“The Game” Plans on Returning in 2013

“The Game” Plans on Returning in 2013

 (article by the Coffee Boy) 

         Loud, tough, and always ready to throw down, Arnaud “The Game” Lepont has been a character in the world of Asian MMA over the last two years with his wins at DARE Fight Sports and ONE FC, and more recently his bout with one of the best lightweights in Asia, Shinya Aoki.

         After going 2-1 this year – with two wins against the likes of Brian Choi and Cris Haja, and a loss against Shinya Aoki – Arnaud Lepont has taken a bit of a break, visiting family and working on his book. We decided to do some catching up with him, mainly so that his fans can see what he’s up to and be assured that he plans on making his return in 2013. Also, we get to know the French phenom just a little bit better.

         Anyways, here’s our little (well, not really) interview with the one and only Arnaud Lepont:

Hey Arnaud, long time. What have you been up to since your last fight?

I am doing great, Seth. I had a short holiday in Vietnam with my family and I spent some time with my son. I enjoyed every minute of it. It was great…long time I have not been in Vietnam and it was a real pleasure. I love this country. I am back in Malaysia at the moment, and guess what? I am back in training at MuayFit, the best martial arts gym in Malaysia.

What did you take from your loss against Shinya Aoki? Did it hit you hard?

It was tough. Firstly, because I honestly thought I could match up with him and see how good he was in “stand up.” Instead of that, the fight went straight to the ground and honestly, he just over-played me. I was so sure he would stand with me on the first round. On the ground, he is just too much for me. In another universe, I was ashamed for my team and for those who were believing in me. That's why I refuse to tap. The loss was difficult to handle, but the worst is all the “keyboard warriors” and B-level fighter who spit on you and try to hit you when you are down. It's easy and pathetic. I prefer to lose in front of one of the top 10 fighter in the world than winning to a can.

Was it a wake-up call in any way?

It was not so much of a "wake-up call", ‘cause I was ready, my cardio and stand up was great. I made a mistake. I listened too much the press and I have done a bigger mistake, I was focusing on a stand up war instead of seeing that as a MMA fight. My mistake. But I bow down to Shinya. This guy is in another level when we talk about ground fighting.

So will you be back in the cage again? If so, when, and whom are you targeting?

I am 10-2 and I still have the will to win and bang. Hopefully at One FC 7 or 8. I am still under an exclusive contract with them and I’m proud of it.

Are you comfortable at 155lbs? There are some pretty big dudes in that division.

(laughs) Yes I am. I fought all my life at 170lbs! Even at 180lbs! I think I am a pretty big dude myself. Cutting to 155lbs is tough, I will not go under. I am planning to stay at 155.

What are your plans for 2013 ?

I hope to bring victory again to my team. So I will try to fight at least twice. I would love to fight three times like this year. I have a 2-1 record this year. I am also planning to do some seminars, around Malaysia and Asia for sure, but maybe in France for March or April. I am also working with my team on my book. Trust me, it's gonna’ be something. I prefer to keep it a little bit secret, ‘cause I really want to make a big surprise. Some chapters will be awesome, it will be my time to thank my fans, give them some exclusive pictures and also payback to some of my haters.

Time for some stupid, random questions. YOU READY?!

…

If you were an animal, what kind of an animal would you be?

A panda…but a deadly one.

If you were a Star Wars character…who would you be?

Han Solo.

What’s your favorite color?

Red

What’s your favorite drink?

Red Wine.

What would I find in your refrigerator right now?

Fruits and chicken.

What is the last book you read?

“I of the Sun” by Richard Arthur

If you could trade places with any other person for a week, famous or not famous, living or dead, real or fictional. with whom would it be?

Obama

What’s the last movie you went to see?

“Silent Hill” a few days ago… I lost 90 minutes of my life, and it was a total waste of money!

What is your favorite movie?

The Running Man.

If Hollywood did a movie on you… who would play you?

Bill Murray would be a good pick…but he’d have to put on some muscle.

If you were a car, what car would you be?

A Mini Cooper.

If you were written about in the newspaper, on the front page, what would the headline say?

"Entertaining and sexy, everybody should play TheGame"

What makes you angry?

No bread for breakfast.

Describe yourself in 3 words.

Awesome…determined…accessible.

Three things you’d bring with you on a deserted island?

John Nutt, sunglasses, and a bottle of wine

Is there anything you wanna tell your fans andor your haters?

I will not waste my time with my haters so I prefer to thank my fans, those who always support me and send me a message or come ask for a picture. I always have some time for them and will always respect their attention. Thanks to my sponsors, MouthGuard Kombat, Machismo, MotorTraders, Vengeance, Jaded, and True Fitness. Thanks to my gym, the best one in Malaysia, MuayFit.

