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We live in a society where the ‘manliest’ of men aren’t afraid to trade in their cleats / fight gear / shoulder pads for some dancing shoes. For the first time, a UFC fighter, Chuck Liddell, joins the Dancing With The Stars roster (this fall’s cast also contains Michael Irvin). Past male participants include Jerry Rice, Emmitt Smith, Jason Taylor, Warren Sapp, Maurice Greene, Floyd Mayweather Jr, Clyde Drexler, and Evander Holyfield. I applaud the fact that these men don’t care if they’re labeled with idiotic / homophobic stereotypes associated with dancers. Coming from a world where toughness is graded to a contest of grace and elegance can’t be easy. Liddell joined Into The Night With Tony Bruno to discuss why he said yes, if he’s afraid of being injured, whether he will return to the UFC, and if he’ll use his MMA skills to make judges think twice.
Why did you agree to be on Dancing With The Stars?
“Well, I don’t know. One, it’s my daughter’s favorite show and two, I think it’s a chance to get some exposure to another audience for the UFC and myself.”
Are you worried about getting injured on the show?
“So, far I don’t think so. I’m used to training pretty hard and it is different muscles you’re using you’re not used to, but I’m used to the long days, and working hard, and three month training camps. Really, I’m working for a month and if it goes well I’ll be on the show for two and a half months.”
Are you returning to the octagon at some point?
“I haven’t made a choice yet but I don’t know, we’ll see. I think I was taking some time off to try and do something else so I’m taking some time off. They’ve asked me to do this quite a few times and thought that this was a good time for it.”
Will you put the judges in a headlock if you’re not happy with them?
“I don’t know if they’ll allow that but we’ll try and intimidate them as much as we can.”
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