City Kickboxing, the greatest TEAM in MMA history...

Chael Sonnen talks City Kickboxing on this episode of Beyond the Fight
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All things UFC and MMA with the undefeated Bad Guy, Chael Sonnen. UFC Champions, Jon Jones, Conor McGregor, Colby Covington, Khamzat Chimaev, the MMA hour and commentary on the latest UFC news, UFC Champions in 2022, UFC knockouts and finishes.

[@hankhill5409]

Seeing Izzy wearing a Volk shirt and Volk wearing an Izzy shirt in the Embedded video was awesome. There is barely any team left even in team sports so its special to see in a one man game.

[@jawilsio]

What do you mean by "there's no team left even in team sports"? I know of plenty of teams in team sports. What team sports do you watch?

[@SlickShots209]

@@jawilsio He's trying to say that finding a team where your teammates truly "have your back" are hard to come by, and he's right.

[@jawilsio]

@@SlickShots209 man can speak for himself, you know

[@SlickShots209]

@@jawilsio wow that’s news to me thanks a lot dweeb

[@jmdeottawa.gatineaucestgay289]

@@jawilsio he's talking about MMA sports team but yes his wrong att aka . Khabib gym .

[@shmk1]

There are grassroots fights in Auckland when guys are having their first fight ever and I can’t tell you how many times I have seen Izzy and the whole crew down there watching their newbie teammates fight. These fights were just at a gym and they were just sitting on the mats with the rest of us watching the boys go at it. That is a freaking team. World champ coming down to watch someone on their team have their first fight ever.

[@DavidOlsen69]

That must of been dope. You still go there and watch the fights?

[@shmk1]

@@DavidOlsen69 Hell ya when ever one of the guys from my gym is fighting.

[@deeznuttz905]

down here in pr its the same way in any giving day you may see pro athletics in the middle of no where watching the new comers idk how many times i seen tito trinidad up here in the middle of the mountains watching 16-17yo boxers giving them pointers taking pics and what not...something about islanders they real humble people

[@P1015532oni]

I’ve been in those Grassroots fights. Trippy to see these fellas out in the wild. They’re just like normal people.

[@keegan9264]

so crazy to have israel adesanya show up to one of my grassroots

[@icecoldchilipreppers6496]

Oh, so now chael is cursing an entire team?? His powers are growing.

[@DylanJo123]

Fucking dead 😂

[@Spaceskate5]

They really are lol

[@AmonRaIside]

☠️

[@City0fTroy]

We need that dislike button back

[@briscoesjug1026]

I said the exact same thing as I was hitting play lol even teams aren't safe

[@stevenwilliamson705]

When you're dealing with a group of New Zealand and Australian athletes, the challenge isn't to make them into a team, the challenge is to empower them to be individuals when they need to. It's a cultural thing. They naturally act as bonded teams. For a long time it was difficult to get NZ athletes to show individual self-confidence and swagger. They'll swagger as a team, but individually they tend to want to blend into the group. That's hard to break, it's not in the NZ psyche, they don't like tall poppies. Australia is a little more tolerant of tall poppies, but it's still there as well to a degree. I think Izzy adds a magic ingredient to that group in that his personal swagger is so un-New Zealand-like that it helps to foster that willingness in the other guys to stand up and believe, and say, hey I'm something special. But he manages to be confident and assertive as an individual while still being a great teammate. It's more incredible when you consider that this is anathema to the culture of the nation/s they are in.

