Automatic episode summary
Keith Vance opens Still Strong #31 by apologizing for the hour: a taping meant for Saturday morning instead lands at 8:30 on a Wednesday night, both men tired and getting it done anyway. His guest is Niko Price, a welterweight who spent a little over nine years and twenty-one fights in the UFC and built a reputation as one of the most unpredictable finishers in the sport. Keith starts there: the hammer-fist knockout thrown from the bottom position, the willingness to take fights on a week's notice, the way Price seemed to come alive the moment a fight fell into chaos. Price explains the mechanics behind it. He is a freestyle fighter rather than a numbered-combination fighter, because opponents and their coaches eventually learn your rhythms. "You can't count one, two, three, four, five in fighting," he says.
The conversation turns to how a man ends up in that life at all, and Price's answer surprises his host: he never wanted to be a fighter. He was an aggressive high-school linebacker heading toward corrections work, and he walked into a gym at eighteen only to learn to defend himself on the job. He talked his way into sparring the first night, was dropped inside a minute by a stranger, refused to stop, and then put the man down. That night he quit the plan to be a cop. Weeks later he met his wife, who has been beside him for the whole of his MMA life.
Much of the middle of the episode is about the grind and the household that carried it. Price told his wife to leave her job rather than pay four hundred dollars a week per child in daycare, and he hustled landscaping work, asking to leave early so he could get to the gym. There were seasons of falling behind on the house. Both sets of grandparents lived nearby, along with brothers, aunts, uncles and cousins. "By the grace of God, we made it every time we needed to," he says, and then hands the show its own title back: "You're not only strong by yourself. Still Strong can go as family too." His first professional fight was in 2010 and his first UFC fight in 2016 - six years of grinding, with money a struggle in every one of them. Keith answers with his own account of calling: framing houses at fourteen, meeting his wife when she was fourteen and he was almost sixteen, a thirtieth anniversary the following week, and a settled sense that he was built to provide.
Price's description of fight night is unusually plain. He felt no butterflies walking out for his UFC debut. He prays with his coaches, manages his adrenaline so he does not spend it in the back, and treats the cage as the one place where his purpose and his provision met. Asked directly about fear, he answers: "I was never alone. I'm Christian, man. I have firm faith in God... God's on my side, homie." He is candid that a perfect camp can still produce a bad night, that weight cuts and hydration and adrenaline dumps decide more than fans realize, and that his early losses stung for a day or two before he took the lesson and moved on.
The last third covers retirement, which his wife and children called and which he had promised them years earlier they could call. He talks about the anticlimactic final walk-out, the losses he made peace with, and where his identity actually rests. "I'm still me," he tells Keith. "It's a child of Christ, man. That's way bigger than being a UFC fighter." He credits God with arranging both the beginning and the end of the career and says he is completely satisfied with it. He now coaches, works alongside his brother, and runs a bait delivery business, the Bait Mobile, with two friends. The episode closes on recovery - Price says he is at full health now and estimates he fought at about seventy percent - a shared history of family bait shops, and an open invitation to come back for a second conversation.
Speakers
- Intro voiceover other
- Keith Vance host
- Niko Price guest
- Crosstalk other
Chapters
- 1:42 A dangerous, unpredictable nine years
Keith opens on Niko Price's UFC reputation - short-notice fights, strange finishes, and a hammer-fist knockout thrown from the bottom position. Price agrees that chaos is where he came alive.
- 3:05 Freestyle fighting, not by numbers
Price explains why he refuses to fight in drilled combinations: opponents and their coaches study rhythms and patterns, so he trained himself to break the count and change timing constantly.
- 6:09 Would you do it all again?
Keith asks whether Price would repeat the whole career, and gets an immediate yes. Keith answers with a picture of a three-year-old grandson who has not yet learned to stop running.
- 7:36 The night he stopped being a cop
Price says he never wanted to be a fighter. At eighteen he walked into a gym to prepare for corrections work, got dropped in his first minute of sparring, refused to stop, and dropped his opponent instead.
- 12:52 The grind: struggle, family, six years
Landscaping jobs, a wife kept home instead of paying daycare, months behind on the house, and grandparents on both sides holding the family up. First pro fight in 2010, first UFC fight in 2016.
- 19:56 Built to provide: Keith's calling
Keith tells his own story - homeschooled, mowing yards, framing houses at fourteen, meeting his wife at almost sixteen - and argues that it is never too late to try the thing you were made for.
- 23:53 No fear: God's on my side
Asked about losing in front of millions, Price says he was never alone in the cage. He walks through his entrance ritual, praying with his coaches, and how he times his adrenaline so it is not spent backstage.
- 29:58 Why great camps still lose
Price is honest that a perfect camp can end in one of his worst nights, and short-notice fights in some of his best. Weight cuts, hydration and adrenaline dumps decide more than fans see.
- 34:00 Favorite fights and mutual respect
Randy Brown, James Vick, Tim Means and both fights with Vicente Luque. Price describes hitting Luque as hard as he can hit a man and watching him shake it off, and why he greets opponents rather than glares at them.
- 36:41 Letting his family call time
Price had told his wife and children that they would decide when he was finished. He explains what they carried watching him, what he missed while training, and how the final walk-out ended without a send-off.
- 45:52 Still me: identity beyond the cage
Keith asks whether losing the fighter title shook him. Price says no - he is a child of Christ first - and credits God with arranging both the beginning and the end of a career he is completely satisfied with.
- 49:41 The Bait Mobile and life after fighting
Price now delivers live bait with two friends, coaches, and works with his brother. Keith trades bait-shop family history, and the two close on recovery, health and a standing invitation for a second episode.
Key takeaways
- 7:36 Niko Price never set out to be a fighter. He walked into a gym at eighteen to prepare for corrections work, was knocked down in his first minute of sparring, and the refusal to stay down is what redirected his whole life.
- 21:46 Keith names the real barrier to trying: self-doubt plus an imagined audience. "You feel like all eyes are on you, but nobody's watching you, brother. Everybody's into their own selves."
- 36:41 Price handed the retirement decision to his wife and seven children: "When you guys tell me to, I'm stepping out." Keith commends it directly, noting that some men chase the dream and make everyone around them suffer, when the dream exists to provide for those people in the first place.
- 43:35 On losses, Price describes a short grief and a fast lesson: a day or two of sinking in after his first defeat, then "who cares about being undefeated," then fixing the specific hole - keeping his right hand up against the left hook that caught him.
Pull quotes
"Oh, yeah. It was my dream. My dream was to fight on the biggest stage in the world." - Niko Price, when Keith asks whether he would do the whole career again.
"You're not only strong by yourself. Still Strong can go as family too. You think you're weak, but then your brother comes and helps you." - Niko Price on leaning on parents, brothers and extended family.
"You're not allowed to stop. If you want to stop, you might as well choose something else." - Niko Price on the six-year grind before the UFC.
"Well, I was never alone. I'm Christian, man. I have firm faith in God. When I walked in there, I was just like, you don't scare me. God's on my side, homie. Like, no fear." - Niko Price on losing in front of millions.