Catching Up With Arnaud “The Game” Lepont

Catching Up With Arnaud “The Game” Lepont

Published on July 17, 2012 by The Coffee Boy in DARE, NEWS, ONEFC

Exclusive: Catching Up With “The Game” by The Coffee Boy

If you had not heard of Arnaud “The Game” Lepont before ONE FC 4, I’m pretty sure you’ll remember him after his exciting performance against Evolve MMA’s Brian Choi. From his bizarre entrance with the mask and chains, to his late come-from-behind comeback rear-naked choke victory, and then calling out one of MMA’s greatest lightweights ever in Shinya Aoki.

He’s loud, he’s talented, and he holds nothing back both in the cage and out. Love him or hate him, if you’re watching MMA on this side of the world, you can’t help but watch him and follow him closely. So what’s next for ONE FC’s French martial artist?

I finally got a chance to catch up with him and find out what’s going on, what’s his next move?  And, he was more than ready to let loose and get the ball rolling.

After ONE FC 4, he didn’t take too much of a break, and was already traveling, training, and setting up his next fight.

“I have been a little everywhere! I spent some time with my son and family, visiting my friends in Bangkok, enjoying the food and drinks, and letting my body recover and heal,” he reflects, as if this was years ago. “It was a good time, a short time. I am already back in the gym, back at MuayFit. No time to rest — my job is to be ready to fight, already building a new version of The Game.”

If you know Arnaud like I do, you know he can’t spend too much time away from martial arts, and the opportunity to make a living so his son can have a good life. Even when he is injured, he pushes through. Take for example the weeks leading up to his ONE FC debut against Brian Choi:

“I tore my knee two weeks before my fight at ONE FC 4 and doctors asked me to pull out from the card and take a couple of weeks to let my body recover,” Lepont explains, “Pulling out from the ONE FC fight card would mean no pay check, and I need this money to offer my son a better life than mine.”

We hear it all the time – a fighter will come up with a reason for bad performances and such, but it’s easy to understand where Lepont is coming from. He also received a yellow card before the fight began and it left many people confused.

He explains that it was “…impossible for me to fight without the tape on my knee due to the injury. I told Victor Cui (head of ONE FC) and Matt Hume (Referee) about it. So, I was a little surprised on the day of the fight when the referee (Yuji Shimada) asked me to un-tape my knee, and gave me a yellow card before the fight even started.”

Despite the odd start to his fight, it woke him up and made him more alert and pumped up to win the fight. Right at the beginning it started off as a slug-fest, both men throwing caution to the wind, with Lepont having an edge over Choi. He was then taken down, which set the tone for the rest of the fight until his comeback submission in the third round. When I asked him about his performance, he naturally had a lot to say:

“There is good and there is bad. The most important thing of all, is that even in victory you find a way to improve yourself as a fighter. I was looking to put on a show and get the bonus, but surprisingly, they were no bonuses for ONE FC4. I honestly think myself and Brian earned the fight of the night. I was really looking for the knock out, but as I was not able to train cardio for almost two weeks before the fight, I was a little short.

“After hearing Brian claiming in the trailer for the bout that, “only a black belt world champion in BJJ could submit him”…I was hoping to get a submission. He is a real wrestler and keeps very low position on the ground, it’s tough to be able to work on the ground. But whatever people say, I think I was winning the fight. I was more aggressive, I was winning on the stand up, and I was more active on the ground. Having two takedowns and laying and praying doesn’t make you win fights. But honestly, Brian is a tough mother f***er and I have a lot of respect for him.”

Soon after ONE FC 4, Lepont told me he was going to be in Bangkok for a little bit, and when I asked him about it at that time, all he had to say was “Game On, Mut*&er F&^ker.”

Now, if you’re familiar with that phrase, you know that has DARE written all over it. And sure enough, Arnaud was back in Bangkok with the boys at DARE setting up his next fight.

“I have couple of fights in my contract with ONE FC and DARE FC, so I am lucky I can decide between the two best organizations in Asia,” he explains gleefully.

He is still part of DARE’s “million dollar” tournament, and his next fight with the promotion will likely be a continuation of the tournament. This did surprise me, however, as I was under the impression he might be heading to Manila for ONE FC 5, going down in August. So I had to ask about the possibility of a fight with his idol Shinya Aoki, and he again had much to say on the subject:

“Yes, I called out Aoki. There is no bad blood, I am a fan of Aoki. This guy is a legend of our sport. I am 32, I don’t care for one more belt around my hips, but I want once in my life to fight one of my idols. What is wrong with that? I am on a six fight winning streak, beating guys like Haja and Choi and I am the first guy to beat them before the limit,” he explains, and then continues,  “Aoki wrote on his twitter that he was “ok for the fight”, and I hoped that OneFC would put me against him, sadly they offered me someone else.

