June 2, 2025 • 35 mins
Blending raw power with technical skill, Joe "The Hitman" Elmore gives us an unfiltered look into the world of bare-knuckle fighting—a combat sport that strips away the padding and protective gear to reveal what he calls "real fighting." With a knockout victory against Will Chope in just 52 seconds, Joe has quickly established himself as a force to be reckoned with in the Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC).
From his country roots in Tennessee to becoming a martial arts veteran with approximately 40 professional MMA fights, Joe's journey is as fascinating as the sport he now dominates. What makes his story particularly compelling is his transition from traditional combat sports to the no-gloves arena, where he feels most at home. "It got to a point where so many guys became so talented at grappling, we almost neutralize each other," he explains about MMA, contrasting it with the undeniable action and decisiveness of bare-knuckle contests.
The preparation for such brutal competition is equally intense—Joe conditions his hands by punching brick walls, receives electromagnetic therapy treatments used for astronauts, and maintains a rigorous training schedule with world-class coaches. Beyond the physical preparation, he speaks about the mental aspects of fighting, describing himself as "a creature that was supposed to be born to protect my village and my family." This primal connection to combat resonates throughout our conversation, highlighting the distinction he makes between trained martial artists and born fighters.
As BKFC continues its explosive growth, attracting celebrities like Shaquille O'Neal and signing UFC veterans like Paige VanZant, Joe stands at the forefront of what he believes is the future of combat sports. Whether you're a seasoned fight fan or just curious about this rapidly growing phenomenon, Joe's insights offer a compelling glimpse into what happens when the gloves come off. Catch his next fight on September 11th at the Daytona Beach Convention Center or stream it live on the BKTV app.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
I came across the bare-knuckle fighting
championships and I saw yourvideo against what was it?
Will Chope, is that how you sayhis name?
Will Chope?
Yes, sir, yeah, like youfucking knocked him out in like
52 seconds, I think it was right.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
Yes sir, 52 seconds first round.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Dude, that's crazy.
Like you, fucking like, you gothim and he went down and then
he got back up and then, justlike 10 seconds later, just
fucking finished him.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
Dude, I can't believe he got back up and then, just
like 10 seconds later, justfucking finished him.
I can't believe he got back up.
Honestly, that was one of thehardest straight rights I've
ever led down the pipe.
I felt his cheek becausethere's no gloves man.
Maybe that's why it felt likethe hardest punch.
But he got back up.
He did.
I don't think his brain wasthere.
He was already done at thatpoint and I knew I just had to
(01:08):
go make sure he wasn't gettingback up the next time.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Yeah, yeah, like this is the first time I've ever
come across this and it's justfucking crazy what y'all do in
there.
Just no glove, it's straight,bare knuckle.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Well, you know it's cool because, as brutal as it
looks, it's safe.
Man, I'm an MMA veteran.
We worry about leg kicks, kneebars.
You know, just all the timethese are cuts.
I've had this cut here.
Matter of fact, I've got amedical sponsorship now.
They just drew my blood theother day.
(01:44):
They're extracting my collagen.
They're going to inject my eyeswith the or uh, the plasma, uh,
uh in my blood and they'regoing to inject it so it regrows
collagen, so it won't splitback open.
Help my scars, I mean.
So this is going to be quick,quick stuff.
If we do get knocked out, man,it's not going to be a lot on
our brain.
(02:04):
You know, boxers take hundredsof punches cause they, they got
all that protection.
We take a, a, a real good punchman, and they're going down.
So it's a lot of action for thefans.
Uh, there is blood which itmakes it for any fight fan.
That just makes it exciting,man.
And you know we're uh, they'rebringing in some really good
guys right now, some of the toptalent in the world.
(02:26):
You know Will Chope he's Idon't know, 10-, 12-time world
champion, 119 fights.
He fought Max Holloway in themain event for the UFC
previously for one of his fights, Max didn't finish until the
third round TKO.
I think he's only been finisheda total of three times TKO his
whole career out of 119 fights.
(02:48):
Now I'm fighting Tom Shoff.
This guy, I believe, is alittle stronger and faster some
good boxing.
He's going to be a little bitmore aggressive.
He's a pocket fighter, which Ibelieve is more dangerous for
him because Will had not plannedon getting in the pocket.
Now I've got another tall guythat likes to bang and I'm ready
to do it again.
(03:08):
Man, Blood bath or knockout oneor the other.
We're going to put on a showman and hopefully keep growing
this momentum and have a lot offans join in.
Right now it's thefastest-growing combat sport in
the world and it's bare-knucklefighting.
It's not bare-knuckle boxingand a lot of people don't even
know the difference.
But we're allowed to clinch.
I can grab him by the back ofthe head and pound him by his
(03:28):
face.
You know, in boxing you can'tdo that.
I can grab his right hand orhis left hand as he jabs me and
throw an uppercut.
Or I can grab his wrist andpound him and he can't block it,
you know.
So it makes it makes it a fastaction, fast pace gnarly thing
that I really, really love doingand that's this Friday, right
(03:52):
the 11th.
It's the Daytona BeachConvention Center.
If you type in ConventionCenter, Daytona Beach, there's a
Hilton Hotel running a specialright across the street on the
ocean.
Right there A lot of people arecoming and they're selling out.
Man, I got people flying allover the country to come in and
watch this arizona, texas, likea family from california flying
in arizona.
(04:12):
I mean people all over theworld coming in, lots of people
coming in here from georgia, myhome state of georgia right now.
Oh, man this thing's getting big, I believe.
Uh, shaquille o'neal calleddavid David Philpman last week
and asked for a VIP table.
So you know they got a lot.
This is starting to really,really grow.
You know, sooner or later 50Cent will be popping champagne
(04:33):
in the back.
I mean ready.
Hey, let me get a knockout.
Bust a bottle of Cristal on myhead, I'll be good.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
All right.
Yeah, dude, I'm definitelylooking forward to watching the
fights on Friday.
This will be my first timeactually watching one of the
events, so I'm I'm realinterested in watching them and
seeing how it goes, and it looksbadass.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
Memorial.
We actually get an honoraryPurple Heart tag on our on the
thing, so it means a lot.
It's honoring the 9-11,september 11th, everything going
on right.
That's super cool right now too.
Yeah, man, I'm looking forwardto this fight, dude, it's.
It's awesome to be active againafter all this covid's went on.
I know people are happy to seesports of any kind, even back in
(05:17):
, so this is super cool.
Other than the ufc, there'sreally nobody even getting to do
this, so I'm just happy they'reletting fans in.
It's going to be live this timeon the BKTV app.
If anybody doesn't have it, ifthey want to see it, go download
BKTV app.
It's like $3.99 a month.
I think it's some of the bestfighters in the world.
We've got Hector Lombard.
(05:38):
We just signed Paige Vance.
I believe Paige is going to beon those at the November or
October, I don't know MaybeOctober card.
But man, I'm looking forward tothat card as well.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
That's what got me into it, because I follow her on
Instagram and then I saw thatshe signed with a bare knuckle
thing and I was like what thehell is that?
I was like what is Paige VanZandt doing?
Bare knuckle brawling.
I checked it out.
I'm like God damn dude, theseguys fucking bang, yeah, yeah.
What is this?
So definitely got a new fan outof me, so I'm looking forward
(06:13):
to that shit.
Speaker 1 (06:15):
Thank you, brother.
Yeah, man, that's just.
You know, I've been doing MMAfor a long time.
Even when I got my knockout ofBellator, I got knockout of the
year for that here in Georgiaand, man, I haven't gotten near
as much attention.
It's not growing near as fastand, honestly, I like it.
You know, some people know meI'm one of the really powerful
grapplers.
(06:35):
I went to state championshipsall four times in high school.
I do no submission, no geekstuff.
I've got 40 pro cage fights.
I just like to fight, though,man, it got to a point now where
, uh, uh, I miss ufc somewhat,where, well, sometimes, like
even this last one where uzmanheld him down, I love ufc, but
(06:57):
so many guys have got sotalented, uh, at grappling we
almost neutralize each other outuh, in the fight.
It's becoming very neutral andvery point system, and in this
one is going to be two.
But this also is uh.
What's cool about this and whatI like is I like to fight, man.
I grew up in the country and, uh, beyond being a supreme martial
(07:17):
artist, I fought a lot ofpeople.
We always become friends.
It was a way to settle a score,or respect for, for an old
school man thing.
It's very caveman and I don'tdo it like that in life.
I know how to shake hands andtalk like a gentleman, but it's
cool to be able to do that.
And, uh, bare knuckle boxing isa chance for there not to be a
lot of hugging, if there's.
If you clench too long, if yourun, you get points deducted.
(07:41):
So it's like you can't reallyback up.
I mean, uh, it's just broughtback real fighting man.
It's a, it's that caveman, monoand mono, but world-class
martial artist.
But it's a ball and you have tofight.
It's not gonna be boring.
Ever I don't think even aboring fight.
It's like boring for bareknuckle, but not boring.
(08:01):
I don't?
