UFC: "Bruce Leeroy" Talks Bout at UFC Fight Night: Seattle: "It Should Be Fun"

Young, gifted and set to make his professional Octagon debut in less than a week, many regard Alex “Bruce Leeroy” Caceres as one of the sport’s most intriguing up-and-comers.

Prior to making a name for himself on "The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck," Caceres competed mostly in his native Florida—boasting a record that included four wins and two losses.

Additionally, “Bruce Leeroy” had a number of unsanctioned “underground” fights on his resume before turning professional in late-2008.

As a member of "Team GSP" during his time on "The Ultimate Fighter," Caceres racked up a pair of submission victories over Paul Barrow and Jeff Lentz before dropping a second round decision loss to eventual tournament runner up Michael Johnson.

Originally scheduled to take on current UFC featherweight contender Nam Phan in December of 2010, Caceres was forced to withdraw from his bout due to an injury.

Once again healthy, Caceres is currently preparing for arguably the most important fight of his career—a bout with former WEC 145-pound competitor Mackens Semerzier at "UFC Fight Night: Seattle” on March 26th.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Caceres about, among a number of other topics, his upcoming bout, training with Georges St-Pierre, his role models in the sport, and what the future holds for the man they call “Bruce Leeroy."

How is life these days?

It’s pretty good. I’ve got nothing to really complain about—everything is going well.

How are you feeling going into your next fight?

I’m feeling good about it; I’m feeling healthy, I feel that this is a good matchup for me. I have a good opponent in front of me, so it should be fun.

How has your training been going?

My training’s been going great. I’ve been doing a whole lot of stuff on the ground, as well as sharpening my stand-up. I’m just getting well rounded for the fight, basically.

What problems does Mackens pose to you?

Not any problems that I haven’t dealt with before, so I’m not really worried.

Do you have a prediction for how it’s going to end?

Not really a specific prediction, other than I will come out on top.

Assuming you win, is there anyone that you have your eyes on in the UFC’s featherweight division?

Whoever’s next in line; whoever’s going to be that next stepping stone on my way to the top. It doesn’t really matter to me.

With a win over Mackens, where do you see yourself in the division?

I see myself as a pretty tough contender for anybody that’s going to stand in front of me. I see myself rising pretty quickly and earning a title shot.

Could you tell me about your time at TriStar in Montreal?

Nothing too much to say about Montreal. It was good training, but it was very, very cold.

[Laughs] How does it feel to train with a guy like Georges St-Pierre?

It’s amazing. To train with Georges boosts up your confidence because you’re training with the champ. I was doing some training with Frankie Edgar, so I’ve got two champions to train with. I’m just feeling really good about training with these high level guys.

Do you have any other role-models in the sport?

Jon Jones is a big role model for me, especially after the big victory that he pulled off the other night—it was very impressive and very inspiring, so it’s really good to have that image before I go into my next fight.

Were you predicting that outcome?

Yeah. I knew Jones was going to dominate—I was very confident in his abilities to beat “Shogun." It wasn’t too much of a surprise, but I’m just glad that he won.

Are you a big fan of the sport outside of your own fighting?

I’m a fan of the sport. I tend to watch fights every now and again, but not too much. Unless I’m fighting—preparing for a fight—I tend to deviate from the sport and dabble into some other things.

Outside of the sport, what are you interested in?

A lot of extra-curricular activities. Things that have to deal with me physically, and I like to get into music every now and again. Other forms of arts. 

What does being in the UFC mean?

For me, it’s being on the biggest stage of mixed martial arts. It’s something that I saw myself doing at a later age and to be here earlier than that is dream come true. It feels really great and it means a lot to me.

Did you think you’d make it to the UFC when you started fighting?

I always had that goal in front of me—it was something that I was striving for, something to get to. I definitely thought that I was going to get there—not this early—but I was confident in myself that I would make it.

Were you at all apprehensive before going onto ‘The Ultimate Fighter’?

I was a little nervous—there’s always that nervousness that you have before you enter any type of competition. Due to the fact that I was jumping up in weight classes, I knew that these guys were going to be heavier than me, so there was a bit of nervousness going into that. Once I step into the cage, that all leaves me.

Had you not gone onto ‘The Ultimate Fighter’, have you thought about how much longer it would take you to get into the UFC?

Like I said, I don’t really think about those things but if I thought about it now, I guess it would probably take me a bit longer. I’m not entirely sure.

