UFC 133: Nam Phan Talks Vietnamese Heritage, Underground Fighting, Next Match

Coming off a controversial split decision loss in his professional Octagon debut, Nam Phan, the owner of 16 victories as a professional mixed martial artist, will be looking to get back to his winning ways when he returns to action against Mike Brown at UFC 133 on Aug. 6.

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Nam Phan about, among other topics, his Vietnamese heritage, his experience on the underground mixed martial arts circuit and his forthcoming return to the Octagon in Philadelphia.

Could you please tell me about how your parents came to America?

They left after the Vietnam War. They went to a refugee camp in Malaysia, stayed there for a few years and, eventually, they went to America in ’79 or around then.

Can you imagine going through that experience, yourself?

Me? Oh, man—I can’t imagine that. That’s pretty crazy—I’m glad that I didn’t have to go through that. I’m very appreciative of the life I’ve got.

Do you ever think about where you might be—had your parents not migrated to America?

I’d probably be back home in Vietnam. I don’t know what I’d be doing, but I’d probably be trying to find a way to make it to America [laughs]. 

Knowing what your parents went through, does that at all change the way that you approach your day-to-day life?

Oh, big time. America is the best country in the world and as bad as we think we have it over here, there are a lot of countries that have it much worse. If you can’t make it in America, I don’t know where you can make it. 

Growing up, was there an emphasis on Vietnam culture in the Nam household?

Definitely…Speaking in Vietnamese was always encouraged, we lived around the Vietnamese centre of the town—Little Saigon. It was always important to be polite and hardworking. Vietnamese traditions were also very important, too. My parents would always make sure that we were very appreciative of what we had.

How important is your Vietnamese culture to you?

Very important, sir.

Have you ever been to Vietnam?

No, I haven’t…I may go one day and visit where my parents came from.

Could you please tell me about your life growing up?

I was the youngest of three brothers. We were a very traditional Vietnamese family and we were always taught to respect our elders. There’s a rank-system; the oldest brother would tell the younger brother what to do and the younger brother would tell the youngest brother what to do, so all of the chores were pretty much put onto me.

At one time, my parents were doing pretty well—we had a video-store—and eventually we had, I guess, what you could call "a financial downfall." My parents owned a liquor store in Santa Ana in a little bit of a tougher area.

As a kid, growing up, we weren’t rich, but we weren’t broke, either. I was 13 years old and I was at the liquor store where I would work and do my homework—I did that for five years. Every day after school, my mom would pick me up, take me to the liquor store and I would do my homework and hang out with her.

I would sell beer, cigarettes—all of that stuff—to the gangsters and the prostitutes in the area—there were regular people, too—but that place was a little tougher. We did what we had to do to make it.

How hard, do you feel, your parents worked to afford you a better living than they had growing up?

My parents worked very hard—they worked every day. In Vietnamese culture, we only have a few holidays and everybody is always working. They encouraged us to get a good education and, one day, have a good job.

Back in Vietnam, only the rich kids go to school, so in coming to America, it was always encouraged to get a degree, get a good job, and try to be successful. That’s not always the case, though. 

Do you think the work ethic that they instilled in you growing up is what has helped you really succeed in martial arts?

I think so. I would see how hard my parents—how hard many Vietnamese people worked in this country—but I think that they had it harder than many Asian Americans, now. Back then, you didn’t speak English, so you couldn’t read and write, so you don’t understand the culture and you’ve got to endure a lot of racism and prejudice.

They raised three kids in a foreign land, owned their own business and they did okay. I was born in this country, I can read and write, I went to school here, so if I can’t make it here—with all of the advantages that I have—then I suck! I suck! If my parents can make it and I can’t make it, what does that say about me?

Is that a lot of pressure—having that on your shoulders?

I don’t see it as pressure; I see it as motivation. Sometimes you think that you’ve got it bad, but my parents had it a lot worse. If I can’t make it through this, I mean, c’mon! They had it way worse, so I can’t complain.

Do you remember your first day of Tae Kwon Do?

I do—it was in the ‘80s. I only did it for a very short time, though. I was too young to appreciate the art, so I was only in it for about a month. I think it was because I wanted to train with my brothers back in the day; my family was very involved in martial arts and I wanted to be like everyone else in my family.

