If you can expect anything from a guy who shaves designs into his chest hair it’s going to be keeping it real. Anyone that feels free enough to express themselves to the world via the art of chest hair cuttery is someone who is not too shy to tell it like it is. The guys over at VigilanteMMA must have known this when they sat down to talk to Brian Ebersole. Instead of doing an interview with Ebersole, about Ebersole-they pressed him about his thoughts on Josh Koscheck’s bashing of his former AKA team members.
Ebersole is also a former AKA member and although Ebersole left AKA just like Kos, he doesn’t share the same ill sentiments toward his former team. Brian left AKA because he didn’t feel he had a mentor in the gym during it’s early formative years but claims, Kos was in a completely opposite situation. Brian says manager Dwayne Zinkin ‘took great interest in Josh, ensuring he was living comfortably.’ Brian also says Kos is socially abrasive, disrespectful and a four letter word that rhymes with ‘quick’.
Josh came out to AKA in 2004, but he didn’t come straight out to live in San Jose. He immediately settled into Fresno, where our manager lived in a mansion, had a private jet, and set Josh up with a cozy income-earning position coaching wrestling, privately, to groups of school-kids. Being AKA’s first All-American wrestler, he seemed to have gotten the royal treatment. That’s my view, looking back. With that, Mr. Koscheck traveled into San Jose when he saw fit.
I think AKA has some of the most talented coaches he could have asked for. Camarillo, BJJ/Judo Black belt. Javier was a world champion. Bob Cook was an undefeated MMA fighter and is widely regarded as Frank Shamrock’s best student (and he went on to train under many more talented gentlemen). Daniel Cormier came out and acted as a coach and teammate. Jerome Turcan, who handled my striking development, is a multiple time French Savate Champion and a former K-1 Finalist. I mean, he was surrounded by talented former athletes, and some of the best active athletes in his weight class (Fitch, Swick, etc.)
He couldn’t get good work in? It was there to be had. He mentioned that Javier coached him but that he didn’t learn anything. Really? I learn from BJJ blue belts whilst I travel the globe teaching and training. And you can’t learn from a former World Champion? That’s a curious comment, if you ask me, which you did.
I’m not alone in thinking he’s a d**k. I revisited AKA a time or two since I’d moved to Australia. The first time, I came off of a 14-hour flight and went straight to the gym. I announced that I had a fairly serious neck injury. I had a decent spar with Fitch, who held me down and beat me up, but kept a respectable speed/intensity. But Koscheck acted like I was standing in the way of him and a paycheck. And socially, he was very abrasive per usual.
In all of our interactions, never once did he thank me for booking his 1st fight, or taking my Christmas holiday to head out and train with him (on my own dime). I think he was successful because he had a chip on his shoulder all his life. And that’s fine. But when life opens its doors to you, allows you to live the dream, maybe some class, tact, and grace is called for? Life and society has obviously stopped beating Koscheck up at every turn. I assume an educated guy like him would actually put into practice some of the things he’s “learned” about treating others as you’d like to be treated.
He’s always a bit flippant and disrespectful to Helwani, but this last interview was ridiculous. Bad attempts at humor and despite the line of questioning, he brought it back to the drama/breakup he had with AKA. He went well out of his way to slander Javier Mendez and the system that AKA has built. Very disrespectful. Koscheck was not a self-made UFC star, as he’d like you to believe. There are more guys than just me that remember him punching like a girl for a few years. He’s figured it out now, and punches with power, but he didn’t do that on his own.
If he had any problems with Javier, it’s because Javier was the only one that would conflict with him. Most of the coaches are very non-confrontational. Javier tells it how he sees it. Josh probably had a big problem anytime criticism came; and 90% of that would have come from Javier, because it was not in the nature of the other coaches. Not surprising that they butted heads. And not surprising that Kos has acted like a child in regard to his life-changing plans. Disappointing to many, no doubt. But not surprising to anyone who knows him.
Something tells me Josh Koscheck is going to have lots of commentary on Ebersole’s words. This could be the makings of a whole new rivalry. They are both currently fighting at welterweight, too. Kos is set to fight Hendricks at UFC on FOX 3 in May, but after that who knows. Quick, somebody call Joe Silva. [source]
