of these guys that talk their way into title fights.

Yeah, that Maia fight was 2 months after Woodley-Wonderboy 2. Timing might have been an issue.

Point being this - the only title fight that Maia got passed over in any way for was the original Woodley/Lawler fight. Stephen Thompson earned his title shot (and his rematch) by jumping over Maia 100% on what he did in the cage and not anything that was said outside of it.