Speaker 2 (08:03):
I don't think I've seen any clips so far of the
bare-knuckle that were boring.
Like you said, man, y'all justgo at it.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Dude.
As soon as they pulled me inand signed me this contract, I
went back and watched.
Well, not only is they callingme a stalker, but I'm watching
all my opponents now because I'msigned.
So these guys come frompossibly 155 if I get a great
dietitian to 175.
But 165, 175 guys have reallygot to watch out because I'm
(08:31):
watching man.
But through all that I've alsomade fans.
Man, the same guys I might haveto fight a guy I'm a fan of
because I went back like three,four, five times in a row.
I've watched every singleperson's fight, at least that
many times, sitting around theliving room like it's espn,
watching the highlights over andover or something, and uh, yeah
(08:52):
, I love it.
I'm a fan of it too, man, notjust even a fighter for him, I'm
a huge fan and I love all thefights.
I'm more excited about thembringing in some more top
talented girls.
That's what's cool about Paigecoming in for me too.
Man, right, she's bringing alot of girls.
She's got to fight somebody youknow, so that's going to help
them get a bigger female rosterExcitement, kind of like what
(09:14):
Rhonda did and create somereally good girl fights.
Because, gosh, that's what I'minterested in man Girls bare
knuckles.
Oh man Right.
Speaker 2 (09:23):
I think everyone loves that.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
Yeah, this is going to be cool.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
I'm definitely looking forward to it.
So is will this be your secondfight in bare knuckle?
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Yes, sir, about my first fight overall.
I fought pro boxing, pro MuayThai, pro grappling.
Uh, mma is where I've got mostabout 40 fights now in MMA and
uh, be 2-0 when it goes my wayon September 11th versus the
Highlands show.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
All right, yeah, definitely looking forward to it
.
So we'll get into it a littlebit.
So where are you from, wherewere you born, where were you
raised, and all that?
Speaker 1 (10:05):
where are you from?
Where were you born, where wereyou raised and all that?
Uh, I was.
I was born in a country town,uh, right outside of memphis,
tennessee, uh, uh, byersburg, uh, but I kind of moved everywhere
.
I was a military brat, my dadwas a, a navy recruiter, and uh,
so I lived in north virginiawhere my brother was born,
traveling along, but we alwayswound up back in the country.
Uh, um, yeah, man, I grew updoing martial arts, boxing,
(10:30):
gymnastics, as a kid, livingthat country life.
I was a farmer too, man, I'vealways been an athlete, I think.
Because of that, my papa, mygrandma, whenever I was a kid, I
remember, uh, five years old, Igot a Troy Bitt tiller for my
birthday.
Well, that's what my papa said.
It was really his tiller, but Ididn't want him to get rid of
the old one.
So he said he bought me thisone for my birthday.
(10:50):
And I remember being out there,dude, five years old, running
that thing, and it wasn't anauto drive.
You know anything about thoseold front?
Speaker 2 (10:56):
tillers.
Speaker 1 (10:56):
You had to dig them in.
It wasn't nothing but a barlevel the dirt in the back.
So yeah, man, I grew up prettysimple like that.
I still remember my grandmagetting milk delivered to the
house.
Now I'm a city boy.
I live right outside of Atlanta, georgia, with my wife.
It's a whole other life now.
I've still got a little of thecountry left in my town, but
that's about it.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
I was going to say I can hear the country twang in
there.
Speaker 1 (11:19):
Yeah, man, I'm still deer hunting, still fishing.
I'm still deer hunting, stillfishing.
Every time I go back home itgets a little worse.
Speaker 2 (11:25):
Right, I'm actually from Tennessee too.
I was born and raised inTennessee.
Yeah, I see the Titan hat on.
Speaker 1 (11:30):
Yeah, titan's hat, but I'm from the Smoky Mountains
area, pigeon Forge, gatlinburg,okay yeah, I'm east Tennessee,
a little closer to you, anyway,not quite, I was far west, we
(11:52):
was quite as far west.
We was right on the Mississippiriver man, right on the farm,
yeah, all right.
So, uh, now you, you said youlive in Atlanta, georgia.
Speaker 2 (11:55):
Now, well, yeah, a little north of Atlanta, right
in the suburbs outside Atlanta,but I train all over Atlanta.
Okay, did you move to Georgiato train?
Speaker 1 (12:01):
uh, yes, okay.
So in Tennessee back when Ileft oh gosh, 15 years ago I'm
horrible with time now You'dthink I'd get hit in the head
for a living or something.
But probably 15, 16 years agoand I was down in Panama City,
florida.
I started fighting and trainingwith Ultimate Boxing down there
with Rob Dickerson and a lot ofguys Team Sexy Assassins.
(12:25):
What's up, guys?
We're still sexy.
That was where I started.
When I left there was afat-lipped MMA lady named Terry
Hillman.
They told me to call somebodynamed Terry.
They were looking for somebodyto fight a main event.
I was not expecting this womanto answer the phone going hey,
this is Terry, I'm the MMA ownerpromoter.
So I was.
(12:46):
Anyway, I talked to her.
I was 3-0 at the time, Ibelieve all first round finishes
.
I went 10-0 over the first yearno rules.
They called it amateur, but itwas no rules.
They paid us to come.
I went 10-0 over the first yearno rules.
They called it amateur, but itwas no rules.
They paid us to come.
It was just no unsanctionedunderground fighting is really
what I call it.
But anyway, mma fat lip.
I moved to Montgomery, alabama.
(13:07):
I stayed there.
I went 7-0.
I was the 170, 155.
I fought 185 champion.
I left there and moved toAtlanta Georgia from there
because the pro circuit actuallyshout out to Dave Oblavion's
NFC now.
It used to be back at WildBills.
I fought Diego Sarraba rightafter he left the UFC.
(13:27):
I think he fought VincentHenderson in the WEC.
That's kind of where I got mybig name.
I knocked out John Coker rightbefore he went to the UFC and
then I fought Diego Sarabia.
I 10-8 round him, I think thefirst two rounds and he
armbarred me in the third.
But at that time I was a whitebelt in jiu-jitsu.
But from there, man, I've beenfighting training in Atlanta
(13:48):
Georgia with some of the best inthe world Last 10, 12 years.
Now.
X3 Sports, gracie Baja, I crosstrain with knuckle love.
I go to American top team andtrain with the Lima brothers.
I mean I've got a lot of.
I mean it's random for me, I'mgood friends and I don't have a
lot of drama.
You know Atlanta supports eachother.
So unless we have a rule, youcan come to the gym for open
(14:14):
mats and hang out as long asyou're not fighting somebody
within 30 days of the contract.
So we all try to work togetherbecause it's about being the
best in the world, not the best.
In Georgia, you know we havesome of the best in the world,
so it's not good enough just totrain with our training partners
sometimes here.
That's another reason I loveliving in Atlanta.
Man Very open to martial artsof all kinds.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
All right.
So what all do you train inJiu-Jitsu?
Speaker 1 (14:41):
I think Hapkido a little Cobb McGraw, kali weapons
disarming.
I focus on kickboxing.
I got a black belt in Taekwondofrom Buddy Colburn in Tennessee
in 1996, I believe 95, 96.
I was 14.
Boxing man, I did boxingforever.
(15:02):
I had gold gloves back in like2001 or something, 2002.
Now everything I teach boxing, Iteach jiu-jitsu, I'm a
submission artist.
I've been focusing on the newstyle because this is a whole
new sport, like said, bareknuckle fighting is, uh, there's
so many new rule sets, um, butit incorporates plum clenches
(15:26):
from muay thai.
So, uh, lately I've beenpulling in other training
partners and things that I'veseen and since I've got signed
with them for the past like 90days and I've kind of tweaked.
You know my biggest idol, uh,bruce lee.
He said do not be, do not bethe glass, be the water.
Uh, any water can fit in anyglass, but not any glass can
(15:47):
hold any water.
You know there's a certainlimit to it.
But if you're the water and youcan learn to flow, and that's
what I'm doing I pull in allthese different people and try
to create my style.
So now that's where my focus is.
But I'm four-stripe purple belt.
I've been training for 20 years.
I just stay in no-gi a wholelot and I wind up teaching.
So I still want to get my blackbelt there.
(16:08):
I'm never going to give up onthat.
I will be a professor injiu-jitsu at one point.
Eventually, just teachjiu-jitsu.
Teach boxing, teach Muay Thai.
Eventually, just teach jujitsu,teach boxing, teach Muay Thai.
A little of everything.
Teach the MMA, teachbare-knuckle boxing.
I'm going to continue to coachat X3 Sports or maybe open my
own gym one day, or open my ownX3.
Just continue the journey, man.
(16:29):
That's awesome.
Speaker 2 (16:31):
So yeah, so you said, you fought in Bellator for a
minute.
How many fights in Bellator didyou have?
Just one fight in Bellator.
Speaker 1 (16:40):
Just the one, 2013,.
Got a knockout against JaredBurke.
He was the striking coach atHardcore for Roy Singer at the
time, okay, and you said youknocked him out.
