I was offered money to lose a fight in Scotland – Ultimate Commander

Earlier, I asked you what it felt like being the world champion and you said it’s normal, so what is not normal? Yeah, it’s normal in the sense that it’s not difficult to achieve greatness but to maintain greatness is where the problem is. It is the most challenging thing that has happened to me. […]

Earlier, I asked you what it felt like being the world champion and you said it’s normal, so what is not normal?

Yeah, it’s normal in the sense that it’s not difficult to achieve greatness but to maintain greatness is where the problem is. It is the most challenging thing that has happened to me. Even though I have been a wrestling champion for over ten years, being the world champion is the most challenging thing that has happened to me. No matter what you do, people want to see you do more. People come around me; they want to associate with me because I am the world champion. People don’t want to ask questions, they just want to see you do more. But all the same, I give glory to God, it’s not by my might but the grace of God. It’s the first time a Nigerian is becoming a world champion. Power Mike was a great champion but he never defeated an American. I defeated a celebrated world champion.

Before you became a wrestler, what were you?

I’ve been the Ultimate Commander since the day I was born. I have always been ultimate, everything I do, I don’t deal with half measures. I started wrestling from childhood because everybody is a wrestler, you start fighting with your brothers, with your sisters, so that makes everybody a wrestler. I have been wrestling from my primary school, representing my school and doing wonderfully. So I have been a wrestler all along. The difference for me is that at some point you need a platform to speak to Nigerians, to the youths and for me, there is no better platform than wrestling because I found out I was like a cat, very difficult to be put down, so I decided I was going to be a wrestler. My father was a farmer, my mother was a farmer, so there was no way I could have survived but to keep wrestling. If not for wrestling, who knows what I would have been today? I could have been a farmer or a militant somewhere. Because I don’t want to be a militant, I decided to concentrate on my career and kept hoping that my career would help me escape the challenges here.

At what point in your life did you make up your mind to be a professional wrestler?

It was after the Abiola thing [June 12, 1993] it was a very sad incident seeing somebody in the night and in the morning hearing that he’s gone. I have been training as a professional wrestler since 1991 but I took it as a serious business after 1993. A lot of things motivated me because there was a lot of violence then all over the federation which was not worthy and the only rocket I could see that could shoot me to the world was taking on professional wrestling. 1994 was a the first time I got into the professional ring. I defeated Rocky G. So things progressed from then.

How difficult was it for you turning professional?

It wasn’t difficult because I am a very strong guy, black belt holder in kickboxing. I was so strong that people knew me for my strength. I used to serve my master then in Alaba International [Lagos] that the whole Alaba people would consult me whenever they wanted to do something. Whatever I supported worked, whatever I didn’t did not. So when I converted from professional wrestling [from kickboxing] it was very easy. Everything about me has been fighting, fighting, fighting. In the streets, I was a good fighter, in the ring I was a good fighter. In tae kwan do I was a good fighter, in kickboxing I was a good fighter, in boxing I was a good fighter.

So you have mastered all the martial sports?

Yes, I have been training with all the respected coaches in the various martial arts, people that are most respected in the world, like Joe Mensah, he was my coach in boxing.

In the almost 20 years you’ve been in the business, which would you say has been your most challenging fight?

You know, I’m one guy who doesn’t believe there would be another opportunity. I believe that this opportunity is the only opportunity, just like I am talking to you now, I will talk to you with all my heart. I am not waiting for anyone to work anything for me. So I take every fight as the main challenge. As a good fighter, you mustn’t lose any tournament. So if anybody comes into the ring, I don’t take it lightly. Even if a lady comes into the ring I will wrestle her with all my might. But the thing is, I became scared of the sport, or let me say my family, by which I mean other people in the sporting community, when I became the African heavy weight champion. In fact, the problem started when I won the Nigerian heavy weight championship in 2004. Enemies came here and there, changes of opponent within two, three days to the fight. I almost gave up. And then at a stage there was a time I was to represent Nigeria at one event in America, they asked me for money from the wrestling federation and I paid and then they said they were not going with me because they said if the white men set eyes on me, they will not pay any attention to them. But you know, they are not God. So I quit wrestling and joined boxing but I couldn’t find any sparring partner because anyone I sparred with had a problem, he would almost go off the sport. It got to a point of almost destroying people’s careers. So I went back to wrestling because wrestling has got more strength, more endurance. To me, boxing is like a women thing. I don’t really exhibit all my energy and all my skills in boxing. The coach advised me to go back to wrestling because I couldn’t keep destroying other people’s careers.  From there the problem started. When I wanted to fight for the African title they said, you are not going to go because we made you. But the board nominated me so I went to South Africa and won the title. They said no, I didn’t win the title, if I did, they want to see the clip and the clip was with the South African Broadcasting Corporation because they were the broadcasters of the event. Until they posted the fight on YouTube and then the DG of National Sports Commission, Amos Adamu addressed the issue and said the federal government is behind me and that I should not respond to anyone. And then, I stepped up. I went for the Global Wrestling for Peace Ambassador and that was a tough one. I defeated a Canadian and South African heavy weight champions and survived to the next round where I defeated the American heavy weight champion to be the Global Heavyweight Wrestling for Peace Ambassador. The more they tried to stop me the more it became a tonic for me.

