Now a contender, Story (left) lost two of his first three pro fights. | Photo: D. Mandel/Sherdog.com
After his debut at 185 pounds against Miranda, he could not point to a specific factor that cost him the match.
Success on the wrestling mats had not come easy, either. After going 0-17 his first year for Southern Oregon, he rebounded, eventually placing second in the nation at the NAIA level as a 184-pounder.
“I think it depends on the individual,” says Story when asked how he overcame his obstacles. “Some individuals get more motivated after a loss. I didn’t want to get put out of the UFC, so I started working harder.”
Alves could have something to say about Story’s future ascent in the welterweight division. The Brazilian can be a handful for any foe when in his groove, as he brings physical gifts to bear that few others can match.
His standup is equal parts fluid and devastating, with leg kicks that generate punishing power; they even sound different -- imagine a watermelon dropped on cement. He is no slouch on the ground, either. An American Top Team-trained fighter, he went five tough rounds in a title challenge defeat to champion Georges St. Pierre two years ago and has seemingly rededicated himself to keeping his weight under control.
“
Normally, in this
sport, mentally
tough people win.
”
-- Rick Story on MMA
However, in two appearances against Jon Fitch, Alves faded. Story and White feel “The Horror” is equipped to write that script again.
“I do respect the fact that Alves is dangerous,” says White. “At any given time, he can knock anyone out if he can connect, but I think Ricky is a horrible matchup for him. Rick’s gas tank goes for days. He’s got a chin of granite, never been knocked out or even rocked. He’s not going to get timid if Alves gets into his game. He’s going to fire right back at him. And come fight night, Alves won’t be any bigger than Rick, who will be in the mid-190s.”
White, who fought professionally before he turned to training the Brave Legion bunch, believes Alves’ struggles with weight-cutting are key, at least from what he has seen.
The “Pitbull” has been one of the more notorious repeat offenders in failing to make weight for fights. Either way, he is usually much bigger than his opponent, but the paradox of weight-cutting has fewer better examples than Alves, as it can rob him of stamina in a draining fight, one where he is often much stronger in the beginning, only to fade late.
“I’ve cut weight with Alves; we’ve been on the same show numerous times,” White says. “He basically makes it a rough day on himself. He’s in and out of the sauna. I’ve seen him crumble, mentally break in the weight cut. That’s where we come on strong.”
The timing seems perfect for a shot against Alves, who is, by far, the biggest name Story has ever fought.
“It took Rick a while to get the big picture. In the UFC, [NCAA] All-Americans are a dime a dozen,” White says. “He’d improved leaps and bounds when he first stated, but he didn’t quite get it at first, because he was such a strong college wrestler. So we had to change to up his game and his weapons now.
“Before, he would hit hard, but it never would have landed,” he adds. “He was too tense, so we got working on that, changed his stance; he’s a southpaw and had his left leg forward, had his balance off [for wrestling], so we had to switch his stance around. The high school and college wrestlers, they’re hard to move but easy to hit. If you notice his recent fights, he’s improved on all of that.”
For Story, it is all about momentum after plenty of detours on the road to UFC 130. Ready to rumble, he appears poised to have a breakout performance.
“You don’t want losing to become a habit, because it can be. And winning becomes a habit,” he says. “When you’re winning, it’s tough to beat you.”
Jason Probst can be reached at Jason@jasonprobst.com or www.twitter.com/jasonprobst.