Price's pre-fight ritual is small and ordinary: hug the corner, pray with his coaches, then turn and let the officials check him. He deliberately holds his adrenaline back so he does not burn it in the locker room.
"It's to provide. I provided by competing against this guy. I killed two birds with one stone. I had to take care of my family and I got to fill my reason." - Niko Price on why the fights were never personal.
"It's a child of Christ, man. That's way bigger than being a UFC fighter." - Niko Price, when Keith observes that he never took himself too seriously.
"All the things fell in line just too perfectly for it not to be God... and it ended too perfect for it not to be God." - Niko Price on how faith and his career fit together across nine and a half years and twenty-one UFC fights.
Scripture & context
- 15:28 "By the grace of God, we made it every time we needed to." Price uses grace language for the lean years, echoing 1 Corinthians 15:10. Note: an allusion, not a quotation.
- 19:56 Keith Vance lays out his own calling as a counterpart to Price's: homeschooled and finishing fast so he could work, mowing yards, framing houses and slinging plywood at fourteen, and meeting his wife when she was fourteen and he was almost sixteen. He was built to provide, and the couple celebrates thirty years the week after taping.
- 47:40 Describing his household and his children's church and school, Price says, "We're very firm in the foundation. We're very fruitful, and we're multiplied" - language drawn from Genesis 1:28. Note: an allusion, not a quotation.
Questions answered
- Would Niko Price do the whole fighting career over again?
- Yes, without hesitation. He tells Keith it was his dream to fight on the biggest stage in the world, and that he would run it again even knowing the losses. Later in the episode he admits he is still itching to compete. jump · 6:09
- How did Niko Price end up fighting when he never planned to?
- He was heading toward police and corrections work after high school and went to a gym at eighteen only to learn to defend himself around inmates. He talked his way into sparring the first night, was dropped within a minute, got back up, and put the other man down. That night he dropped the corrections plan and stopped attending college. jump · 7:36
- How did the Price family survive financially before the UFC?
- Price told his wife to stay home rather than pay roughly four hundred dollars a week per child in daycare, and he hustled landscaping work between training sessions. There were seasons when they were behind and nearly lost the house, and both sets of parents lived close enough to help. He credits the grace of God with getting them through every time. jump · 15:28
- How long did it take Niko Price to reach the UFC?
- About six years. He recalls a kickboxing debut in Ybor City around 2009, his first mixed martial arts fight in 2010, and his first UFC fight in 2016. Money was a struggle for that entire stretch, because the smaller organizations of that era simply did not pay. jump · 19:04
- Was Niko Price ever afraid walking into the cage?
- He says no, and grounds the answer in his faith rather than in bravado: "I was never alone. I'm Christian, man. I have firm faith in God." He describes walking in thinking that his opponent does not scare him because God is on his side. He also prays with his coaches before the cage door closes. jump · 23:53
- Why can a fighter have a perfect camp and still lose?
- Price says it is anyone's night. You can disappear from the world to train, face a man who partied all weekend, and still be beaten. He points to adrenaline dumps, bad weight cuts and poor rehydration as the small things that decide a night, and notes that some of his worst losses followed his best camps while some of his best wins came on short notice. jump · 27:42
- Who decided it was time for Niko Price to retire?
- His wife and children did. He had told them years earlier that whenever they said the word, he would step out. Their reasons were the emotions of watching their father get punched and choked on television, and everything he had to miss while training. He gives them that authority even though he says he would love to compete again. jump · 36:41
- Did retiring shake Niko Price's sense of identity?
- No. Asked directly whether he struggles now that he is no longer a fighter, he answers simply, "I'm still me." He locates his identity in being a child of Christ, which he says is far bigger than being a UFC fighter, and describes fighting as something he did rather than something he was. jump · 45:52
- What does Niko Price do now that he has retired?
- He coaches, works long days alongside his brother, and runs a live bait delivery business called the Bait Mobile with two friends, George and Kevin. George had been building it for close to a decade before Price joined a couple of years ago. He says they know how to sell the bait and are mainly looking for suppliers to keep the tanks full. jump · 49:41
- Why does Niko Price say he is healthier now than when he fought?
- He estimates he competed at around seventy percent of full health because fighters simply cannot recover as fast as they train. In retirement he says he is closer to one hundred percent, crediting peptide protocols he calls a Wolverine stack for his knees. He speculates that such compounds are barred in competition because they would make already dangerous men hit harder. jump · 53:52
Helpful links
product
- The Bait Mobile Niko Price's live bait delivery business, run with his friends George and Kevin; no web address is given in the episode.
- Richardson 112 cap - the Still Strong guest hat The hat every Still Strong guest receives; Keith names the Richardson 112 model on air but gives no web address.
ministry
- Christian Life Fellowship (CLF) The church Niko Price brings his children to; named in the episode with no web address given.
other
- Christian Life Academy (CLA) The Christian school Price's children attend, where his daughter has been enrolled since kindergarten; no web address is given.
Full transcript
Intro voiceover: I learned the hard way, nothing's overnight, some days you lose, some days you survive. Still Strong, even moving slow, every step counts more than you know I found gold in the everyday, showing up and staying brave. Still Strong.
Keith Vance: Nico Price, welcome to the Still Strong Podcast. What's up brother, how you doing? I've been looking forward to this, we've been planning it for a while. We normally do these about 10 o'clock on Saturday, you showed up to do it, we had problems, it's about 8.30 Wednesday night, we're all tired but we're getting it done, I just wanted to say thank you. No problem man. I appreciate you.
Niko Price: I have fun doing these, I'm interested to see what we're going to talk about.
Keith Vance: Yeah, me too, I'm excited. Before we get down to it, everyone that comes on the podcast, they get a Still Strong hat, these are Richardson 112s, my kids tell me they're the best, so when you're doing your thing you can represent us while you're out there fishing, fighting, whatever you do. That's a little big. How old are you now? Me, I'm 36. 36. So you represent us, Still Strong is a continuation of, right? Yeah. Not what we were in our 20s, but hey, we're still. Getting after it.
Niko Price: Who says it? Toby Keith. Not as good as I once was, but I'm as good as I always was. That's it.
Keith Vance: Michael, we good? All right.
Keith Vance: Nico, you spent a little over nine years in the UFC. Yes, sir. You had a reputation for being a dangerous fighter. Mm-hmm. And I think part of what made you dangerous. Yeah. Was your unpredictability. Mm-hmm. You had some of the most unpredictable stoppages that I think I've ever seen. Me too. I've never seen someone get a knockout from hammer fist in the bottom position, holding somebody's head up on my foot. Oh, so you couldn't get it away. But I saw you do it. Because he was trying to. Yeah. So you were dangerous, you were unpredictable.
Keith Vance: Mm-hmm. It seemed to be that the more chaotic a fight got, that's where you thrived. Like something opened up in you that you're like, oh, chaos, OK. And that's why I think another thing I think made your fight so exciting was something opened up when it got chaotic.