[@Swan__fit]

Yes

[@buttmunch2670]

Definitely agree, It is a cultural thing and is bigger than sport. As Kiwi's and Aussies we are so far removed from the rest of the world geographically, we automatically have that bond and its almost like an Us against them mentality in terms of the rest of the world that brings out the best in our athletes and i always love to see it. Volk for example, everytime he fights he looks into the camera and says "Australia, this is for you, i love ya's"

[@pube66]

It's more nz. Its why Australians literally move from Australia to ckb to train. Volk, pedro, rowston. Even whittaker is from nz

[@lla6097]

5

[@lla6097]

S

[@connorpena373]

My favorite team without a doubt 👌. Uncle Chael didn’t even mention Kai-Kara France who is fighting for the interim next

[@monkpato]

I think you meant Kai-Kar France ;)

[@airjordz43]

@@monkpato *kara

[@jaydee915]

Eugene is cheeky but definitely not arrogant or cocky. Best coach and best team in mma undoubtedly

[@mitchellcruickshank3815]

i met eugene at a seminar they did in Napier, NZ in may last year. super nice guy. the seminar went on for an extra 40 minutes because himself, izzy, kai kara france and brad riddell spent time answering everybody's questions. in fact the reason they had the seminar to begin with was to support the gym that hosted it because it was Eugene's first kickboxing gym and they were about to go under due to covid

[@executivelifehacks6747]

My favorite City Kickboxing moment was when Volk postured up and rained down blows on Ortega. Textbook kickboxing technique.

[@Oreocycllo]

you clearly ry haven't researched their Gym and Volk as he is originally with Joe Lopez at Freestyle MMA there are just affiliated with CKB, and city kickboxing has City MMA as well at their gym.

[@executivelifehacks6747]

@@Oreocycllo whoosh

[@Oreocycllo]

@@executivelifehacks6747 𝙵 𝚞 𝚌 𝚔

[@magoodada]

Classic indeed sir

[@manwithnoplan5496]

Watching Chael tear up about this really says something

[@owencornelius7475]

Australians and New Zealanders believe in mateship, a deep brotherhood. We take the piss out of each other, compete like crazy against each other and support each other. We are all in it together.

[@patdundeemarketing983]

Ugene is a very humble, straight-up and respectful guy. I can't believe anyone would think any different.

[@smolgok384]

right. This is the first time I've seen it suggested that Eugene is arrogant and unliked.

[@tess4767]

they dont know what our cultures like in NZ

[@bonganimasonabo2364]

This "Barry man" sounds like a great guy

[@sollydogg]

That is a super strong bond ckb have they also support small organisations in NZ they will go to small gyms to watch team mates fight it's actually really cool

[@samoanfreak3455]

Chael. He's a nice chill guy, doesn't take himself too seriously, ever so humble but he's a blast to be around. Very witty, and likes to troll you. And extremely smart Most kiwis are like this to be fair

[@MackojrNBAKvideos]

This is one of the few times the channels take has actually changed my mind on topic. I agree with him him Eugene Berryman has every right to be cocky! I don’t think he comes across that way. To me it just comes across as a leader who is confident in his team

[@noneatallatanytime]

I like him! He seems like a really thoughtful guy.

[@hrtxspc]

Fascinating video! Thank you for sharing your insider perspective Uncle Chael 🤙🏼

[@treebeard4012]

Personally I've never once thought he seemed brash or cocky, I see him only as humble, grounded and rightly confident.

[@NikhilKumar-fo5on]

6:31 "..he set out to do a kickboxing gym in the city!" 😂

[@YTU37]

“He setup kickboxing gym in The city”.. Chael you are a true delight !!! :))

[@aaronataman892]

I like how Javier Mandez starting American kickboxing academy mma gym doesn’t fire him up at all but kickboxing in the city? chael cannot abide.

[@YTU37]

@@aaronataman892 haha, very true 👍🏻

[@airjordz43]

@@aaronataman892 Javier mendez and Eugene bareman were both kickboxing gyms that added bjj and wrestling later down the track

[@deathproofsince84]

I think also it’s a cultural thing knowing how the kiwis are, Eugene seems like the type to let his results speak for themselves and that could be why people who don’t know many New Zealanders could misconstrue arrogance for Authenticity? (Aussie here!)

[@daedjynndarklight1797]

Team work makes the dream work

[@jakenewman1627]

Chael, Eugene is obviously a top coach but you’ve missed something entirely. You’re from the other side of the world. Us Aussies, kiwis, our mates are our loved ones. It’s like if your son was fighting would you turn up and watch…

[@raymondzellar5523]

We had the same experience wishing that our gym was a team back in the 2000's. Our head coach drove everyone apart and nearly everyone went their separate ways.

