Din Thomas could have made it back to the UFC just on pure talent alone. Yet he decided to become part of the fourth season of the Ultimate Fighter reality series. Entitled the “The Comeback”, the season pitted welterweights and light-heavyweights against each other to fight it out for another contract and the chance for an immediate title shot. Thomas jumped at the chance of the exposure and the challenge to test his skills against other veterans. Although he went 1-1 in exhibition fights on the show, he impressed many with his win over Rich Clementi in the season’s live finale show. The “comeback” now for Thomas, is almost complete. Here is what Din Thomas told ADCC News in this all telling interview.
ADCC: Din before we talk about your last fight, let’s talk about the Ultimate Fighter Four: “The Comeback”. What did you like about the show and what didn’t you like? THOMAS: What I liked about being on the show was the environment in which we got to train. There we no distractions. I didn't have to worry about paying bills or running errands or anything. Plus I was in an environment with guys who all had the same goal in mind. It was great. Since then, it’s hard for me to train at home the way I used to. I can't do it. For that reason, I have seen myself spend a lot of time at the Nest in Phoenix . What I didn't like about the show was the fact that even if I wanted to make a call or leave or anything, I couldn't. The boredom was overwhelming. It is absolutely amazing what grown men will do to entertain themselves under those conditions. I enjoyed watching the season. I don't really understand some of the gripes from the haters suggesting that there were no personalities in the house. The editors show about ten minutes worth of material in five to ten second clips that they gathered in 72 hours worth of filming from about five different cameras throughout the house. Believe me, a lot of nonsense went on but they can't show everything.
ADCC: Sitting at home and watching your fight against Chris Lytle, did you ever think to yourself that you won that fight? THOMAS: I don't know. I chose not to look at previous fights and make gripes. I think that I may have more skills than Chris but he is a better fighter than I. I think that I may have hit Chris more in that fight but he is just so busy that you can't notice. We trained together for the finale and I learned that he deserved to be in the finals more than I. It’s a weird thing. I may be better than Chris but he beats me up (laughs)!
ADCC: Before heading into the show, it appeared as though you and Matt Serra had some beef going into the show. Was that all squashed during the first few days? THOMAS: Basically it was all a misunderstanding. We certainly had beef. Actually, it wasn't between me and Matt. It was between me and some of Matt's students. Sometimes his students can come across as being some of the biggest assholes on the internet. But in reality, they are just sticking up for Matt and are really loyal to him. But after getting to know Matt and spending so much time with him, I can see why his students stick up for him like that. Hell if I was Matt's student, I would definitely be on the front line with them and the biggest asshole of the bunch.
ADCC: That’s good that you guys squashed your beef but what do you think of Serra’s fight with Chris Lytle? THOMAS: After being on the show with those guys, it’s hard to root for either one of them. I talk to Matt every week. I trained with Chris for a bit for that fight. So I wasn't really rooting for either of them. I just sat back and wanted to see what happened. But I think the judges in that fight should be fired or at least never allowed to judge another fight again. There job from now on should be maintenance. If that fight was allowed a 4th round, how can you sit back and watch such a close fight with so much on the line and call it the way they did? That shit is unacceptable. There was way too much of a discrepancy between the winner and loser's purse for that fight not to go to another round if another round was allowed. I do remember hearing Joe Rogan saying that there will be a 4th round if it is declared a draw.
ADCC: On that same night, you defeated Rich Clementi by submission but your stand up looked very smooth against Rich. Is that something you tried to show since American Top Team is primarily known for the submission and jiu-jitsu game? THOMAS: Honestly no. I have been training my stand up a long time. I was just very able to showcase it in this fight because I was given the opportunity. People may suggest that my standup has gotten better. Believe me, it didn’t get much better since I fought Chris (Lytle). I always felt my stand up was good. Sometimes, it’s just hard to put on that perfect performance for some reason or another. Sometimes, I just didn't peak at the right time, maybe I don't get to strike all that much because I spend so much time worrying about getting taken down. Sometimes, my objective isn't to strike. Sometimes, I just come in flat. But for whatever reason, I was on that night. And I am proud of my performance because Rich is one of the best and most well round guys that I ever fought. I know that fight could've went sour if I wasn't on.
ADCC: After that fight you called out the UFC lightweight champion Sean Sherk. Was that the adrenaline talking or do you think you are ready for him right now? THOMAS: After fights, you have a tendency to get “amped up”. It’s amazing the amount of junk I heard from people about my post fight talk with Joe Rogan. Joe, of all people, knows I was joking. He's a fucking comedian. First off, how can somebody criticize me for getting excited and saying something brash after I won a fight that I trained three months for, spent time away from my family, friends, and my school, pulled my hair out in anticipation of trying to perform the best of my ability, etc? These same people get excited and jump up and down if they win at Madden on Playstation! I don't want to hear it. As for Sean Sherk, if I’m not ready now, I will never be ready. I was one of the premier lightweights when lightweights weren't cool. I'm not saying that I can beat everybody but there's nobody that puts fear in me.
ADCC: How would a fight between you and Sherk go? THOMAS: I honestly don't know how a fight with Sherk would go. That’ why would we have to fight.
ADCC: I’m going to throw some names at you of fighters who are currently in the UFC lightweight division. Tell me what you think of them overall; Joe Stevenson, Jens Pulver, Kenny Florian, Jens Pulver and Spencer Fisher. THOMAS: Joe (Stevenson) has good ground game with very good takedowns. He has the best ground-takedown game in the lightweight division. He's willing to get hit to get what he wants and that’s a takedown. His ground and pound game is insane. Jens (Pulver) is always dangerous. He is the reason that lightweights have a job. It sucks when he loses because he always comes back stronger. Kenny (Florian) is a super hard worker. He knows what his weaknesses are and he works on them. You can tell that he's an intellectual type of fighter. What he lack in the physical he makes up for intellectually. Spencer Fisher is a great athlete and striker. He is the best athlete of the bunch. Actually, he’s the best striker of the bunch too. Jens is a close second. But I think Spencer gives hell to any lightweights in the division and will perhaps get a chance to fight for the belt soon.
ADCC: I’m going to throw one more name at you, BJ Penn. How bad do you want to fight him again and does it matter at what weight? THOMAS: I’m not big into rematches. I’m not into fighting guys that I've lost to for redemption, nor do I have any interest in fighting guys that I've beaten for them to have a chance at redemption. I’m not saying that I won’t fight BJ, but I don't look at it as a rematch. We are two different fighters from the first time we fought and I look at it as it would just be another fight. If I fought BJ I would prefer to fight him at 155 (pounds). I would prefer to fight anybody at 155. That’s the weight were I feel the best at.
ADCC: Thank you for your time Din and is there anything you want to say to your fans or sponsors? THOMAS: I want to give a shot out to everybody that stood by me in the trenches: The American Top Team, ATTPSL and especially the staff, my family, Dooskie for taking the time in the day to work with me, Paul Rodriguez, Aaron Riley, my people at the Nest in Phoenix, IFight,
www.method05.com, Don Butler, Bubbles, Billy Curry Photography, and last but not least Dana White for buying me a post weigh-in banana.
