Shem Rock Interview

Summary

[Music] hey so I'm here with Mr shemrock we're going to be coming up on another fight week another fight another finish potentially um how are you how is the way cut how is everything how is this week gonna be yeah I'm good [ __ ] good to be back on the show which after a…

Transcript (youtube_captions)

[Music] hey so I'm here with Mr shemrock we're going to be coming up on another fight week another fight another finish potentially um how are you how is the way cut how is everything how is this week gonna be yeah I'm good [ __ ] good to be back on the show which after a little Hiatus we haven't spoken a while and yeah everything's going good I'm on course to make the wait obviously this is the the not fun part um everyone knows now this is a catchweight so it's 68 and not 70 so it's extra two kilo to do I don't know why I decided to do that now that I'm doing it yeah here we go like it's only one more week and I'm [ __ ] eat whatever the [ __ ] I like back on the card yeah back to the good food I see obviously you've got Shamrock BRS which is H doing well I see at the minute it's the only Instagram you're allowed off as well it seems I don't know why you're banned but you seem to be banned but we won't go into that um with this fight coming up obviously there's been a bit of back and forth between you and your opponent uh one thing that struck me was when you were talking to Brian Lacy uh was that you don't mind the back and forth when it's building up a fight whether it's about your skills but when it's personal it crosses a line like because you don't really go into personal things do you find because of your back ground and kind of stuff like that that people do cross that line and try to bring family into it I think you can say whatever you want to say to promote the fight you're a fully grown man but there is a line and if you cross that line you cannot come back from that line being crossed which means after the fight when you want to be mates we're not going to be mates oh let's have a beer together L punch your face in after the fight if you want to cross lines and that's where we was at with PNE where when you see when I fought yam Malik or ala Lima afterwards were cool say whatever you want to say to promote the fight but why I think people go to the extent they go to is because I win in all Departments of warfare like they want to talk [ __ ] I'm a better [ __ ] talker I say better [ __ ] to them and they get frustrated and they don't know what to say so they go for the low blow because they think I know how to win but then you're crossing the line like you'll never see me bringing your your mom up or talking about your kids or it's not me style bro do you get me unless we've got real real beef and I'm talking real facts that's happened but even then I say it to your face I wouldn't say it for the whole world to and some people like to go low some people like to go dirty that's them I I just I just be me I'm the guy you see on the camera more time than not is the guy I am am so like I say to all of them lad if you if you want to if you want to go low keep the energy in real life and N times out of 10 lad you get to the way and it's all gone they don't say it no more or you get to the press conferences and they don't want to fight all of a sudden the oh let's fight on the day we'll fight in the cage well then you want to talk on social media lad you were ready to fight over the phone what's going on yeah there is a lot of that there I think once you cross the line with family especially and PNE done that um with what happened obviously at that press conference and you kicked him you weren't able to fight you weren't able to get your hands on him because we really know you really wanted to get your hands on him what do you regret most about that action is it kicking him is it the fans that paid to see you not being able to see it wasn't not being able to do what you wanted to what was your biggest regret through that action your biggest regret not getting paid [ __ ] I made wait I went through a [ __ ] full camp took major head trauma spend Grands and Grands and Grands to get ready for this fight to make zero money and obviously I regret all of the people who support me who spent their hard D money to come and watch the fight that then couldn't watch it many people flew from other countries many people [ __ ] worked overtime to have the money to buy a ticket like it's it's bad you get me and I wish I could give them the money bad but I ain't no Conor McGregor you get me for everything happens for the reason it's already happened I can't go back in time and change it I can only do better going forward yeah yeah you can only do better going forward so are you planning on putting on a show for these people that are coming out to see you because you sold a lot of tickets like you said in your interview it's true a ticket master link it wasn't physical tickets like it it does be on some shows are you planning on paying all those people back through your performance next weekend um I'd like to say yeah but I know when I'm in there I don't think like that I'm I'm just in the kill mode like