Oh yeah, knocked him out.
I got knockout of the year herein Georgia for that.
Oh wow, that was a prettybrutal knockout man.
If you go look it up on YouTube, actually, joe Elmore Bellator,
(17:04):
joe Elmore KO.
There's a couple highlights ofthat one online if you all want
to check it out A lot of mystuff on YouTube.
I leave up my stuff even whenI'm on training camp because I
don't think people can train forme If you camp, because I don't
think people can train for me.
If you go have a wild style man, I fight south paul orthodox.
I'm a better grappler than I ama striker, but I'm like justin
(17:24):
gagey.
Hey, he's a better grapplerthan a striker, but have you
ever seen him take anybody down?
I don't think so, because thatalso wrestler.
I got that wrestling power too.
So that dan henderson right,and that I call it my lefty the
liddell and instead of the hbomb, the j bomb.
So I got the lefty liddell andthe j bomb right here.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
Those are two good weapons to have.
Yes, they are.
Man, so was uh was wrestling.
What first got you intofighting?
Did you start out wrestling?
Speaker 1 (17:55):
no taekwondo, I had a hundred.
I had a hundred type.
I started my sensei at like 13years old started making me take
adult classes because I wasknocking the kids out and point
fights and stuff.
So I mean, I've always justbeen, uh, I'm extreme adhd and
sometimes, like when I lost mymind, it was a maniac.
People don't understand that.
It's emotional.
I stem sometimes just from howmuch energy I have, from that
(18:20):
extreme ADHD.
You know it's tight.
I twitch If y'all see I move alot and when I'm in there I get
overexcited and it's fun to beable to get that energy out and
share some of that energy withthe fans.
And yeah, man, I look forwardto doing again here soon.
(18:42):
I get I get so excited whenthis, when the fight week, comes
up right, definitely get allyour butterflies.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
Start coming in just uh.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
Oh yeah, that's how we lose that weight, that
metabolism kicks in and cutsthat extra 20 pounds real quick.
Right, but I don't get nervous.
Well, I guess I do.
My nervous is excitement.
I have my adrenaline builds up.
I'm more gotta like chi andlike center it, so it doesn't
waste before I get there becauseI'm looking forward to the
(19:11):
moment, whether I win or lose.
I'm a I'm a happy winner, happyloser dude if I put on a great
show and I have people that lovethe fight and they talk about
it forever.
Honestly, I came into it moreto be like.
What I love about fighters inmoments is like the nightmare
Sanchez, the way he fights, theway Chris Levin used to fight.
It was Tom Liddell in theinterview, chris Liddell guys
(19:35):
that go out there to fight andbang and just destroy each other
.
One of my favorite fights ofall time was Forrest Griffin,
stephen Bonner, the ultimatefighter.
I mean like whether I get, ifyou're on, if I have a knockout
or if I have a fight like that.
Or Jason Knight have you seenthe Jason Knight lowball fight
(19:58):
for Bare Knuckle FightingChampionships yet I don't think
I've seen that one yet.
The Jason Knight lowball fightman.
I think that kind of hit him onthe map a little bit.
It's what really made me startpaying attention, like dang man.
I got to do this.
This is my fight.
I'm fighting because win orlose.
I think both of them they wenttwo different ways.
But I think both of them theywent two different ways.
(20:19):
But man, those were somegood-ass fights and they're the
kind that you'll never forget.
And plus they get you paideventually.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
Right, yeah, I'll definitely have to check it out.
So, with the fight coming up,what do you do to prepare?
What do you do to train andwhat's your like?
Speaker 1 (20:39):
training regimen and all that getting ready for a
fight.
I got a medical sponsorshipfrom Nivea Health in Woodstock.
Every morning, three days aweek, I go up there for either
IVs or PMF therapy.
It's electromagnetic therapy.
It's what they use onastronauts when they go to outer
space and they come back andtheir bone density and their
(21:00):
muscle densities drop down fromthe zero gravity.
They put this machine on them.
It helps them heal faster.
So I've got a therapist thatputs me through that.
Because I'm doing two a days,I'll leave there and I'll go
train an hour hour and a halfwith Manu.
Manu is a six-time worldchampionought Duke Rufus.
I paid him for a little camper.
I got my sponsors too.
I have some sponsors that arehelping me to pay to train
(21:22):
full-time.
Now, along with BKFC, I'mfull-time fighting, not having
to teach others at the gym so Ican focus on being the world
champion for them.
I go at night to X3 Sports,which is my home gym, which I
have, where I've taught atforever.
Uh, I have boxing coaches.
They got coach aladino there.
He's one of.
He was a olympic uh boxingcoach, I believe silver medalist
(21:43):
as well for cuba.
We brought him here with uh,coach isidoro and uh go train
with them.
I'll go to wins monday andwednesday.
There's some guys that knuckleup, uh, warren thompson, he's
one of the trainers up there.
He, he was a glory fighter.
He invited a lot of the pros.
We call it come spar night.
If you have something to add,you can come.
(22:03):
There will be 10, 15 differentgyms, 30, 40 guys from 125s all
the way to ultra heavyweights upthere sparring boxing.
If you're a boxer, you box.
If you're a kickboxer, youkickbox.
If you're MMA, if you're akickboxer, you kickbox.
That we have.
If you're in a may, if you wantto swap between them all, uh,
so I mean, I'm still trainingfull-time stuff like that too.
I've got a couple guys I bringin specifically once a day that
(22:25):
are tall or have a similar styleto the guy I find because I
know a lot of pro boxers heretoo.
So I've got some pro boxers inand I'll train with them and see
what we can do and tear eachother's heads up with and I call
it pillow fighting now, becausewe go in there with our boxing
gloves and our headgears.
It feels like we're pillowfighting when I get done.
(22:46):
I've noticed, uh, when I trainwith my boxing gloves now, uh,
and I take those things off.
It's like going to the rollerskating rink and when you get
done roller skating and you takethem off and your feet are like
Clydesdales and they lift 10feet in the air.
You don't mean to step so high,man.
My punches have been gettingfaster and uh, yeah, so I've
been working on my hand speedtoughening and conditioning my
(23:08):
hands too.
That's another thing.
Uh, bkfc, there's a surprisevideo that they they flew the
production team in here.
I don't know when they're gonnarelease it.
I can really say nothing.
They just said I could say thatthey filmed it.
It's a little one or two minutehighlight video about me that
they're going to release and Ishowed how I conditioned my
hands punching a brick wallevery day.
Yeah, so I just I mean, I gotprepped myself in any and every
(23:32):
single possible way.
Like I said, I go way.
Uh, like I said, I go, I go outto nature to get my mind,
because it's not just myphysical.
Uh, I've watched my diet lately.
I've got I've got doctorsmonitoring my blood work every
week just to make sure mylevel's correct.
But I also have to get a littlebit of nature, man.
There's some beautiful mountainshere in georgia.
The appalachian trail startshere.
(23:53):
I'll go to the appalachiantrail and I'll run, literally
with tree branch on my shouldersometimes or something, just to
get away.
And that Rocky moment I canhear dun-dun-dun-dun-dun in the
back of my head.
You know, ready to go fight theRussian and avenge Apollo, get
my head right.
And the waterfalls and thecreeks.
(24:13):
So I mean, I just do a littlebit of everything.
A little bit of everything nowthat I'm blessed to train
full-time, whatever, uh, mind,body and soul needs to get the
energy to be able to go tobattle and prepare.
I do that all day long, oneplace, another.
Y'all can follow my journey too, uh.
So anybody that's on looseninto this it's I've got it as my
name at joe hitman 187 on ig.
(24:33):
I like to share a lot of mystuff.
Y'all see me having mats on themountain.
So I will see me, uh, being atthis gym and that gym with my
different training partners, mydifferent coaches.
I like to share a lot so peoplecan get to know me outside of
the cage too, so they check thatout and see what's up with who
I am too.
All right.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
Yeah, I'll definitely throw that in the bio for the
episode so people can check itout as well, that in the uh bio
for the episode so people cancheck it out as well.
But yeah, another question Iwanted to ask you is like um,
how, how was it adjusting tolike fighting with like gloves
and and then going to like justbare knuckle?
Speaker 1 (25:11):
I've never used a mouthpiece in a training session
.
My whole life I've kind of beena um, uh, what do they call it?
The, the hoosier hill.
Really, my family's always beenfighting man.
You know, uh, okay, I like tofight, dude me and uh, growing
up where I grew up in tennessee,we, I remember we, uh a couple
of my friends, we had a videocamera, the old camcorder, and
(25:32):
we would record the fights.
We'd charge five, ten dollarsto get in the backyard.
Sometimes we'd have a keg ofbeer in charge for the cup and
you'd get in the backyard with acup and we'd have five or six
people.
A guy from dyer, dyersburg wouldwant to fight the guy from dyer
county or this guy from thisplace in that place, in this
town, and this football team guywas dating his dude's
girlfriend.
We'd find all the fights wewouldn't let him fight.