[@critical1388]

Disses C.K. with nuthin but respect ! Only Uncle chael...👊💯👍🇦🇺

[@zippy4green]

Y'all calling other gyms better... Uncle Chael is talking about the TEAM aspect and how much each fighter cares about each other. It's defs number 1 for that.

[@AidanCulverREAL]

AKA?

[@zippy4green]

@@AidanCulverREAL not close

[@Oreocycllo]

@@AidanCulverREAL masvidal and covington beef was from that gym.

[@bigweiner4208]

@@Oreocycllo that was ATT.

[@bigweiner4208]

@@zippy4green Ckb is probably 1 of the most garbage teams out there. Volk n izzy are champs i guess despite izzy just being absolutely awful at being entertaining as a fighter or even fighting tbh since his team guides him into playing a point game. Everyone else at the gym absolutely sucks.

[@MJK250684]

We have something in this part of the world known as the "ANZAC spirit." Which basically means this...ANZAC stands for Australian New Zealand Army Corps and this spirit and comradery between the two nations and it's people was forged during WW1 and WW2. Two small nations, isolated from the rest of the world, whose very existence and survival relied heavily upon each other in times of war. Intense rivals on the sporting fields, but on the battle fields of war, or in this case the cages of the UFC, there is a very real "it's us against the world" type of mentality and we feel the need to look out for one another and watch each others backs. I'm an Aussie, so naturally I support all of our fighters even if they're fighting another fighter that I like. But I also will support any of the Kiwi fighters when they do battle. The two countries and their people share a bond unlike any other two countries. You COULD compare it to the relationship between the United States and Canada, where it's very much like a big brother, little brother type of situation and just like those two countries, don't call an Aussie a Kiwi and don't call a Kiwi an Aussie. So as far as fighters like Izzy and Volk being in the same camp, but from separate countries it doesn't come as a shock to anyone living in this part of the world, because Aussies and Kiwis are tight like that. You could even see that bond between Izzy and Bobby Knuckles when they fought, there was a certain level of respect that both men showed one another because although they both wanted the same thing, that ANZAC spirit lingers in the air like Mana.

[@taraishot100]

I’m so proud that they’re from my country we only have 4.5 million population and we punch well above our weight in sports it’s awesome

[@randomdude4669]

Rip, your boys all got done and no longer have your african chinese champ 😂

[@desert9163]

​@@randomdude4669Clown

[@henrybrott3469]

Henri Hooft has a fight team at Sanford MMA

[@pania-pp9pz]

Real talk Chael City kickboxing is built different.

[@nathanyoung1871]

I would really love to see the sugar show take some time with city kickboxing. He already has great striking, but that would make him level up for sure

[@tonyg7643]

Chael, seeing Adesanya receive his gold jacket from USADA earlier, makes me think city kickboxing is one of the gyms you were talking about when you said they're all doped up

[@clashwithyourmum8665]

But Izzy’s the only one with any suspicions

[@bendover4098]

@@clashwithyourmum8665 he’s clean, been tested few times as well and still negative.. he’s even bet 3 mill for anyone who can prove he’s juiced

[@cypress2212]

Eugene is the greatest coach in MMA. He build that team on each players character and his realness. He is a fighters coach. And he has their loyalty. He is also able to coach champs and up coming champs at the same time and use all that talent and skill to train as brothers. That means that everybody eats. He does this with no financial or comercial support from the government.

[@SupYoCrypto]

"When you know you know" City Kickboxing 🔥🙌

[@247Tongan]

That’s the Polynesian culture, the fighters are grateful and appreciative for the work and help they give each other in their fight camps. The time and effort given from the bottom guys for their elite fighters is never over looked

[@adriangomez9091]

AKA had Cain, DC, Luke and Khabib as champions

[@michaelmwm222]

I gotta say Chael... im surprised by your stance & POV about the CKB gym & its name.... Eugene & another guy (or 2) started CKB decades ago. They called it City Kickboxing because of its location & when they opened it ( and for years down the line) kickboxing is what they did. Eugene was a kickboxer... That's why it's called CKB & im sure you can understand why they wouldn't want to change the name. Especially when you consider how much they appreciate & value their roots & where they come from. There are MANY reasons for why they wouldn't want to change the name, some are more obvious than others. But it's not at all outlandish or ridiculous that they chose that name & choose to operate under it to this day.

