thaFormula.com - Going into your first fight with Noah Thomas, how were you feeling seeing that it had been such a long layoff since your last fight and you were coming off of a serious injury?

Manny Gamburyan - I was feeling very comfortable, very calm and I knew I was going there to take care of some business, that's all. I had been out for 2 years because of my shoulder and looked what happened, in my final fight against Nate Diaz, it popped out again.

thaFormula.com - Were you surprised at how easily you won your first fight with Noah seeing as how you had been through such a long layoff?

Manny Gamburyan - Not really because I was very hungry for that fight because I needed to win because it was my first fight in 2 years and against Noah I had to take care of some business and that's what I did. I walked right in there and went for a takedown and submitted him.

thaFormula.com - How did it feel to get that first victory out the way after that long layoff?

Manny Gamburyan - I was feeling so good. I was very happy that I won and looking forward to my fight in the second round.

thaFormula.com - Did your shoulder feel good after the fight or did you happen to hurt it a little?

Manny Gamburyan - No. After my first fight everything was perfect. After my second fight with Wiman it was really good. I hurt my shoulder though when I was fighting Joe Lauzon. I hurt it in the third round.

thaFormula.com - When you were told you were fighting Matt Wiman in the second round, what were your thoughts on him as a fighter at the time?

Manny Gamburyan - I wanted to fight Wiman because I knew he was one of the toughest guys over there. He is a veteran who fought in the UFC before and he is really good.

thaFormula.com - Now during your preparation for the Matt Wiman fight, your cousin Karo came over to help you train. Was there a big difference in the training you got on the show compared to the training you get with Gokor and your cousin?

Manny Gamburyan - Yeah of course. Obviously I was training with Karo and Gokor but unfortunately they don't get along no more, but I still work with Karo over at Legends. I was prepared and ready to go into the Ultimate Fighter show and I was training really hard over there. Of course I was missing all my friends and family.

thaFormula.com - Did you feel that you got a lot out of the training that you received on the show?

Manny Gamburyan - Yeah of course. Obviously you are there for 6 weeks, all top guys, they are really good. You help each other and this and that. I got a lot out of it because Jens Pulver is a very, very, very nice guy and a very good coach.

thaFormula.com - Did having Karo there for the fight make you feel like there was no way you could lose in front of him?

Manny Gamburyan - In my heart I knew I was gonna win. I was just doing my thing you know. It doesn't matter if Karo was there because I prepared so much for that fight. It was a really tough fight though because Wiman was really strong.

thaFormula.com - When you actually got to look at the show and you saw Dana picking you to lose that fight, is that something that you have faced your whole life because of you being the shorter fighter?

Manny Gamburyan - Yeah everybody says that, but look at Hermes Franca, look at Sean Sherk. They are around my height but Sherk is the Lightweight Champion. So I don't know what the hell Dana was talking about, but I told him, "Dana, just put me against anybody you want." "You think Wiman is really good, I will fight Wiman." "You think Lauzon is really good, I'll fight Lauzon."

thaFormula.com - Leading up to those 2 fights, nobody seemed to have really given you a chance. Did you feel that you were really underestimated by everyone on that show?

Manny Gamburyan - Well a lot of the guys weren't because they saw how well I was training. The thing I was having a hard time with was Dana White because he kept saying to me, "Manny your too small." I was like "Dana, just sit back and watch."

thaFormula.com - How was close was your relationship with Nate on the show seeing as how you guys were on the same team?

Manny Gamburyan - Dude, rolling every single day with him you uh, every single day he was my training partner and I know he's good, he knows I'm good, but he wasn't better then me at all. Every single day I was giving him little problems. He knows what I'm capable of bro. I'm not gonna talk trash about him, he's a good fighter and he deserved to be in the finals, but it wasn't supposed to end this way. But it's okay because everything happens for a reason and I promise Dana White that I will continue where I left off.

thaformula.com - Yeah you know it seemed like you and Nate became good friends on the show...

