That was the first thought that came to me when I saw Carlos Condit the first time. The usually clean-cut and unusually handsome mixed-martial arts fighter grew a beard which made me think of three things:
- He looks like Jesus.
- He looks like a Mormon preacher who would fanatically teach me about Jesus.
- He is so big that he can beat the hell out of me and make me use Jesus’ name in vain.
Anyway, Condit was in Manila for an open workout plus a meet-and-greet session with his fans. For those who don’t know, Condit—also known as the Natural Born Killer—is one of the most exciting Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fighters to come to prominence recently.
He is now on a break as he is recovering from his anterior cruciate ligament injury but has been medically cleared to fight again soon.
Thanks to Balls Channel, home of the UFC, I was able to spend a few minutes with Condit.
So how’s your visit in Manila so far?
It’s been awesome. Beautiful country and everyone’s been so, so nice.
When you heard you were going here, what was the first thought that came to your mind?
I was just excited because I never thought I would be able to visit the Philippines but when the opportunity presented itself, I told myself to grab it. I mean who gets the chance to go to another country for free and meet my fans.
I heard you traveled alone…without an entourage.
Well, I traveled with a lot of people in the plane! (Laughs) But, yes, I just went here all by myself.
That’s a long flight from New Mexico to Manila. What were you thinking the whole time?
Well, I’m used to it as I am kind of a loner myself.
I’m not the entourage type of guy. I just read a book and kick back.
You were recently medically cleared to fight again. How does it feel?
It’s great. I’m very excited to train and fight again. Now I’m almost 100 percent to go live and it’s very exciting.
A lot of your fans are looking forward to that. But besides the physical recovery, the more important one is the mental recovery. Where are you there now?
I’m good. I’ve always kept a positive outlook about the whole thing. The recovery…all of it is a challenge and I love a challenge.
With this injury, what was the most important insight you arrived at?
Just to stay positive. Your mind can be your greatest asset or your worst enemy. And if you think negative, you will manifest it. Just smile every day and enjoy life.
You’re the Natural Born Killer and you’re telling me to smile! How did this monicker come about anyway?
They used it to describe my fighting style and the person they see in the cage. I’m a happy guy but I’m also a warrior—but not only when I fight.
This can also be about my spirituality, my motivation in going about life.
Speaking of motivation, have you gotten rich from beating the hell out of people?
(Laughs) I’ve done OK. I wouldn’t say that I’m rich but I’ve got everything that I need.