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  May 11, 2009

  Chuck Liddell Featured in MMA Unltd - June 2009

  The June, 2009 issue of MMA Unltd is out and Chuck “The Iceman” Liddell is featured. Check it out as we learn about how he became a top MMA fighter, his tattoo on his head, and a few of his favorite fights.
  
  Known for being a devastating striker, Chuck Liddell is all business when it comes to fighting and as he makes clear before every match, he is there to knock his opponent out. However, ‘The Iceman’ didn’t start out so devastating.
  
  Chuck overcame difficult times as a child, as he was born with a potentially crippling problem that had doctors suggest he wear metal braces on his legs. His mother, wanting to see him develop like other children, chose instead to put him through punishing sessions of physical therapy.

  Chuck’s grandfather, a tough guy himself, taught the young Liddell how to box as soon as he could stand. A television show was also instrumental in Chuck’s path to Octagon Glory: Kung Fu Theatre. “I loved that show; it is what got me into karate. They had demonstrations on every show and it got me really interested. I’d go to the library and look at all the books. Finally my Mom let me do the classes and it was only then I started to understand the books and put all the techniques together.”
  
  Chuck relates how, starting at the tender age of twelve years old, he quickly took to combat sports and by all accounts became a handful in the Dojo. The style of karate he was taught was a brutal, no nonsense form and his instructor Jack Sabat was equally all about efficient fighting techniques. Chuck was also wrestling in school and college and after graduating began to compete in kickboxing bouts with a lot of success.
  
  “I was kickboxing and training Karate when I got offered to compete in a mixed fight. They’d heard I wrestled and I said I’d do it,” Chuck explained. Having won that first fight Chuck found himself being offered the chance to compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. “I got lucky I guess” he says in his typical laid back way, “someone saw the tape and I got into the UFC and it started from there.”
  
  The tattoo on the side of Chuck’s head is written in Japanese scripture and says Koei-Kan, the style of Karate he first learned from the age of twelve. Koei-Kan means House of Peace and prosperity. Chuck recalls in his book "Iceman: My Fighting Life" that he had the tattoo on his head so that everyone would see it but also so he could cover it up with his hair once he began to interview for jobs.

  
  A Few of Chuck’s Favorite Fights:
  
  RANDY COUTURE:
  “Both my wins over Randy were great. I’d lost and then I came back to win and then proved it wasn’t a fluke. Randy had never been knocked out before either so it was a great win.”

  TITO ORTIZ:
  “I enjoyed beating him up both times but even that didn’t shut him up.”

  RENATO ‘BABALU’ SOBRAL:
  “The first fight against ‘Babalu’ was good. I made him famous with that kick to his face.”

  MEZGER – RANDLEMAN:
  “It was great. I got the big KO win over [Kevin] Randleman and the UFC needed someone to step in against Guy Mezger three weeks later so I said I’d do it and scored another knock out. I made more money in those three weeks than I had in a long time.”

  
  Read the entire article and see photos by clicking here.

  Source: www.icemanmma.com

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