(25:52):
It's kind of remember you?
I think there's a thing onYouTube called Street Beasts
when we had phones and stuff andit was really kind of like a
street beast.
It wasn't so gang, gang, but wewould be like, hey, man, that
guy don't like that guy.
I'd be like man, all right,friday, it's cool, we can go out
to the farm.
Nobody's going to call the cops, we're going to fight, and when
it's over, it's over.
We had rules.
We pulled them, we'd drop theflag, we'd let them fight and
(26:15):
we'd record it.
We'd sell the videos.
I grew up like that, so metaking the gloves off was how I
started Then.
I actually started putting thegloves on and now we're taking
the gloves back off.
It's fun, man, think it's gonna, um, give me as what?
(26:38):
Uh, I'm a creature that wassupposed to be born to protect
my village and my family.
I feel like some guys.
I feel like we have to.
I don't want to be a superhero,to be like cool or nothing like
that.
I literally like to save peoplethat are weaker, or I like to
protect my family.
I like it makes me feel good asa man to do that for my family
and my wife.
And, uh, fighting is like anancient passage, and so this
(27:04):
brings that back for me, andthere's not a lot of guys that
are made for it.
You have guys that are bornfighters.
I always say this, and then youhave trained martial artists.
You cannot train someone to bea fighter.
You have to be born.
You don't want me doing heartsurgery, so don't let me say you
know, anybody can't learn tofight.
Anybody can learn to fight, butwhen you get in there with me,
(27:26):
I'm a fighter.
It's way different.
You can't steal my soul.
Am I facing God in that ring?
Yeah, and I think a lot of guysdon't have that they they might
be.
They might be real, real goodand real talented.
But it's not a bag.
(27:46):
In there there's no gloves, andyou just did have something a
little different.
Speaker 2 (27:51):
I guess, I don't know I get it so um, but yeah, so uh
.
If the ufc ever knocking youthink you'd take them up.
Speaker 1 (28:03):
If it didn't interfere with what I got going
on with BKFC right now, if themoney is right.
I'm a full-time combatsportsman.
I submit black belts and no gisubmission all the time.
I know a lot of sambo,world-class leg locks.
So, uh, yeah, of course, man, Ilove combat sports.
(28:24):
Uh, if they called me to fightglory kickboxing right now, I'd
go fight a glory kickboxing.
If, if the money were right andit did not interfere with BKFC.
I do want to tell you, though,I love this.
I think this is my new home.
If things keep working out, Iplan on being the BKFC 165 world
champion.
They're paying me really nice.
(28:46):
It's going to definitely getbetter when I show them that I
am the man that they've investedalready what they've invested,
and if I win this fight, theylet me call out who I'm going to
to call out.
I'm not going to say it no morebecause I want to.
I want to win this fight andthen we'll make it an official
call out.
But I already have a top name aformer UFC fighter.
(29:07):
Then I'm going to call out for165.
They promised to renegotiate mycontract.
If all that sets, man, I can'tsay I won't, but man, I mean
it's going gonna be fun to getme to quit yeah, all right, man.
Speaker 2 (29:21):
Well, yeah, that's man.
Uh, I gotta say, though, once I, once I came across it and shit
like that dude I was, I waspretty hooked on the the bare
knuckle fighting.
Speaker 1 (29:33):
You know, I always ask everybody.
Everybody asked me.
I've never even asked, uh,somebody.
I've a podcast.
What do you think, man, what doyou like If you were going to
watch a UFC fight today or watcha bare-knuckle fighting fight?
They come on at the same time.
Which one are you watching?
Speaker 2 (29:47):
Oh, I guess it would depend on who's fighting, like
how big of a UFC event it is,but if it was just like a normal
UFC, was gonna fight FloydMayweather and MMA or bare
knuckle boxing, and they were.
Speaker 1 (30:03):
It was they.
You had to choose between thatfight.
For which one what would youpick?
Ufc or bare knuckle boxing?
Speaker 2 (30:09):
probably the bare knuckle boxing of that one.
Speaker 1 (30:11):
Yeah, yeah that's what I mean.
I'm like I in my head right nowUFC is super popular, but if
you take the same fighters andthat's what they're doing some
of the popularity and they'reputting it here, once you take
that popularity and you let themsee, oh my God, people just
don't know what it is.
You remember, before Kevin Kemptwice came to UFC, there's
people like what is UFC?
They didn't even know UFC wasMMA, or they just called MMA UFC
(30:38):
or you know Right, I think it'sbare knuckles.
Turn for people to watch it.
Please watch it, I think it'sy'all's time too, man.
Speaker 2 (30:47):
I think it's going to take off.
Just like I said, like I thinkonce someone actually just like
sits down and watches one of thefights, they're going to be
hooked.
Yeah, watch all of them, causethat shit is crazy.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Even even the, even the smaller names that y'all
don't know.
Everybody get on and you've gotto watch.
Man, those are some of thehungriest guys out there.
I was.
I think I was a 300 or 350underdog just because my MMA
record, even he.
He called one of my coaches, hea guy, he's friends with daniel
gray wilchok.
(31:20):
He called him and was like man,I'm gonna whip his ass.
Dude, this guy doesn't knowwhat he's got into it.
I'm like man, you have no idea.
This is a whole another thing.
Check them out, because it'sfighters and, uh, the little
names are some of the bestfights I found out myself that's
I'm saying I watched 10 todayright.
Speaker 2 (31:37):
I feel like, like those smaller guys put more
heart into it.
Yeah, man, it's interesting.
Speaker 1 (31:43):
Pro football and college football same thing, man
.
Some of them have the contract.
They're like, oh yay, we'rehere.
And then you got those guyslike I want to be in the BKFC.
That's what they're fightingfor.
Speaker 2 (31:54):
Right, all right.
Man, before I let you go, Igotta ask where you got the
nickname hitman from uh, well, Istarted out and I was gonna.
Speaker 1 (32:05):
I I didn't have a nickname but I was gonna go by
joe the animal, elmore, and thatwas what I was gonna name
myself because they just said my.
My friends would say man, he'san animal.
Anybody would describe me.
I was like, might as well justcall me the animal, because I
got to the first fight didn'thave my name.
Well, when I got done, the guythat I fought for it was called
(32:25):
not UFC but UCF Sammy Collinwood.
He'll be in my corner.
He was in there last time, bigSammy from South Florida.
I went down there and foughtfor him.
There was, uh, I was.
I fought 55, most of my career.
170 is an amateur because Idon't want to cut weight.
But this particular fight Itook at 185, uh, walking around
(32:46):
at 185 against a guy that wasabout six foot one, 205.
Uh, he was 11 and 0 at the time.
It was his last fight.
He was going to try and pronobody would take a fight with
him, uh.
So they asked me to take afight with him and I was a
stubborn, hard-headed dude backthen and I was like sure.
So I took the fight against him, my coach, literally he grabbed
(33:07):
me by the face before I walkedin there and he smacked me
upside the face and heheadbutted me a little bit to
the point it dazed me, so thisdude's probably gonna whip your
ass.
I think it'll be the first timeto go out there.
It makes us proud.
And I was like what justhappened, you know like.
So I walked in there and and,uh, I hit the guy.
He hit me and I remember him.
I don't.
(33:27):
I kind of remember.
I remember just us bang, bangand filling punches come off me
and they said I don't remembermy knee hitting the ground, but
apparently he dropped me and myknee hit the ground.
And they said I don't remembermy knee hitting the ground, but
apparently he dropped me and myknee hit the ground.
And they said, when my knee hitthe ground, I guess in my head
my body went wake up and I justcome off that floor like a
rocket, just like I did WillChoate, and I dropped him and I
(33:49):
wound up getting on top of himand throwing three or four more
punches and getting tackled off.
I didn't even know I won.
I was like like what happened?
Did I?
Did I lose?
I knocked him out, I'm like, ohokay, well, I've won.
Then, all right.
When I climbed on top of thecage and that dude said man,
you're not an animal, you're ahit man.
You wasn't supposed to do that,you're the hit man, and it was
(34:12):
just like I remember that moment.
I got fight of the night forhim and at the bar people were
going hit man, hit man.
So I've been the hit man eversince and it just kind of stuck.
Speaker 2 (34:24):
Yeah, I definitely like the name, the hit man.
It's definitely a cool nicknameman.
And yeah, dude, I'm superexcited to watch you fight on
Friday.
I'm definitely going to watchit.
Look forward to more fights.
You definitely got a fan in me,especially us both being
Tennessee boys Got to sticktogether.
Maybe I can make it down toAtlanta sometime and train with
(34:48):
you in something Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (34:51):
Five or six gyms.
If you're ever in the area,definitely hit me up, man, I'll
make a special stop up there.
Speaker 2 (34:56):
All right, sounds good.
I live in Michigan now.
Now, so if you guys ever, uh,put on a show in michigan, oh
dude, I'm up to michigan Ifought for wxc up there for mike
pendelli.
Speaker 1 (35:07):
I've got some family in detroit ranting.
