Sept 20, 2006 Gabe “Godzilla” Ruediger was center of attention on The Ultimate Fighter Season 5 on Spike TV but all that attention wasn’t positive. After failing to make weight for his fight with Corey Hill Gabe was kicked off the show by UFC president Dana White and has received public criticism from his fellow cast members. Gabe responds to these comments, talks about his training at Team Quest and responds to Forum Member questions.

Brad Doerges – Are you training for your fight coming up on UFC Fight Night?

Gabe Ruediger – I can’t comment on that right now. I am training at Team Quest right now I can tell you that.

Brad – How is training at Team Quest south?

> Gabe – Phenominal. We just did nine 5 minute rounds of MMA. Killing each other. It has been really intense lately because Jason Mayhem Miller and Art Santore have been training for their fights in the WEC. Even thought they aren’t training any more Brian Foster is getting ready for the IFL. My self and David Gardner are both fighting in June. Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou is also training for his fight in July. It’s basically a fight factory; couldn’t ask for a much better training environment

Brad – What’s with all the Upsets coming out of Team Quest?

Gabe --We just have been really pushing each other. We have a really cohesive team right now. With Shawn Tompkins doing striking, Vinny running the Jiu Jitsu Dan (Henderson) and Heath both Olympic caliber wrestlers, and Sokoudjou a high level Judoka . We are all assisting each other. Making the training room really hard and really fun. Its really good.

Brad – Shawn has really been working wonders with you guys at Team Quest.

Gabe -- Shawn has a real eye for MMA…  he is a phenomenal coach. He really knows what hes doing. You look at the people he works with and it speaks for itself.

Brad – Is it completely different form the training you were doing up at Fairtex?

Gabe – Some stuff is the same but Shauns stand up game is specifically for mma. That’s the big difference. I still go up to Fairtex and I will still go up there cause they’re a great group of guys

Brad – What happened with you and training at Millenia Jiu Jitsu?

Gabe – I still train up their periodically. There was a point where people didn’t want to push hard and I need training partners that could push me to my full potential. I was training with Heath for my fight with Melvin (Guiard) and they kinda offered me to come on the team and the team seemed like a good fit for me.

Brad – Ok now for questions about your time on the Ultimate Fighter.

Gabe – (laughs) Took you long enough.

Brad – Overall how was your experience?

Gabe – You know, that’s kinda tough to guage.  It was a difficult experience, but I took it in stride. The biggest thing is I completely lost focus on what I do, I was like it’s a TV show, it’s a TV show. Make it insane, get camera time and I lost complete focus of what I do, which is fight. I took it in stride and I learned a lot in the process. I think the best thing is when it was all said and done is that I had to kinda reflect on myself and decide what was the real reason I was fighting, was it to make money and be famous? That was never issue in the past, I just kinda lost focus and now I’m just back to wanting to fight. 

Brad – How was training with BJ?

Gabe – BJ is phenomenal. people have no concept of how good he is. I remember training with him years ago and him being that good, but now he’s really elevated his game. He was a great training partner and it was nice to be in a realm with someone I consider a friend. And on top of that I picked up some new stuff from him that I’m implementing in my game.

Brad – Did you get to see how Pulver’s team trained?

Gabe – No, no. We never got to, I saw them coming home tired everyday. You know, I think in the circumstances, maybe Pulver might’ve been a better match for me. I need a coach that’s going to yell and me and basically treat me… you know a perfect example, tonight I wanted to stop after five fives and Ryan Parsons was like,  I don’t care how tired you are, get out there and do it. And that’s what I need, no matter how much I’m whining and complaining, just let me, you know, and that’s the kinda coaching that works for me, and I think Pulver might’ve done that. But you know, I don’t take that away from BJ at all, I still picked up a lot of stuff. Just different coaching styles.

Brad – Looking back would you rather have been on Pulvers team?

Gabe – No, no. I didn’t say that, it might’ve just been a better fit for me cause I need a coach who will really push me. I think Pulver would’ve made me more focused. I mean, from BJ I learned so much. I think I might’ve done better on the show, but who knows what my fight career would’ve done. I made huge strategy mistakes on the show, losing focus of what I do, but in the long run I think it was a good learning experience.

Brad – Why were you so overweight to start the show.