Niko Price: Oh, yeah. No, I liked it. When it gets like, when it gets going, I'm not like a person who runs away from the fire. you know and
Keith Vance: they were exciting to watch oh yeah when the chaos happened we were all glued to the tv because nico's gonna do something chaotic yeah it's
Niko Price: because i'm not like traditional like i'm a legit freestyle fighter you know like i always tell all my buddies my buddies they own schools and stuff i tell their students i'm like look you guys are killing it like they do everything right but the thing is eventually i'm gonna catch on to your rhythm so like they get stuck counting like combo one combo two like stuff like things like that like we have three combos that we throw all the time when we yell the certain things you know you hear that from out there so like if you fall if you learn the like the counts like rhythms and patterns yes you know like and as you the more you spar with people the more you train with people and stuff like that and then you as your fighter you study so you're gonna study the coaches you're gonna listen to their previous fights you're gonna hear those combos and then you're gonna be like oh what are those combos you know you look into them so i always tell people like you can't count one two three four five in fighting you know it has to be like one five three four two you know it has to be all different in different timing and stuff you gotta be just changing it up constantly like freestyle
Keith Vance: the um i think anybody that knows niko can testify to this uh your fans brother like your fans loved you because you were known for being a true fighter you would take fights on short notice you would i would even say you would take fights that maybe weren't strategically to your advantage
Niko Price: dude i lost a lot of fights because and it
Keith Vance: went to who you are like you are a true fighter and And I think that's why people love you so much because that was, that was respect. Like. Nico's not going to say no. Like, you are a true fighter. You're not doing a strategic thing to get a certain place. You're there to fight. And that resonated with your fans. I want
Niko Price: to fight all of them. That resonated. They always ask me. Like, me and Shelby, we talked, you know, all the time. Like, when he had a fight for me, or if I wanted to get a fight, I would text him, you know. Because I didn't have a manager, so I just spoke direct to him. You know, saved a couple bucks. You know, but when you have someone fighting for you, it's better. But when saving 10% when you have seven kids was better in my book, you know what I'm saying? I
Keith Vance: want to get into that, but not yet, because that's something you and I have in common. Yeah. We've both got seven. Lucky number seven. Woo-woo! So, we're going to get into it. I want to break down this conversation in hubs. Gotcha. Okay? So, I'm going to ask you a question, and I want you to be honest. Think about it. You spent nine years as a professional fighter in the UFC. I don't know how long you were an amateur. I don't know how long you were an amateur fighter for. But with everything that you've experienced as a fighter, where you're at now, would you do it again?
Niko Price: Oh, yeah. It was my dream. My dream was to fight on the biggest stage in the world. Okay. So, hold on
Keith Vance: to that. I'm going to say some things, and you and I are going to resonate heavy. Because...
Keith Vance: So, I have six grandkids. Yeah. I just saw one of them. My oldest grandson, he's three years old. Okay? So, think of a three-year-old. When he comes over, Papa, look at my muscles. Papa, watch how fast I can run. Papa, watch me do this. So, from someone who's lived their dream, okay? This is going to be a little multi-layer, so hang on. That three-year-old kid. Papa, watch how fast I can run. You get a certain age, and nobody else is running, so you stop running. You get a certain age where there's this thing where this is what everybody else is doing, so this is the responsible thing to do. Let me fit this mold with everyone else, and people quit running. But then there's these anomalies, and I want to see how you got there. There's these people that said, no, I was born for fighting, and they never stopped running. Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Made it. So, having said that, speak to it, man. So,
Niko Price: like, I know exactly where you're going with this, but I never wanted to be a fighter. Isn't that crazy? Yeah, let's hear it. I was just an aggressive guy. I played football. You know, linebacker, lineman, all the ones that you hit someone every time. You know, and then after high school, there was nothing. So, I was going to go be a cop. And then after that... They're like, oh, you're going to have to work in corrections. So, I'm like, okay, I'm going to go learn how to defend myself. You know, I'm not going to be in the jail with a bunch of, like, scary prisoner dudes tatted up on their faces and stuff and not know how to, like, throw some hands at least. You know what I'm saying? So, I went to a gym in the Cape. My buddy, good-time friend, Jeff Santella, went over there. And he was like, well, you can do this. Because he was helping me get into the corrections. And he was like, yeah, you can do this. And I started training there. And I sparred the first night there. And normally you're not allowed to spar. But, like, I was like a little bit of an athlete. And I was very, like, hey, man, just let me do it. Like, come on, man, I'm good. I'll be fine. Well, I got dropped, like, literally the first minute by the dude I was sparring with. And it was, like, some street dude. I don't even remember his name or nothing. Because he dropped me. But, you know, so... And then I got back up. And they're like, oh, you're not allowed to spar. And I was like, oh, you're done. I'm like, no, I'm not. I'm like, no, no, I want to go. So then, boom, I put him down. And I was like, oh, that was good. And it felt really good. So then I just, I dropped out of, like, the whole correction officer. Stopped going to Edison College, which is FSU now.
Keith Vance: So how old were you at this time when you... 18. Okay. All right, we're going to vibe with this. All right, so keep going.
Niko Price: Oh, yeah, so it was too late for me to start anyway. 18 was too late. They said
Keith Vance: you can't do it if you start at 18. So are you telling me from that one experience is when you said, this is what I want to do? Or was it a little bit of a process? No, that night I decided I'm not going to be a cop. That night you said, okay, I'm not going to be a cop. But you made the decision I'm going to be a fighter? Yeah. That night, just from that experience, this is what I'm going to do. I got
Niko Price: to hit someone. I never got to, like, test myself with someone. And the dude I tested myself with was very... Tim and Nate look like an individual, you know, like tatted head to toe, jacked, you know, but when I hit him, he just, I was like, oh, okay, I can do this.
Keith Vance: We're going to spend some time here. I like that you wanted to test yourself and that you left it on the line because that's your nature. A lot of people don't even try because they're going to fail. They stop running because nobody else is running, and I'm the only one doing this. I hung
Niko Price: up the ones that didn't stop running. There you go. Even in football, like, my best friends, we all played the same positions. So, it wasn't like, like, we were friends, but we were competitive friends, you know, like, we would compete for our positions every week. And if we didn't, like, if the coaches didn't have us competing, we would challenge each other. You know, like, I started some games. This is senior. And my buddy Garrett would start some games as a senior, and then it would be back and forth, and then it would be boom, boom, and they put both on the field at the same time. And then, you know, like, we had such a core of, like, attackers that, and we always worked out together. We trained together after in practice. We headhunted each other until we got better, like. So, you were
Keith Vance: kind of, you were kind of, that competitiveness kind of, like, built you for what you're doing. Uh-huh. I'm going to let you tell your story. Mm-hmm. But I knew what my purpose was when I was 15. Mm-hmm. And looking back from 15 before, I could see how I was built for it. So, I'll circle back to what I was built for. Mm-hmm. But from someone who has, that know what it's like, from someone who knows what it's like to have Bruce Buffer announce their name on the biggest platform in the world, Mm-hmm. to actually have feet. Mm-hmm. to actually have feet in that octagon. To someone who lived it. Mm-hmm. To someone who put it on their line from that first time you went toe-to-toe to a guy to see what I can do, and you put them down. From that guy to the one who experienced it, you just said, man, I'd do it all over again. Let's talk about that road. Can we do it? Oh, yeah.
