[MMA NEWS ARCHIVES]
Here is a story published on this day seven years ago about a near-death experience of former UFC middleweight champion Luke Rockhold. The following story is presented to you in its original, unaltered form, courtesy of the MMA News Archives.
On This Day Seven Years Ago…
[ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED NOVEMBER 5, 2014, 4:36 PM]
Luke Rockhold, who battles arch-nemesis Michael Bisping at UFC Fight Night 55 this weekend in Australia, spoke in a recent interview about a time he nearly died while surfing.
Speaking with the folks at MMA Kansas, Rockhold said he’s not nearly as nervous in the Octagon as he is in the ocean.
Below is an excerpt from the interview.
“Getting trapped under water and feeling that sensation of almost drowning, while getting tossed around… that’s not a good feeling. That’s a scary situation. 100 percent, I’m not scared in the Octagon. There’s a little anxiety, but in the ocean, you have no control out there. In a fight I don’t get scared, I might get a little anxiety and a bit nervous, but in the water…it’s a no brainer right there.”
Here’s another excerpt, where Rockhold tells a story about a time he nearly died while surfing.
“I was thrown around and (got) stuck under a rock. My leash got caught and I couldn’t go out the other way so I had to calm myself down and pull myself back out. I was (forced to) crawl my way backwards out from under this rock, not knowing what was going on. My buddies were freaking out because they saw me go over the falls, watched my board just bobbing up and down for a while. When I finally popped up, there were four or five of them staring back at me. I’ve been surfing for a long time, a lot of my friends are professional surfers, and I may get a little more waves than I used to (laughs), but I’m not trying to use my career to get waves all the time… well maybe just a little bit (laughs).”
Luke Rockhold battles Michael Bisping in the main event of UFC Fight Night 55 on Friday, November 7, 2014 from the AllPhones Arena in Sydney, Australia.