Manny Gamburyan - Yeah of course. We are still good friends. It's not his fault, it's not my fault, it (my shoulder) just popped out. Now all we got to do is just do it again.

thaformula.com - I ask because after you beat Wiman, it seemed like you really didn't get a chance to enjoy the victory because of the Karo and Nate incident?

Manny Gamburyan - Yeah, Yeah, Yeah. I didn't because I was asking "what the hell is going on with you guys bro?" I was asking Nate what happened because I was enjoying my victory after winning.

thaformula.com - Do you think that the TV show kind of made it seem worse then it really was?

Manny Gamburyan - Obviously of course. TV is always gonna be looking for something like that because of "oh it's Karo and Diaz again." But let me tell you something if you still want to fight us again, we will fight again and Karo will fucking fight the Diaz brother. Me and Karo will fight the Diaz brothers. That would be the last thing I would be scared of.

thaformula.com - Is this thing just business or is this really becoming personal between you guys?

Manny Gamburyan - Bro, I don't think it's becoming personal, it's just that it's between Karo and Nate. I'm not gonna get involved. I don't care. Nate is my friend, Karo is my cousin but if you have something against me, I'm in there. Nate was real cool with me. He came and he apologized and was like "Manny your cool with me, you're my homeboy but I don't like your cousin."

thaformula.com - The reason I ask is because I was wondering if you wished you could have stopped the situation from going as far as it did?

Manny Gamburyan - Well I tried my best but it didn't work out you know. Nate was really mad. He goes, "Karo's punking me bro, why is he punking me on national TV?" I mean he has his own right and Karo has his own right and I'm not gonna be in the middle of all that you know? I just don't wanna talk about it no more.

thaformula.com - So after beating Wiman and reaching the next round, how were you feeling about that victory?

Manny Gamburyan - Good. Wiman was tough and technical. He was one of the toughest guys in the group to be honest with you. It was probably Wiman, Lauzon and Gray probably. I wanted to fight Joe Lauzon because he was the crowd favorite.

thaformula.com - So you made it to the semifinal and you finally got to face Lauzon who everyone was calling the favorite. What were your thoughts of Lauzon and his style heading into that fight?

Manny Gamburyan - To be honest with you, he has the same style as me. He's aggressive and he likes to be on top. I don't mind to be on my back, it's just you just don't like to be on your back. So I wanted to fight Lauzon because first, he beat my coach, second he beat one of our guys and third he was the crowd favorite. So I rather beat him then anybody else. So I wanted to fight him. Plus he picked me when the semifinals were on he said, "I'll fight Manny." I picked Wiman because I wanted to fight Wiman because of his attitude.

thaFormula.com - So when the fight started with Lauzon, did you notice anything in that first round that made you feel that you would win that fight?

Manny Gamburyan - Yeah, I was playing with his head when I was fighting with him. I knew he wasn't gonna get along with my power. So I knew in my heart that Lauzon was not gonna beat me. He's a good fighter, but he was not gonna beat me.

thaFormula.com - Do you think he was surprised at how strong you were?

Manny Gamburyan - Yeah, he came up to me the very next day and said, "Manny I was never expecting you to be this strong bro." I was like "thank you man I appreciate that, that's a compliment."

thaFormula.com - Did the fight with Lauzon go as you expected?

Manny Gamburyan - Yeah, I was expecting exactly what happened. I wanted to submit him but I couldn't submit him because he was a pretty slick guy. He is a very tough fighter. Let's put it this way, if he would have fought anybody else, he would have won. I'm not gonna say I'm really good, but I work hard bro. I want to be better every fight. I wanna prove myself every fight and against Wiman I was very sick. Coming into that fight I had 104-degree temperature.

thaFormula.com - I didn't know that. Now after your win against Lauzon, Dana said that he felt you were 10 times the fighter that he thought you were. How did it feel to hear him say that when you looked at the show?

Manny Gamburyan - It felt really good you know, he's Dana White and I respect him a lot. It was really good to be part of The Ultimate Fighter. It was really good and I enjoyed it. The house sucks but the guys were hanging in there.

thaFormula.com - Now after the fight with Lauzon, it seems like you finally got the full respect of not only Dana, but the people watching the show as well. Did it feel good to finally get that respect from the people?

