A Few Questions with Blair Tugman
by Brian Woodman Jr. on 07/13/15
Tugman is one of several local and area fighters scheduled to fight at Bellator 140 on July 17 at the Mohegan Sun Arena. He discussed his upcoming bout and other aspects of his career in a conversation with Nutmegmma.com.
Q: Do you have any thoughts to offer regarding your forthcoming fight?
A: I'm excited to fight a tough opponent like Rodrigo "The Young Lion" Almeida. He is the second ranked Bantamweight in New England based off Tapology rankings (He is also ranked top 10 at 155lbs and 145lbs). Rodrigo is 12-2 on a 7 fight winning streak and is coming off a win over UFC vet Walel Watson.
I'm a guy that likes to fight the toughest opponents so I can test myself. He will definitely be my toughest opponent to date. I'm looking forward to scrapping with him to see where I stand in the Bellator Bantamweight division.
(Editorial note: Tugman confirmed that Almeida will not be fighting on July 17. Tugman’s new opponent will be Kin Moy (6-2).
Q: Have you fought for Bellator before?
A: Yes I have fought for Bellator in my last two fights. I won both by unanimous decision. I beat a very tough opponent in Brandon Fleming(who was at the time ranked 4th in New England at 145lbs and the 145lbs Reality Fighting Champ).*our fight was at 135lbs. Then most recently beat Marvin Maldanado. (Marvin was an amateur champion and highly touted fighter coming out of those ranks.)
A win over Rodrigo would be three straight wins inside the Bellator Cage over two professional Champions from other organizations and one amateur champion.
Q: Do you live in Connecticut?
A: I'm originally from Lincroft, New Jersey. I grew up in New Jersey and went to Middletown High School South where I wrestled and was a three-time NJ HS state place finishers and four-time NJ Freestyle State Champion. I attended college at Lock Haven (PA) University where I wrestled for the Division 1 program. Some of my teammates Included Sara McMann, Tim Boetsch, Mike Ciesnolevicz, Charlie Brennamen; all UFC vets or currently fighting in the UFC.
I moved to Connecticut in 2007 after college and have been there ever since. I live in Branford now and train in North Haven under Andrew Calandrelli.
Q: When did you first study martial arts? Which style did you start with?
A: Many people don't consider wrestling a martial art but I would not be where I'm at in the sport of MMA without it. I started wrestling when I was about nine-years-old and competed throughout high school and vollege at the highest levels of the sport. I consider wrestling to be one of the best sports to compete in prior to entering MMA. It teaches you the importance of work ethic, discipline, overcoming adversity, teamwork, etc. I feel there is no other sport on the planet that can make you as mentally tough as wrestling can. I truly believe in one of Dan Gable’s (one of the best wrestlers and coaches in the history of wrestling) quotes; "Once you've wrestled, everything else in life is easy."
Q: How many styles have you studies?
A: I train in all aspects of MMA with my coach Andrew Calandrelli and my teammates at Ultimate MMA. Andrew is a coach who also still competes so he is still constantly training and learning. He has fought for Bellator, won and placed in several grappling tournaments and has competed as an amateur boxer. I am lucky to have someone teaching me that has actually stepped into the cage and knows what it feels like to compete in a sport like MMA.
Andrew runs Calandrelli BJJ out of North Haven, which is now also a Marcelo Garcia affiliate gym. Andrew continues to train under Marcelo Garcia in New York. We train in boxing, kickboxing, wrestling, BJJ and MMA at the gym. Throughout the week I am drilling and sparring in all of those areas.
Q: What do you consider your core style?
A: I have been working diligently on becoming well rounded. I want to bring a lot of weapons with me into the cage. The sport of MMA has evolved from its early years where a person extremely skilled in one style could dominate their competition. Example would be Royce Gracie and BJJ in the first UFCs’. I think know a days you have to be skilled in all aspects of the sport if you want to be the best. With that being said I feel a fighter should also know their strengths and look to them throughout their fights.
