Tim Boetsch: I'll do whatever it takes to beat Dan Henderson
Given how much of a mainstay Tim Boetsch has been in the UFC's light heavyweight and middleweight divisions for the past five years, it's a bit surprising to learn how unlikely a fighter he once was. After graduating from Lock Haven University, where he wrestled, Boetsch was a family man with a life far away from competition and, especially, the rough world of professional fighting.
"I got a degree in criminal justice from Lock Haven, landed a social work job, and just lifting weights — not even contemplating life as a fighter," he remembers.
"Then, my friend (and fellow future UFC fighter) Mike Ciesnolevicz calls me up one weekend out of the blue and tells me he can get me a couple fights in Iowa, and he thinks I should try it. By some miracle, he convinced me ."
He laughs about that, but the lifelong combat wrestler who would go on to be known as "The Barbarian" needed little convincing. When his wife gave him the go-ahead, big Tim jumped in head first.
"I had wrestled my whole life and am what some people may call over-competitive. I don't think there is such a thing, but that's what some people say. So, I was definitely itching to do something. I had never been in a fight before in my life and I wanted to see what happened. When my wife said, 'yeah,' I got right to it."
Boetsch won big in his first amateur fights. Once more, his supportive wife encouraged him to continue with it.
"Yeah, I was hooked right away," he says.
"My wife said she could see the difference in me when I got back. I had a look in my eyes. The reason was, I had figured out what my calling in life was. I needed that type of experience. I went out there and didn't know what to expect. I didn't know if I would get it, if I would get knocked out. I had no street fight experience, so it was definitely different, and I loved it."
He made the decision to go pro, because, why not? On the regional circuits there is often no substantive difference between amateur and "professional" bouts, other than that fighters can get some extra change for fighting "pro."
"Mike C was my manager at the time, getting fights for me, and after that first weekend I told him I wanted to get a professional fight. It was tough stuff and I'm getting beat up so I figured I might as well make money doing it. So, my very next fight was a pro one. That's when I started training in my garage and a local gym, rolling around with my father-in-law."
That humble start still gave way to a lot of initial success for Boetsch. However, he couldn't help but wonder if perhaps he wasn't as good as it seemed.
"I won my first six pro fights, but at the beginning, I thought I was getting lucky (laughs). I didn't know if I was that good or if maybe I was just getting lucky," he says.
Then, Boetsch fought former UFC title challenger and longtime international wrestler Vladimir Matyushenko. Boetsch, a former wrestler himself, knew all about who Vladimir was, and just how great of a fighter he was.
That's why when he went the distance and lost a close decision to "The Janitor," he finally realized that he was more than lucky. In that way, Boetsch's first loss became the highlight of his career up to that point.
The fighter knew that he had what it took to hang with the best in the world. "That's when I decided to really take my training seriously," he said.
"After going the distance with Vladimir, I thought, 'OK, I've got something here. I'd better start developing this.' After that, big things started to happen for me. My next fight was in the UFC, and I've had a pretty successful career here so far."
Indeed, Boetsch is knocking on the door of the middleweight division's top 10. A main event win over former two-division world champion Dan Henderson would give Boetsch the biggest boost of his career.
As such, Boetsch couldn't be happier that he and Henderson got the opportunity to head Saturday's New Orleans Fight Night card when hometown hero Daniel Cormier was pulled to fight at UFC 187. "It is quite an honor," he says.
"I'm really happy to be in the main event spot. It's a huge opportunity to prove that I can fight in a meain event. It's something I want to do a lot more in the future."
Fighting Henderson in particular is a big deal for Boetsch. If he's honest, he has to concede that he'll be fighting one of his personal favorites.
"It does mean a lot to fight Henderson. I've been watching him fight for a long time. He's a hero of mine in the sport," he reveals.
"I remember talking to friends, years ago, and looking at certain guys, certain legends, and telling them that I thought I could beat those guys. I was talking about the greats, the Dan Hendersons. People thought I was crazy to even think that, but now I've got my chance. When I beat him it will prove to me that I'm on my way."
Boetsch is a powerful wrestler and puncher, with incredible resolve and grit. So, he's got lots of reasons to be confident heading into this or any fight.
His biggest advantage over Henderson won't even be about physicality or skills, however. Boetsch believes his hunger will make the difference.
"The biggest difference between me and Dan Henderson is that he's done everything in MMA that he wants to," he explained.
"He's had his opportunities and reached a level of greatness that few fighters ever will. For me, I'm just hungry to get there, myself. My time is perfect, and I'm in the perfect spot. I've got great trainers and coaches, my family is lining up perfectly, everything in my life is going right.
"It is my time. I'm going to do whatever it takes."
