Interview with Paul Riley

Paul Riley isn't your typical aspiring MMA fighter, he's fighting first for our country

Although Paul Riley is very talented in the cage he is more than just a MMA fighter. He is a Fire Team Leader and a SGT in the US Army. With the help of his sponsors Paul will continue to train while away and plans to enter the cage shortly after his return to US soil. Paul would like to thank friends and family for all their support. He would also like to thank his sponsors Intimidation Clothing and Paramount Supplements. If you would like to support Paul please contact me via email thetrianglechoke@yahoo.com.

I interviewed Paul days prior to his departure for Afghanistan. I’m thankful to say that he has arrived safely and is doing well. My conversation with a true American:

SD- You are only a few days out from going to Afghanistan. Talk about where your head is at and what your responsibilities are?

PR- Right now I’m just trying to get it going. We have been building up and building up. The last week has been slow with a lot of packing. There has been a lot of stuff going through my mind. Half of my guys are already over there. I think they left eight days ago. I’m starting to get messages from them about what is going on over there. I’m ready to get over there and get in a routine.

SD- How many times have you been to Iraq?

PR- I’ve been there four times. The last trip was in 2005. This is the longest break I have had in between deployments.

Photo courtesy of Paul Riley

SD- What are your nerves like before deployment?

PR- My nerves are pretty much the same as when I went the first time. You never know what can happen. I try to look at it as the same things can happen driving around in America. I just go over there and try to remain focused and keep my mind fresh.

SD- I know you are limited on what you can discuss but speak about what your duties will be once you arrive.

PR- A little bit of everything. It is really so broad right now. They are trying to change the mission to more of a peace keeping mission. We pretty much have to react to whatever happens. We won’t be doing what we were doing in Iraq - booting in doors on a daily basis. We are going to be there for the people instead of going against the actual bad guys. If they do come around we will react to them.

SD- Given your experiences in Iraq, how are you expecting the Afghans to treat you?

PR- For the most part the Iraqis treated us really well. It’s not like all the bad things you see on the news. I would say the vast majority of them were glad we were there. They were really glad to help out. On the news they always talk about the bad things because that is usually what sells. I’m expecting about the same thing in Afghanistan. There are a lot of tribes there with different outlooks on things so we will just have to feel it out.

SD- Do you think the Patriotic pride still exists with the troops over there?

PR- Oh yeah. You are always going to get your few bad apples that come back and say we shouldn’t be there, screw this, etc. However, for the most part everybody I have worked with is all about going over there. Nobody looks forward to leaving their family but everyone is trained and willing to go do it. I haven’t really seen any negativity from any of my guys.

SD- You started boxing training, then jiu-jitsu and now MMA. Speak about your combative training at Ft. Campbell and what you have been able to do while in the military.

PR- I’ve been really lucky as there is a good gym nearby Ft. Campbell, SSF Submission Academy. There are a lot of guys from the Army that train there along with a bunch of civilians. As far as the service training, I flew right through level one and level two in Army Combatives. This past December my battalion hired Ryron Gracie and Jordan Collins, who is a black belt from the Gracie Academy in Torrance, CA, to teach us. I was able to train with them ten hours a day for a week. That was a pretty big deal and definitely put me up a notch.

SD- You are going to be over there for about a year. What will the training consist of while in Afghanistan?

PR- I’m going to do a ton of training. Really any time we are not out on a mission, I will be on the base or wherever they have us I’ll be training. It’s going to be pretty boring so I’ll be lifting and doing a lot of cardio. From what I hear there are already mats where I am going. I will teach Army Combatives there and really work on my jiu-jitsu. I probably won’t box with many of the guys but I’ll set up my own boxing/conditioning workout.

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SD- You have trained with both Nick and Nate Diaz and have spent some time with Ryan Couture. Talk about your experience training with the Diaz brothers specifically.

PR- They are intense. They are a lot different than how they are portrayed on the internet and TV. They are not gangsters or any of that type of stuff. Nick is probably the best conditioned athlete I have ever seen. Some people have viewed some of the specials on his training but he also does triathlons on a regular basis. He is one of the most dedicated and conditioned athletes I have ever met and I have worked with athletes in all sports. Being in the military has afforded me the opportunity to work with athletes all over. They are willing to let us train with them, from football players to MMA fighters and I’ll have to say that Nick is probably the most well-conditioned and dedicated I have ever seen.

SD- How do you fare in training against those guys?

PR- (laughs) Well, they are there to help whoever they are training with. They are going to let you develop and get to spots you need to get to but of course they are not going to let you roll through them. They make sure I sweat plenty.

SD- When you get back you are going to be ready to jump in the cage as an amateur. Speak about both your short and long term goals.

PR- I’ll be training for a year between 13,000 to 16,000 feet in Afghanistan so I’ll be ready to step off of the plane and hopefully find a fight within the first couple of weeks. I’ll get to see my family a little bit then jump right in the cage. Depending on what everyone I’m working with thinks, I would like to fight every couple of weeks if possible. Long term, once I get out of the military and transition back to California I’ll be training with bigger camps. From there a whole lot of doors are going to open up.

By Scott Dryden
ProFighting-fans.com Editor-in-Chief