Gabe – If I come in heavy, ill always make weight. It’s not an issue, I was going for dramatics. I was in good shape and I could’ve fought. It wasn’t an issue about fighting, it was like I’ll make a dramatic cut, and when I make the cut… it was stupidity. I should’ve been focused on the fight, and I was focused on making a TV show. And that’s where I faltered, I got caught up in my 15 minutes, and it obviously affected me. I thought I was gonna make weight, even when I was cutting for Corey. I thought I was gonna cut it. I remember thinking, when I make weight it’s gonna be so incredible, then I ended up passing out. I think  In the end it made me learn a few things.  I cant let myself get that heavy, you know, whereas at one time I might’ve been able to cut that weight, its not so easy anymore, I think the older I get, my metabolism slows down.  Just live and learn, I guess.

Brad – So you’ve cut that much weight before?

Gabe – Yeah I have, multiple times. I felt like, I just, I made a mistake, I faltered.

Brad – What’s the beef with Matt Wiman? Why did they only show your side of the story?

Gabe – Its TV, you have to understand that their building character, it was pretty obvious from the beginning that I was the antagonist. The thing is about Matt Wiman, I don’t like to air other people’s garbage, I made some other comments in a different interview and it upset the people that told me initially. Needless to say, I don’t like the guy, he’s cocky, he’s arrogant, he thinks he is way better than he is. The thing is people think we got on the show and I didn’t like him, but the reality is neither one of us liked each other from the get-go. It was easy to antagonize him I was definitely more of a prick than I usually am, not to say I’m not a prick, but it was easy to antagonize that little fucking prick Wiman.

Brad – How is Andys grappling? How does his grappling stand up to BJs or DeSouza?

Gabe – How does Andy’s grappling compare to DeSouza? That’s kinda a tough one. I don’t really know how to answer that question. I think Andy is a very good grappler, but he fights a certain way and getting him to jump out of that is the difficult part. Cause he is a phenomenal fighter and he would’ve gone through Melendez if he had taken him to the ground. I’ve trained with Melendez and Andy is a good, solid, black belt. I think every fighter has his little nuances, and I think his is, when he gets hit, all he wants to return the favor. He losing focus of what he really needs to do, and I hope he finds the right path cause its funny, he’s a Jiu Jitsu black belt and he trains with some of the best wrestlers in MMA, with Rico Chiapparelli and Roddi and that group. It’s kinda unfortunate being his friend and watching him revert to that, but he has his way.

Brad – It seemed you became friends with Emerson quickly are you guys still friends?

Gabe – I saw him yesterday at Jeremy Williams’s memorial, its kind of an unfortunate way to see Emerson. But I see him periodically, I wouldn’t say we are best friends, and that we hang out a lot, but we talk pretty regularly. I actually really like the guy. I think its funny with the show, they show whatever issues you have when you are on the show. The reality is, when everything was all said and done, we all, we either made amends or we just don’t talk, it’s not really an issue. I mean, you know, people have to kinda realize that reality TV is only good if there’s drama involved, and I’ve said this on a couple of occasions but imagine if it was 16 guys sitting around making each other dinner and complimenting each other about how good they are, and I don’t wanna fight that guy cause he’s really a nice guy, I mean that would be horrible and I mean, we definitely left the producers a lot to work with.  They definitely worked with it, and there wasn’t a shortage of dramatic things happening. I mean the show’s a show, and I don’t really worry too much about it. People are very, very emotional about, I mean I get some emails were people are really, really upset and it’s a TV show, I mean if anyone should be upset it should be me! I’m the one who fucked up, I’m the one who put a snaggle in my career. Other people are getting upset, and I think it’s kinda crazy, I don’t even check out the internet forums, people will ask me if I check them out cause I’m getting blasted left and right. I tell them, I cant believe your taking that seriously, and I just cant understand people getting that upset and that worked up over a TV show. I mean, is it a reality show? Of course, but I think if there is one person to be upset, it should be me and I’ve already come to terms with that a long time ago.

Brad – Were the colonics helpful?

Gabe – (Laughs) You know, the thing is more than anything, it’s a procedure to clean out your system, and it’s actually good for you. I don’t think I would ever do it for weight loss again, and I certainly wouldn’t do it on national television again.

Brad – Have you been eating healthy since the show?