[@alexshpak1497]

just old uncle Chael making a video after 0 minutes of research lol. Also their name isn't that farfetched, especially when you think about the fact that the American Kickboxing Academy is full of people like famed Olympic kickboxer Daniel Cormier🤣🤣

[@davedave8608]

bruh.. you're a machine

[@belalbelal4614]

They are a great team

[@markroberts2964]

CKB is one of the best ever

[@namarcamusic]

They're family, not just teammates. They do it for family. Not money

[@seanfuller9770]

At one time, the Militetich camp had every belt except the ligh heavyweight.

[@nickshow6876]

Because the roots are in kickboxing why it makes sense

[@justusjones3266]

It’s easy to be confident or proud when you have champs training in his gym all day 🤘

[@jorgemasviballs]

I haven't watched the video yet but I bet Chael brings up team quest

[@NomeCultJoe]

City Kickboxing is essentially a subsidiary of Tiger Muay Thai... Izzy and Alex came from there along with their wrestling coach who was a long time TMT trainer. Phuket boyz.

[@yesbutactuallyno8305]

Finally some kickboxers Chael respects🤣🤣 Arrogance and being very shy can look very similair from the outside The absolute coolest team in all of MMA is Team Lakay IMO. They are all Wushu champions with amazing wrestling scrambles and always end up in top position and their evolution is unhuman. Team Lakay trains in Baguio City so their conditioning is crazy and they rarely gas out

[@twistedtrailerparktales2126]

They're impressive but Whitmans gym has Rose, Usman, and Gathjie. And let's not forget the Miltech Camp. At one point had LW champ Pulver, WW Champs Pat and Matt, HW champ Sylvia, along with Horn and Lawler.

[@mahmoudfekih1993]

i would love to see a conversation between chael and jordan peterson

[@timephire]

Well, you have a point...

[@oliveira9137]

Well said. You must follow this team ckb. You think if Isreal Adesanya looses his Ufc Tittle or even retirement later, What's your thoughts will ckb still carry that same energy ??? Because it seems like afew have made the top 5 rankings but have come up short! And ckb has alot more talent coming through, but it seems like they following in the shadows of the Ckb gym. What's your thoughts ???

[@yamineherman3328]

I think AKA had much more belts overall. And i never had the feeling that Eugene is arrogant. I dont now where you get this from???

[@meankronen8217]

I dont know about that, AKA seems by far the best they have Rockhold won ufc gold, Cain hw champ, Khabib undefeated champ, DC double champ and Islam who might be champ in the future.

[@PotatoGawds]

City Kickboxing is the biggest rn. They have current champs

[@zeplin8971]

He’s talking about team unity not individual achievement lol

[@zippy4green]

And how many of them hold belts right now? Zero.

[@meankronen8217]

@@PotatoGawds Thats true but he says greatest team in mma history... idk aka were pretty close and still are close even after retirement and they achieved more in the ufc.

[@Adam-xe5xm]

@@meankronen8217 izzy and volk would both need to double up the belts to beat AKA. Having Khabib and DC in the same gym with Rockhold and Cain is pretty crazy.

[@ryanfischer7354]

Champ, why don't you head over to Portland and take a stroll around the Liv Golf Tournament.

[@Shootermcgavin56]

Did Extreme Couture close down?

[@Jidds]

Team Quest, the greatest team in MMA history solely because of Lord Uncle Chael 🐐

[@topnotchnate]

Literally the worst member of Team Quest

[@youinanotherform1965]

He set out to do a kickboxing gym in the city.

[@djjohnson9389]

Can’t deny the greatness at city kickboxing but I still think at its height AKA has them trumped by a bit. Cain, DC, Luke Skylar Rockhold, and Khabib.