My strength is wrestling and BJJ. I have competed and coached in the sport of wrestling for over 25 years. I competed in wrestling throughout my high school career in New Jersey (typically known as one of the top wrestling states in the country). After high school I went one to wrestle at NCAA Division 1 program Lock Haven University, which at the time was ranked in the top 15 in the country. While at Lock Haven I had the opportunity to train with my childhood idol Cary Kolat. Kolat was an undefeated four-time PA State Champion (Pennsylvania is typically known as the best wrestling state in the country), two-time NCAA Division 1 Champ and two-time World Medalist. Kolat took me under his wing and for two years and I trained one-on-one with him on a daily basis. I feel working with Kolat was one of the best learning experiences I have ever had. He greatly improved my technique but more importantly he showed me how a champions trains and made me much more mentally tough.
BJJ is also a part of my strength. I think my wrestling and BJJ go hand in hand. Andrew has instilled in me the importance of blending the two sports into one. I have worked hard to gain as much knowledge as possible about the sport of BJJ. I started training in BJJ under Andrew back in 2007. I am know a Black Belt under Andrew and feel my grappling skills are top notch.
Q: Which fighters do you emulate? Which do you enjoy?
A: I love watching all kinds of different fighters. I have always liked reviewing wrestling matches, fights, grappling matches, etc. to see if I could pick up some new techniques or strategies. Recently I have been watching a lot of T.J. Dillashaw. He is the UFC Bantamweight Champion (135 pounds). If you’re going to try and learn something from someone, you might as well look at what the top guy in your division is doing.
Latley I have been working very hard on staying active and constantly moving my feet and creating angles like Dillashaw. He is non-stop the whole fight. He also is constantly switching from orthodox to southpaw stance. Something I am looking to bring into the cage with me on July 17.
Q: When did you decide to pursue MMA?
A: I decided to start MMA back in 2007. My good friend Mike Ciesnolevicz is the person that got me interested. Mike was a college teammate of mine at Lock Haven University. While we were still in school Mike would have me over and he would have mats in his house and he would be practicing all these crazy chokes, arm and leg locks, etc. He was studying BJJ which was still not very big at the time. After we graduated Mike asked me to go and compete in a grappling tournament with him. I was a little crazy and loved competing so I said why not. When we got to the tournament Mike told me that it was an Absolute division tournament (absolute division means you would compete against anyone from any weight class no matter the weight difference). I knew very little BJJ but had an extensive wrestling background, so I decided to do it anyway. I ended up going 2-2 and placing 4th. My first opponent was 250lbs plus. The rush I got from competing that day and doing well was what led me to begin training at Andrew Calandrelli’s gym once I got to CT.
I trained with Andrew for a couple months and then got a call from my buddy Mike Ciesnolevicz asking me if I was interested in representing the U.S.A in the Abu Dhabi World grappling championships. ADCC is the most prestigious NO-GI grappling event in the world. I was only a blue belt at the time but I jumped at the opportunity. I ended up losing my first match but gained unbelievable experience from the event. A month after competing in Abu Dhabi I competed in my first pro MMA event, along with my college wrestling teammate and now UFC vet Tim Boestch at Extreme Challenge 78. I won via unanimous decision over Glenn Oritz. I have not stopped ever since.
Q: What is your current record?
A: My current record is 7-5. I am on a two-fight winning streak in the Bellator Organization. I'm currently ranked tenth in New England (Mass-mma.com rankings) and eighteenth on the Tapology.com rankings. I feel I'm much better then what those rankings have me at and I’m excited to prove it July 17!
Q: What do you do apart from fighting?
A: Aside from fighting I run my private wrestling club Team Tugman WC (based out of Branford) and have been the assistant wrestling coach for the Wesleyan University program the last few years. Although I do not foresee myself becoming a millionaire any time soon, I absolutely love what I do, while making a decent living. I love working with motivated athletes that want to become the best wrestlers they can be. I travel all over the country with my wrestlers to various national, regional and state competitions. I am constantly seeking out the toughest and highest level competitions I can find for my wrestlers to compete in, so that they are always being challenged to improve. I have elementary-middle school practices and high school-college practices throughout the year. Each group practices three nights a week for one-and-a-half hours. I am 100 percent dedicated to building my program into one of the top wrestling clubs in the country. I know this will not happen overnight but I am constantly striving to better myself as a coach and help my athletes work towards their goals. Seeing my wrestlers work so hard to improve, succeed and reach their goals is highly motivating for me as a coach and a competitor. I want to set a great example for them and be the absolute best role model I can be for them. They help me to be a better person and I hope that I help them in the same way. Coaching these kids is my life! I always want them to succeed and more importantly have fun and grow into good people.