it's just kill or be killed and I just love to fight this is what I'm good at all of that other stuff just goes out the window when I'm in thead I don't even I don't even see no crowd I don't even hear no fans I'm just [ __ ] I'm just trying to kill some C in front of me l i just go real Prime I don't know what it is and obviously I want to put on the best performance I can for the fans but when I actually get in there all of that is just it's not even on my mind I'm just trying to kill someone I'm trying to finish them yeah a lot of Fighters say that it's like tunnel vision you can't hear the crowd really you can just hear your corner and it's just you just focus on on what's ahead it's similar to like what you see in a in a movie sort of a thing that it's just you're there but your opponent what's your thoughts on your opponent cuz you said he's the B League fighter um and he said you really like his coach obviousy Brad because you spent time together what's what's your thoughts on your opponent style it's a similar record but you believe your your Miles Ahead in skill yeah man the B Team he's coming from the [ __ ] B leagues up to the a leagues this is his this is his big shot now and rightfully so because he's seven and one it's his time to like step up but when I look at his caliber of guys he fought he ain't fought no one as TP of the guys I've fought and he certainly ain't fought no one like me um when I look at a skill set Inside the Cage because you can only judge someone based off what you see feeling him is another thing and from what I see he seems kind of onedimensional he likes to wrestle more he's got Jiu-Jitsu but it's not nothing special and striking is not very great but he's good at imposing as well on people because he just keeps coming forward um I feel like if you do that with me I'll walk it onto a big shot and knock it out if you try and take me down we'll end up I'll end up on top of it and I'll submit you if you try and play on the back foot I'll take you down and submit you so I feel like the path to victory for me is a lot more clear than it is for him maybe he's going to try and just hold me against defense for three rounds maybe something boring like that I don't I really don't know but um yeah I'm just from what I see too skilled too big too athletic fight IQ too good too much experience I just feel like I can't lose I really do genuinely believe that yeah you you've been on the streak you've a fighter I've been interested in a long time and I love watching your journey step by step and something that was really interesting you said was obviously from when you were uh away and you were training you were kind of a Grappler with a bit of but now you consider yourself a complete rounded martial artist that's down to obviously you've trained around the world you're in DCA you're in an nextg Liverpool obviously Paddy Molly um and all the others there do you see that happening at the time or do you just get to a stage and go [ __ ] like and you see the difference like at fight night and goal like you can see the progress then or do you see it as it's happening um it's one of them like I'm super dedicated I'm in the gym all year round so I do make I do make Leaps and Bounds and quicker than maybe a lot of people would and when I go home all I do is study MMA watch MMA I don't watch nothing else or do nothing else and I also do believe when you look at me opponents who have maybe fought in the past I've fought a lot of guys who don't have the best grappling but have good striking so I end up just grappling and not getting to show me striking I feel like maybe this fight's going to be a bit more I get to show the Striking because it's Grappler V Grappler on paper and but I do feel like I do feel the jumps in the levels as it go fight Camp to fight Camp um obviously sometimes it's hard to see it because your training partners are also improving as you're improving so maybe sometimes you don't you don't like it's not like oh I'm beating this guy up who used to beat me up no because we're both getting good together maybe one day is my day maybe next day is his day and we're constantly trying one up each other but then when someone come from outside then you realize like [ __ ] me I remember I spared him six months ago and he was all right I'm [ __ ] playing with them or maybe someone who you ain't trained with for years from the past and you link back up with them or you know that type of stuff or someone passes through the gym and you're like [ __ ] and Alex my man from the UFC or it's him from Bellator and then you punch them up and you're like [ __ ] me we [ __ ] him no he's not [ __ ] I'm just [ __ ] quality mate no you are very good like that I think you are a well-rounded uh obviously one of your strength is once you get on someone's back um you you're just you're patient as well a lot of people try Rush positions but when I watched you in with your last we naked you it was like you waited because obviously you had enough time do you feel like a lot of people may be panick in those positions where your composure is where it shines through when you're able to just wait for that right moment millisecond