[@uncircumcisedcircus]

Khabibs family almost trumps any other gym lol.

[@adrenalineunlimited3376]

I agree, but watch out for this Cejudo business. More belts on the way

[@jacoblott4002]

I know the UFC wants the Izzy vs Alex storyline. But I really wanna see Izzy vs Strickland. I feel like Sean would bring the dawg out of Izzy. Israel Adesanya is my favorite fighter and he matches the energy of his opponent.

[@Napominis]

Sean last fight was a snooze fest tbh… he is a defensive fighter, never tokes risk… i don’t see that as a exciting fight

[@mulletsloth69]

@@Napominis the build up to that fight would be so entertaining though. could you imagine the press conference between those two. we already saw a little glimpse of what it could be like with the back and forth at the 276 press conference!

[@jaydee915]

It would be a better lead up with Strickland but judging his last fight against Hermansson, I’d doubt he’d be able to stick with Izzy for 5 rounds or even get close to him. If he can knock Alex over in spectacular fashion then maybe I’m wrong, but I can’t see it

[@picolosourcrout3172]

Lmao that's so dumb. The press conference will be entertaining ? So it's worth it ? Fuck that give me a badass entertaining fight instead of izzy and strickland trying to counter each other. So you can be entertained at a press conf. Alex vs Izzy it has to be

[@STiergoofball]

I mean Sean is a hella funny guy and would defeat Izzy in a press conference But in a fight he would get crushed by Izzy ngl

[@werpo123]

AKA had 5 champs (DC won both LHW and HW) and are continuing to produce more champs/contenders (ie the Dagestanis). CKB is probably on par with Wittman's team (ONX).

[@vlodmor]

Meh, justin gets hit too much and rose cant even move forward. Different levels

[@dattrax7]

I didn't know that CKB has 15 fighters in the UFC!! I thought it was 5. With Izzy and Volk, they've introduced another level in feinting!

[@luchianofernandez9096]

Sanford MMA in south Florida is as good I believe

[@codygpx14]

Whats Volkanovskis real coach got to do for chael to recognize him too? Give freestyle fighting gym some credit. Poor Joe

[@vmro9446]

We don’t care what stupid Chael thinks

[@607entertainment]

Trevor Whitman has entered the chat

[@INK-MONO]

He has 3 elite fighters, and two of them just dropped the ball in major moments in their careers. CKB has two dominant champions and a lot of fighters in the rankings

[@executivelifehacks6747]

@@INK-MONO right, 6 months ago this was more arguable. Pat Barry has a lot to answer for, as well as abysmal anti-grappling prep for Gaethje. Volk trains with Craig Jones to prep for Ortega, who did Justin train with for Khabib or Oliveira? Oh, I'll just use my invincible scrambling/defensive wrestling from NCAA a decade ago.

[@aaronbarefoot4908]

no

[@mikejames1804]

Anzac spirit cheal🤙

[@shelleycooper-jones2841]

I don’t mind listening to this interview as long as the volume is muted

[@pierrefab7202]

Every gym has/had there era

[@Ms.Fowlbwahhh]

They are pretty good at making sure people don’t find the special sauce that goes inside them.

[@Jabootylolz]

Same with everyone who is managed by Ali.

[@daddytrump5434]

In NZ the more brass and arrogant u act towards someone means the more u like and are comfortable with that person. They fight for their brothers like the army with Eugene as the commander and father

[@cabinvibesebaystore8956]

New sub’. Liked 🙏😊

[@Kiwiz1830]

He's right city kickboxing are a great GYM

[@Habib-I]

Tbh never thought of Eugene that way at all

[@shaqx7039]

True

[@oranjejuice24]

Have you even heard of Aka? Cain, DC. Luke and khabib, not to mention a few more future Champs hopefully.

[@WUSTL7]

Khabib, DC, and Rockhold were all champions at the same time. Khabib NEVA LOST (Lavar Ball voice) and DC was a double champ. Chael is such a flavor of the month type of dude.