“I was really disappointed because, I was honestly thinking that it could have been a great fight, because; even if I only have a 5% chance to win it…I honestly think I can shock the world. Maybe that’s why they didn’t give it to me. I was only focused on Aoki, so instead of facing another opponent at the next ONE FC I will wait. For now, I prefer to get back in DARE FC’s cage and bring home my million dollars.”

So for now he won’t be getting a shot at his idol, and will be heading to DARE’s next event, going down in September (underground…whatever that means). I tried getting some inside information on where DARE will be headed, but Lepont just smiles a cunning smile, which tells me he won’t be saying much on the matter.

“I cannot give you anything cause Jon “Awesome” Nutt will kill me. Honestly, it will be a most f***ing awesome event. It will be something so crazy that people will talk about it for years.” And he means that sincerely.

So with his fight career on the rise, training and working at Muayfit, doing his best to give his son a good life, it seems like everything is his for the taking. Even with his busy schedule, he still does have plans in the future.

“You know me. I am a father, I am already 32, I still have a couple of fights and then it will be time to say “bye bye” to my fans. Fighting a couple of times in DARE FC, getting my money and my tournament belt, maybe a fight in UFC and then done.”

It came off to me like Randy Couture nearing the end of his career (all three times), so when I asked him about his future projects, he did already have something planned:

“So I am thinking “what is next?” I think I will try to open a gym in 2013, maybe later, affiliate or not, but I want to be back as manager cause I understand well the Asian way and I can make something great again like I used to have in Vietnam. But definitely not in Malaysia. I am 100% Muayfit here.”

“The Game” is a man with a plan, always thinking five steps ahead. All he wants to do is go out there, put on beastly performances in the cage, live the sport of MMA, and do all he can to provide his family with the best opportunities in life as best he can.

So watch out for Arnaud “The Game” Lepont in DARE’s next event, and stay updated here for his opponent once it is confirmed. Love him or hate him, Lepont says it best:

“If you don’t like me, keep hating me ‘cause you will pay for the PPV to see me lose…and you will be sad again when I win, again and again.”

The Magician Needs To Play The Game At ONE FC

The Magician Needs To Play The Game At ONE FC

Originally Published on May 7, 2012 by The Coffee Boy in ONEFC, Opinion

Eddie The Magician Ng Needs To Play Arnaud The Game Lepont 

Have you guys missed me? No? That’s too bad, because I’m back and ready to impose my thoughts on you feeble MMA fans. I demand respect. Ha, no, just kidding.

ONE FC 4 is coming up, and this time it’s going to be in Malaysia. This will be the biggest mixed martial arts event to have ever been held in this country, and they definitely have a lot riding on this upcoming event.

For starters, they’re going to be putting a show for some very new fans to the sport, and first impressions last forever. If they put on a stellar show like they did back at ONE FC 3, they should be fine.

Also, SuperFight League India drew a crowd of over 12,000 people, much more than ONE FC has ever drawn. It is also noteworthy that SFL 2 had more YouTube viewers of their live event than ONE FC 3 did.

I just read that Renato Sobral is set to face Tatsuya Minuzo at the event, and that should prove to be a very exciting fight. But what other match-ups should they put together?

What would really get people up on their feet?

What would help a particular division out a lot in terms of ranking their fighters?

Ladies and gentleman, this is my argument, my plea if you will, for ONE FC to set up Eddie ‘The Magician Ng’ against Arnaud ‘The Game’ Lepont.

Right now the division is stacked with excellent fighters: Eduard Folayang, Ole Laursen, Felipe Enomoto, Shinya Aoki and Zorobabel Moreira. All those mentioned, save Aoki, have already competed at least twice for ONE FC, and the division looks clustered.

Now, if you haven’t heard of Eddie Ng, you have been living under a rock. Ng has a professional record of 5 – 1, and none of his wins have gone past the first round. He trains at one of the best MMA gyms in Asia, Evolve, alongside Zorobabel Moreira and Shinya Aoki.

So far, he’s been on a tear. At ONE FC 1, he defeated Chun Bo Yuan via KO (punches) while standing just above his opponents guard, and effectively defended against an armbar. At ONE FC 3, he quickly got through Malaysia’s Jian Kai Chee with ease, securing the TKO victory after taking his opponent down and landing bombs 43 seconds into the fight. 