Gabe – I’ve definitely been focusing on my diet, not initially, because I didn’t know when I was gonna fight or anything like that. But I’m more focused on my diet, no ice cream cake, apparently. Apparently my nutritionist said that ice cream cake was officially off the menu.

Brad – What’s with the cake and the so-called editing monster?

Gabe – People were like its all bullshit, even like Joe Lauzon, whose been one of my best critics, admits that the cake incident happened a week to two weeks before I was cutting weight. Granted I shouldn’t been eating the cake regardless, but it definitely looks considerably worse when you put it right before I was supposedly cutting weight.  It definitely makes it look way worse, and it was bad enough that I was eating the cake, but it was basically two weeks before I was cutting.

Brad – Joe Lauzon said that you were a distraction on the show. Do you feel like you were a distraction to your team?

Gabe – I didn’t feel like I was, I mean, everyone has their opinions. I think its funny that no one really said anything to me, and everything I’ve been seeing is on the internet, and even then, people were like what happened with you and Lauzon and I had no idea in his blog he’s really disrespectful and I love Joe and I had no problem and I talk to him the night before and I explained, there were two guys I talked to and I explained that I really fucked up and I thought Joe understood.

Brad – When did you know that you wouldn’t be able to make weight for your fight with Corey?

Gabe – I thought I was gonna make weight, I really thought I was, when I got in the sauna again I was only two pounds aways. This is what I remember, putting my sauna suit on, getting back into the sauna and curling into a little ball and then I woke up in the ambulance. I was even laughing at “Put me back in, B put me back in!” Fuck, I don’t remember saying that, I like that I was still going for dramatic effect even when I was passed out. I really genuinely don’t remember any of that, I don’t remember getting on the bike, I talked to Gray afterwards and he was like, Jesus, it was a disaster, and I don’t remember any of that, I just remember getting in the sauna, and I don’t remember any of that.

Brad – Do you think the Colonic dried you out?

Gabe – The doctors said that it actually has a tendency to dehydrate you, and I don’t know what the factor was, it could’ve been the colonic, it could’ve been that I had just come down with strep throat, any number of things could’ve effected it, but regardless, I don’t want to be that heavy anymore, a week before a fight I want to be 168, 167.

Brad – It seemed like during the show the focus was on you a lot of the time. Do you think the house was boring that’s why the focus was on you or was it because you end up getting kicked out that the focus was on you.
Gabe – I don’t know, I definitely made myself more well-known, I definitely  put myself out there to ensure I got face time. That was a tactic in itself. I think I pushed it a little farther than everyone else, but there were a lot of guys that were making attempts, I just pushed the envelope. A perfect example is there were those guys wearing those little bikini briefs, do you really think that there are like 3 fighters walking around in thongs if it wasn’t for TV? There were specific props because they knew that it would get camera time. Another perfect example, when Corey Hill got all fucking DMX on me and getting in my face and stuff, an hour and a half later, he was all like, dawg, I’m just trying to get camera time. Everyone had a little inkling of what it took to get camera time.

Brad – Do you think you were unfairly portrayed?

Gabe – Yes and no, I think my character on the show, and it was definitely a character, is over the top and kind of ridiculous. Even the guys who knew me, like Andy knew me in advance and Alan knew me in advance, they were like, Jesus Christ, what was wrong with you, you weren’t yourself. Was it an accurate portrayal of how I was on the show? I don’t know, I know I was definitely pushing the envelope and doing stupid shit. I remember calling a team meeting; All I was trying to do is get camera time. It wasn’t like I thought we really needed a team meeting. It’s so funny, people take that team concept so seriously, and it’s like your only on a team until the second round. Then it’s kinda like a free-for-all. There’s only one contract on the line, you know?

Brad – The only advantage of rooting for your team is that you seem to get a better match-up in the first round.

Gabe – Yeah, absolutely, you have to know, for example, Pulver got two of the better guys in by beating, arguably, two of our weaker guys, so yeah, I don’t know.  

