Saturday, August 01, 2015
No Holds Barred: Steve Nelson and the Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation (USWF)
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman reposts an interview with Steve Nelson, who fought in and ran the Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation (USWF) in the 1990s in Amarillo, Texas.
This organization, which was one of the most successful local promotions of its time, held fights under what were called shootfighting rules, with only open hand strikes allowed, but with all submissions as well as kicks and knees permitted. It was thus a mixture of catch wrestling and MMA.
Steve was also a headliner in the company's most famous fight, when he took on Ralph Gracie, who had defeated him in under a minute in 1996 under no holds barred rules in Battlecade/Extreme Fighting 2 in the Mohawk community of Kahnawake near Montreal. The rematch took place August 22, 1998, as the main event of the USWF 11 show in Amarillo.
This fight was my selection as the 1998 Fight of the Year in mixed discipline combat sports.
A video of this fight can be seen here.
This interview was originally recorded in August 2008 to mark the tenth anniversary of his classic USWF fight with Ralph Gracie.
While MMA in the U.S. was facing many difficulties in 1998, the USWF, which just ran shows in Amarillo and West Texas, was drawing large crowds of upwards of 4000 fans.
Explaining this, Steve Nelson pointed out, "We didn't have a TV show. All we had was, we had posters around the town. I went and did a lot of interviews. So the other fighters did their interviews, too, on the radio, and we were pulling these kind of crowds."
They were so successful at the art of local promotion in the late 1990s that, "We were the top-drawing martial arts company in the United States at the time."
Much has changed since then, of course, with the USWF soon peaking and closing down a few years later. Many of its top stars then focused on MMA, including the late USWF and UFC champion Evan Tanner, or coaching wrestling like Steve, Paul Jones, and others.
Steve had been the head coach of the boy's and girl's wrestling teams at Palo Duro High School in Amarillo for many years, but retired from teaching and coaching in December 2013. He now works full-time as the manager of Sakura Japanese Steakhouse and Sushi Bar in Amarillo.
In our original lengthy interview, we spoke with Steve about the USWF and its history; his fights with Ralph Gracie; some of the fighters from the USWF who became notable in MMA; important tips for promoters, especially local promoters who need to avoid quickly losing money (which is today particularly important for those running catch wrestling and grappling shows); the accomplishments of the wrestling teams he coached; and much more.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.
Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.
You can also listen to No Holds Barred via Stitcher through iOS or Android devices or on the web, at http://www.stitcher.com/podcast/no-holds-barred-with-eddie-goldman.
The PodOmatic Podcast Player for iOS is available for free on the App Store.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at AmericanTopTeam.com.
Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.
Labels: Amarillo, Eddie Goldman, Extreme Fighting, MMA, No Holds Barred, Ralph Gracie, shootfighting, shootwrestling, Steve Nelson, Texas, Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation, USWF, wrestling
Thursday, September 18, 2008
No Holds Barred: Evan Tanner Tribute with Steve Nelson
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman is joined by Steve Nelson, founder of the Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation (USWF) of Amarillo, Texas, to talk about the passing of mixed martial arts and wrestling champion Evan Tanner.
Evan Tanner, a native of Amarillo who was living in Oceanside, Calif., was a USWF heavyweight champion, a two-time Texas high school state wrestling champion, a UFC middleweight champion, and a Pancrase Neo-Blood Tournament champion. The 37-year-old Tanner was found dead Sept. 8 after he had been reported missing while on a camping trip in southern California.
In this interview, we discuss how Steve, who knew Evan for about 20 years, watched him progress from being a successful high school wrestler to become a champion in professional shoot wrestling and mixed martial arts. We discuss Evan's life, his legacy, his strengths and weaknesses, his unending search to find meaning for what he did, and, to use Evan's own words, his attempt to influence children positively by opposing "the message of self-glorification and disrespect" and being "the ultimate gentleman, honorable and respectful."
There will be a public memorial meeting for Evan Tanner Saturday, September 27, beginning at 2 PM CDT, at the Amarillo Civic Center in that building’s auditorium, at 401 S. Buchanan Street, in Amarillo. The memorial meeting is called "Evan Tanner - Celebration of Life - Memorial". Steve Nelson will be a featured speaker at this memorial.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here or here. You can also download it here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by musician Ian Carpenter.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
BJJMart.com, your premier source for all Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gear, videos, books, and much more.
Gladiator Magazine, for in-depth coverage of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, submission grappling, and MMA, as well as lifestyle articles on surfing, cars, movies, and more. Gladiator Magazine is available at any major bookstore and online at BJJMart.com or Jiu Jitsu Pro Gear.
Gladiator Challenge, shaking up the mixed martial arts world since 1999, and now with 30 shows per year. For more news and info, check out their web site, GladiatorChallenge.com.
FightBeat.com, for news, results, interviews, and free exclusive videos from the worlds of boxing and mixed martial arts.
Labels: Amarillo, Eddie Goldman, Evan Tanner, mixed martial arts, MMA, No Holds Barred, shoot wrestling, shootfighting, Steve Nelson, Texas, UFC, Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation, USWF, wrestling
Friday, August 29, 2008
No Holds Barred: Steve Nelson and the Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman speaks with Steve Nelson, who fought in and ran the Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation (USWF) in the 1990's in Amarillo, Texas. This organization, which was one of the most successful local promotions of its time, held fights under what were called shootfighting rules, with only open hand strikes allowed, but with all submissions as well as kicks and knees permitted.
Steve was also a headliner in the company's most famous fight, when he took on Ralph Gracie, who had defeated him in under a minute in 1996 under no holds barred rules in Extreme Fighting 2 in the Mohawk community of Kahnawake near Montreal. The rematch took place August 22, 1998, at a USWF show in Amarillo.
This fight was my selection as the 1998 Fight of the Year in mixed discipline combat sports.
A video of most of this fight can be seen here.
In a lengthy interview, we spoke with Steve about the USWF and its history, his fights with Ralph Gracie, some of the fighters from the USWF who became notable in mixed martial arts, the movement to establish a wrestling team at West Texas A&M University, the accomplishments of the boy's and girl's wrestling teams at Palo Duro High School in Amarillo, where Steve is the head coach, and more.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here or here. You can also download it here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.
The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", by musician Ian Carpenter.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
BJJMart.com, your premier source for all Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gear, videos, books, and much more.
Gladiator Magazine, for in-depth coverage of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, submission grappling, and MMA, as well as lifestyle articles on surfing, cars, movies, and more. Gladiator Magazine is available at any major bookstore and online at BJJMart.com or Jiu Jitsu Pro Gear.
Gladiator Challenge, shaking up the mixed martial arts world since 1999, and now with 30 shows per year. For more news and info, check out their web site, GladiatorChallenge.com.
FightBeat.com, for news, results, interviews, and free exclusive videos from the worlds of boxing and mixed martial arts.
Labels: Amarillo, Eddie Goldman, Extreme Fighting, mixed martial arts, No Holds Barred, Ralph Gracie, shootfighting, shootwrestling, Steve Nelson, Texas, Unified Shoot Wrestling Federation, USWF, wrestling
