It’s Friday evening in San Jose, California, and Donnie Liles is in town training with Frank Shamrock and the rest of the Razorclaws team.

After working his cardio on the treadmill, Donnie has finished his session for the night and he takes time out to chat with Knucklepit, explaining how he first became involved in mixed martial arts. “I didn’t actually have a first fighting art. I saw MMA on TV one day and thought it would be cool to try, so I found a gym and started training; six weeks later I had my first fight,” says Liles.

Although Donnie was never the type to become involved in school sports, he always kept himself in shape – a practice that is now paying dividends for him. “I didn’t play any sports, but I was really athletic, and I just threw myself into MMA headfirst: Jump in the deep end and see what happens – sink or swim, buddy. Fortunately I did a little more swimming than sinking, so it wasn’t all that bad.”

This tenacious approach to life worked for Donnie and he went on to achieve a 13-0 record before sustaining his first loss. His stats now stand at 16-3, and on May 16, Liles will be facing some stats of a different kind when he turns thirty.

“I’m not sure how I’ll celebrate – probably on the treadmill. It’s getting to the point now where I have to be cutting weight. I’m sure I’ll have my birthday and another victory to celebrate when I get home to Colorado Springs.”

Donnie, does living in the colder Colorado climate make training more difficult?

“From time to time in winter you can’t do as much training outside as some of the guys here in San Jose do. Of course this winter in Colorado was really hard: We had three blizzards in the month of December – all of them dumping over a foot of snow in Colorado Springs. It was kinda rough, but you get used to it. And if anything, I think it helps you out a little bit: maybe not the cold, but especially the altitude because it’s 6,035 feet above sea level there, so it’s great for cardio training.”

That reminds me of when Tank Abbott fought Oleg Taktarov in Denver. Did you see that fight?

“I did. And with guys that big, when they start going – especially when they come up from a lower altitude, like he (Tank) was from Huntington Beach, California, going that high above sea level without having any chance to acclimate is very serious shellshock.

“I know when I came out here (San Jose) for my IFL tryouts, they put us through a pretty rigorous cardio workout, and as far as the cardio trial went, I was crushed because my cardio just went through the roof and I’d definitely get winded when we were working out, but my recovery time was maybe 30 seconds between events, going down to a resting heart rate again. So it is definitely an advantage coming down from that altitude to sea level.”

Are you still primarily a submissions fighter?

“I work on everything and I try to be as well rounded as I can. And a lot of guys go out there, and get something in their minds, like they’re going to win by knockout. But when I go out there I’m going to win by any means necessary. If I see a submission I’ll take it. I’ll punch, kick, I’ll take them down… I’m notorious for huge body-slams… just whatever I can get.

“When I started out I didn’t have any kind of a striking background, so the only thing I knew was to pick ’em up and put ’em on the mat as hard as I could, and pound on ’em until they quit. And a lot of guys when you start pounding on them will turn their backs, so I think about eighty per cent of my wins are by rear naked choke. I was getting on top of guys and crushing them until they would give up their backs…

“Like I said; if I see an opportunity to finish a fight I’ll finish it. I don’t think I’ve been… well, wins or losses, I haven’t been out of the first round in eight or nine fights now.”

You lost your first IFL bout to Jay Hieron. Was that a valuable learning experience for you?

“Most definitely. I knew it was going to be a tough fight: He’s pretty much the IFL’s top 170-pounder right now, and I knew it was going to be a tough match. He definitely won the fight and I’ll give him all the respect, but it was mistakes I made that cost me the victory rather than his dominating in any one aspect. He did get me in one submission – a guillotine choke, and I escaped and got to top position. But instead of securing my position before I decided to advance, I just went ahead to advance and ended up getting reversed right back.

“It was a combination of his great skill and my being overanxious, I think, is what cost me that one. But I’m willing to take a loss if it will teach me something, and I definitely learnt something from that match. And I’m looking forward to a rematch as soon as possible.”

From what other fighters say, they learn more from their losses than their victories. And if someone has a 20-0-0 record in MMA, you have to be suspicious, don’t you?