Speaker 2 (35:09):
I've got come up there quite often okay, yeah,
I'm, uh, I live right outside offlint.
I live about 20 mile, uh, 20minutes, south Flint.
Speaker 1 (35:17):
Okay, I know where you're at.
Yeah, man, definitely.
Thank you for having me on.
By the way, I really enjoyed it.
Shout out to all my sponsors,all my coaches, all my fans, all
my friends, everybody.
Thank y'all so much.
Speaker 2 (35:32):
Check them out this Friday.
Watch them knock out this fooland help them become champion.
Awesome, thank y'all.
Thanks for coming on.
Speaker 1 (35:45):
Have a good night.
I came across the bare-knuckle fighting
championships and I saw yourvideo against what was it?
Will Chope, is that how you sayhis name?
Will Chope?
Yes, sir, yeah, like youfucking knocked him out in like
52 seconds, I think it was right.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
Yes sir, 52 seconds first round.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Dude, that's crazy.
Like you, fucking like, you gothim and he went down and then
he got back up and then, justlike 10 seconds later, just
fucking finished him.
Speaker 1 (00:45):
Dude, I can't believe he got back up and then, just
like 10 seconds later, justfucking finished him.
I can't believe he got back up.
Honestly, that was one of thehardest straight rights I've
ever led down the pipe.
I felt his cheek becausethere's no gloves man.
Maybe that's why it felt likethe hardest punch.
But he got back up.
He did.
I don't think his brain wasthere.
He was already done at thatpoint and I knew I just had to
(01:08):
go make sure he wasn't gettingback up the next time.
Speaker 2 (01:11):
Yeah, yeah, like this is the first time I've ever
come across this and it's justfucking crazy what y'all do in
there.
Just no glove, it's straight,bare knuckle.
Speaker 1 (01:24):
Well, you know it's cool because, as brutal as it
looks, it's safe.
Man, I'm an MMA veteran.
We worry about leg kicks, kneebars.
You know, just all the timethese are cuts.
I've had this cut here.
Matter of fact, I've got amedical sponsorship now.
They just drew my blood theother day.
(01:44):
They're extracting my collagen.
They're going to inject my eyeswith the or uh, the plasma, uh,
uh in my blood and they'regoing to inject it so it regrows
collagen, so it won't splitback open.
Help my scars, I mean.
So this is going to be quick,quick stuff.
If we do get knocked out, man,it's not going to be a lot on
our brain.
(02:04):
You know, boxers take hundredsof punches cause they, they got
all that protection.
We take a, a, a real good punchman, and they're going down.
So it's a lot of action for thefans.
Uh, there is blood which itmakes it for any fight fan.
That just makes it exciting,man.
And you know we're uh, they'rebringing in some really good
guys right now, some of the toptalent in the world.
(02:26):
You know Will Chope he's Idon't know, 10-, 12-time world
champion, 119 fights.
He fought Max Holloway in themain event for the UFC
previously for one of his fights, Max didn't finish until the
third round TKO.
I think he's only been finisheda total of three times TKO his
whole career out of 119 fights.
(02:48):
Now I'm fighting Tom Shoff.
This guy, I believe, is alittle stronger and faster some
good boxing.
He's going to be a little bitmore aggressive.
He's a pocket fighter, which Ibelieve is more dangerous for
him because Will had not plannedon getting in the pocket.
Now I've got another tall guythat likes to bang and I'm ready
to do it again.
(03:08):
Man, Blood bath or knockout oneor the other.
We're going to put on a showman and hopefully keep growing
this momentum and have a lot offans join in.
Right now it's thefastest-growing combat sport in
the world and it's bare-knucklefighting.
It's not bare-knuckle boxingand a lot of people don't even
know the difference.
But we're allowed to clinch.
I can grab him by the back ofthe head and pound him by his
(03:28):
face.
You know, in boxing you can'tdo that.
I can grab his right hand orhis left hand as he jabs me and
throw an uppercut.
Or I can grab his wrist andpound him and he can't block it,
you know.
So it makes it makes it a fastaction, fast pace gnarly thing
that I really, really love doingand that's this Friday, right
(03:52):
the 11th.
It's the Daytona BeachConvention Center.
If you type in ConventionCenter, Daytona Beach, there's a
Hilton Hotel running a specialright across the street on the
ocean.
Right there A lot of people arecoming and they're selling out.
Man, I got people flying allover the country to come in and
watch this arizona, texas, likea family from california flying
in arizona.
(04:12):
I mean people all over theworld coming in, lots of people
coming in here from georgia, myhome state of georgia right now.
Oh, man this thing's getting big, I believe.
Uh, shaquille o'neal calleddavid David Philpman last week
and asked for a VIP table.
So you know they got a lot.
This is starting to really,really grow.
You know, sooner or later 50Cent will be popping champagne
(04:33):
in the back.
I mean ready.
Hey, let me get a knockout.
Bust a bottle of Cristal on myhead, I'll be good.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
All right.
Yeah, dude, I'm definitelylooking forward to watching the
fights on Friday.
This will be my first timeactually watching one of the
events, so I'm I'm realinterested in watching them and
seeing how it goes, and it looksbadass.
Speaker 1 (04:55):
Memorial.
We actually get an honoraryPurple Heart tag on our on the
thing, so it means a lot.
It's honoring the 9-11,september 11th, everything going
on right.
That's super cool right now too.
Yeah, man, I'm looking forwardto this fight, dude, it's.
It's awesome to be active againafter all this covid's went on.
I know people are happy to seesports of any kind, even back in
(05:17):
, so this is super cool.
Other than the ufc, there'sreally nobody even getting to do
this, so I'm just happy they'reletting fans in.
It's going to be live this timeon the BKTV app.
If anybody doesn't have it, ifthey want to see it, go download
BKTV app.
It's like $3.99 a month.
I think it's some of the bestfighters in the world.
We've got Hector Lombard.
(05:38):
We just signed Paige Vance.
I believe Paige is going to beon those at the November or
October, I don't know MaybeOctober card.
But man, I'm looking forward tothat card as well.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
That's what got me into it, because I follow her on
Instagram and then I saw thatshe signed with a bare knuckle
thing and I was like what thehell is that?
I was like what is Paige VanZandt doing?
Bare knuckle brawling.
I checked it out.
I'm like God damn dude, theseguys fucking bang, yeah, yeah.
What is this?
So definitely got a new fan outof me, so I'm looking forward
(06:13):
to that shit.
Speaker 1 (06:15):
Thank you, brother.
Yeah, man, that's just.
You know, I've been doing MMAfor a long time.
Even when I got my knockout ofBellator, I got knockout of the
year for that here in Georgiaand, man, I haven't gotten near
as much attention.
It's not growing near as fastand, honestly, I like it.
You know, some people know meI'm one of the really powerful
grapplers.
(06:35):
I went to state championshipsall four times in high school.
I do no submission, no geekstuff.
I've got 40 pro cage fights.
I just like to fight, though,man, it got to a point now where
, uh, uh, I miss ufc somewhat,where, well, sometimes, like
even this last one where uzmanheld him down, I love ufc, but
(06:57):
so many guys have got sotalented, uh, at grappling we
almost neutralize each other outuh, in the fight.
It's becoming very neutral andvery point system, and in this
one is going to be two.
But this also is uh.
What's cool about this and whatI like is I like to fight, man.
I grew up in the country and, uh, beyond being a supreme martial
(07:17):
artist, I fought a lot ofpeople.
We always become friends.
It was a way to settle a score,or respect for, for an old
school man thing.
It's very caveman and I don'tdo it like that in life.
I know how to shake hands andtalk like a gentleman, but it's
cool to be able to do that.
And, uh, bare knuckle boxing isa chance for there not to be a
lot of hugging, if there's.
If you clench too long, if yourun, you get points deducted.
(07:41):
So it's like you can't reallyback up.
I mean, uh, it's just broughtback real fighting man.
It's a, it's that caveman, monoand mono, but world-class
martial artist.
But it's a ball and you have tofight.
It's not gonna be boring.
Ever I don't think even aboring fight.
It's like boring for bareknuckle, but not boring.
(08:01):
I don't?
Speaker 2 (08:03):
I don't think I've seen any clips so far of the
bare-knuckle that were boring.
Like you said, man, y'all justgo at it.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Dude.
As soon as they pulled me inand signed me this contract, I
went back and watched.
Well, not only is they callingme a stalker, but I'm watching
all my opponents now because I'msigned.
So these guys come frompossibly 155 if I get a great
dietitian to 175.
But 165, 175 guys have reallygot to watch out because I'm
(08:31):
watching man.
But through all that I've alsomade fans.
Man, the same guys I might haveto fight a guy I'm a fan of
because I went back like three,four, five times in a row.
I've watched every singleperson's fight, at least that
many times, sitting around theliving room like it's espn,
watching the highlights over andover or something, and uh, yeah
(08:52):
, I love it.
I'm a fan of it too, man, notjust even a fighter for him, I'm
a huge fan and I love all thefights.