A few years later, I started doing karate and I did that for eight years and, from there, I just continued and it blossomed into jiu-jitsu and boxing and mixed martial arts. 

What do you think has made you gravitate towards martial arts?

I think it’s just the culture of it. My family was involved with it, too, so that had a lot to do with it. I always thought it was exciting and I loved watching the old karate movies.

How important have martial arts been to your life?

I think it’s very important; I am who I am today because of martial arts. It’s the foundation of my life; it taught me to be a leader, it strengthened my work ethic, it gave me discipline and structure, good manners, how to be a leader, how to teach.

I think it’s kept me out of trouble, as well; there’s a lot of gang-influence—juvenile delinquents—around town and I think martial arts kept my mind clear and mentally strong.

Do you ever think about where you might be—and what you might be doing—had you not gotten involved with martial arts?

I think I could’ve gotten in with the wrong crowd and gotten myself in a lot of trouble [laughs]. 

Do you reflect on that a lot?

I do, definitely. I see a lot of people and I just think, you know, that that could’ve been me, too. I try to be as good as an influence and as big of an inspiration as I can be for the younger generation.

There are two stereotypes—two extremes; there is the Asian bookworm or the extreme, you know, gangster. If you have a passion, though, you can pursue it and achieve what you want to achieve.

 

How important is it for you to be a positive role-model in the community?

It’s very important for me. For me, when I was growing up, there were no positive Asian role-models to follow. If you were close to my age, you had the actor from 21 Jump Street—and that wasn’t much.

There are very few Asian role-models out there—especially Vietnamese. We feel like we can relate to people that we see have a lot of success—be it on TV or elsewhere—so it’s very important for me to be a positive role-model in the Asian community.

In 2011, do you feel that there are a lot of positive role-models in the Asian community?

No, there’s not a lot. There are a few, but they’re not that well-known. It definitely helps to be in the UFC—to get my face and my story out there.

What was your earliest memory of mixed martial arts?

Oh, I was there from the beginning. I think it was 1994 or ’95 and my brother brought home a UFC VHS tape and that’s when Royce Gracie—a little, skinny man—was dominating giant monsters. It was like magic; we had never seen an armbar before or anything like that in action.

I grew up watching kung fu tapes, so this was amazing. At times, it was kind of boring—because he would just stall—but it was also pretty amazing how he would win.

Back in the day, could you relate to Royce?

Me? I’m not that big either. Both Royce and I aren’t really viewed as an intimidating force; people might look at us and say, “Oh, this guy is a pushover.” I was always trying to steer clear of fights and things like that, but I was always willing to stand my ground.

In the beginning, did you think that MMA was something that you would be interested in trying?

Not in the very beginning, because there were no weight classes back then, but I always wanted to try something like that. I was always too small, but when they implemented weight classes, the dream looked very possible.

When did you get your first opportunity to really explore mixed martial arts?

In 2000. I wanted to do jiu-jitsu and I found an instructor in the yellow pages and I started training in May 2000. A year later, I started doing jiu-jitsu tournaments and then, around that time, I started doing underground martial arts.

Is that where all of those videos come from?

Yes—a lot of them.

How many fights do you think you’ve had on the underground circuit?

I’m not sure. Some of them aren’t up on the Internet, but eight, I guess … in the early-2000s.

Do you think that was a valuable learning experience?

Yeah—we had no choice, though; there was no commission. The only way we could get experience with cage-fighting was through these underground, unsanctioned events. We were left with no choice, so we had to do it for very little money. 

When did you realize that mixed martial arts was something that you could, potentially, make a career out of?

In the beginning, I didn’t really know—it was just a passion. I started going to Cal State Fullerton and I was majoring in business and marketing. I had offers to fight in Japan, but I passed them up, because I wanted to finish school.

I told myself that if I wanted to fight, then I should do it when I was young. Age doesn’t matter in schooling, but fighting is a young man’s sport. With 40 credits left, I rolled the dice; I dropped out of college and I went full-on with MMA.

How does it feel to be a part of the UFC?

Oh, it’s the best. Every fighter wants to make it to the UFC. Whether you’re at the bottom of the UFC or the top—it doesn’t matter, because you’re a part of the elite.

 

Did you always believe that you would be a part of this?

In my mind, I always knew that I would be able to compete in the UFC. Realistically, I’m not the best athlete, I’m not the best striker or the best grappler, but I’ve always told myself that I’m going to make it—I have to make it.

