Q & A: UFC's Tito Ortiz

Through the spectrum of fan to foe, whether you like or dislike him, you will watch Tito Ortiz.

When Ortiz is fighting, talking or performing, you'll postpone your bathroom break. You'll send a friend to get your beer.

The 31-year-old former light heavyweight champion will fight UFC Hall of Famer Ken Shamrock at 10 p.m. Saturday at UFC 61 in Las Vegas on pay-per view. The truth is these two dislike each other – a lot. After their first fight at UFC 40 in 2003 -- Ortiz won on a third-round TKO -- came more animosity from both sides.

By the time you finish reading, this you'll learn why these two can't get along and why this Huntington Beach native prefers Miyagi-Do Karate over Cobra Kai.

Joe Fernandez: How did this feud start?
Tito Ortiz: It really came down to when I fought Guy Mezger a second time. I really worked as much as possible to get my name recognized and Guy Mezger had a lot to say about me. He said his grandma hit harder than me, and he kept talking more and more smack like I didn't belong in the Octagon. I really didn't say much at that point. So I ended up winning the fight and the best thing I thought I can do was flip him off and flip off the corner. Ken Shamrock took it personal and it was strictly for Guy Mezger. Ken had enough [guts] to step up and say stuff to me, and I'm not going to back down from a guy just because his name is "The Most Dangerous Man" or whatever. I really didn't care about that. The hatred started building after that. Me and him just always had words for each other and it built all the way up to UFC 40 to where we finally got in the Octagon and fought. I laid a beating down on him and it just seemed like me and him were two pitbulls in a bedroom. More like a poodle and a pitbull.

JF: Has there ever been a chance at reconciliation?
TO: I thought there was reconciliation after the last fight. [He said] the better man won, and I got to give it to Tito Ortiz. We settled our differences, and I thought the same thing too. It seemed like after that fight all of a sudden he wasn't a hundred percent, he had a bum knee and he had all kinds of excuses saying why he didn't win. He never gave me the credit for beating him the first time. He wanted to do it again and I didn't want to do it. But he kept pressing and pressing and pressing, and I was like if you want a beating that bad let's do it. Luckily, "The Ultimate Fighter" came about and we were both coaches on it. I get to beat him as a coach and I get to beat him as a fighter.

JF: I asked [UFC President] Dana White if this feud is just as bad off-camera. He said this isn't the WWE, these guys really hate each other.
TO: It's completely up to that point. I really don't have that much hatred toward any man until Ken Shamrock came into the picture. I really, really dislike him. It's like watching "The Karate Kid." The guy in the Cobra Kai, he walked around like his ---- didn't stink. Walking around, big shoulders, big chest, strutting his stuff. A lot of the fans that ask him for autographs and pictures, he denied them. Now he doesn't do it because I brought it up. These fans are here for us. If it weren't for these fans we wouldn't be here right now. We wouldn't be having a huge fight on pay-per view. We wouldn't be sitting in the Mandalay Bay Hotel getting ready for a fight, and I want to thank the fans for that. He never embraced the fans as I've seen at least. But now that I've put the notice to the public about that, he's become more humble. It takes some people to change others and I think I've changed him a little bit. After July 8th, I think I'm going to change him drastically, and not just his features.

JF: You mentioned "Karate Kid." Are you more of a Johnny Lawrence guy or Daniel LaRusso?
TO: I'm a Danny LaRusso kid. That's me. I really have a lot of heart when I come to do things. I really do it passionately. I think that's what separates me from the other fighters. I'm very passionate when I fight. It's not just the fight day for me. It's the lead up to it. It's after the fight. It's everything that makes it interesting for the fans to watch. I want to give the fans everything they paid for.

JF: Have you made any adjustments since last fight?
TO: Strategy wise I haven't really changed it that much. Physically I've gotten a lot better. I'm running on all cylinders now. When I fought Forrest [Griffin], I was on two cylinders. It really contained my training, it really hurt my fight. I really couldn't fight to my fullest. That's the ring rust from being out for a year. I just fought four months ago and I'm fighting again now. I feel like I got all the ring rust off me. My cardio is as good as it was when I fought [Vitor] Belfort. Hopefully Shamrock is ready to fight because if he's ready to fight it's going to be a great fight for all the fans.

JF: Why did you take this fight? Why do you think Ken took this fight?
TO: I was asking myself the same question why this fight is happening. He just keeps pushing the issue that he wants to fight me again and I really didn't want to. They said we were going to be coaches for "The Ultimate Fighter" and they said that after the show you're going to fight each other. I said, well, if he wants to step up, let's do it then. I get a chance to beat him as a coach and I get to beat him as a fighter. It's one of the biggest fights to date for me and one of the biggest fights to date for the UFC.

JF: Your team dominated on the show. Why was that?
TO: Well, I think I had passion for my guys. I really, really cared about my team. It wasn't Team Ortiz because it wasn't about me. I made it Team Punishment so it's about all of us. I gave these guys my attitude of training, the little secrets I have about training. Like Kendall Grove, he showed me how much of a champion he really is. I took him under my wing. He's one of my guys who's training with me full time. Shamrock it seemed was just there to go through the motions, just there to get on television, get his face on camera. To me it wasn't about that. It wasn't about getting on camera. It was about the fighters.

JF: On a fashion note, during the show and at UFC 60 you've had some interesting ways in which you wear your sunglasses. Sometimes it's behind your head or hooked on your ears, but never covering your eyes. Is that a Huntington Beach thing?
TO: I wear sunglasses when the sun's in my eyes, that's about it. If I put them in my pocket, they'll end up getting crushed. If they're behind my head or on my neck at least I feel them at all times. It's just one of those things. It's the look of West Coast, man. I've been in a surfer town my whole life.