Q: What are your future career goals?
A: My very short term goal is to get my hand raised again July 17 in the Bellator Cage. Right now I have tunnel vision and the only thing on my mind is competing to the best of my ability July 17th and getting a big win over a very tough and highly ranked opponent in Rodrigo "the young lion" Almeida. After that my sights are set on being on main cards (televised) for Bellator MMA. I want to become the Bellator Bantamweight Champion. I compete to be the best. I want to be the best. Why else compete? I always like challenging myself and testing myself against the best and toughest opponents I can find. I'm looking forward to continuing to move up the Bellator Bantamweight ladder and someday getting my chance to fight for the Bellator Bantamweight Belt.
Q: Do you have advice for aspiring fighters?
A: My advice to any aspiring fighters would be to believe in yourself and your abilities. You have to have an unbelievable amount of confidence when stepping into that cage to fight. Any doubts will hinder your performance. The key to being confident going into any type of competition is the way in which you prepare for it. You have to invest an incredible amount of time and effort into training, eating right, resting/recovering, etc. If you have done everything you possibly can to ensure that you compete at your best, you can go into a competition with the utmost confidence. Many people think or say they have put a lot of time in but it is my belief that a small percentage of competitors actually put the necessary amount of time into preparing to be champions. It’s simple; "out work your opponents."
Q: What is your most memorable fight?
A: My most memorable fight would probably be my fight with Brandon Fleming at Bellator 123 (Mohegan Sun Arena). Going into that fight I was a huge underdog. I was coming off a loss and fighting a rising star in Fleming. He was the Reality Fighting Featherweight (145 pounds) Champion, ranked fourth in New England who was on a two-fight winning streak and making his 135-pound debut. The online forums and polls didn't give me much of a chance. Prior to that fight I had the opportunity to fly out to California for a week and trained at Team Alpha Male while staying with my good friend Hal Morgan and his family. While out there I got to train with the UFC Bantamweight Champion T.J. Dillashaw, top ranked UFC flyweight Joseph Benevidez and many other top fighters in the world. It was an incredible experience and the fact that I did well while I was out there training helped me bring back a ton of confidence to Connecticut for my fight with Fleming. I won a unanimous decision winning every round of the fight. It was one of my best performances inside the cage to date.
I traveled back out to California for a week for this fight as well. I was able to train with second-place-ranked Featherweight in the world Chad Mendes and undefeated UFC Bantamweight Cody Garbrandt. Both are fighting on the July 11th UFC Card. (Editor’s note: Conor McGregor knocked out Mendes in the second round and secured the interim UFC featherweight belt, while Garbrandt won by decision over Henry Briones) It was another great trip out there training with those guys and I am bringing back even more confidence going into this fight July 17 because of it!
I would like to thank my mom (Debbie), dad (Jack), two brothers (Blake and Brad) for always supporting me throughout this process. Their help and support is greatly appreciated and I am lucky to be able to call them my family. Thank you to my coach and good friend Andrew Calandrelli for getting me to this point in my career. I would not be where I am without his help and coaching. I’m looking forward to continuing to learn and work with Andrew for my future fights. Big thank you to all my teammates and training partners at Ultimate MMA. You cannot get better without the help of your teammates. I’m lucky to have some of the best training partners in the area to push me every day. (Matt A., Brett K., Harry A., Marisa B., Dave H., Nick N., Justin K., Nick G., etc.). There are too many to name all of them but those are some of my main partners I work with.
Big thank you to Bellator for giving me this opportunity! I'm looking forward to taking full advantage of it!
Thank you to my sponsor Prime Athletics for hooking me up with some nice gear (shirts, banner, shorts, etc.) And last but certainly not least, thank you to all of my friends, wrestlers, fans that support me! I love competing in front of so many supportive people. Your support gives me added motivation to prepare and be the best MMA fighter I can be so that I can put on a great show on fight night!
