Between The Covers: I Asked For A Plumber and Got A Cagefighter
by Torch
I purchased a house recently, in Trinidad Colorado. It was a HUD house and had been abandoned for a year; all the copper plumbing and wiring had been stripped out along with all the appliances. The inside was painted milk chocolate brown, the carpets stained with dog pee, and the wood paneling was falling off the walls. On the upside it is a three-bedroom, two-bathroom house with hardwood floors. I only paid $31,000 for it, the price of a car. I have been painting and remodeling it since the end of last June and have already gone through two contractors and needed a third. I called my Trinidad realtor and asked her if she knew anyone who was good. I wanted someone to plumb my kitchen sink that had been hacksawed out. She said I should call this nice young man named Travis; she giggled and added how cute he was.
Travis was very nice on the phone, and quick to come look at my project. My realtor understated his hotness. Travis showed up, a handsome hot Latin man who was totally ripped! He took off his sweatshirt and was in a t-shirt and jeans as he worked under my sink; this made me want to break it all over again just so I could watch him work. Travis was kind and quiet, he smiled politely and went about his work, and he called me “Mam”. His assistant Jeremy a tall, lanky guy told me that Travis was a Mixed Martial Arts champion, that he held three belts. Travis shot his buddy a look that said, “Not now dude; we’re working.” I truly had no response to that, as I’ve never really thought about cage fighting. I simply replied, “Cool” as I could see he seemed a bit shy when it came to talking about it. The sink’s plumbing turned out great and he was very reasonable with his price for labor.
Of course that night I went on the Internet and looked him up. Hum, cage fighting, yikes. I saw a video of him in a 17 second fight, he and his opponent walked out, circled around each other, and my sweet plumber knocked the guy out in one hit!
“Wholly crap! Note to self: pay the plumber on time!”
The next day when he came back, I turned up the heat in the house and asked him to hook up my dishwasher, washing machine, upstairs toilet and upstairs sink. The house is old, 1906 so everything takes longer to fix than you would expect. He spent a total of three days doing the work, in his t-shirt and jeans as I enjoyed the view. My next thought was, “So you can knock out a guy with one punch but can you lay tile?” He showed me pictures of his previous tile work. Yes, the hot Latino will be laying my Spanish tile!
I am too squeamish to watch him fight but instead asked him for a formal interview for the magazine. Meet Tenacious Travis Aragon!
CMB: Travis, how did you get into fighting?
TA: I was always fighting in school, my older brother liked beating me up. You see, I grew up in Co Springs and the kids fought a lot there. Later I started getting into sports and I took boxing for eight years, have been studying Jujitsu for five years – I hold a purple belt, and have been wrestling for eight years.
CMB: You have been a title-holder three times, what are the titles, and how long do you hold them?
TA: I hold the155 lb. No Mercy Title, 155 No Mercy Regional Title, and out of Denver the Thunder Dome Title – for inked out promotions. You have to defend your title within 6 months or you lose it and it goes to the next guy.
CMB: What goes through your mind just before you enter the ring?
TA: I am actually praying at that time, asking God to protect me. I try to stay clear and calm. Once I’m in the ring I start moving around and try to intimidate the other guy.
CMB: Can you describe your training?
TA: I train at Dave Baca’s gym, Bloodline MMA, five days a week for 2.5 hours. Then I do my strength training at another gym for another 2.5 hours. I train seven days a week and I keep a very strict diet. It is a lot of hard work and dedication. It also takes your team backing you up. I can’t imagine how guys do it without their team. Where I train we have a wrestling mat set up and cage. We have a coach, Alan Cummings who is a black belt in jujitsu, he watches us. We have a team of about five regular guys, including Robert Trujillo the current 125 lb. champion. He has two belts too.
CMB: Why belts so big?
TA: I think it is because it takes a lot of hard work to earn one. You have to train really hard just to make it to the point where you can start fighting, and then you have to climb up the ranks in order to get to a title fight.
CMB: How long do you think you will keep fighting?
TA: I figure I have about another good 7 years with me depending on if I get injured, it is a brutal sport.
CMB: What is the worst you’ve been hurt in a fight?
TA: Oh, I twisted my ankle really bad once. I’ve broken both of my hands, my nose, my ribs, and dislocated my wrist throwing an over hand right. Dang that really hurt.
CMB: Have you ever had a concussion?
TA: No, I’ve never had a concussion or been knocked out.
CMB: What is the worst you‘ve hurt someone else?
TA: Well, I’ve retired two fighters. I knocked one guy out in 17 seconds; I broke his cheekbone- he never fought again. I’ve seen a lot of things, noses bashed in and all, but you see this is actually a very well controlled sport. We are tested; we have physicals and blood tests. If you get caught street fighting or breaking the law you will have your license pulled. You have to be a real professional about it. Heck, I’ve seen guys get their licenses pulled for reasons like not paying child support.
CMB: You recently gained a new celebrity sponsor, Charlie Sheen, How did that happen?
TA: My cousin is one of his personal assistants in Hollywood and he told him about me. I am real stoked about that.
CMB: Have you met him yet?
TA: I haven’t met him yet, I am sure I will.
Travis will be defending his title on Saturday January 17th in Colorado Springs at the City Auditorium. For information and tickets call 719-660-3234, the doors open at 6:30 and the fights start at 7:30. You can also find him on Facebook at Travis Aragon MMA or Bloodline MMA. Sometime between now and then I hope to get back to Trinidad so the cute cage fighter can lay my tile. (Wink)
Category: Buzzworthy2
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