I'm more excited about thembringing in some more top
talented girls.
That's what's cool about Paigecoming in for me too.
Man, right, she's bringing alot of girls.
She's got to fight somebody youknow, so that's going to help
them get a bigger female rosterExcitement, kind of like what
(09:14):
Rhonda did and create somereally good girl fights.
Because, gosh, that's what I'minterested in man Girls bare
knuckles.
Oh man Right.
Speaker 2 (09:23):
I think everyone loves that.
Speaker 1 (09:24):
Yeah, this is going to be cool.
Speaker 2 (09:27):
I'm definitely looking forward to it.
So is will this be your secondfight in bare knuckle?
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Yes, sir, about my first fight overall.
I fought pro boxing, pro MuayThai, pro grappling.
Uh, mma is where I've got mostabout 40 fights now in MMA and
uh, be 2-0 when it goes my wayon September 11th versus the
Highlands show.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
All right, yeah, definitely looking forward to it
.
So we'll get into it a littlebit.
So where are you from, wherewere you born, where were you
raised, and all that?
Speaker 1 (10:05):
where are you from?
Where were you born, where wereyou raised and all that?
Uh, I was.
I was born in a country town,uh, right outside of memphis,
tennessee, uh, uh, byersburg, uh, but I kind of moved everywhere
.
I was a military brat, my dadwas a, a navy recruiter, and uh,
so I lived in north virginiawhere my brother was born,
traveling along, but we alwayswound up back in the country.
Uh, um, yeah, man, I grew updoing martial arts, boxing,
(10:30):
gymnastics, as a kid, livingthat country life.
I was a farmer too, man, I'vealways been an athlete, I think.
Because of that, my papa, mygrandma, whenever I was a kid, I
remember, uh, five years old, Igot a Troy Bitt tiller for my
birthday.
Well, that's what my papa said.
It was really his tiller, but Ididn't want him to get rid of
the old one.
So he said he bought me thisone for my birthday.
(10:50):
And I remember being out there,dude, five years old, running
that thing, and it wasn't anauto drive.
You know anything about thoseold front?
Speaker 2 (10:56):
tillers.
Speaker 1 (10:56):
You had to dig them in.
It wasn't nothing but a barlevel the dirt in the back.
So yeah, man, I grew up prettysimple like that.
I still remember my grandmagetting milk delivered to the
house.
Now I'm a city boy.
I live right outside of Atlanta, georgia, with my wife.
It's a whole other life now.
I've still got a little of thecountry left in my town, but
that's about it.
Speaker 2 (11:16):
I was going to say I can hear the country twang in
there.
Speaker 1 (11:19):
Yeah, man, I'm still deer hunting, still fishing.
I'm still deer hunting, stillfishing.
Every time I go back home itgets a little worse.
Speaker 2 (11:25):
Right, I'm actually from Tennessee too.
I was born and raised inTennessee.
Yeah, I see the Titan hat on.
Speaker 1 (11:30):
Yeah, titan's hat, but I'm from the Smoky Mountains
area, pigeon Forge, gatlinburg,okay yeah, I'm east Tennessee,
a little closer to you, anyway,not quite, I was far west, we
(11:52):
was quite as far west.
We was right on the Mississippiriver man, right on the farm,
yeah, all right.
So, uh, now you, you said youlive in Atlanta, georgia.
Speaker 2 (11:55):
Now, well, yeah, a little north of Atlanta, right
in the suburbs outside Atlanta,but I train all over Atlanta.
Okay, did you move to Georgiato train?
Speaker 1 (12:01):
uh, yes, okay.
So in Tennessee back when Ileft oh gosh, 15 years ago I'm
horrible with time now You'dthink I'd get hit in the head
for a living or something.
But probably 15, 16 years agoand I was down in Panama City,
florida.
I started fighting and trainingwith Ultimate Boxing down there
with Rob Dickerson and a lot ofguys Team Sexy Assassins.
(12:25):
What's up, guys?
We're still sexy.
That was where I started.
When I left there was afat-lipped MMA lady named Terry
Hillman.
They told me to call somebodynamed Terry.
They were looking for somebodyto fight a main event.
I was not expecting this womanto answer the phone going hey,
this is Terry, I'm the MMA ownerpromoter.
So I was.
(12:46):
Anyway, I talked to her.
I was 3-0 at the time, Ibelieve all first round finishes
.
I went 10-0 over the first yearno rules.
They called it amateur, but itwas no rules.
They paid us to come.
I went 10-0 over the first yearno rules.
They called it amateur, but itwas no rules.
They paid us to come.
It was just no unsanctionedunderground fighting is really
what I call it.
But anyway, mma fat lip.
I moved to Montgomery, alabama.
(13:07):
I stayed there.
I went 7-0.
I was the 170, 155.
I fought 185 champion.
I left there and moved toAtlanta Georgia from there
because the pro circuit actuallyshout out to Dave Oblavion's
NFC now.
It used to be back at WildBills.
I fought Diego Sarraba rightafter he left the UFC.
(13:27):
I think he fought VincentHenderson in the WEC.
That's kind of where I got mybig name.
I knocked out John Coker rightbefore he went to the UFC and
then I fought Diego Sarabia.
I 10-8 round him, I think thefirst two rounds and he
armbarred me in the third.
But at that time I was a whitebelt in jiu-jitsu.
But from there, man, I've beenfighting training in Atlanta
(13:48):
Georgia with some of the best inthe world Last 10, 12 years.
Now.
X3 Sports, gracie Baja, I crosstrain with knuckle love.
I go to American top team andtrain with the Lima brothers.
I mean I've got a lot of.
I mean it's random for me, I'mgood friends and I don't have a
lot of drama.
You know Atlanta supports eachother.
So unless we have a rule, youcan come to the gym for open
(14:14):
mats and hang out as long asyou're not fighting somebody
within 30 days of the contract.
So we all try to work togetherbecause it's about being the
best in the world, not the best.
In Georgia, you know we havesome of the best in the world,
so it's not good enough just totrain with our training partners
sometimes here.
That's another reason I loveliving in Atlanta.
Man Very open to martial artsof all kinds.
Speaker 2 (14:35):
All right.
So what all do you train inJiu-Jitsu?
Speaker 1 (14:41):
I think Hapkido a little Cobb McGraw, kali weapons
disarming.
I focus on kickboxing.
I got a black belt in Taekwondofrom Buddy Colburn in Tennessee
in 1996, I believe 95, 96.
I was 14.
Boxing man, I did boxingforever.
(15:02):
I had gold gloves back in like2001 or something, 2002.
Now everything I teach boxing, Iteach jiu-jitsu, I'm a
submission artist.
I've been focusing on the newstyle because this is a whole
new sport, like said, bareknuckle fighting is, uh, there's
so many new rule sets, um, butit incorporates plum clenches
(15:26):
from muay thai.
So, uh, lately I've beenpulling in other training
partners and things that I'veseen and since I've got signed
with them for the past like 90days and I've kind of tweaked.
You know my biggest idol, uh,bruce lee.
He said do not be, do not bethe glass, be the water.
Uh, any water can fit in anyglass, but not any glass can
(15:47):
hold any water.
You know there's a certainlimit to it.
But if you're the water and youcan learn to flow, and that's
what I'm doing I pull in allthese different people and try
to create my style.
So now that's where my focus is.
But I'm four-stripe purple belt.
I've been training for 20 years.
I just stay in no-gi a wholelot and I wind up teaching.
So I still want to get my blackbelt there.
(16:08):
I'm never going to give up onthat.
I will be a professor injiu-jitsu at one point.
Eventually, just teachjiu-jitsu.
Teach boxing, teach Muay Thai.
Eventually, just teach jujitsu,teach boxing, teach Muay Thai.
A little of everything.
Teach the MMA, teachbare-knuckle boxing.
I'm going to continue to coachat X3 Sports or maybe open my
own gym one day, or open my ownX3.
Just continue the journey, man.
(16:29):
That's awesome.
Speaker 2 (16:31):
So yeah, so you said, you fought in Bellator for a
minute.
How many fights in Bellator didyou have?
Just one fight in Bellator.
Speaker 1 (16:40):
Just the one, 2013,.
Got a knockout against JaredBurke.
He was the striking coach atHardcore for Roy Singer at the
time, okay, and you said youknocked him out.
Oh yeah, knocked him out.
I got knockout of the year herein Georgia for that.
Oh wow, that was a prettybrutal knockout man.
If you go look it up on YouTube, actually, joe Elmore Bellator,
(17:04):
joe Elmore KO.
There's a couple highlights ofthat one online if you all want
to check it out A lot of mystuff on YouTube.
I leave up my stuff even whenI'm on training camp because I
don't think people can train forme If you camp, because I don't
think people can train for me.
If you go have a wild style man, I fight south paul orthodox.
I'm a better grappler than I ama striker, but I'm like justin
(17:24):
gagey.
Hey, he's a better grapplerthan a striker, but have you
ever seen him take anybody down?
I don't think so, because thatalso wrestler.