[@stefankumerich7064]

Eugene is the funniest guy you will be meet his a real coach

[@chiquita683]

Remember when Chael talked about an entire gym that's dirty except the owner. Pepperidge farms remembers

[@zippy4green]

That's Sanford, not City imo

[@sheepherder911]

Nah City qualifies. Izzy is definitely on PEDs and Volk probably is as well.

[@executivelifehacks6747]

@@zippy4green Therer were 2. But I don't think Volk uses tbh.

[@ahsokatanosloveinterest]

Chael calls Forest Griffin "Fo Fo"?? Lol

[@tomnaughadie]

One of the two teams?

[@eyup1314]

abu chael. you forgot to say Masallah

[@manylife663]

Uncle Chael is the "Scarlet witch" of MMA the way his powers are growing 😂😂

[@dariusdreams8480]

What about the DC & Khabib team?

[@noperabradley3065]

Pound for pound the best gym in the world could potentially have 3 ufc champions by the end of the month they have so many contenders aswell and it's only %8 the size of America 🤯

[@kaydembennett450]

Close to one percent of the population of the US, but with rugby as our national sport

[@KrisAdamsTV]

Its funny that Chael used to say about Eugene that he never spoke to the media. Then he started speaking, and now everyone hates him (according to Chael, I don't follow that stuff) 😂

[@LitGaming999]

And before Forrest won the ultimate fighter he was sleeping on the floor at Rory singer's house.

[@Xxx-hk6mk]

First izzy lost his belt than volk thanks chael

[@dantemagalhaes9462]

Jackson's is the best

[@osakwevictor669]

Uncle cheal said “What a stupid name” 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@NotBobbyHill]

Izzy says Rose was boring but he does the same shit maybe 10 more leg kicks each round

[@LitGaming999]

I think Matt Hume is the best coach in MMA. Either him or Firas

[@teepee8479]

Undefeated undisputed

[@shadowzeenko3653]

The American Kickboxing Academy got Velasquez (2 time UFC HW champion), Cormier (Strikeforce HW GP Winner; 2 time UFC LHW Champion; UFC HW champion); Rockhold (Strikeforce MW champion and UFC MW champion); Khabib (UFC LW champion); Jon Fitch (PFL WW champion); Arjan Bhullar (ONE Championship HW Champion). Makhachev is gonna fight for the UFC LW belt very soon, and they have Umar N. and Usman N. coming up as well. CKB doesn't compare with AKA. Recency bias aside...

[@toakasi6425]

Fair point but city kickboxing have a very deep mateship or brotherhood built on whanau aiga famili the conditioning of relationships that respect the cultural origins of the people of this land is very deep, uncle Chael makes a good point about pro fighters supporting amateurs and not selling on principles that keep a tight family unit together.

[@daniellehollamon8923]

Aka was the best the had 3 champions at one time they were the best

[@Killersquirl52]

AKA is the greatest mma team ever put together. DC, Khabib, Rockhold, Islam, Cain Velasquez nobody’s fucking with them

[@Aaron-mh5bo]

I was about to write this exact comment. Agreed.

[@AmericanTLBN]

I agree, AKA in their prime was just too much heat to deal with

[@BaxterThewall]

Some have a curious definition of arrogance... and confuse it with confidence ! In saying that, you should research "the Anzac spirit" 😊

[@capoeiraviva]

Chute Boxe os the greatest team for sure.

[@nickshow6876]

City kickboxing ain’t no joke go there all there coaches are champion martial artists .

[@kevinalexander2388]

Umm AKA 4 champs same era different weight classes, end of convo thanks for playing, pay the lady on your way out guys

[@danslattery1282]

So many topics come right after Weasle talks about them

[@executivelifehacks6747]

Weasle is well worth watching, most entertaining non-former pro yter IMO. Not even close. Better than Helwani (fighter pay whining anti-Dana 24/7), Luke Thomas, or Jesse on Fire. I wonder what he looks like.

[@danslattery1282]

Agreed. Been watching him for years, and Jack Slack