MMA Access: Loud, Brash & Obnoxious – Here Comes Mayhem Miller

BEHIND THE SCENES MMA ARTICLES & INTERVIEWS

11/29/2011

“Loud, Brash, Obnoxious – Bully Beatdown’s Host Gets His Chance to be the Bully”

By Christopher “sLapDatSuCKa” Jester

There are a few mixed martial artists who bring not only the will to fight but also hold the ability to be confused for a pro wrestler. Jason “Mayhem” Miller is one of those fighters. Miller brings into his fights a slick Jiu-Jutsu game, but also his talent on a microphone would make The Rock cringe. He’s flashy, sometimes over-the-top, but that is all a part of the charm. And it is one of the reasons why people consider “Mayhem” one of the most entertaining mixed martial artists in the world.

Despite fights with the likes of Denis Kang, Tim Kennedy, Egan Inoue, Frank Trigg, Georges St. Pierre, Robbie Lawler, Ronaldo De Souza, and Jake Shields, Mayhem is primarily known for his persona in and out of the ring. He admits to the statement that he is more like a pro wrestler, filled with the heel approach and pre and post-fight microphone terrorism. Entertaining the fans comes first, and only a wild erratic role could pull that off.

Anyone who has not seen one of Mayhem Miller’s entrances should go to Youtube right now. His entrances are flamboyant, extravagant, loud, and part obnoxious – but that is Miller in his truest form. Break dancing with boogieing girls accompanying him to the ring or wearing masks with a machete in tow is all a part of the act. And it’s a sight to see.

Yet, he spends most of his time outside of the ring as a host on a couple of different media outlets. He’s most notably known for being the host on MTV’s Bully Beatdown, a realty show where bullies get an opportunity to fight professional fighters for cash. In the scenario that the bully loses to the professional fighter, the bully’s victim gets the cash. Besides hosting Bully Beatdown, Miller is a regular on Sirius FM’s The Jason Ellis Show, on a segment called “Mayhem Mondays”.

But this should not construe Mayhem as being an unsuccessful mixed martial artist. He’s had quite a few successes in his fighting career. His biggest success probably was in his last fight against Kazushi Sakuraba, where he submitted the legend. This made Mayhem Miller, at the time, the only man to submit Sakuraba since Kimo Leopoldo in 1996. His break into MMA came in Honolulu against a man who was surely to beat him; Egan Inoue. At one point in the match Miller literally spanked his opponent, a Honolulu native, which drew a negative reaction from the crowd.  When Inoue was unable to continue the fight, Mayhem began dancing and swaggering. This showed fight fans just the kind of role Mayhem would play in his fights.

His second major chance at stardom came in his debut and lone appearance (at the time) in the UFC against Georges St. Pierre, where Miller was defeated soundly against an opponent who was hungry to get his title back. His victories after this fight, most notably against Robbie Lawler, Tim Kennedy, and Katsuyori Shibata, led him to fight “Jacare” Ronaldo de Souza. In their first fight, Mayhem lost by unanimous decision, and the second lead to a No Contest due to an illegal soccer kick to a downed de Souza. While their rubber match seemed inevitable, it never came into fruition.

However, despite a loss to Jake Shields, which eventually set up the infamous Nashville Brawl, Miller’s wins over Tim Stout and Kazushi Sakuraba, lead him back to the UFC where he signed a multi-fight deal.

Even Mayhem cannot escape from where he’s most comfortable – in front of cameras. On May 27, 2011, it was announced that Mayhem would fight Michael Bisping, and they both would coach opposite one another on the Ultimate Fighter Season 14. The fourteenth season of the reality show kicked off on  September 21, 2011, and while the two coaches initially seemed to respect each other, as the season progressed both of their personalities began to clash. Each coach pranked one another, and during a heated in-ring confrontation, Miller threw water onto Bisping’s face because of the way Bisping was being disrespectful. Eventually it led Mayhem to say this, “I don’t understand what makes Michael such an asshole. I mean, possibly he has a small penis. I don’t know. But he’s a dick.”

On December 3, 2011, the coaches Jason “Mayhem” Miller and Michael “The Count” Bisping will fight each other. Miller will surely be his normal, wild and crazy self, but the fight is worth more than just an opportunity to shut up his opponent. Dana White revealed that the winner will likely take on middleweight powerhouse Mark Munoz for title implications later in 2012. So not only is Mayhem days away from fighting on the grandest stage of them all in the UFC’s famous octagon, but he could possibly beat up Michael Bisping and also get a chance to fight for a title shot. It is without a doubt that his brash, charismatic, and pro wrestler like persona has got him this far. Come December 3, 2011 he now gets a chance to be the bully and reap the benefits.