I got that wrestling power too.
So that dan henderson right,and that I call it my lefty the
liddell and instead of the hbomb, the j bomb.
So I got the lefty liddell andthe j bomb right here.
Speaker 2 (17:46):
Those are two good weapons to have.
Yes, they are.
Man, so was uh was wrestling.
What first got you intofighting?
Did you start out wrestling?
Speaker 1 (17:55):
no taekwondo, I had a hundred.
I had a hundred type.
I started my sensei at like 13years old started making me take
adult classes because I wasknocking the kids out and point
fights and stuff.
So I mean, I've always justbeen, uh, I'm extreme adhd and
sometimes, like when I lost mymind, it was a maniac.
People don't understand that.
It's emotional.
I stem sometimes just from howmuch energy I have, from that
(18:20):
extreme ADHD.
You know it's tight.
I twitch If y'all see I move alot and when I'm in there I get
overexcited and it's fun to beable to get that energy out and
share some of that energy withthe fans.
And yeah, man, I look forwardto doing again here soon.
(18:42):
I get I get so excited whenthis, when the fight week, comes
up right, definitely get allyour butterflies.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
Start coming in just uh.
Speaker 1 (18:51):
Oh yeah, that's how we lose that weight, that
metabolism kicks in and cutsthat extra 20 pounds real quick.
Right, but I don't get nervous.
Well, I guess I do.
My nervous is excitement.
I have my adrenaline builds up.
I'm more gotta like chi andlike center it, so it doesn't
waste before I get there becauseI'm looking forward to the
(19:11):
moment, whether I win or lose.
I'm a I'm a happy winner, happyloser dude if I put on a great
show and I have people that lovethe fight and they talk about
it forever.
Honestly, I came into it moreto be like.
What I love about fighters inmoments is like the nightmare
Sanchez, the way he fights, theway Chris Levin used to fight.
It was Tom Liddell in theinterview, chris Liddell guys
(19:35):
that go out there to fight andbang and just destroy each other
.
One of my favorite fights ofall time was Forrest Griffin,
stephen Bonner, the ultimatefighter.
I mean like whether I get, ifyou're on, if I have a knockout
or if I have a fight like that.
Or Jason Knight have you seenthe Jason Knight lowball fight
(19:58):
for Bare Knuckle FightingChampionships yet I don't think
I've seen that one yet.
The Jason Knight lowball fightman.
I think that kind of hit him onthe map a little bit.
It's what really made me startpaying attention, like dang man.
I got to do this.
This is my fight.
I'm fighting because win orlose.
I think both of them they wenttwo different ways.
But I think both of them theywent two different ways.
(20:19):
But man, those were somegood-ass fights and they're the
kind that you'll never forget.
And plus they get you paideventually.
Speaker 2 (20:27):
Right, yeah, I'll definitely have to check it out.
So, with the fight coming up,what do you do to prepare?
What do you do to train andwhat's your like?
Speaker 1 (20:39):
training regimen and all that getting ready for a
fight.
I got a medical sponsorshipfrom Nivea Health in Woodstock.
Every morning, three days aweek, I go up there for either
IVs or PMF therapy.
It's electromagnetic therapy.
It's what they use onastronauts when they go to outer
space and they come back andtheir bone density and their
(21:00):
muscle densities drop down fromthe zero gravity.
They put this machine on them.
It helps them heal faster.
So I've got a therapist thatputs me through that.
Because I'm doing two a days,I'll leave there and I'll go
train an hour hour and a halfwith Manu.
Manu is a six-time worldchampionought Duke Rufus.
I paid him for a little camper.
I got my sponsors too.
I have some sponsors that arehelping me to pay to train
(21:22):
full-time.
Now, along with BKFC, I'mfull-time fighting, not having
to teach others at the gym so Ican focus on being the world
champion for them.
I go at night to X3 Sports,which is my home gym, which I
have, where I've taught atforever.
Uh, I have boxing coaches.
They got coach aladino there.
He's one of.
He was a olympic uh boxingcoach, I believe silver medalist
(21:43):
as well for cuba.
We brought him here with uh,coach isidoro and uh go train
with them.
I'll go to wins monday andwednesday.
There's some guys that knuckleup, uh, warren thompson, he's
one of the trainers up there.
He, he was a glory fighter.
He invited a lot of the pros.
We call it come spar night.
If you have something to add,you can come.
(22:03):
There will be 10, 15 differentgyms, 30, 40 guys from 125s all
the way to ultra heavyweights upthere sparring boxing.
If you're a boxer, you box.
If you're a kickboxer, youkickbox.
If you're MMA, if you're akickboxer, you kickbox.
That we have.
If you're in a may, if you wantto swap between them all, uh,
so I mean, I'm still trainingfull-time stuff like that too.
I've got a couple guys I bringin specifically once a day that
(22:25):
are tall or have a similar styleto the guy I find because I
know a lot of pro boxers heretoo.
So I've got some pro boxers inand I'll train with them and see
what we can do and tear eachother's heads up with and I call
it pillow fighting now, becausewe go in there with our boxing
gloves and our headgears.
It feels like we're pillowfighting when I get done.
(22:46):
I've noticed, uh, when I trainwith my boxing gloves now, uh,
and I take those things off.
It's like going to the rollerskating rink and when you get
done roller skating and you takethem off and your feet are like
Clydesdales and they lift 10feet in the air.
You don't mean to step so high,man.
My punches have been gettingfaster and uh, yeah, so I've
been working on my hand speedtoughening and conditioning my
(23:08):
hands too.
That's another thing.
Uh, bkfc, there's a surprisevideo that they they flew the
production team in here.
I don't know when they're gonnarelease it.
I can really say nothing.
They just said I could say thatthey filmed it.
It's a little one or two minutehighlight video about me that
they're going to release and Ishowed how I conditioned my
hands punching a brick wallevery day.
Yeah, so I just I mean, I gotprepped myself in any and every
(23:32):
single possible way.
Like I said, I go way.
Uh, like I said, I go, I go outto nature to get my mind,
because it's not just myphysical.
Uh, I've watched my diet lately.
I've got I've got doctorsmonitoring my blood work every
week just to make sure mylevel's correct.
But I also have to get a littlebit of nature, man.
There's some beautiful mountainshere in georgia.
The appalachian trail startshere.
(23:53):
I'll go to the appalachiantrail and I'll run, literally
with tree branch on my shouldersometimes or something, just to
get away.
And that Rocky moment I canhear dun-dun-dun-dun-dun in the
back of my head.
You know, ready to go fight theRussian and avenge Apollo, get
my head right.
And the waterfalls and thecreeks.
(24:13):
So I mean, I just do a littlebit of everything.
A little bit of everything nowthat I'm blessed to train
full-time, whatever, uh, mind,body and soul needs to get the
energy to be able to go tobattle and prepare.
I do that all day long, oneplace, another.
Y'all can follow my journey too, uh.
So anybody that's on looseninto this it's I've got it as my
name at joe hitman 187 on ig.
(24:33):
I like to share a lot of mystuff.
Y'all see me having mats on themountain.
So I will see me, uh, being atthis gym and that gym with my
different training partners, mydifferent coaches.
I like to share a lot so peoplecan get to know me outside of
the cage too, so they check thatout and see what's up with who
I am too.
All right.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
Yeah, I'll definitely throw that in the bio for the
episode so people can check itout as well, that in the uh bio
for the episode so people cancheck it out as well.
But yeah, another question Iwanted to ask you is like um,
how, how was it adjusting tolike fighting with like gloves
and and then going to like justbare knuckle?
Speaker 1 (25:11):
I've never used a mouthpiece in a training session
.
My whole life I've kind of beena um, uh, what do they call it?
The, the hoosier hill.
Really, my family's always beenfighting man.
You know, uh, okay, I like tofight, dude me and uh, growing
up where I grew up in tennessee,we, I remember we, uh a couple
of my friends, we had a videocamera, the old camcorder, and
(25:32):
we would record the fights.
We'd charge five, ten dollarsto get in the backyard.
Sometimes we'd have a keg ofbeer in charge for the cup and
you'd get in the backyard with acup and we'd have five or six
people.
A guy from dyer, dyersburg wouldwant to fight the guy from dyer
county or this guy from thisplace in that place, in this
town, and this football team guywas dating his dude's
girlfriend.
We'd find all the fights wewouldn't let him fight.
(25:52):
It's kind of remember you?
I think there's a thing onYouTube called Street Beasts
when we had phones and stuff andit was really kind of like a
street beast.
It wasn't so gang, gang, but wewould be like, hey, man, that
guy don't like that guy.
I'd be like man, all right,friday, it's cool, we can go out
to the farm.
Nobody's going to call the cops, we're going to fight, and when
it's over, it's over.
We had rules.
We pulled them, we'd drop theflag, we'd let them fight and
(26:15):
we'd record it.
We'd sell the videos.
I grew up like that, so metaking the gloves off was how I
started Then.
I actually started putting thegloves on and now we're taking
the gloves back off.
It's fun, man, think it's gonna, um, give me as what?