Do you have any regrets about dropping out of school to pursue your career?

Not at all—I hate school [laughs].

No intention of going back, eh?

Zero [laughs]. I’ve got no intentions at all.

It seems there’s a pretty sharp contrast between business and marketing and MMA.

Huge. I learned a lot, though. The whole point behind me going into business and marketing was to help market myself as a fighter. I thought I had learned enough, though, you know?

All in all, was that a valuable experience for you, though?

Going to school was a very valuable experience for me.

How do you feel about what you’ve been able to accomplish in the UFC so far?

So far, I’m 0-1 in the UFC [laughs]! I was on a tough show—I had a lot of fun—so, so far, so good. It could be better, you know? I need to get a win.

Do you view your last performance as a win?

I, personally, think it was a victory, but on the record, it is not.

How’s the foot feeling?

It feels pretty good. It’s good enough.

Is that the first major injury that you’ve dealt with in your career?

No, I’ve had a few injuries; I’ve broke my hand, I’ve broke my nose, broken ribs, I’ve pulled every muscle I can pull. It was one of the most depressing ones—I really wanted to compete in the UFC, again—but what happened, happened.

How hungry are you to get back in there now?

I’m very motivated—I’ve very hungry. I’m ready to fight!

Do you feel you’ve improved quite a bit since your last outing?

We’ll see, right [laughs]?

[Laughs] What are you expecting out of yourself?

I’m expecting it will be a high-pace fight—I’m expecting a lot of intensity.

What problems do you feel Mike poses to you?

He poses plenty of problems to me; he’s very experienced—he’s more experienced than me—he’s very strong—a lot of power. This fight is going to be very difficult for me, but I’m going to be able to solve it.

Do you make predictions going into your fights?

No, I don’t.

Have you always had this outlook?

I guess I have made predictions in the past, but when they go wrong, it’s embarrassing [laughs]. I just think, you know, “Do your best. Just do your best.”

Assuming you win, what do you feel is the next step in your career?

Ah, it’s probably going to be a harder fight, right? [Laughs] The next fight will probably be against a tougher, higher-ranked opponent.

What are your goals in the sport at this point?

At this point in my career—of course everyone wants to be a champion—but I understand that there’s only one champion and that guy might not be me. For where I’m at in my career right now, I just want to make the best of every performance.

What would a championship mean to you, though?

Oh, everything! If I get a chance to fight for a title, I’m going to take it.

Do you think the mindset where you’re, basically, taking it one fight at a time alleviates some of the pressure that’s usually involved in MMA?

I think so. Some guys put too much emphasis on becoming the champion and, if they never get it, it haunts them. Who’s the uncle from "Napoleon Dynamite?" Uncle Rico? [Laughs] The guy is like 46 years old and he’s still talking about what he did back in high-school, you know, “I went to state.” That’s like 30 years later! I don’t want to be someone like that; just let it go! As long as you did your best, just let it go.

Is that your philosophy as a mixed martial arts?

My philosophy as a mixed martial artist is this; confident mind, humble words.

How much do you feel that’s influenced by your Vietnamese culture and your upbringing?

I think it’s martial arts and my Vietnamese upbringing. Around town, there are a bunch of jerks. But my mom told me that if you’re a big deal around town, you don’t have to make any noise, because everyone around town knows who you are.

Does everyone in your town know who Nam Phan is at this point?

I’m not sure if they do or not. I don’t try to praise myself or walk around expecting everyone to know who I am; I’m just a normal guy. If people recognize me, then they recognize me, but I don’t make a big deal out of it.

Is it ever difficult to stay humble?

For me? No—I just keep myself in check. I wouldn’t go up to a girl and say, you know, “Do you know who I am?” I’m just a normal guy; I say, “Hi, my name is Nam Phan.” I always tell girls that I’m a martial arts instructor and not a fighter, too [laughs]. Actually, I take that back—it depends [laughs]. If you’re a nice girl, then I’m going to tell them that I’m a martial arts instructor. If it’s a hooch, I’ll tell her I’m a fighter [laughs]. That works better.

So, if you run into the ladies from "Jersey Shore," I’m guessing you’ll tell them you’re a fighter [laughs].

Yeah—that’s right [laughs].