“Undefeated fighters are kinda few and far between, but if you do meet somebody like that, it does weigh on them mentally. I think I would be on the flipside of that coin, because if I meet somebody undefeated I want to be the first one to defeat them rather than being cautious. I’m going to go headlong into the storm, man. I’m going to try to be the first one to give them that blemish on their record. And I feel that I have the skills and the talent to do that. That’s just my mentality, man. I’d rather die fighting than die running: I’m going to go headfirst into the fight.”

Donnie Liles (white trunks) of the Razorclaws battles Jay Hieron of the Anacondas 
in an International Fight League welterweight bout at The Forum.

Do you train mainly with the other Razorclaws?

“I train in Colorado Springs with a group called the Toolshed Fight Team – a great group of guys I’ve been with for a couple of years. I met up with them shortly after I started fighting, and they’ve just been great to me, helping me along in leaps and bounds. I would definitely not be where I am today if it weren’t for those guys, so whenever I’m in town I feel very loyal to them, and I train with them whenever I’m back home.

“But being out here in San Jose, it’s a great opportunity, and I love training with Frank and some different guys – seeing the way they do things differently. Of course, everyone has their own way of teaching and doing their own techniques, and I think it’s imperative these days for fighters to get as many looks as they possibly can. So I think it’s extremely valuable my being out here, and I just soak up everything I can.”

What influence has Frank Shamrock had on you?

“You know, you see Frank on TV and he’s this cocky guy. I wasn’t really sure what to expect when I got out here. But after training with the Razorclaws and seeing the way he teaches and comes across, he’s taught me a lot about wrestling, submissions, stand-up fighting and striking…

“And I think the biggest surprise was he taught me a lot about the type of fighter and the type of person I want to strive to be as far as his professionalism and just the way he’s willing to… like if he’s with a guy who has a lot of skill, or if he’s with a guy who doesn’t have much skill at all, Frank talks to them on their level and in a manner that they can understand. He’s always respectful and leads by example, and he’s shown me a lot about the way I want to be once I get to the point where he is right now.”

Has the team aspect of the IFL been difficult for you to adjust to?

“I was never part of a team, per se, that competed together. But I’ve had training partners all the time, and we were a pretty close-knit group there at the Toolshed Fight Team, so it was an easy transition – that coupled with the fact that all the guys on the team are super-great guys: Dan Christison, Josh Odom, Brian Foster, Brian Ebersole… All the guys are so easy to get along with, and we have a great time training together. The majority of us stay together and live together in the same apartment while we’re out here in San Jose.

“You’ve got your little bumps and everybody gets in their little arguments and stuff, but when you’ve got that much testosterone in one place, that’s going to happen. However, for the most part everybody gets along and they’re more than willing to help each other out with their training: It’s just a really great thing to be a part of.”

Is Brian Foster responsible for any of your ink work?

“Not yet. We’re still working on that one. I haven’t asked him for the discount yet, but I’m trying to butter him up first.”

What do you do for cardio?

“We try to change it up as much as possible so we don’t get bored. Because we’re so close to the fight right now, it’s just kinda light cardio like the treadmill, elliptical… But usually we do a lot of intense muscular endurance like lifting a substantial amount of weights for a lot of reps, back to back; and then going to another station and doing kettlebells; and then cleans on another station. We flip big tires around, drag sleds around, do push-ups…

“We do as much as we can to really wear the muscles down because we feel in our sport we benefit more from muscular endurance than just cardiovascular endurance – both are obviously important, but we feel the muscular endurance is going to be more beneficial for what we’re going to be doing.”

What are you expecting from Rodrigo Ruas?

“I’m expecting him to throw a lot of kicks, and from what I’ve seen he’s predominantly a stand-up fighter, always moving forward – similar to myself. He’s always pushing the pace. I’m just looking to go out there and play things by ear, see whatever he gives me and I’ll try to capitalize on it. I want to pick him apart and I’m sure he has the same thing in mind for me, so we’ll just go out there and go to war – somebody’s going to win and somebody’s going to lose.”

Donnie, is there anything you’d like to add?

“I’d like to say thanks to all my team members; everybody at the Razorclaws and Frank Shamrock Submission Fighting Team; all the guys back at the Toolshed Fight Team – Drew Lawrence, Keith Wilson; all those guys I train with. And hello to the fans: Be sure to tune in to the fight on May 19 and see me crush Rodrigo Ruas.”

Sponsors?

“Rec-ur-az Fightgear in Albuquerque, New Mexico.”