Manny Gamburyan - Of course. I was having a hard time getting respect. I'm like, "dude why don't you guys respect me? You know what the hell is your problem? I'm the only one who fought Sean Sherk over here and you think you guys have the experience? I got the most experience of anyone here. Have you guys seen who I have fought?" It was un-cool for a second. They thought I wasn't good enough so I was so happy that I proved them wrong. I mean I got the respect, but I wanted to win the whole thing. But it's okay you know. I had a really bad time against Nate Diaz, but trust me, I swear to god, I will continue where I left off. I promise you guys.

thaFormula.com - And why do you feel that even though you had fought quality fighters like Sean Sherk, you never could get that respect?

Manny Gamburyan - People didn't know. Even Dana White didn't know. He said "you fought Sean Sherk for 18 minutes to a decision?" I was like "yeah." He goes, "oh my god, I didn't know that."

thaFormula.com - So now you are in the final after the victory against Lauzon. How are you feeling at this point knowing you had beat the crowd favorite and you were now in the Final?

Manny Gamburyan - I was feeling great, I was prepared. That's why I yelled "June 23rd here I come," because I knew I was gonna go home and train the same way. This is what I did exactly. I went back home, I took exactly one week off to just chill. Then I went back to training 3 months non-stop every single day. I was doing 3 workouts a day. I didn't even cut weight for this fight I swear to god. I was eating and I was 156. Just going every single day 2 or 3 times a day. Lifting and running in the mornings and then 4:30 to 6:00 I was training with Karo and from 8 to 10 I was doing another workout.

thaFormula.com - And for those 3 months what is your diet like?

Manny Gamburyan - Dude I don't diet, I just work hard that's all. I just work hard every day, twice a day. I workout usually 12 times a week so that's twice a day. I mean I don't eat junk food though at all. I eat really healthy but I eat a lot.

thaFormula.com - For those that don't know Manny, how much sacrifice and struggle did it take for you to make it to the final when you look back at what you put in to get there?

Manny Gamburyan - It was really hard. Fighting 3 fights in 6 weeks is really hard and so is living with the guys, eating with the guys and sleeping with the guys. Because you're sitting down and eating with your opponent. But like I said, I wasn't there for the TV show, I was there for the fights.

thaFormula.com - Does sitting down and eating with your opponent mess with your head mentally?

Manny Gamburyan - Yeah of course, I don't want to see my opponent when I fight. I was even telling Nate like, "Nate why don't you go and check out if Wiman or Lauzon is there." He was like "nah bro you can go ahead and eat." But I'm very cool with everybody, but once we start fighting I hate my opponent. They are my enemies, but once we finish fighting, they are my friends again.

thaformula.com - So you are in the final and all that is left is Maynard and Nate. Who were you keeping a close eye on the most throughout the show?

Manny Gamburyan - If you watch the semifinals when Nate was fighting Grey Maynard, I was cornering Nate. I was cornering Nate because I knew I could beat Maynard and Joe. I wanted to fight Nate because he was the second favorite to win and I know what he is capable of. I know what he can do.

thaformula.com - When Nate and Maynard did fight, did you pretty much feel that Nate was gonna win that fight?

Manny Gamburyan - To be honest with you, Nate's only chance like you saw was with he submission. If there was no submission, I knew that he was gonna lose. So after the first round when he got dominated by Maynard, I mean Grey just tortured him in the first round. After that I told him, "bro he is shooting in, just go for the guillotine" and he ended up going for the guillotine and submitted him.

thaformula.com - Now the both of you are in the final. How did you feel about the fight going into it and were you happy that it was Nate you were facing at the time?

Manny Gamburyan - I didn't care about that at that time because I wanted to fight the best. He was my next opponent and I was like "hey lets do it." If it was Nate or Grey, I didn't care.

thaformula.com - So you put in 3 months of hard training. Were there any injuries or anything that went wrong at all?