inch to move to to lock it in I think it comes from multiple repetitions in the gym multiple repetitions in competition because let's not forget like I had a large amount of jit2 matches before I ever competed in MMA so I had a large amount of time in competition on people's backs working what I do well working what doesn't work well for me pulling out the week and keeping what works well building on me game and then you become more confident in certain positions because you've spent a lot of time in there like I've racked up hours and hours and hours on people's backs where maybe some people haven't got that amount of time controlling the back finishing from the back being controlled from the back being finished from the back because not only do you get better by attacking you get better by defending because you were you understand how to stop things you also understand how to do them to people like it's a bit ying and yang and I just feel like like you said lad if shemrock get you back lad it's it's game over for you yeah no it is 100% there there's a lot of finishes out there like that but you talked about being in the gym a lot I think it was one day I want to say it was around Christmas I seen on your story you went down to the gym maybe it was just after Christmas and there was no one in the gym how how disappointing was that for you to get there and there was no one there and it just shows your level of dedication and your passion for the craft yeah I can't remember was it New Year's or was it Christmas but it was around that time um I don't celebrate any of them things l i don't celebrate no birthdays I don't celebrate no [ __ ] Valentine's Day no [ __ ] Christmas I'm eating clean all year round so for me it was just another day in the office lad and I'm showing up to go to work and the office was closed I'm like what the [ __ ] going on here but at the same time not only is it my job it's me passion so it's something I enjoy doing so the fact that I don't get to train on certain days it does me adding I'd say it does and you said something there about not celebrating stuff and I watched that in another interview it was obviously with Brian but you said you don't celebrate uh uh medals titles what really interested me was the journey and I think a lot do you think a lot people look at the the Final Destination and don't really not celebrate it but enjoy the journey as it's happening because you said it's like a timeline of everything happening all your your fights are going to be online you'll be able to look back are you just embracing and enjoying the journey as it happened rather than obviously there is the goal the Final Destination but just living in the moment and doing what you're doing do you Embrace that more than other people do you think um I don't really think too deep on it but one thing I can tell you is everything I've ever won everything I've ever done all of the Jitsu medals I don't have any of them I've I've got me FCC bels I've got me um me Belta one in London but that's only because my mom wouldn't let me throw them away otherwise I just throw them away I'm not really that ass lad I don't really care about them type of things they're just pieces of metal to me if they were made a solid gold now it'd be a different story lad for gold yeah Ser had por but I walk out the fight and immediately I just want to get straight back to the drawing board and go okay what did I do well there how can I keep implementing that what could I have done better how can I improve on that what was wrong what can I take out me game and maybe not use again because it didn't really work well what can I add to the game what could I have done a bit better and I just [ __ ] I'm I'm I'm not thinking about the past I'm not thinking about what I've just done I'm not thinking about celebrating it I'm thinking about like the next fight now who's next who's next in line who do I want to call out next and I beat them and I go home and I start game planning for them like some people might not realize but like I might not be matched to fight someone but I've already been figuring out months on end how I how I would beat this guy because I'm looking at the top five people in my division and I'm like I'd do this against him I'd work this against him maybe I go into training and I try working some of the things that I think would Implement well in the fight against that guy and then when you finally get the fight announced and you do end up fighting this guy you're like oh I've actually been training for him without really being training for them I don't know I think I'm just obsessed and I'm a weird old but it is what it is well I think that's the way you need to be as well like that because a lot of Fighters will want their down time where like you said you're straight back at it like you've only one loss so you're looking at all your fights and picking things that didn't go right or didn't work well where's a lot of Fighters when they have a good performance and they win and people say it was fantastic performance I think they tend to not look at those fights and what wasn't right in those fights to go forward they think oh I won