Angry at Gabriel Gonzaga? Matt Mitrione has fought his best friend 25 times

Matt Mitrione

UFC heavyweight Matt Mitrione bears no ill will toward Gabriel Gonzaga, but that shouldn’t come as a shock.

“I don’t need to be angry at all at somebody,” Mitrione told MMAjunkie Radio. “I fought my best friend probably 25 times, so I don’t need to be angry to get down.”

You might think “Meathead” is talking about his sparring partners, because after all, they’re the ones that take the brunt of his aggression in practice. But actually, Mitrione is talking about his best friend.

As in, the one he grew up with in his native Springfield, Ind. Long before he was throwing hands in the octagon, he was doing so at home.

“Just being young and drunk and crazy, man,” explained Mitrione (8-3 MMA, 8-3 UFC) two days prior to his meeting with the Gonzaga (16-8 MMA, 11-7 UFC) on the FOX-televised main card of Saturday’s UFC on FOX 13 at U.S. Airways Center in Phoenix. “We grew up hillbillies in a cornfield in the middle of nowhere. You get drunk, you start talking trash, you start talking about each other, and push comes to shove and all of a sudden you’re throwing hands. That’s the way I grew up.”

And how did he fare in all those tussles?

“I’d like to say that I got the best of him more times than not, but he’s slippery and got some really good hands, and he’s crazy,” said Mitrione.

Of course, birds of a feather. Mitrione’s competitive streak brought him to the NFL before he dove headfirst into the world of MMA as a cast member of “The Ultimate Fighter 10.” The two went opposite directions after high school. The friend is now married with a steady job in the biotechnology field.

Mitrione has recently done some growing up, too. After some stumbles in the cage, and a well-publicized punishment for comments he made against transgender fighter Fallon Fox, he said he has his head screwed on right.

Thankfully, though, he’ll spare MMA fans the well-worn cliches of a fighter who’s turned things around.

“I’m not back, better than ever, all new and improved,” Mitrione said. “I’m the same guy that’s been working on the same things I’ve been working on.”

So far, that’s working just fine for the veteran heavyweight, who’s won his past two inside the octagon and will see what’s next for him if he’s victorious over Gonzaga.

The way Mitrione sees it, the fight is more of a business transaction than a judgement on his position in the UFC. The buzz that emerges after the fight will guide his next move, he said.

Gonzaga, meanwhile, is a guy he can’t help but like outside the cage. How could he not? Forget competitive respect for a second – it’s because of Gonzaga that his kids are a little bit happier.

“He actually taught me a lifecheat in one of his videos,” Mitrione told MMAjunkie Radio

Mitrione came upon Gonzaga’s video while surfing the Internet and got a tip that deflated a potentially stressful situation: family dining.

“He showed how to make a bendy straw out of a regular straw, so it didn’t spill,” Mitrione said. “I actually used that with my kids when we were out to dinner one night.

“So, I think he’s a good dude. He’s a hell of a competitor, so it will be fun.”

For more on UFC on FOX 13, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.

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