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“It’s very hard to control your emotions. But if you control your emotions, you’re going to win the fight.”

— Bas Rutten

Sebastiaan “Bas” Rutten (@BasRuttenMMA) is a Dutch-American actor, former mixed martial artist, kickboxer, and professional wrestler. He was a UFC Heavyweight Champion and a three-time King of Pancrase world champion, finishing his career on a 22-fight unbeaten streak with a strike accuracy of 70.6%, the highest ever recorded by FightMetric. 

Rutten was co-host of Inside MMA on AXS TV from 2007 to 2016, and he has been a color commentator in several MMA organizations, including Pride Fighting Championships. He has appeared in numerous television shows, movies, and video games as an actor and continues to be involved in MMA through his coaching and publishing of instructional materials. Bas became a naturalized American citizen in the late 1990s, and in 2015 he was inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame.

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Listen onApple Podcasts[image error]Listen onSpotify[image error]Listen onOvercast#621: UFC Hall of Famer Bas Rutten on Fundamentals of Real Self-Defense, Savage Fight Stories, How He’s Handled Bullies, Breathing Techniques for Increasing Stamina and Endurance, The Art of Personal Reinvention, and Cultivating the Practice of Prayer

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Want to hear another episode with someone who is harder to kill than the average human? Listen to my conversation with former UFC middleweight contender and Green Beret sniper Tim Kennedy here, in which we discuss how his “hurry up and fail” mantra adapts to the situation at hand, grueling Special Forces qualifications, walkout music selections, survival basics for urban dwellers, gauging situational awareness, and much more.

#310: Hurry Up and Fail — Tim Kennedy

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SCROLL BELOW FOR LINKS AND SHOW NOTES…

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODEConnect with Bas Rutten:

Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube

A Powerful Breathing Exerciser | The O2 Lung TrainerBas and Amir’s Seven Skills to Save Your Life | Krav Maga Worldwide AcademyShooto | WikipediaUniversal Wrestling Federation | WikipediaHybrid Wrestling | PancraseWhy Is Dutch Kickboxing So Famed Among Martial Artists? | QuoraEczema Causes, Triggers, and Symptoms | National Eczema AssociationAsthma | CDCEnter the Dragon | Prime VideoTaekwondo | WikipediaMuay Thai | WikipediaSix Million Dollar Man: Dark Side of the Moon | NBCNunchaku – WikipediaHow to Pick the Right Nunchaku For You | Century Martial ArtsKung Fu Shoes | AmazonBass Rutten vs. Frank Lobman | YouTubeRINGS Holland Fighting NetworkBas Rutten vs. Ryushi Yanagisawa | YouTubeBas Rutten Jump | FacebookInside MMA | WikipediaHere Are the Five Leg Locks You Need to Know | Evolve MMAGlobal Fighting Championship | WikipediaBas “El Guapo” Rutten MMA Stats | SherdogUltimate Fighting Championship (UFC)Five Best Kneebar Submissions in the UFC | SportskeedaBas Rutten vs. Minoru Suzuki | YouTubeBas Rutten vs. Masakatsu Funaki | YouTubeHow to Do a Toe Hold | MMA SubmissionsBas Rutten vs. Masakatsu Funaki (Rematch) | YouTubeCabbage Patch KidsThe Karate Kid | Prime VideoBas Rutten vs. Osami Shibuya | YouTubeBas Rutten vs. Osami Shibuya (Rematch) | YouTubeBas Rutten vs. Yoshiki Takahashi | YouTubeHow to Do an Inverted Heel Hook in BJJ | HowTheyPlaySex, Drugs, Gangsters, and MMA: Remembering Pride, UFC’s Wild Predecessor | Bleacher ReportSaitama Super Arena | Tamaari TownThe Ultimate Fighter | UFCThe Bob Sapp Story: A Former Bear’s Rise to Japanese Stardom | Yahoo! NewsMirko Cro Cop Punks Mauro Ranallo | YouTubeThe Smashing Machine: The Life and Times of Mark Kerr | IMDbBob Sapp vs. Mirko Cro Cop | YouTubeRamon Dekker’s Greatest Hits | YouTubeThe 10 Most Insane Acts of Violence in Kickboxing History | CrackedAmir Perets: Krav Maga “Victim to Victor” Video Clip | YouTubeSituational Awareness with Bas Rutten and Amir Perets! | YouTubeKrav Maga WorldwideBas Rutten’s “Lethal Street Fighting” Self-Defense System | AmazonKickbox Champ Chases Down Driver, Winds up Shot to Death | SFGATEGrand Theft Auto IV | Rockstar GamesThe Men’s Room with Bas and Jeremy | YouTubeThe Men’s Room with Bas and Jeremy 2 | YouTubeThe Faith of a Fighter: An Interview with MMA Legend Bas Rutten | Catholic ExchangeWhy the Devil Hates Latin | National Catholic RegisterHow to Pray the Rosary | Rosary Center & ConfraternityAtrophied Arm | Bas Rutten, FacebookSpy Bar (Stockholm): All You Need to Know Before You Go | Trip AdvisorBas’ Swedish Bar Fight Animated | Paul Klawiter10 Infamous UFC Bar Fights | What CultureRespiratory Muscle Training | PhysiopediaResearch Supporting Benefits of Inspiratory Muscle Training | The O2 Lung TrainerThe Breathing Class | Dr. Belisa VranichHelping the World Breathe Better | The Breathing IQBAS Body Action SystemSHOW NOTES