Niko Price: Yeah, it was rough. You know? The beginning, you're not making money. You know, you're a young kid. You know, I'm just, like, trying to figure it out. But once I found out that I, once I tried it, I knew I wanted to do it, you know, after that. And then me and my wife met, like, literally weeks later. Mm-hmm. You know, so she's been here my whole entire MMA life, is my wife. You know, so, like, literally rags to riches. So we went from just struggling every day to now we have property. We got seven kids together. Before you get
Keith Vance: to the property, let's start with the struggle. Oh, yeah. Let's start there. Let's start there. No, working. Because was there ever times that you're struggling and you're like, man, maybe I should just go do what everybody else is doing? No. Okay, good. Man, that's good. You always knew it, and I'm going to get there.
Niko Price: No, I knew what I was doing. Okay. I almost got fired. I had a lot of landscaping jobs because I knew what I wanted. You know? Hey, guys, can I go home early? If I finish early, can I get out of here? I got to go to the gym. I got to go work out. I got to go lift. I got to go train. I got to go teach someone. You know, like, I knew where I wanted to be.
Keith Vance: But it wasn't an easy road. So tell me some of those, like looking back, your journey with your wife. Next week, I'm going to celebrate 30-year anniversary with my wife. Amen. So I've been thinking about our journey together. There's been, like, more, a lot of good times. But in those early years, there's a lot more hard times than easy times. But it was all good because we were together and we had our purpose.
Niko Price: Well, you know why? You're learning each other. That's it. It's only hard because you don't know who you're with still. You know, I know couples that live together and don't really know each other. You know what I'm saying? Yeah. Yeah, and I'm always questioning my wife. I know my wife before she says something. I know her answer or anything. And she knows, like, right when I call her. Like, on the way here, I was telling her I started working again with my brother because he needs some help. Right. And I'm tired, dude. I feel like I'm in the beginning stages of it. I may right now. Okay. You know, I worked 10 hours for my brother. And I went and taught for two hours. An hour, hour and a half. No, we went. When did I call you? That's when I got off the mat. About
Keith Vance: seven or so.
Niko Price: Yeah, I was like. So, I'm just tired right now. Then when I go home, I'll go to. My kids will probably all be asleep. So, I'll probably just kiss them or tickle them until they wake up just so they can see me. Yeah. I'm like, I'm here. And then I'm back to sleep. I'm moving them off. Mm-hmm.
Keith Vance: So, those early years. Yeah. Let's hit some of those hurdles. But where you, the name of the podcast is Still Strong, so that's what I'm trying to get at. Oh, yeah. What were some of those early on adversities where, but you got through the other side. Oh, you almost lose your house. You just kept putting links in the chain. So let's hear some of them. Yeah. And I want you to walk me that journey from there to your first time stepping in the UFC. And I want to hear this adversity to this, to that. Walk me down this pathway. Okay. I heard you say, I heard you say I almost lost my house. Oh,
Niko Price: yeah. There's times we're behind, you know. I told her once we started having kids, it's like, yo, quit your job. Because if you have a job, you have to go to day, then we have to get daycare. Daycare alone is 400 bucks, you know, each a week. You know, like it's expensive. So I was like, you just stay home and I'll just hustle and we'll do what we can do. And by the grace of God, we made it every time we needed to. Thank you. We made it. If not, we had help. You know, my parents are here. Her parents are here. So if we needed something, we could get it and then we can get it back to them. Of course, you know. Family and community to help support. Yeah. That's a good point. My whole family's here. That's a good point. Two older brothers, mom, dad, aunts, uncles, cousins. We're all here.
Keith Vance: It's a good point because in the pursuit of your dream, a lot of times it's a community help. You need to be held
Niko Price: up sometimes by your family. Yeah. You're not only strong by yourself, Still Strong can go as family too. That's it. You know, you think you're weak, but then your brother comes and helps you. So
Keith Vance: in your journey, you had support. You have kids and you took on that responsibility to keep your wife home. So that's extra stress on you. So as you continue down this road, tell me about a time where things started like breaking loose. Like, you know, you're a kid. Like, you saw some traction. Like, you saw some progress. The whole
Niko Price: fighting career, I saw progress. Explain it. Every time I got in the cage, I just, well, I can't say I did. God proved that I was supposed to be there. You know, get hit, fall down, wake up, make it happen. You know, because in fights, there's times you get hit and you're out. And then you get hit and then you're there. Like, you get put to sleep and then you get woke up. Like, that happens in fights. Really? Yeah, I've done it to people. It's happened to me, too. Now, I've been hit and then, oh, God, I hit the floor and then, boom, I get hit. My first loss to Vicente Luque. When he hit me with a, I think it was a two and then a three. And then I hit the floor. And then he jumps in with an uppercut and woke me up. And I was like, oh, I'm here. And then I did, like, a little, 360 and I shot in. But when I shot in, I was, like, reactive, but I wasn't thoughtful. Got it. So I shot him in my head up like this and he just darsed me. Knocked me out, woke me up, then choked me out.
Keith Vance: So you said you saw progression in your training. Yeah. What about progression in, like, it not being so much of a struggle? When did it start breaking loose? So
Niko Price: the money. It was always a struggle until the UFC. So what was that timeline? The organizations back in the day didn't have, like, funds. Like, now, you know, like, some of our low-level profilers make more than I made throughout all before the UFC. You know, it's crazy.
Keith Vance: So from your first, boom, boom, this is what I'm going to do, until you're stepping up. I've been in the ring in the UFC. How many years was that, more or less?
Keith Vance: 2010
Niko Price: was my first fight.
Niko Price: And then 2016 is when I fought in the UFC, my first fight in the UFC. So it was six
Keith Vance: years. Six years. Mm-hmm. That's about right because they say, like, when you start a business, if you can make it past the first three years, you're good. Mm-hmm. It would make sense that it's six years because you picked a freaking hard business and it should take twice as long. I mean, seriously. Full body. Yeah. So it would make sense. Mm-hmm. So, again, I'm just trying to speak to Nico Price back then or maybe people who want to be Nico Price. Yeah. Grind. Grind. You better grind. And grind for a long time.
Niko Price: All right. You're not allowed to stop. Okay. If you want to stop, you might as well choose something else.
Keith Vance: Remember I told you. I asked you if you were built for fighting. You said, yeah, that's what I'm going to do. I told you I'm going to tell you my story. I was built to provide. My wife was 14, and I was almost 16 when we met. I was homeschooled when I was a kid. My homeschooling, I would knock it out as fast as possible so I could go. I would mow yards. Every summer, my dad had me working on a job site. At 14 years old, I'm framing houses, slinging plywood. And I'm like, you said, hey, I want to do this. I said, I like how this feels. I want to do this. To work in the sun all day, to be exhausted with a turnaround and see something that is there now that wasn't. I found purpose in that. And when I met my wife when she was 14, I told myself, I'm going to take care of her. And for 30 years, it's been my purpose. Now, I take care of a lot of people, but she was the one, bro. She started it. I found this mechanism. I found this mechanism that I could do. I can do this to provide. And I just want to get to that thing that whatever you're built for, doesn't it just feel good to do what you're made for? Because I think there's so many people out there that are doing stuff that they hate. And I want to say it's never too late to say, hey, bro, just give it a shot. Yeah, try. Just try. Just try to knock them out. At least you can say I tried. Like, there's life there. Like, I felt that. At least I tried, right?