Forum Questions

Brad – They portrayed it like you wanted to fight Weems in the first round. Who did you want to fight in the first round? – Little Foot

Gabe – Weems, I mean you have to look at it like a strategy, cause it’s a tournament, right? Weems would’ve been a good first choice cause its easiest. To be honest, I thought I matched up well against Corey Hill or Brandon Melendez. As a matter of fact, I think when Melendez called out Andy; I thought it was going to be me. They editing that out, but after he shook Andy’s hand I said, “I thought it was gonna be you and me, Melendez”. As far as the guys on Jens’s team, the two guys on Pulver’s team that I thought were the toughest had already fought. I thought Nate and Mandel were the two best guys on Jens’s team. The rest of the guys, it when down from there, besides those two guys, I didn’t have any concerns. Would I have like to fight Weems first? Of course,  but people say I would’ve made weight if I was fighting Weems, you think im afraid of Corey? Not even for an instant. I mean, he is a big, tall kid, but skill wise? I knew I could beat him. And I still think I could beat him.

Brad –  Did you know he had so few fights?

Gabe – I knew he had 3 to 4, which is what he was telling everybody, but I had no idea he had 2 amateur fights. Noah Thomas, on my team, lived roughly in the same area, and he saw him fight in those amateur fights the guys he fought were nobody’s. I think once you step up a level and I think my game in particular would’ve been a real hard fit for Corey. I think maybe the one thing he might’ve been better than me is maybe wrestling and I could’ve forced him to take me down. I’m 90% sure I could’ve tapped him.

Brad – Who do you think would've proved to be the most difficult matchup for you? - CDC

Gabe – I thought Emerson was my worst match up, I felt like he was the toughest guy. The one thing that I think is his weakness, and I think he proved that in his two fights, was that he sits back a little. But I think skill wise Emerson was the most talented kid there.  He needs to get that hesitation out of his head, and I’m not the one to tell him how to do that. He could’ve knocked that kid out, he could’ve knocked that kid out, all he had to do is pull the trigger. I think Emerson has a tendency to fight to his opponents level. Either he will find his way, or he won’t. I remember when he fought Javi Vasquez and it was the same way I was cornering Javi at the time.

Brad – Will you change anything training wise since being on the show? – MattHughesOwns

Gabe – Not so much training wise, the biggest thing for me is that I’m smart about my training, being on the right team and watching my diet. Being focused on the fight than anything else.

Brad – Who do you feel was the worst housemate on the show ? – 2

Gabe – Wiman. (laughs)

Brad – Of the guys you were stuck with in the house, whose on-camera personality is most different from their private self? --Thunderbolt

Gabe – That’s kinda a tough one. I don’t know. That’s an interesting question. That’s a really tough question, I don’t know. Maybe me?

Brad – Do you feel your team had any responsibility making sure you were able to cut weight? – UFC Fan

Gabe – It was my responsibility. My team, they helped me, and Grey was there for me the whole time. It wasn’t my teams fault; they didn’t have anything to do with it. Some people feel like you are only as good as your coaching, and your coach is supposed to stand by you 100%. But in the end, you just gotta man up and do it. No matter how your coaches and your teammates react to you, its still on you. In the end its up to you. The good thing is that they brought Emerson back, I thought he deserved it, even though he kinda, you know, blew it.

Brad – Lastly one question from me; A few people on TUF have spoken out about you publically (Diaz, Wang Etc.)  Do you have any messages for them?

Gabe – I didn’t even know that Diaz said anything.

Brad – Something derogatory about your weight…

Gabe – As far as Diaz, to be honest, whatever that kid has to say, I could give two shits. I think he is a good fighter, but as far as passing judgment on people and his ability to think things through with logic, I have a difficult time thinking he has that ability. As far as Joe and Andy, for everybody, the show is just a show; say what you have to say. I’m not gonna prove myself on a TV show. I’ve already made my mistake and now I have to, you know, make amends, and hopefully prove to the naysayers that I just made a mistake.

Brad – So you wouldn’t go on the TUF reunion show?

Gabe – (Laughs) Um, yeah, I don’t think so.

I would like to say that, I just want to say something about Jeremy Williams, who passed away a couple of weeks ago, I went to his memorial yesterday, and it was very tough, but it was also wonderful to see how much support that guy had and I want people to see that people like Jeremy are one in a million, and that they should assist and support his family in their time of need. I know that there are t-shirts available on NoGi.com and 100% of the proceeds go to his family.

Gabe would like to thank his sponsers:
Tapout, Sinister Brand, Fairtex, OnTheMat.com, Indecision Records, and Forty Thieves Clothing.