Note from the editor: Timestamps will be added shortly.

My first exposure to the unbridled might of Bas Rutten.Why is there such a strong martial arts tradition in the Netherlands?Breathlessness, Bruce Lee, bullies, and birds: a glimpse into Bas’s childhood.Why Bas walked out on a culinary career path and gave up modeling.How Pancrase entered the picture.Pancrase rules.Why Ken Shamrock is known as Wayne Shamrock in Japan.On fighting Masakatsu Funaki and Minoru Suzuki.Underrated Japanese fighters.Remembering Pride, UFC’s Japanese predecessor.Pranks.Absolute monsters.Self-defense for beginners and bouncers.Why even professional fighters shouldn’t start street fights.Grand Theft Auto IV.Now a devout Catholic, Bas explains how the rosary is like meditation.Who picks fights with Bas Rutten these days?That time Bas got into a bar fight with five bouncers in Sweden.Re-learning how to breathe with the O2 Trainer.Parting thoughts.MORE BAS RUTTEN QUOTES FROM THE INTERVIEW

“It’s very hard to control your emotions. But if you control your emotions, you’re going to win the fight.”

— Bas Rutten

“I like to see myself as a sheepdog. You’ve got wolves, you’ve got sheep, and you’ve got the sheepdogs to protect the sheep from the wolves.”

— Bas Rutten

“It’s better to have a skill and don’t need it than to need a skill and don’t have it.”

— Bas Rutten

“That’s the problem in this whole society right now. We think that pleasure is the same as being happy. It’s not. You’re just feeding your pleasures, your vices.”

— Bas Rutten

“I want to be a man who can overcome his weaknesses, vices, and imperfections. A man who’s not a slave to his passions and desires, but a real man who’s in control of himself.”

— Bas Rutten

PEOPLE MENTIONEDSatoru SayamaMasakatsu FunakiPeter AertsErnesto HoostRamon DekkersJan PlasJohan VosRob KamanCoban LookchaomaesaitongBruce LeeBas’ MomBas’ DadSt. Francis of AssisiSteve AustinFrank LobmanChris DolmanMinoru SuzukiKarin RuttenEvan TannerKen ShamrockFrank ShamrockMaurice SmithGuy MezgerFreddy KruegerPat MoritaYuki KondoRiku ShibuyaKazuo TakahashiJon BlumingBob SappMirko Cro CopFedor EmelianenkoAntônio Rogério NogueiraAntônio Rodrigo NogueiraWanderlei SilvaQuinton JacksonDana WhiteChuck LiddellKazushi SakurabaMauro RanalloStephen QuadrosRon WatermanMark ColemanMark KerrAmir PeretsArchilochusAlex GongHarry PotterSupermanBarbieLyoto MachidaUsain BoltBelisa VranichDarth VaderJoey DiazTony FergusonHomer Simpson

The post UFC Hall of Famer Bas Rutten on Fundamentals of Real Self-Defense, Savage Fight Stories, How He’s Handled Bullies, Breathing Techniques for Increasing Stamina and Endurance, The Art of Personal Reinvention, and Cultivating the Practice of Prayer (#621) appeared first on The Blog of Author Tim Ferriss.