Niko Price: Like, some of my friends who, they don't want to go to the gym. I'm like, dude, but they want to get in fit. I'm like, you just got to try. Walk through the doors. Walk through the doors. All
Keith Vance: right. And you got it. Again, trying. What keeps you from trying? You have your own self-doubt. You have your own, hey, what if I fail? You got that own voice. But then there's. Other people in the room and you feel like all eyes are on you, but nobody's watching you, brother. Like, everybody's into their own selves. But we feel like everyone's watching me. We put all this pressure on ourselves. What's wrong with just trying?
Niko Price: I don't know. I do. I always did. That's why I took the fights on seven day notice. Then no one would. Everybody's all scared. Go fight. I thought we were fighters.
Keith Vance: You know, there's something to be said for people that just want to play it safe. Don't want to put themselves out there. And you are on the opposite spectrum of that. And I'm trying to try it out. You're going to try it. And what you're saying is not skydiving, though. Well, I've done that. I won't do that. But what you're saying is you got satisfaction just trying. You feel fulfilled by just trying. Have you ever failed, Nico? No. In all your fights?
Niko Price: No. No, no. You haven't? Eighteen
Keith Vance: and nine. You were eight? I
Niko Price: don't know. Something like
Keith Vance: that. So let's talk about that for a while. So you've lost some fights. Oh, yeah. Have you lost some fights that were televised? Where everybody's watching? Oh, yeah. Millions.
Niko Price: Millions. Unless it's Robbie Lawler. So nobody wants to lose. A billion watched that fight. A billion people watched that fight? I don't know. I felt like it when I woke up. I don't know.
Keith Vance: Nobody likes to lose. No. Especially when that's your living, right? Yeah. But you said, hey, if I was to do it all over again, I'd run it again. So I just want to take the fear out of it for some people. Like, it's okay to try, and it's okay to lose in front of a bunch of people.
Niko Price: Well, I was never alone. I'm Christian, man. I have firm faith in God. You know, when I walked in there, I was just like, you don't scare me. God's on my side, homie. Like, no fear. That's
Keith Vance: a good transition, because after I got through the struggle and the journey to the UFC, I was going to ask you, what was it like your first time stepping in the ring? Can we talk about that one? Oh, yeah. Let's do it. Your first time. Like, my first fight. Your very first fight in the UFC. Oh, in the UFC. Do you get the butterflies? No. I just wanted to get him. Walk me through it. You're going too fast. Walk me through it. The walk down where Herb Dean checks your mouth guard. I was just trying to
Niko Price: contain myself. Really? Yeah. Because I have a thing where if I can get too excited, and I can, like, what is it? Adrenaline dump myself. Yes. I'll be, like, in the back of my, like, let's go! And I'll just, like, amp up. And then I'm like, right when it's fight time, I have nothing. I'm like, oh, man, I used it. You mistimed it. Yeah. So, like. . . . I wait until I'm in there, and then I'm looking at you. Once I see you, then I'm excited. I know what time it is, when to go, when to go. Let's do it. So you
Keith Vance: walk in. You look over. You're not scared. No. Because you've trained. I'm analyzing. You've trained. You've done your homework. So now it's just, I would relate it to just going to work. Is that what it's like? It's just going to work? I don't know. I've never been in the UFC, so I'm trying to walk. I'm trying to walk that path. When you're walking
Niko Price: up, it's just, I don't know. For me, I know what the next step is. So I walk up. I'm like, what's up, guys? I got to turn around, hug my coach. Yeah, I say what's up to everybody. And they're all like, oh, my God. And then they always talk about me. They're like, yeah, this guy is just crazy over here. I always hear them talking about me out the side over here while I'm hugging everyone. So I'll pray with my coaches. We hug. Boom. And then I turn. I turn. Because then after that, now they're going to check me and no one can touch me. Oh. So just in case, they want to slip a razor on me. No, I'm just kidding. I don't know why they do that. That's probably why. But I don't see anyone doing that. And then after that, they check me. I walk in. And when I walk in, I do the circle thing. You know, I'm just, when I get in there is when it hits you. It's like, yes. Right now, I can go really good. Or I can go really bad. But it doesn't matter. I'm going for good. You know, like, because you have to know there's a bad side that can happen to you when you go in there. I feel like that's part of my motivation to not let that start. You know?
Keith Vance: So there is some self-doubt. There is some.
Niko Price: No, there's, it's the fight game. It's anyone's night. You can train, have the best camp you ever had. Did like disappear from the world and just do nothing but train and get in there with a dude who partied all weekend. And then he just mutilate you. Or you'd like, I took a fight super short notice, not do it out in like 22 seconds. And I was like, oh,
Keith Vance: cool. So you're, so what you're trying to say is mindset doesn't matter. You just go in there and start do your training. Mindset doesn't matter because it's. It's 50 50. Is that what you're saying? No, I say a mindset
Niko Price: is like the key determiner. Like you're just, I'm willing to go in there no matter what. There's a
Keith Vance: good side and a bad side and don't like it could. So that's what I'm asking you. You're going in there with a. So
Niko Price: like you can have like the best camp of your life, but still go in there and perform horrible. Understood. Yeah. But that's also because it's that night. You know what I'm saying? It's like, it's not your night. Like it's predetermined before you even thought of it. Okay. No fighting. Like you're going to lose no matter what. There's nothing you can do. I don't understand that. I've had like the best camps of my life, you know, trained hard, done everything right. Eight, right. Easy way cuts go in there. And some of my worst losses are on those. And then I take fights on like 14 day notice and choked it out in the first round. Or hammer. Or fist someone. So the bottom. Let
Keith Vance: me ask you a question. The. The nights where your, your camp went the best it ever was. And there were some of your losses. Was there ever like a feeling that you had, like a premonition that you had, like you knew this isn't going to go my way. Was there like looking back? Was there ever that where. I mean,
Niko Price: there's times that you don't feel right. Okay. And as you're walking up there, you're like. Oh man, something's off. Like, I mean, we, we never say it, but there's something off. Like something in our mind happened or something happened on the way out there that clicked something. And I don't know.
Keith Vance: So that's what I'm trying to ask you. If some of your losses, was there something looking back that you kind of like knew you're going to lose? I know I wasn't going to have a good fight. And I think you just answered that question. Yeah. Yeah. Now, what about the opposite side? How many fights where you went in and you're, you, you, man, I'm like, there's no way I can lose. And your mindset was strong. You had no weak thoughts. Like everything felt good. It was on point.
Niko Price: 15 of them. 15 of them. When you felt. Yeah. Like of most of my fights, I felt great. You know, but some fights it's. It's not up to you. Good.