It’s time for Eddie to step up his game. I’m not taking anything away from his opponent, but it seems as though many believe Eddie is the next best thing. If he wants to truly test himself, there’s no better person to test his skills against other than Arnaud Lepont.

Again, if you haven’t heard of Lepont, you should be ashamed of yourself. Arnaud Lepont is a French mixed martial artists, currently training in Malaysia’s very own Muayfit. He possesses a professional record of 8 – 1, and has fought in DARE and Gods of War.

Arnaud Lepont recently announced that he has signed a contract with ONE FC, and will be in the already stacked lightweight division. Earlier this year he defeated Krzysztof Hajtalowics in DARE by pulling off a nasty guillotine choke in the first round.

Now, why does this fight need to happen? Well first off, Eddie needs to test himself against a ‘game’ opponent (pun totally intended) at some point, and if he really wants to be a future champion, he should do it soon. At the same time, Arnaud Lepont is definitely looking to make a big impact at his ONE FC debut, and who better than to have it against Eddie?

Eddie possesses good take down skills reminiscent of Josh Koscheck, and decent striking. Arnaud has a wide range of submission capabilities reminiscent of Anthony Pettis off his back (think back to Pettis’ fight against Clay Guida, when he was on his back attacking and going for submissions), and ferocious striking abilities.

Tell me, how is this NOT a recipe for an extremely exciting fight?! And that brings me to my next point. We NEED, absolutely NEED to consistently have exciting fights put together. Each ONE FC event has had their fair share of exciting fights, but honestly, the only one that got people buzzing thus far was Eduard Folayang’s bout against Ole Laursen. It was fast-paced, brutal, and controversial…all the makings for a memorable fight.

And lets take a look at the lightweight division for a minute. Enomoto defeated Laursen, Laursen defeated Folayang, and Moreira defeated Enomoto. Eddie Ng and Moreira are teammates, so the probability of them fighting is slim.

Now Shinya Aoki, probably the best-known lightweight fighter signed to ONE FC, is ALSO a teammate of Eddie Ng’s. Conundrum, you say? I concur.

Now it’s not like there aren’t other lightweights in the division, and chances are that ONE FC is probably signing new fighters all the time. But right now, this is the fight that makes most sense to me… and also the fight that could really skyrocket ONE FC’s popularity.

Yes yes, I hear you. Some potentially exciting fights end up boring. And yes, there is that possibility, even though it’s very slim. But still, think of what this does also for the fighters? It tells us just how good Eddie really is, and it also gives Arnaud the chance to show everyone why he deserves to be in ONE FC and why he is so exciting to watch.

There’s no reason for Arnaud Lepont to turn this fight down — he has fought scarier dudes. And there should be no reason for Eddie Ng to turn this fight down — he really needs a step up in competition. I’m sure if they were given the chance to fight each other, they’d jump at the opportunity (if they didn’t they would be total wusses).

ONE FC… set this fight up.

PODCAST Ep28 – Arnaud The Game Lepont – Oo La La Ladies

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PODCAST Ep28 – Arnaud The Game Lepont – Oo La La Ladies

Published on March 6, 2012 by The Editor in DARE, Muayfit Elite, PODCAST

Arnaud “The Game” Lepont Guest on Todays Podcast

Don’t be fooled by the (7-1-0) MMA record, the mohawk or the tattoos, this gently spoken Frenchman (Yes Ladies he has got a sexy accent!) is much more than the sum of his parts. He is a genuinely nice guy, who is helping to build the Muayfit Elite MMA team into something Malaysia can be proud of. While at the same time passing on his knowledge of much more than just the life of a fighter to his young charges. He is articulate and a consummate networker, watching him work a room is a lesson that any businessman would do well to observe.

He aims to build a family at Muayfit Elite not just a team, he wants his fighters to be like brothers.

He will be present at Malaysian Fighting Championship 4 at Overtime @ Riverside City, Jalan Ipoh on Saturday 10th March, watching over his less experienced fighters as they take their early steps into competition.  Also watching over much more experienced fighters like Will “The Kill” Chope.

But, he hasn’t given up on fighting just yet either. At DARE 2-12 in Bangkok on 17th March He finally will get to fight “Haja” Krysztof Hajtalowicz Who had to pull out of DARE 1-12 due to a rib injury. But now Haja is fit and raring to go, So, It’s ON.

After that Arnaud would eventually like to get a chance to fight in ONE FC and I for one would like to see that.

So why not take a listen.

You can hear the podcast on the player on this page or subscribe on  iTunes and other devices.  Or best of all you can hear our show on Stitcher SmartRadio,  Stitcher allows you to listen to your favorite shows directly from your iPhone, Android Phone, Kindle Fire and beyond.