we'll just move on I learn from the losses but um there was one person you mentioned in particular Ivan bushinger I can't pronounce his name obviously he was H fought Conor McGregor that's when Conor became the double champ he's someone you you you're interested in fighting let you know what it is obviously I call out every con Under the Sun I can't help myself but I just want the big fights and if you look at the Octagon rostad he's the biggest name in the featherweight division lightweight division he's had the both belts he's for Conor McGregor he's got 40 professional fights but I also understand if he doesn't want to fight me because he's near the end of his career he probably don't want to fight no hungry [ __ ] up and common killer like myself so if he turns me down respectfully I understand it and when I'm calling him out I'm not disrespecting him he's got a good skill set but I just think that would be a massive fight fly him out to Liverpool lad little [ __ ] back Garden one lad it'd be a Bel to fight but if he doesn't want to fight I get it it's the other people I don't understand like when I'm calling the Samuel bars out your number one Contender but you don't want to fight the next guy who's coming for the number one contendership you're turning me down like there the fights where it's like that just pisses me off that [ __ ] you ain't paid to je yet mate if and I should be number one Contender not you have got a better record I thought better guys some people just get a little leg up lad but a guy like bie paid his dues fought to who's who fought all the best guys never duck no one at the end of his career I get it it's like Jon Jones St miic like you don't have to fight if you don't want to fight you've done it you've wore the book you you [ __ ] all of that more the t-shirts honey yeah is it frustrating for you for these guys because obviously your opponent was the one who signed for the fight he said he called for the fight I I'm not bro I was I was offered him three weeks before he accepted after I was offered him I was then offered four more people if I was offered four more people that tells me that he didn't accept after them four people didn't accept he come back around and accepted I don't know what he done to make him accept or did he ever think about it is he fighting me for the big opportunity to take me name I don't know what's the reason behind it did he tell him if you don't fight you're not going to get another fight for the next six months so I don't know I can't answer these questions but I know for a fact he would rather a different fight because there's people higher than me in the ranking who are easier fights he'd be stupid to not want to fight an easier Fighter for the same money and better in the ranking and fly out to Czech and do it in a 20,000 C to Stadium like I understand that but I'm not thinking about him and what he wants I'm thinking about me do you get me and I called out to everyone in the roster all at the top rank guys no one really wanted it and he's the guy that showed up so fair play to him he's going to show up on the night obviously let's see does he not get injured in this last week let's see does he make way let's see does the fights still go ahead but if all does respect him and fair play L because I'm no easy fight for anyone and regardless of what he likes to say or what he's thinking in his head deep down he knows it's the toughest fight of his career on the biggest stage he's ever had in his career so respect to him if he shows up lad but it's a long nighte for the ghost let me tell you oh it like that you're no easy fight for anybody is it is it frustrating that these guys they're silenced when you call call the name because like you said these are supposed to be the number one guys in the division they're supposed to be going for the title like and you're there because we know if you just keep going you're going to propel and you're going to get there and then they will want to fight you is it just frustrating now that they don't want to do it now it's it's like you just said lad like I call them out publicly and it's silence at most they'll drop me a DM and be like no I'm not fighting but I want to I I want it in the media as well I want you to come back then and say say publicly because that's what I'd do if man if man offered me a fight and I didn't want to fight I wouldn't go silent in the media lad but then turn the fight on I'd address it publicly I'd say look I don't want to fight you lad Fu off I won an easier fight I just say it how it is if man said it how it was I wouldn't take it to the heart I'd be like you know what Fair Playmates but it's Wendy blank yet and the protecting the rankings and they're trying to get the best root to the belts and forget all of that lad you should be looking for the biggest names to entertain the fans because that's what I'm trying to do I'm trying to get the guys with the biggest hype the guys with the biggest names the guys that all the fans want to [ __ ] watch and get in there with them and have a war that that's what I want yeah and and that's the right way to go about it and I'd say obviously you're a hard fight