Manny Gamburyan - Nothing, everything was perfect. He was not even hurting my shoulder. When my shoulder popped out during the fight, it was the worst feeling I ever had in my whole entire life, the worst feeling.

thaformula.com - Now let's get into the fight with Nate. When the first round started, did you notice anything different about Nate. Was this a different Nate than the one you trained with or was this the same fighter?

Manny Gamburyan - It was the same Nate bro. Same guy. Nothing had changed, nothing. When I sat down after the first round, I didn't even drink water, I didn't even take out my mouthpiece. It's just an unfortunate thing that happened bro. I know what I could do against this guy. I know what I can do and I will do it again it's okay.

thaformula.com - Now many people felt that you controlled the first round from beginning to end and...

Manny Gamburyan - Nate actually thought he won the first round to be honest with you. In his interviews, he actually thought he won the first round and he said "I don't think Manny wants to get a rematch." Make sure Nate reads this interview bro because he would be the last guy I would be scared of. He would be the last guy, I swear to god.

thaformula.com - Did the first round go exactly like you planned it?

Manny Gamburyan - Yes it went exactly the way I wanted it to. It was gonna be the same thing in the second round and in the third round I was gonna stand up with him and just bang with him. Bro, I know he trained hard and he knows I trained hard but I know he was not gonna stop me bro. I tortured him every single day in practice so I know what he's capable of. I just don't want to talk about Nate Diaz no more because I don't wanna get more mad right now. I hope I get to fight him again. I will work hard to fight him again. I promise you guys. After every fight I win I'm gonna call him out, every single one to let him know that bro, we are not done yet. We got to do it again. He knows too. He knows that we are gonna do it again because that isn't fair. It was an unfortunate thing that my shoulder popped out and it was the worst experience in my whole entire life, I swear to God. I hope it never happens again. I am rehabbing right now working out hard again. Just going back to the drawing board and just go from there.

thaformula.com - When your shoulder went out on you, did you know the fight was over the moment it popped?

Manny Gamburyan - At that second yeah. I couldn't bring my shoulder back in and I was like "fuck, I'm fucked that's it."

thaformula.com - What were you feeling like right after the fight Manny?

Manny Gamburyan - Right after the fight I had a little pain, but like a man I shook his hand. But after the fight there was no pain anymore. When I went back home there was a little pain at night, but I was okay. I'm okay now too. At that second you can't do anything. The first one-minute you are dying.

thaformula.com - And when you did go home Manny, what was going through your head at the time?

Manny Gamburyan - I couldn't focus for a while. For 2 weeks I couldn't do anything bro. It was just like "what the fuck am I doing here bro?" I couldn't eat uh, I still can barely eat right now. I'm unfocused and my mind is not there still bro. I'm just trying to keep it going like whatever happens, happens, whatever bro let's do it again. That's what I'm thinking about right now.

thaformula.com - Have you started to train again or are you still recovering from the injury?

Manny Gamburyan - Well kind of yeah. I have to take it easy a little bit. But I will be back and I will get it back together.

thaformula.com - What did the UFC and Dana tell you after the fight with Nate?

Manny Gamburyan - Dana White and Joe Silva came up to me and said "Manny we know you're a warrior, you would never give up, just train hard, rehab, get your shoulder right and just call me back when your ready." I just want to fight again bro because I hate losing, especially that way, it hurts.

thaformula.com - What was your fight with Sean Sherk like Manny for those that don't know?

Manny Gamburyan - When I fought Sean Sherk I was 18 years old and I went the distance with him 18 minutes. I know he hasn't really changed since the day I fought him okay? It's just he is improving that's all. He's a champion. He's a good fighter and he's a champion, that's it. If he wasn't a good fighter he would never be champion.

thaformula.com - What did you think about the Sherk and Franca fight?

Manny Gamburyan - Franca can do better. It was just a bad day for Franca. Franca is a better fighter then that.

thaformula.com - Is Sherk someone you would like to fight again and how do you feel you would do against him today?

Manny Gamburyan - That's my goal to fight him again. I think that I could submit him now.

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