Keith Vance: Good. You know. So what were those? Were those because their mindset was stronger? Was it because their training was better? Or is it just... Your body just
Niko Price: gives out adrenaline dumps. You know, you have a bad weight cut. You know, you're not hydrated right. You didn't rebuild back up. You didn't do the process of cutting the weight right. So there's so many little things that can go wrong. You know?
Keith Vance: Understood. Mm-hmm. You good there, Emma? You good?
Keith Vance: Man, this is... You're giving me some answers that I wasn't expecting. Like, I expected you to feel some jitters your first fight. And you're like, no, man, I'm like... No, I want to fight. I want to fight. I was born for this. We were talking about I want. I'm here.
Niko Price: I wanted to do this. Yeah. From the first time I punched a dude in the face in Ybor City in kickboxing. Because my first fight was kickboxing. Because in 2010... Well, that's when it was legal. But in 2009... Wait, I fought in 2009? Was it 2009? Yeah, 2009 I fought. Oh, man. So, yeah. 2009 was my first kickboxing fight. And when I punched the dude, it was just great. And then, like, I just kept going. I also took, like, 150 milligrams of caffeine. Okay. Okay. Super jittery before that one. So, I was nervous in general. So, I had bubble guts. You know? And, like, and that's horrible. Like, not many fighters tell you about the horrible bubble guts you get before a fight when your hands are wrapped and you can't wipe your... Oh, no. Like, yeah, wipe. Sorry about all this part, guys. My bad. But it's like, that's, like, the worst part. Oh, no. Is the bubble guts in the beginning. You're gloved up and everything? Oh. Because, like, I still got bubble guts. But I was, like, not afraid. I'm like, come on. Let's go. Do this. Let's go fight this guy already. Like... Because, like, if I'm, like, if I have something I have to go do and I'm anxious for it, like, like, I'm thinking about it, thinking about it, thinking about it, I'm not, like, going to try to put it off. Let's just go do it.
Keith Vance: Again, I'm the same way because when you do what you're built for... Mm-hmm. It's easy. It's easy. It's what you do. And it's just interesting to have this conversation with you because I'm trying to put myself in your shoes. But obviously, I'm not a fighter. Well, I can't build. Because I would be nervous. I'm going to get, like, I'm going to get jittery. I'm going to be scared. But then when it comes down to that moment, I think I could probably handle my business win or lose. But the anticipation, like, the anticipation... Knowing. The knowing that this is about to happen. Knowing for the
Niko Price: next eight weeks that you got to train to fight this guy. Yeah. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. That beats a lot of people up. Does it? Oh, yeah. Yeah. It does. Like, every night you're going to bed with that dude's face. You know, like, you go to sleep. I'm thinking of, this guy does a little kick. Oh, my God. I'm sorry, baby. I
Keith Vance: never hit her. Listen, it's funny you said that. But twice. Listen, it's funny you said that. It's funny you said that because I used to wake my wife up by yelling at everybody. Telling them. Telling them. Telling them. They're slow. They're not moving fast enough. And I was swinging a hammer all night. I would swing a hammer telling people they're working too slow and not working fast enough. So, you're doing jiu-jitsu and I'm slinging a hammer all day.
Niko Price: Yeah. I have put her in chokes sleeping.
Keith Vance: She's like, you know,
Niko Price: you tried choking me. I was like, did I?
Keith Vance: What were... Are you sure I was sleeping? What were some of your favorite fights?
Niko Price: Well, Randy Brown, James Vick for sure. Both of those two I loved. Tim Means. Even though I didn't win both fights with Vicente, I loved both fights with Vicente. What did you like about him? I liked fighting him. Dude, I hit him as hard as I can hit someone. And he, like, shook it off. It was so cool. That was cool to watch. Because, like, normally I hit someone. Someone clean. Yeah. They go down. Yeah. He, like, just shook that thing. I was like, oh, snap.
Keith Vance: So, when that happened the first time, did you... What, did you laugh? Did you say something to him? Were you like, okay, here we go?
Niko Price: Oh, I... Yeah, I, like, smiled when I hit you. I was like, ha. I laughed at you. So, when you
Keith Vance: hit him and he didn't go down, you just laughed at him?
Niko Price: I still laughed. Like, boom. I got you. I kicked him right in. His chin. He said, took a couple steps back. I was like, Senta, you got like springs in that jaw. Man. But yeah, he's a great fighter. I like that guy. Great person too.
Keith Vance: And that's my next question is, most of your professional fights, was there genuine animosity on them or was it just business? You guys friends? Like, what's it like? A
Niko Price: couple of them, like in the beginning, I thought like you had to be mad at everybody and stuff and like, and bean mug and not blink and like, you know, it'd be tough. But like, as it just got odd, whenever I saw him, I'd be like, yo, what's up dude? And I'd run over there and I'd introduce myself, you know, I'm like, hey, good luck this weekend. I'm training hard. So let's give him a show. Got it. You know, like I'm in there to get a bag. They're in there to get a bag. So, so
Keith Vance: for you, that's what it came down to. Well,
Niko Price: it's to provide. I provided by competing against this guy. Yeah. So I got, I killed two birds with one stone. I had to take care of my family and I got to fill my reason. Yeah. You know,
Keith Vance: um, when did you, when did you first have the thought? So you told me about the thought you had in the beginning where you said, yeah, this was, this is what I'm going to do. When did you have the thought that it might be time to find something else to do? Or does at least the UFC thing, like it might be time to start thinking about transitioning here. When did you have that first thought?
Niko Price: What do you mean? Like,
Keith Vance: so you were, you've been doing, you've been doing almost nine years, right? Yeah. So when did you think, man, like probably time to, my
Niko Price: kids, my kids and my wife, they were just like, Hey, uh, how much longer do you want to do this? And I was like, it was, when you guys tell me to, I'm stepping out. Really? Yeah. That's honorable. So they said to, but I've also told them recently that I'm itching. Are you? Yeah. I would love to get in there again. Of course. You know, I can't, I've been training. I retired and I trained more and harder. I think then I did when I was fighting because I'm trying to get these dudes better. Let's talk about that a minute.
Keith Vance: Um, your wife and kids said, Hey, you told them, say you guys pick when you guys say I'm done, I'll be done. What was it that wanted, what was it that they wanted you to be done for? Like, what was it? They said, Hey, it's time. It's time because you're never here. It's time because like, what was it? What were their reasons that, it's time.
Niko Price: Hmm. I would say just because like the emotions that they go through, you know, like, like, like, like, you know, like
Keith Vance: I want to hear it.
Niko Price: Cause you gotta think about it. Like they're watching me get punched in the face, you know, getting choked, you know, they know, like that's
Keith Vance: their daddy. And
Niko Price: I always tell them to like, when I'm in there, that's not fake. Like, right. Like, cause my sons think like sometimes they can mess around and like, Oh, put elbows next to their brother's eyes and stuff. And that just cuts you. Like that will cut you. Like we're doing jujitsu and I'll just like post here and I do put his head that way. And he cut himself on my elbow. Wow. That's how thin the skin is right here and how sharp the elbows are. And they like, think it's a game. And I'm like, no, it's not a game when I'm in there. That's like, yeah, it's real. I mean, I have a lot of adrenaline, so you don't feel half of it. It's just pressure. So
Keith Vance: your, your wife and kids watching you, they're like, yeah, they need a little break from watching me. They needed a break.