Would you recommend ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ to an aspiring mixed martial artist?

Yeah. It’s a good experience. It definitely opens your eyes to the next level of training and how to train as a professional. It definitely tests your mettle, you know?

Was there anyone that left a particularly lasting impression on you?

Me and Jonathan Brookins had a lot of deep conversations. We became pretty good friends and we still keep in contact, so he left a good impression on me. He’s a cool guy and we shared a whole lot of wisdom—I’d say it would have to be him.

What inspired you to get involved with the sport to begin with?

I’m not really sure. I was always a scrapper—I got into a lot of fights at school and I’ve been fighting for a long, long, long time. School yard brawls, backyard fights, underground fights and whatnot. It was very easy to do and I wanted to take it to the next step.

Could you tell me about your life growing up in Miami?

I had a good life. I didn’t grow up with everything but it was enough to get by. It wasn’t too tough and I was a hard worker, so I appreciate all of the little things that I’ve earned in life. For me it was good. I had my ups and downs and my struggles, but I overcame them. It’s a beautiful thing, you know?

What did you want to be when you were growing up?

When I was very young I was into a lot of history and philosophy, but I always wanted to be a fighter of some sort—I was into boxing, martial arts. It was what I wanted to be for a long time.

What do you think you would be doing if you weren’t involved in the sport?

I don’t know.

Have you ever thought about that?

Not too much. I tend to roll with what I’ve got right now and not really think about the “what-ifs," you know?

You your underground fights earlier. Could you tell me a bit about that?

When I was younger, before I was old enough to do professional bouts, I would do underground fights—illegal fights. In Miami they would have them. Someone told me about them and just to pass the time and test my skills, I would go out there and, basically, scrap with some dudes.

How many of these fights did you have?

I can’t entirely remember. I believe there are two that I had recorded—those actually happened on the same day. I’ve been in and out of it.

What’s your philosophy as a mixed martial artist?

I guess it would be; you’ve just got to roll with the punches, don’t look back and don’t ask “what-if." Whatever you do is what matters—talk is cheap.

Do you have any regrets regarding your career?

Not at all—no regrets. I’m where I want to be right now. I did the best that I could when I did it, so all there is left to do is keep getting better and keep rising up.

How far do you think you can go in the sport?

I think I have what it takes to be champion. I think I have the ability to be on top and stay on top—maybe do something amazing in this sport, as well. I tend to have the feeling that it will not end for me here and it will not end for me later down the road; I see a long and bright future ahead of me.

What would constitute “amazing” to you?

To be honest, I can’t really tell you. Something amazing, I guess, one of the most amazing things that I can think of would be something that no one has ever done before.

Aside from trying to do something “amazing”, why do you fight?

It’s an enjoyable experience. Martial arts to me isn’t a sport, it’s not a competition; it’s a lifestyle—it’s what I do every day. I train every day, trying to get better. Every day, the only competition that I see is myself, so every day I’m competing myself; I’m trying to be better than I was yesterday. To me, it’s a lifestyle, and fighting, to me, is a bonus—in a sense—because I get paid to do what I love to do.

What are you thinking about in the weeks leading up to a fight?

Everything but fighting, actually.

Why do you think that is?

I’m never really too concerned about getting out there and fighting; it’s the lifestyle that I chose; it’s the career that I chose. It’s normal to me, so I never really have a change in my mental disposition before a fight comes. For me, it’s like, I’m walking down the street—it’s that regular to me. It’s kind of weird, but it’s like an everyday thing, so I never really get too stressed or too tense thinking about the fight. If anything, I’m thinking more about the weight cut than the fight [laughs].

Do you feel that there are any misconceptions of you?

There are tonnes of misconceptions of me, but that’s the same with everybody else; everybody has a misconception of everybody—everybody has a preconceived notion to judge people when they don’t know them. It’s something that I can’t help and it’s something I can’t get mad at either. I guess when I fight or when they meet me in person or they talk to me, I guess, a lot of people can get to know me and see what I’m really about.

What does the future hold for you?

That I can’t tell you.

Any guesses?

Not at all.

Is there anything that you’d like to say to your fans while you have this opportunity?

I hope you guys enjoy what I’m going to do in the cage in my upcoming fight on March 26th in Seattle—it will be on Spike TV—Fight Night 24. I want my fans—it they’re out there—to watch this fight. It’s going to be explosive and very enjoyable for the crowd, so I hope you guys join me out there.