they don't want to fight you they don't want to lose their ranking or whatever but I think one of the benefits if they were to fight you and let's say if they were to defeat you you've got so much hype behind you that hype immediately kind of blows their direction as well so it's kind of a a rock and a hard place for them but if they don't want to fight they don't want to fight um you spoke about Liverpool there obviously is that' be a venue you'd love to have they talked about doing one in Liverpool for you Main Event because you have such a fan base not just in UK you've got it in Ireland you've got it across the world is that something you really want in oon I think after this I should main aent card I honestly do believe that I am Main Event material no one sells the fights better than me no one puts on better performances than me no one's got a better skill set than me like I think I should be headlining cards by now L I'm [ __ ] nine and one 100% finishing rate [ __ ] biggest guy in the UK scene outside of the UFC probably on par with someone like a luk Riley because he's he's flying as well or maybe other than us there's like a Paul who's doing well like I feel like I'm at the Pinnacle now so it's like giving me opportunity and I'd love it to be in Liverpool but the problem is M&S Arena doesn't want to put on MMA shows they only want to put on boxing shows lad so it's it's hard for them to get the venue I don't know where they'd want to do it maybe it'd have to be it'd have to be Manchester again but Manchester ain't Liverpool no one wants to drive off the motorway Liverpool I will sell out a stadium by myself don't even put no one else on the card do you get me I have all the scouts there I Ram out the but it's these aren't my calls I don't have a say in any of this I'm just speaking out of the world what I want to happen and hopefully lot of Attraction the [ __ ] comes back to me and it happens but if it don't no love lost I'll still be fighting in Czech Republic Slovakia Germany big cards over there big venues over there so it's still a win-win for Shem but lad I've never had one single fight in my whole career in my hometown what's going on left that's great the one that they did try to get you on obviously it was before octagon that they couldn't actually match you for that as well I'd say that was a bit devastating what G I say lad no one wants to fight with Shen it's a lonely it's a lonely fight for me lad no dance Partners I I can only imagine I can only imagine obviously you've got Dennis as well who's in octagon you done the Octagon challenge with the with the guys which I thought was a fantastic show uh Dennis ring pong is just [ __ ] TV gold but obviously you've got him you've got will flury now H you've got the guys uh arm and stuff would you be interested in in a Dublin card because of the connection to Dublin if they were to come because I reckon you could Main Event out I've been saying this I've been saying look then let's get a card on in Dublin but it's all what called the safe MMA stuff and all of that obviously you did have to [ __ ] sort it with whoever runs that I know they could do Belfast like all the other Irish kind of shows now are all pretty much in Belfast because it's hard to get a show run in Dublin but I wanted to be in Dublin or I wanted to be in Liverpool L like like you said they they [ __ ] got a Bel to deal getting will flurry they've got me you've got Dennis obviously Aon Armond um sadly Matthew went to cage Warriors I don't know why didn't keep holder Matthew because he would have been another big talent but does he even other Lads out there could [ __ ] put on the show lad you've got [ __ ] good Irish Fighters coming through Conor McCarthy [ __ ] Max like do you know what I'm saying the's names out there your Richie smallin like there is some real good Fighters out there that if they did do a card in Dublin I could see them selling it out in Dublin as well like obviously I'm not going to sell as many tickets in Dublin as I would in Liverpool but I think i' do all right still do you know what I'm saying I think so if they brought all the other Irish fighters on it's a no-brainer lad it's selling but I don't know for some reason it's Newcastle Bingham I don't know lad I don't know hopefully I'd like to get Irish like said the lik the Connor Max you've Gary Rooney you've got all these good talents coming true and like that they don't have to be signed fulltime you could give them a one fight deal see how it goes like cage Warriors does and then I reckon a doublin card would sell out with the likes to you Dennis will all those guys on it but moving on uh obviously you're not looking past your opponent you because you take your opponent very seriously you spoke to me before about not looking past anyone um what's your kind of plans or goals for the year like you say lad I'm not looking past catacon but I did want to have four fights this year but obviously with the whole renegotiation thing and sitting on the bench didn't get to [ __ ] fight earlier on in the year now I'm only having me first fight in April I think three' still be a decent number I know there's a had coming up six