And then I was nominated for the Commonwealth challenge and I went to Scotland. There the people offered me 50, 000 pounds to fight like a man and not win in the ring because that guy was a respected wrestler in Scotland.

Is that so?

Yes. It’s an insult for someone of my strength to get into the ring and for someone to stage manage the fight before my people. To worsen it all, my governor [of Abia State] was there, my speaker was there. Many people where there, the minister for information at the time was there, the first lady was there. I couldn’t let them down. There was no way I could accept that in front of my supporters club; they will stone me to death!  So instead of fighting one guy, they set up four fights for me. At the end of the day, God used that to prove that he is God because then I was in the ring not to win, but just not to let my people down. But behold that was the greatest fight I have ever had. That was how I became the Commonwealth champion. But they said they won’t give me the title because they said they suspect I fixed iron in my body. So that was what pushed me to the world title. The Americans now said, who is this guy? If he is this tough, we want to have him in the ring.

But this practice of offering money to wrestlers to lose fights; is it common?

It’s very common, very simple. It’s not a big deal. I was able to resist it because I have my good people of Nigeria supporting me. Whenever I am travelling my governor, T.A Orji sponsors me and puts food on my table. Pastor T. B Joshua also supports me, helps me with prayers and otherwise. My good people of Nigeria support me.

So let’s talk about the project you are involved in, this campaign against violence, tell us about it?

It’s a massive project. It’s a worthy project. It’s a project that has John Fashanu, Samson Siasia and so many others. We are going to use our faces to educate the youths on so many things they need to know about violence.

What exactly do you plan to do?

People have actively been involved in what will favour them. Nobody wants to die, nobody wants to see his people being attacked. At the same time, Nigeria needs a leader. So we decide to play the lead role because Nigerians are wonderful people because they want to support something when it is coming from the right place. We’ve been suffering from corruption for many years. Corrupt people have been messing up things for a long time and they have been prospering. So when I won the world championship, we sat down to see what we could do and help the EFCC fight this people. We want to fight bloodshed in this country.

Well, you are wrestler, you have been into all these martial arts, so for someone who has been practicing a violent kind of sports, why are you now campaigning against violence?

It is not a violent sport. Wrestlers are the most perfect gentlemen. I just want people to understand that if you think you are strong enough to snatch ballot boxes or carry guns, you cannot be stronger than Ultimate Commander, my brother, if you are used to fomenting trouble; you are not stronger than me. If you are, where were you when I became the world heavy weight champion? If you are weak that it is only guns and bullets that help you, you are not weaker than Aki and Pawpaw who are doing very well in their chosen professions. So we are trying to use all sports to let people know that you can be whatever you want to be. When they pay you to cause trouble, they are buying your destiny. So whatever you do, use it to do something positive. That’s why a wrestler is on board to talk against violence.

For all those who believe wrestling is fiction, what would you say to them?

You know, there is nothing you will not do that people will not talk about. There is a friend of mine who is a pastor and he tells me that there is no pastor who goes to the pulpit and preaches without some alcoholic drink. We are talking of a man of God! If there is anything you are doing, be the best of it. What people say…yes, there’s entertainment in wrestling, even in traditional wrestling before the wrestlers come out, there is drumming and dancing. This is sport, we are not fighting war. The message we are trying to pass across is that this man is stronger than the other man. If you are talking about fiction, who would have thought that Shelton Benjamin would go down for Ultimate Commander. Shelton Benjamin is the most celebrated wrestler in America, alongside The Warlord. I defeated both of them. Who would have thought that King Buccaneer would think Ultimate Commander is his biggest problem. These are multibillionaires. Some of them are even more popular than a country. So people can say what they want to say. There is entertainment wrestling and there is championship wrestling, there is a stage managed side of it.

Does Ultimate Commander do the real thing?

What I do is championship wrestling. I am an athletic wrestler. Shelton Benjamin is an athletic wrestler and I will continue doing this for the next five years. After that, either I retire or I start thinking about the entertainment side of it. I am too young and too strong to start thinking about the entertainment side of it. If you are in entertainment wrestling and you meet me in the ring, I’ll give you the fight of your life.

Have you ever suffered any injury in your fights?

Uncountable. I have had some many injuries in the ring but for any pain I receive in the ring, I dedicate it to somebody’s life, the people who have been supporting me. The last one I had, my brother [John] Fashanu will tell you that it’s a very massive injury. I have injuries on my head and had irons fixed. They removed the irons 10 days before I went for my championship fight and I defeated the opponent. It happened in the ring, they took me to the hospital, from the hospital, they brought me to the ring. The DVD is there for people to watch but this one is not on the Internet because people can’t imagine their stars with injuries.

So they are covering it up?

They are covering it up because they want children and women to get involved. Wrestling is a serious business. Right now I have a knee injury that I am going to be taking care of very soon but it won’t stop me from going to the ring. Because whenever I am in the ring, it’s a different human being you see. It’s no longer the same friend you see, it’s no longer the same brother you see. It’s now the Ultimate Commander you see. Pain energises me.