(26:38):
Uh, I'm a creature that wassupposed to be born to protect
my village and my family.
I feel like some guys.
I feel like we have to.
I don't want to be a superhero,to be like cool or nothing like
that.
I literally like to save peoplethat are weaker, or I like to
protect my family.
I like it makes me feel good asa man to do that for my family
and my wife.
And, uh, fighting is like anancient passage, and so this
(27:04):
brings that back for me, andthere's not a lot of guys that
are made for it.
You have guys that are bornfighters.
I always say this, and then youhave trained martial artists.
You cannot train someone to bea fighter.
You have to be born.
You don't want me doing heartsurgery, so don't let me say you
know, anybody can't learn tofight.
Anybody can learn to fight, butwhen you get in there with me,
(27:26):
I'm a fighter.
It's way different.
You can't steal my soul.
Am I facing God in that ring?
Yeah, and I think a lot of guysdon't have that they they might
be.
They might be real, real goodand real talented.
But it's not a bag.
(27:46):
In there there's no gloves, andyou just did have something a
little different.
Speaker 2 (27:51):
I guess, I don't know I get it so um, but yeah, so uh
.
If the ufc ever knocking youthink you'd take them up.
Speaker 1 (28:03):
If it didn't interfere with what I got going
on with BKFC right now, if themoney is right.
I'm a full-time combatsportsman.
I submit black belts and no gisubmission all the time.
I know a lot of sambo,world-class leg locks.
So, uh, yeah, of course, man, Ilove combat sports.
(28:24):
Uh, if they called me to fightglory kickboxing right now, I'd
go fight a glory kickboxing.
If, if the money were right andit did not interfere with BKFC.
I do want to tell you, though,I love this.
I think this is my new home.
If things keep working out, Iplan on being the BKFC 165 world
champion.
They're paying me really nice.
(28:46):
It's going to definitely getbetter when I show them that I
am the man that they've investedalready what they've invested,
and if I win this fight, theylet me call out who I'm going to
to call out.
I'm not going to say it no morebecause I want to.
I want to win this fight andthen we'll make it an official
call out.
But I already have a top name aformer UFC fighter.
(29:07):
Then I'm going to call out for165.
They promised to renegotiate mycontract.
If all that sets, man, I can'tsay I won't, but man, I mean
it's going gonna be fun to getme to quit yeah, all right, man.
Speaker 2 (29:21):
Well, yeah, that's man.
Uh, I gotta say, though, once I, once I came across it and shit
like that dude I was, I waspretty hooked on the the bare
knuckle fighting.
Speaker 1 (29:33):
You know, I always ask everybody.
Everybody asked me.
I've never even asked, uh,somebody.
I've a podcast.
What do you think, man, what doyou like If you were going to
watch a UFC fight today or watcha bare-knuckle fighting fight?
They come on at the same time.
Which one are you watching?
Speaker 2 (29:47):
Oh, I guess it would depend on who's fighting, like
how big of a UFC event it is,but if it was just like a normal
UFC, was gonna fight FloydMayweather and MMA or bare
knuckle boxing, and they were.
Speaker 1 (30:03):
It was they.
You had to choose between thatfight.
For which one what would youpick?
Ufc or bare knuckle boxing?
Speaker 2 (30:09):
probably the bare knuckle boxing of that one.
Speaker 1 (30:11):
Yeah, yeah that's what I mean.
I'm like I in my head right nowUFC is super popular, but if
you take the same fighters andthat's what they're doing some
of the popularity and they'reputting it here, once you take
that popularity and you let themsee, oh my God, people just
don't know what it is.
You remember, before Kevin Kemptwice came to UFC, there's
people like what is UFC?
They didn't even know UFC wasMMA, or they just called MMA UFC
(30:38):
or you know Right, I think it'sbare knuckles.
Turn for people to watch it.
Please watch it, I think it'sy'all's time too, man.
Speaker 2 (30:47):
I think it's going to take off.
Just like I said, like I thinkonce someone actually just like
sits down and watches one of thefights, they're going to be
hooked.
Yeah, watch all of them, causethat shit is crazy.
Speaker 1 (31:00):
Even even the, even the smaller names that y'all
don't know.
Everybody get on and you've gotto watch.
Man, those are some of thehungriest guys out there.
I was.
I think I was a 300 or 350underdog just because my MMA
record, even he.
He called one of my coaches, hea guy, he's friends with daniel
gray wilchok.
(31:20):
He called him and was like man,I'm gonna whip his ass.
Dude, this guy doesn't knowwhat he's got into it.
I'm like man, you have no idea.
This is a whole another thing.
Check them out, because it'sfighters and, uh, the little
names are some of the bestfights I found out myself that's
I'm saying I watched 10 todayright.
Speaker 2 (31:37):
I feel like, like those smaller guys put more
heart into it.
Yeah, man, it's interesting.
Speaker 1 (31:43):
Pro football and college football same thing, man
.
Some of them have the contract.
They're like, oh yay, we'rehere.
And then you got those guyslike I want to be in the BKFC.
That's what they're fightingfor.
Speaker 2 (31:54):
Right, all right.
Man, before I let you go, Igotta ask where you got the
nickname hitman from uh, well, Istarted out and I was gonna.
Speaker 1 (32:05):
I I didn't have a nickname but I was gonna go by
joe the animal, elmore, and thatwas what I was gonna name
myself because they just said my.
My friends would say man, he'san animal.
Anybody would describe me.
I was like, might as well justcall me the animal, because I
got to the first fight didn'thave my name.
Well, when I got done, the guythat I fought for it was called
(32:25):
not UFC but UCF Sammy Collinwood.
He'll be in my corner.
He was in there last time, bigSammy from South Florida.
I went down there and foughtfor him.
There was, uh, I was.
I fought 55, most of my career.
170 is an amateur because Idon't want to cut weight.
But this particular fight Itook at 185, uh, walking around
(32:46):
at 185 against a guy that wasabout six foot one, 205.
Uh, he was 11 and 0 at the time.
It was his last fight.
He was going to try and pronobody would take a fight with
him, uh.
So they asked me to take afight with him and I was a
stubborn, hard-headed dude backthen and I was like sure.
So I took the fight against him, my coach, literally he grabbed
(33:07):
me by the face before I walkedin there and he smacked me
upside the face and heheadbutted me a little bit to
the point it dazed me, so thisdude's probably gonna whip your
ass.
I think it'll be the first timeto go out there.
It makes us proud.
And I was like what justhappened, you know like.
So I walked in there and and,uh, I hit the guy.
He hit me and I remember him.
I don't.
(33:27):
I kind of remember.
I remember just us bang, bangand filling punches come off me
and they said I don't remembermy knee hitting the ground, but
apparently he dropped me and myknee hit the ground.
And they said I don't remembermy knee hitting the ground, but
apparently he dropped me and myknee hit the ground.
And they said, when my knee hitthe ground, I guess in my head
my body went wake up and I justcome off that floor like a
rocket, just like I did WillChoate, and I dropped him and I
(33:49):
wound up getting on top of himand throwing three or four more
punches and getting tackled off.
I didn't even know I won.
I was like like what happened?
Did I?
Did I lose?
I knocked him out, I'm like, ohokay, well, I've won.
Then, all right.
When I climbed on top of thecage and that dude said man,
you're not an animal, you're ahit man.
You wasn't supposed to do that,you're the hit man, and it was
(34:12):
just like I remember that moment.
I got fight of the night forhim and at the bar people were
going hit man, hit man.
So I've been the hit man eversince and it just kind of stuck.
Speaker 2 (34:24):
Yeah, I definitely like the name, the hit man.
It's definitely a cool nicknameman.
And yeah, dude, I'm superexcited to watch you fight on
Friday.
I'm definitely going to watchit.
Look forward to more fights.
You definitely got a fan in me,especially us both being
Tennessee boys Got to sticktogether.
Maybe I can make it down toAtlanta sometime and train with
(34:48):
you in something Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (34:51):
Five or six gyms.
If you're ever in the area,definitely hit me up, man, I'll
make a special stop up there.
Speaker 2 (34:56):
All right, sounds good.
I live in Michigan now.
Now, so if you guys ever, uh,put on a show in michigan, oh
dude, I'm up to michigan Ifought for wxc up there for mike
pendelli.
Speaker 1 (35:07):
I've got some family in detroit ranting.
Speaker 2 (35:09):
I've got come up there quite often okay, yeah,
I'm, uh, I live right outside offlint.
I live about 20 mile, uh, 20minutes, south Flint.
Speaker 1 (35:17):
Okay, I know where you're at.
Yeah, man, definitely.
Thank you for having me on.
By the way, I really enjoyed it.
Shout out to all my sponsors,all my coaches, all my fans, all
my friends, everybody.
Thank y'all so much.
Speaker 2 (35:32):
Check them out this Friday.
Watch them knock out this fooland help them become champion.
Awesome, thank y'all.
Thanks for coming on.
Speaker 1 (35:45):
Have a good night.
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On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!