weeks after this one in Eden Czech 30,000 seat Stadium me versus the police officer P Corney like it'd be a massive fight lad but I just don't think he he'd fight me so if that one don't happen maybe it's took the Germany card I know they're doing a big card in Germany I'm sure they said it was like 40,000 seat Stadium something in Germany I don't know lad it's a conversation for me manager and the bosses of oon who have but I'm a company man they say Shem you're fighting on this card I say okay who's the Unlucky bastard I'm going to kill sign the contract and get the job done like but obviously if I can have a say there is some cards I'd like to fight on yeah no and that's good like you'll just go and fight anyone and there kind of brings me on to my next question is what's it like being with octagon because I think there's very like outside the UFC very few promotions are really good at telling the story of a fighter and I think they've seen your potential with your skill set and your story and they've really kind of got behind you how do you find fighting for them and how do you find their promotion because I think their promotion is kind of better than the other ones around because they tell stories I think oon of the Premier promotion in Europe right now um they're selling out stadiums in Europe and they're still trying to establish the UK Market but I think eventually it will be like it is in Germany it will come um I do think they are the best at marketing the fighters telling the stories of the fighters promoting the fighters um and they obviously spend a lot of money on all that side of the game where maybe some of these other CS lad you're watching your big pfls and Bellator and you don't really know zo on unless you [ __ ] watch every single event and you know the game in and out but for your casual fan it's hard to get invested to some of these guys because you don't have a big social media present they're not great talkers you don't know the story behind them I even English speaking like sometimes all this can play a big factor but that's why I rate octagon because they will get the story out of the fight a lot they will doesn't matter does he speak English or not they'll put the subtitles there for your lad and they will make it half an hour documentary about the cons and before you know you're watching him going [ __ ] H I like this guy and now you're invested aren you lad now you want to watch his next fight and before you know it you've watched three of us fighting you're like lad get on this guy bro it's mad bro I rate them I rate what the do and doing it right and I just wish they'd [ __ ] give me a fight in Liverpool we will'll petition for that after this fight we'll all get it going I'll get it going and we'll see if we can try and persuade them but um I think they are telling stories are great with the Octagon challenge they like they took each lad aside and you got to kind of know them a little bit and I think that kind of endear people to to Fighters because you you are a fighter but you are a person at the end of the day you do you do the same things we do other then obviously going into the cage and and doing what we won't do but you get up you read the same a as us you're you're a person at the end and I think they're really good at showing the personal side of the fighter in my opinion in my opinion it's it's a very good promotion I can't wait to see uh how it progresses because they've really really gone into it um I'm going to let you go um is there anything you want to say before you go or anyone you want to shout out and I want to thank you so much for your time because I know you're really busy and I really appreciate your time because I remember having 100 followers do you remember that I had 100 followers and you were saying just keep going and keep going I've only 5,000 well just less but hey it's the other way around now I've got 100 followers and you're the big shot now like that's well when your other page comes back if it comes back it'll be the other way around but um no so I want to thank you for the support at the start that was about two years ago um I really appreciate the words you said to me and and the rest it was about four years ago now no I'm only doing this two and a half years I yeah thought it was Co it was just at the end I think it was just before it was when you were in DCA anyways I got yeah that was more than two years ago I've been I've been in NextGen now for like two and a half nearly three years I have to three four years now you know 2021 2021 is when I started yeah so well we're in 2024 now L we're getting old now bro I defin I had to get my haircut because the Grays were coming to and I didn't want them on camera but is there anything you want to say before you go like I said thank you for your time big shout out to me team all me teammates Next Generation shout out to all me sponsors I love you all R Primo raw Sports Royal minerals rain Grappler so all the others that I can't really think of off the top of me head but you know he are boom perfect thank you so much and best of skill next weekend even though I know you don't need it yes lad nice one F perfect