On-demand and on the go! Don’t have Stitcher? Download it for free today at Stitcher.com or in the app stores.  Stitcher SmartRadio- The Smarter Way to listen to radio

Intro and Outro commentary kindly provided by ’The Brooklyn Monk’ Antonio Graceffo

Our outro music as always is Gods from the band - The Deering. Check out this track and many more at their website.

*Hint this is one of those shows that to get the full effect you need to listen right through to the end, after the music!

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DARE 1-12 Quarterfinal Fight, Live from Bangkok

DARE 1-12 Quarterfinal Fight, Live from Bangkok

Published on December 13, 2011 by The Editor in DARE, Event

Dare Fight Sports is proud to present the first ever Quarterfinal fight of DARE Championship, that will feature two victorious DARE fighters of the Welterweight Division (77 kilos/ 170lbs). This and other fights of the DARE 1/12 event will be coming to you Live from Club Insomnia Bangkok and broadcasted onwww.darelive.tv and on www.gfl.tv on 7th of January 2012.

THE GAME – Arnaud Lepont VS HAJA – Krzysztof Hajtalowicz.

This will be one of the most anticipated match ups in the history of DARE and the first to feature two returning fighters.

Both HAJA and THE GAME were extremely impressive on their DARE debuts and this should be an extremely close and competitive match up between two of the top welterweights in Thailand.

The winner of this fight will proceed to the Semifinal level of the DARE Championship and be one step closer to becoming one of the first DARE Champions and the receivers of the One Million Dollar Grand Bonus.

ONE MILLION DOLLARS. IN A CAGE. GAME ON.

THE GAME – Lepont is an aggressive, explosive fighter who absolutely blew away top ranked Malaysian Jian KAI Chee at DARE 1/11. He is very well rounded and is equally comfortable fighting on his feet or on the ground. A veteran of eight MMA fights with an impressive 7-1 record he trains at numerous camps all over Asia and is constantly evolving and improving as a fighter.

THE GAME Lepont will be representing Phuket Top Team in his return fight to the DARE cage in Bangkok.

For more information about Phuket Top Team, please visit:

www.phukettopteam.com

HAJA –Hajtalowicz is a decorated BJJ practitioner who has won numerous grappling competitions and is highly accomplished on the ground. He is a big, strong welterweight who put in an extremely impressive performance at DARE 2/11, submitting unbeaten BJJ purple belt Wiktor THE SLAYER Svensson with a rear naked choke in the second round. He will be looking to keep his perfect professional record of 3-0 intact and secure his fourth consecutive win against THE GAME.

HAJA trains out of Bangkok BJJ, Fairtex Bangkok and Golden Triangle International Martial Arts (GTIMA) in Chiang Mai, Thailand.

For more information about GTIMA, please visit: www.gtima.com

Here are the thoughts of veteran MMA journalist James Goyder,

“This is a fantastic match up and, even though two friends of mine will be fighting, I am really looking forward to it. THE GAME Lepont is extremely experienced and brings a lot of aggression into the cage, although he is on the small side for a welterweight. HAJA will feel he has the better ground game but he seemed to run out of steam in his last fight and with Lepont likely to set an extremely fast pace stamina could be an issue for him again. HAJA has the size advantage but THE GAME probably has better cardio, I see this as being a 50/50 fight and absolutely anything could happen on the night.”

Watch DARE 1/12 live at www.darelive.tv or at www.gfl.tv for just 9,99 USD!

With kindest regards from Bangkok,

DARE TEAM

–

DARE 1/12 on January 7th 2011 at Club Insomnia, Bangkok Thailand

Profits of the event will be donated for the help of the flood victims in Thailand.

Doors open at 3 PM – Limited amount of tickets available!

Online streaming at www.darelive.tv and www.gfl.tv!

Dare Fight Sports

dare@darefightsports.com

darefightsports.com

Facebook: Dare Championship

Youtube:: http://www.youtube.com/user/Darechampionship

Twitter: @DareFightSports

DARE 1/12 EVENT PARTNERS

Club Insomnia Bangkok (DARE event venue)

PK Boxing (DARE cages)

TUFF (Fight Apparel)

DUBUIT – Fight the Floods (Welfare Partner of DARE)

DYMATIZE Thailand (Nutrition Partner of DARE)

Fairtex (DARE fight gloves)

Xstream (Video Production)

Media Agility (Online Partner)

Spankys Bangkok and Pattaya (Entertainment Partner)

Go Fight Live (Online broadcasting Partner)

XPLY (DARE clothing)

SEE IT. LIVE IT.