Niko Price: Yeah. My head pounded in pounding
Keith Vance: heads. What else was the, uh, coming home, recovering? Like what were some of the other things that they, was it just that? Was it just, well, no, I
Niko Price: miss a lot of things too. You know, I can't go to a bunch of things cause I'm like, I'm sorry. Jim, I train a lot over training, training. It's like, what are you doing? Training? Oh yeah. Training, training, training. It's
Keith Vance: everything. It consumed you and they, Oh
Niko Price: yeah. I had to, if it didn't, then a lot more knuckles would have consumed me. Yeah. You know?
Keith Vance: Yeah. I, uh, I was just, I was just curious who made that decision and why. Again, I'm just trying to get like a, as a family, a full picture, you know, like they just,
Niko Price: they didn't want me like going, doing it. They wanted me to take a break. They want my body to heal. So you're a
Keith Vance: family man. I, uh, give you props for that. Um, um, . . Are most fighters family-oriented? Are they family men like you, or is it?
Niko Price: It's a range of personalities and people. Got it. You know, you have singles, gangsters, nerds. Everyone fights. None of them got seven kids like you. I fought one of my boys, Alex Oliveira. He got 13. Are you kidding me? He got both of us beat. He's Brazilian. He got 13 kids. He goes, I had six at the time when I fought him. He's like, you sis? 13? Oh, my God. I was like, you went and dug. But that was
Keith Vance: a fun fight, too. So, your family made the decision. For obvious reasons. Hey, Dad, let's. And you made the transition for your family. And I applaud you for that. We talked. You and I talked privately about your identity. So, my identity is a lot bigger than the UFC. Yeah. And I think that the fact that you're willing to put it in your family's hands. You guys tell me when Daddy's done. That tells me that you have your priorities right. Because some people chase the dream and make everyone else suffer. But the dream is for the purpose of providing for the family, your loved ones. So, I would say that's a right perspective. And again, I respect you for that. Thank you. Thank you. What about. Let's talk about this one. And I don't know. You and I haven't talked about it. We'll wind this down a little bit. Your retirement. When you retired. I think we all have a vision of how our. Path. Is going to look. And we have a vision how it's going to look in the future.
Keith Vance: Everyone was upset with your last fight. And that you didn't get the opportunity to. Go out like everybody wants to. Can you talk about your emotions through that for a minute? Did it not bother you?
Niko Price: I wasn't. I just wanted to get out of the cage at the time. If I looked like upset or anything. I was just like. Yo, can I go? Like. They made me stay in there. Because they wanted. They wasn't sure if he was going to give me the mic. To say anything. And then he just walked out. Got it. So. I was like. Okay. Can I go now? It
Keith Vance: looked like. And then I had to walk out. Yeah. It looked like you wanted to go say like. You know. Get a send off. And then it looked like you weren't. Oh no. I wanted. I
Niko Price: was just saying. To Michael. Oh got it. To KS. And I was like. Hey good fight. Understood. You know. Good career. Several things. Thanks. Understood. You know. Good. I can't. You know. I don't get mad. Like I lose. Yeah. I hate losing. But. I'm going to respect you. You know. Good fight.
Keith Vance: You know. Understood. Mm. I. Like. I. Where I thought we were going to go with that was. Like. When things don't turn out the way I want. The emotions that go through that. Like when you. When. I don't like to lose. But you go through a time of like bitterness. A time of like. Man. Like. Those emotions. Oh yeah. But. I was wanting to know what those feel like. And how long do they last. And how. I just
Niko Price: try not to like. Put it on everyone. Because like. The first couple of losses. They were real bad. Like. I just like. Oh my God. Because I went. 11 and 0. Before I lost. Mm-hmm. Or 10 and 0. Before I lost. To. I think Vicente. It was my first loss. And then when I got home. It like sunk in. It was like. You're not undefeated. And all that. But then like. I went through that for a day or two. And I was like. Who cares about being undefeated. You know. Like. I just learned. That. That. The left hook. Catches me. I keep my right hand up. You know. Like. So I took the learning out of it. And then I got better. At not getting hit with. Left hooks.
Keith Vance: Got it. So it took you a day or two. The first time. And you're like. Yeah. Who cares. You dealt with. Who cares.
Niko Price: Yeah. The thing is. The greatest have lost. Yeah. Did some.
Keith Vance: Did some of them hang
Niko Price: on longer than others. It really depends. You know. Like. If you were getting like. Ragdolled in a fight. Or bullied in a fight. Or if they're just. Trash talkers. Mm-hmm. Like some people are just. Oh my God. They say the stupidest stuff. And the most. Out there stuff too. They do. So like. You gotta be mentally tough. In this sport. A hundred percent. Got it. You
Keith Vance: got to be able to just say, you're cute. So, that's how you deal with it, humor. You deal with it just like keeping it light and humor. Yeah. Got it.
Niko Price: I smile at you. I'll joke on it. If someone's trying to trash me, I'll be like, oh yeah. I'll go right along with them. So, we talked about
Keith Vance: the struggle. Mm-hmm. We talked about the nine years and your favorite fights. We talked about the losses and how you got through some of those. We also talked about your family when they said, hey, daddy, it's time to stop. Like, your identity was bigger than the UFC, so we talked about your identity. Mm-hmm. Now that you're not a fighter, do you struggle with your identity at all, or are you confident in who you are?
Niko Price: No, I'm still me.
Keith Vance: I love that. Yeah. People find their identity in what they do. A lot of men struggle. They struggle with their identity and who they are. Mm-hmm. And when their identity changes or their job changes, they don't know how to react or cope with life. Mm-hmm. They lose themselves. So, again, talking to a professional fighter who's been in the biggest arena for the past nine and a half years. Mm-hmm. You're not... I'm just not going to that arena again. You're not Nico the Hybrid anymore. You retired. You're Nico. I'm Nico the Price. Yeah, Nico the Price. Yeah. So, did you struggle at all with a shift in identity? Did you... The
Niko Price: other day, I was just sitting there, and I'm like, hmm, I'm not going to walk out there again. And I was like, okay.
Niko Price: If I want to, I'll go buy a ticket, and I'll sit in the stands. You know, I'll just listen to Buffer yell everyone else's name and then remember how he said mine. I, uh...
Keith Vance: Again, your fighting style, you thrive in chaos. Mm-hmm. And just here sitting with you like nothing seems to bother you. It's just a testament that you were built for what you did. Yeah. You got to learn how to roll with it. And just... You never really took yourself too seriously. Like, even like right now. No. It's something I did, and I'm bigger than that.
