UFC hopeful Saul Rogers answers the Ultimate Eight

The 25-year-old trains under UFC interim featherweight champion Conor McGregor in the Ultimate Fighter show

Saul Rogers in action (twitter.com/Saul_Rogers)

Bolton’s Saul Rogers is currently a contestant on The Ultimate Fighter: Team McGregor vs. Team Faber, and starred in the latest episode of the show this week by defeating Billy Quarantillo to continue his dreams of earning a UFC contract.

The 25-year-old trains under UFC interim featherweight champion Conor McGregor in the Europe vs America show, and has amassed a 10-1 MMA record.

Ahead of a busy winter which could determine his future career in the sport, Rogers answered The Ultimate Eight.

You’ve been fighting since you were a teenager, but what made you take up MMA in the first place?

I think it was my ex-ex-ex-ex-ex girlfriend’s mum at the time! She said that I needed to channel my energy because I think she thought I was a bit angry. An MMA gym opened in Farnworth and that’s what prompted me. I’m not a guy who does things by half, so I went and tried it out and loved it.

Talk us through the first time you stepped foot in a cage to compete. What happened?

My first fight was on a show called Controlled Aggression or something like that. I fought a guy named Anthony Jeffries and I’d only been training for a few months. One of the guys from my team pulled out so they asked me if I wanted to go in there. I was really nervous but I just thought I’d go and do it.

I cannot tell you one thing that happened in that fight! All anybody says is that I was like a rabbit in the headlights between rounds and I didn’t know where I was. Whether it was the adrenaline or not being fit enough, after the fight I’ve never spewed so much in my life.

And that’s my first introduction to an MMA fight! I was lucky I got a draw out of that, and I knew I’d improve and get better.

What was life like in the Ultimate Fighter house during your time there? Is it comfortable sharing space with a bunch of competitive athletes?

It’s different to anything else I’ve done in my life I’ll tell you that. The best thing is definitely something called ‘the list’. You can put anything you want on that list, I put a watch on it and it came the next day. They’ll drive around America trying to get you your stuff. It’s hard coming back home and having to do your own shopping!

The house was a mess though, we had to keep telling guys to not leave their dishes around.

How did you find having Conor McGregor as a coach? You had previously trained with him for a short period in your career, but did your relationship grow during the season?

No it didn’t really improve too much. We’re not there for that much time, and it’s not like you’re living with the guy. I got a bit more familiar with him, but he was just professional. He’d come in and tell us what to do and we’d do it.

He wasn’t there as much as Urijah Faber but for me that didn’t make a difference. Urijah was there twice a day with two coached sessions, but that’s not how I like to train anyway because I think it’s too taxing on the body. So our approach and setup was a lot better, we’d come in the morning and roll and stretch, and then in the evening was our coached sessions. I found that a lot more effective, so there was no problem from my end.

Walkout music can be very important to some fighters. Is there any significance to the songs you choose when you make your way to the cage?

My life revolves around music, I never watch TV but I’ve got soundbars and speakers all around my house. With my walkout songs, I don’t usually go for the typical rap stuff that everyone that goes for. I’ve come out to "The Boss" by James Brown a few times and "Welcome To Jamrock" by Damian Marley.

It is nice to have a good song to bounce out to, but if they mess up and play "Barbie Girl" I don’t think it will make too much of a difference.

How do you like to relax away from the sport, do you have any interests or hobbies?

Food and films are my big interest and I’m probably eating out five or six times a week. I try to go to the healthy places, but going to nice restaurants is what I love doing the most. If I had to live with only one food it would probably be pizza, and my favourite film is Training Day with Denzel Washington.

What is the greatest MMA fight of all time?

It’s probably not the best one, but the Conor McGregor/Chad Mendes fight from UFC 189. I was there for that live, and the whole event was breathtaking.

With the exception of beating people up for a living, what is your greatest skill in life?

I’m good at completing a Rubik’s Cube. On a bad day it’ll take me about two and a half minutes. On a good day it’s 90 seconds.