THE CANADIAN PRESS
Rich (No Love) Clementi is more than a fighter. He’s a father, former Navy seabee, fight promoter and owner of the only 24-hour tanning salon in the state of Louisiana.
The 32-year-old mixed martial arts lightweight is also on a bit of a roll recently in the UFC, with impressive wins over Melvin (The Young Assassin) Guillard and Anthony (Rumble) Johnson. Clementi will be looking to make it three in a row (five if you include two non-UFC victories) later this month when he takes on Canadian Sam (Hands of Stone) Stout at UFC 83 in Montreal.
"That’s a fun fight," UFC president Dana White told The Canadian Press. "I was really impressed with Clementi’s last fight, to be honest with you. I didn’t think he was going to win that fight… . Not only was I shocked that he beat Melvin, I was impressed, I mean he looked phenomenal. So if he comes out and fights the way he fought against Melvin, that’s a great fight."
"I’ve got nothing but respect for Sam Stout," White continued. "Sam Stout’s put on some great fights for us and he’s a tough guy."
Stout, a 23-year-old from London, Ont., who trains out of Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas, is dangerous on his feet. Clementi is a well-rounded fighter with good ground skills and more than eight years of MMA fighting under his belt. And he has shown he has his act together in recent fights.
He schooled Guillard at UFC 79 in December, eventually choking him out in the first round in a bout was dripping with bad blood between the two Louisiana fighters.
"Nothing worse than a guy that talks shit and don’t back it up," he said derisively in the cage after winning.
Clementi is a straight-shooter whose MMA career would make a great read, as one might expect from a man who spent eight hours in a tattoo parlour in Spain to get No Love inked on his back — a phrase linked to a bad divorce and aggressive fighting style.
A former high school wrestler, he got into MMA back in 1999 when Brad Kohler knocked out Steve Judson at UFC 22. A subsequent medical suspension kept Judson from taking part in WEF 7: Stomp in the Swamp, a World Extreme Fighting card slated for some two weeks later in Kenner, La.
An alternate, Clementi was added to the card (he lost a decision to Chris Seifert). It was game on, although it proved to be a rocky beginning.
"I was 3-6 when I first started fighting," he recalled. "So I definitely took the hard road and learned through hard knocks, getting in the ring and winning and losing."
Clementi had enlisted after high school, serving as a Navy seabee (a construction battalion that supported the marines). In his five years, he served two tours in Bosnia. Six months after his active duty ended, 9-11 happened. Clementi, who had remained in the reserves in the Air National Guard military police, was recalled and spent 2 1/2 more years on active duty.
He fought in the military, although his bouts were usually "on the down low."
.Clementi’s ring resume is long and colourful. In November 2000, for example, he fought — and lost — at a Dangerzone card in Indiana called "Insane in Fort Wayne."
"What’s crazy is I fought on that card with Quinton Jackson," he recalled, citing the current UFC light-heavyweight champion. "I believe he pulled up in a van that he was living out of at the time."
In January 2004, he fought in a 16-man lightweight tournament in Japan. He won two bouts that went the distance before losing to Marcus Aurelio in the final, suffering a fractured orbital bone in the process.
Two years later, Clementi was part of the cast of veteran fighters looking to revive their career on Season 4 of "The Ultimate Fighter" reality TV show. Clementi, a member of the No Love team, was beaten by Shonie Carter in his first outing.
Clementi ended up going 2-2 in 2006, a year that saw him spread thin with business demands and a difficult pregnancy for his wife. Clementi, who now has a little boy to go along with his step-daughter, was more productive in 2007 when he went 5-1, attributing that success to a more "cerebral" game plan.
"Sometimes those guys who are just an expert in one fighting style, it’s a little easier for them to make a game plan sometimes because they know what to do every fight," he explained. "I’m a guy who’s really well-rounded. I wrestled in high school, was undefeated in pro Muay Thai, I pro boxed and I love jiu-jitsu. Sometimes it’s a little tougher for me because like I go with the flow, like I’m OK at being anywhere."
When not fighting, Clementi runs his own fight promotion (courtesy of No Love Entertainment, www.steelcagefighting.com) his tanning salon (2 B Tan) and a gym (Clementi’s Gladiator Academy) in Slidell, about 20 minutes east of New Orleans.
He’s no stranger to Canada, having beaten Fabio Holanda in Montreal in January 2006 (Stout beat Holanda in February 2007), and pays tribute to Canadian MMA fans.
"I’m a huge fan actually of fighting up in Canada. What I like the best about it is there’s a lot of hardcore fans in Canada. MMA’s been up there for years and has always down well. What’s neat about it is is it’s not like a lot of the new fans just jumping on the bandwagon."
Quebec, meanwhile, is like a second home for Stout. He is the reigning TKO lightweight champion and is 11-0 in the province.
He is also looking to impress after pounding out a decision over Per Eklund at UFC 80 in January, frustrated by an awkward opponent.
"As soon as that fight was over with Eklund, I went right up to Joe Silva, the matchmaker in the UFC, and Dana White and practically begged them to put me on the Montreal card," Stout said.
Clementi has plenty of respect for Stout, which is a real change from his feelings towards his last opponent Guillard.
"He’s definitely a warrior," Clementi said of Stout. "He always comes in shape, a real gamer and is a tough kid. I’m a tough guy too. I’m pretty tough to finish, so hopefully it’ll be a fight that pleases the fans."
"I do think he’s a little bit better than me on my feet," he added. "Do I think he outclasses me? No. But I feel like on the ground, there’s a big difference in our skill set. My wrestling versus his wrestling and my jiu-jitsu versus his jiu-jitsu, I think that makes it a little bit tougher for him, than it does me."
Stout can guess Clementi’s strategy, but isn’t concerned.
"He’s definitely going to try and take me down. He’s game to stand up for a little while but I think he’s going to change his mind fairly quickly once he gets hit a couple of times.
"I think I’m really going to be ready for Clementi anywhere this fight goes," he added.