Niko Price: It's a child of Christ, man. That's way bigger than being a UFC fighter. You want to talk about that for a minute? Yeah. Let's do it. Mm-hmm. Yeah. All my kids, I bring all my kids to CLF, Christian Life Fellowship, and they go to CLA, which is Christian Life Academy. Okay. My daughter's been in there since, I think, pre-K. Or not pre-K. Pre-K. Just kindergarten. I don't know. That was a long time ago. But all my kids go there. You know, we're very firm in the foundation. We're very fruitful, and we're multiplied. Good for you. So.
Keith Vance: Good for you. Yeah. How has, we'll talk about this for as long as you want, but how has your faith, Mm-hmm. your faith in what you do for a living, how have the two tied together?
Niko Price: Well, I never, like, wanted to be a fighter. You know, like, I was going into the gym to do it for being the cop, you know? Mm-hmm. But who else would have set that up? I was going to be a fighter. Besides God. Do you know what I'm saying? Like, all the things fell in line just too perfectly for me, for not to be God. Yeah. You know? And it ended too perfect for it not to be God. Like, I got nine and a half, almost ten years in the UFC. Yeah. Name, you can name on, like, I think, one or two hands who did that. You know? 21 fights. Wow. Yeah. You know? I'm completely satisfied with my UFC career.
Keith Vance: Yeah. And the fact that when it comes to identity, when you have... That's not where I'm held. When you have Christ, we find our identity in Him like we are a child of God, and everything else is a distant second, right? Mm-hmm. And I think, like, you're proof of that, what we're talking about. The other thing that I know that no one else knows about you is what you're doing for a living. And I just laugh because I love this about you. So, you don't fight. You hung up your gloves. Mm-hmm. What do you do now, brother? We deliver bait at the Baitmobile, baby.
Niko Price: Call us. Put it in the link, Michael. Mm-hmm. Put it in the link. What do you do, brother? What do you do? Well, right now, we're... Everyone's having trouble finding shrimp, but we're looking for, like, a solid shrimp supplier. Okay. Hit up the mobile if you can supply us with some shrimp. Okay. Okay. Okay. We got... Finger mullet, we got shiners, we got everything. So, you buy bait
Keith Vance: wholesale, and you got a little operation at your house, and you not only sell the fishermen, but if the price is right, you deliver it to them. Yeah. No, we do deliver it. And that's what I love about you is because you can always do something different in life. Like, all right, I used to do this, but I'm bigger than that. I'm going to do this for a while and have fun doing it. and to not be so have such a high mind of yourself that i
Niko Price: did it hilarious when i deliver someone some bait they're like what what's going on right now i'm like just handing you some shiners buddy you know why are you doing this it's like because it's what i'm building right now me and my boy been building this for years me and my two friends george and kevin we've been building building the bait mobile for george has been doing it for almost a decade now and then we jumped in a couple years ago and we just started building everything together and now we got our foundation and we're looking for just more people to help fill our tanks the
Keith Vance: bait mobile so we know
Niko Price: how to get rid of it we just need help filling them you and
Keith Vance: i have a couple things in common we both have seven kids um i come from a family of a fisherman family fisherman family but family that owned bait shops so in pontiac michigan one of the great lake states up there yeah pontiac michigan um my great grandfather ogles owned a bait and tackle shop so i remember as a kid digging in the dirt for night crawlers and putting them in the in the containers with the little holes in it. His old 1976 Ford Ranger two-tone blue with a bait well tank in the back and a fiberglass boat in the back and these big square traps that we would put old moldy bread in and drop them in the water and then pull the other one up and be full of minnows and shiners. So I did that with him. And then my grandma Ogles, or my grandma, his daughter, my grandma, um so that's my great grandfather my grandma pat and her husband wendell owned a bait shop and then my dad and mom i was born in a bait shop in oxford michigan yeah train tracks beside our house i was born in a bait shop we used to live in the apartment upstairs and my mom would fish out minnows for people when they come in and that's what we did so awesome and then you know this is what you do and like
Niko Price: it was fun dude it was fun i love it i love handing someone some some bait i'm like you better send me pictures tag me tag baitmobile send pictures
Keith Vance: baitmobile yeah we'll hook you up we'll your social media is a lot bigger in mind but i use whatever i got to help support you every
Niko Price: bit counts every bit counts brother
Keith Vance: we're late and uh we got a late start so i don't want to keep you up all night michael's got to get to work early in the morning sorry was there anything else that i should have asked you that didn't
Keith Vance: no what was on the list we had we didn't have a list one thing i thought was interesting is i asked you how your health how you are how your health is now compared to when you were fighting and i thought you were going to say you were better than than you are now because because you think of a UFC fighter, fit, ready to rock and roll. But you actually surprised me. You said that you're 100% now, and you were fighting at 70% then, because you can use peptides now to recover. Yeah,
Niko Price: I did that Wolverine stack. And my knees, dude, are like cold. They're like
Keith Vance: almost back to normal. Again, it surprised me. You said, Keith, back then when I was fighting, I was only at like 70%. when it comes to recovery. All of us are. I think we need to talk about that just for a few minutes because that surprised me.
Niko Price: No, we train so hard. Sometimes it's like impossible, physically impossible to recover what we do. We work hard. MMA fighters work hard. I work hard. And I didn't get a title shot. you know so those dudes have to be falling apart you know cause I was
Keith Vance: yeah you told me that and it just really surprised me I thought you were going to say yeah we
Niko Price: put our body on the line for everyone's smiles
Keith Vance: so you said you were like fighting at like 70% capacity health wise and now I'll be. Because of peptides or whatever, the Wolverine stack, you're at 100%. Yeah, and the rest. Why won't they let them... Again, this is kind of new to me. Above my pay grade. I don't know what
Niko Price: they talk about with chemists and stuff.
Keith Vance: But why won't they let fighters use some peptides if it makes you recover faster?
Niko Price: I don't know. Maybe it makes us hit harder. You want to give a gorilla some juice? You know what I'm saying? Got it. Some skulls might actually crack. Oh. You know. Got it. These dudes hit hard without juice. Got it. Or without that extra health.
Keith Vance: They hit hard at 70% is what you're saying. Yeah. Yeah.
Niko Price: Yeah, like these dudes. People in the UFC aren't. They're .001% of the population of humanity. Wow. Like, those dudes are... Freaks. We're different. Wow. It's a different... I don't know what it is, but it's something a little weird.
Keith Vance: Wow. Any other questions I should have asked you? If I think of one, you only live about 30 minutes from here, so we can get you back for round two. Boom. Hey, brother, I appreciate you.
Niko Price: No problem, man. It was a blessing
Keith Vance: to be in here. I'm thankful to have you on. I'm thankful to have the conversation. I'm really...
Niko Price: I'm really sorry that I'm, like, half awake. No, you're good. Trust me. I took 100 milligrams of caffeine pouch. That's what I've been chewing on right here. Just like... I'm, like, squeezing the caffeine
Keith Vance: out of it. So the next time we go fishing, Michael, we'll have to buy some bait from the bait mobile. Yes. We'll hook them up, and then maybe you can go fishing with us. Where or when? Let's do it. I'm
Niko Price: down. Fresh or salt? I don't care. You pick. You pick. I like them both.
Crosstalk: I like them both.