411 MMA Interview: Eric “Ravashing Red” Schafer

Posted by John Curry on 09.15.2008

Preparing for his fight with Houston Alexander on UFC Fight Night Live on September 17th, live on Spike TV, Ravashing Red takes a moment to talk to 411’s John Curry about everything from fighting Alexander, cheese, and the Green Bay Packers.

Sometimes a fighter is just so crazy and entertaining you have to talk to them. Eric Schaffer is one of those guys. From a High School Division I college recruit in football to a Pre-med Degree in Biology, Red is not your average MMA guy. A master on the ground and ballsy on his feet, there is no intimidation to be found or heard in Ravishing Red's voice when it comes to his upcoming fight with Houston Alexander. The highly intelligent, highly hilarious, and highly approachable Red is one of the UFC's crown jewels just waiting to explode.



411Mania Mr. Schafer, thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to talk with 411mania.com. Most of our readers know you as "Red" so that's what we'll be calling you from here on out. So "Red" tell us a little bit about your pre-Mixed Martial Arts life.

Eric "Red" Schafer *laughs* "Sounds good to me. Believe it or not, I actually went to college for Premed (icine) at University of Wisconsin at Osh Kosh. I received my degree in Biology but decided to put off Med School as I enjoyed fighting. I played sports when I was a kid, namely football in High School where I was a D1 recruit but got hurt. So when I went to college I needed that physical aspect of working out so I started training in old school Jui Jitsu. I've been fighting since then and haven't looked back."

411mania The last time we saw you in the UFC was against Stephan Bonnar at UFC 77. Now you are coming back to face Houston Alexander. You just aren't the kind of guy to back down from any fight are you?

Red "I have never said no to any fight. I am just not afraid of anyone. I think with the Bonnar fight, my experience level was not quite as high at his. Combine that with the ring rust I had and you have one nervous fighter. I was used to fighting one and two round fights, so as a result I hadn't really trained to go the full three rounds so I was out of gas. I've have never said no to any fight. I am not afraid of anyone. I think my experience level was not quite as high as his. I was really nervous. I had a lot of ring rust. I was out of gas.

411Mania Can you tell us what your daily routine for training is? What do you spend most of your time working on?

Red "Right now I am in training camp with Duke Roufus. We spend six to seven rounds a day training in my stand up against Pat Berry. Pat emulates Houston. He is a kickboxing guy who is 6 foot tall and very explosive so it helps my training immensely."

411mania How is training for this upcoming fight different than previous ones?

Red "Total camp: we added another week. WE are focusing on a lot of striking, cross hip workouts, a lot less grappling. I am not worried about my ground game with Houston so we are trying to focus a lot more on the striking aspect. Just becoming more comfortable on my feet and going a full three rounds. "

411Mania So let's talk about the most important thing to a Cheesehead. How about them Packers?

Red "*Laughs* There are a lot of unhappy Packers fans this year. We are definatley going to miss Brett. He's been the only quarterback we have known for years and years. They have been grooming Rodgers and as with any type of transition there is going to be some difficulties. He's going to look bad at times but he'll just get better. I try to make it out there for a game at least once a year but tickets here in Wisconsin for Packers games are hard to come by."



411Mania I caught wind that you have joined up with Suckerpunch Entertainment. That's a great camp to be a part of. How has the ability to train with fellow Pedro Sauer protégé, Jeff Curran been?

Red "It's great. He's done it all already before me. He an amazing JJ practitioner and the personification of a great, professional guy. He works hard, trains hard, and never talks trash to his opponent. His is just a great guy, a great manager and I try to emulate him in the cage and out in this business."

411ManiaTell us a little about what Red does when he isn't fighting?

Red "Man. Ever since I became a fulltime fighter every week there is something fight related. Either a seminar, training, appearances, interviews and everything else. I love it. I used to ski but since I became a full time fighter I really don't have time."

411Mania One of the things I always ask in an interview regards submissions. What better time to ask about submissions that from one of the greatest submission wrestlers in the world? What is the most painful submission you have ever been put in either in training or a fight? What is your favorite one to use?

Red "I had my arm separated 20 degrees the wrong way due to an arm bar. That was the most painful one I was in. The best one I did was I popped a guys knee doing a kneebar. I mean you don't go into a fight trying to hurt anyone and you give them the opportunity to tap, if they don't tap you have to go harder until you end the fight. That's just the nature of the fight life."

411Mania Tell us do you have any pre-fight or post fight rituals?

Red I try to keep everything mentally focused. I stay away from drinking, cheese, fast food. I do Yoga the night before the fights. All of the sacrifice you sacrifice that is your biggest preparation. The more you sacrifice the more it makes you angry at the other guy and makes you tougher. I don't need this fight to feed my family, or have somewhere to sleep at night, or to avenge a bad relationship with my parents. I just love it, so my mental preparation is a little different."

411Mania So how do you celebrate a win?

Red "I'll spend a good week partying. Just eating whatever I want. Being a cheesehead I love everything cheese. I'll gain 15 pounds within a few weeks after the fight. This time will probably be a little worse as my birthday is three days after the fight."

411mania What do you do after a loss?

Red "After a fight I like to just stay with my friends in the hotel room. Sit around and relax maybe have a few drinks. I do have a few drinks every so often but I try not to make it a habit."

411Mania What is the one aspect of your game that you are trying to improve the most on and why?

Red " I am a ground guy but I am really trying to work on being more comfortable on my feet."

411Mania As an avid UFC fighter and fan, tell us what is the one fight you are looking forward to seeing this year and why?

Red "I look forward to seeing anybody who finishes or puts on an exciting show. I do not like boring decisions. I like to watch GSP,BJ, Forrest. Anyone in 205 for the most part. 205 is the most exciting division right now."

Quick Hits

411Mania Worst job you ever had?

Red "Asphalt Repair work. Every single day in the hot sun for 50-60 hours a week."

411Mania Favorite Cheese?

Red "Mozzarella"

411Mania What is something no one would guess about you?

Red "I drive a Dodge Neon."

411ManiaDo you have a guilty pleasure?

Red I like to gamble *laughs* that's probably not a good thing to say.

411Mania Who do you look up to and why?

Red All successful fighters who are nice guys and good with fans. I root for the nice guys.

411Mania Favorite Singer?

Red The Boss, Bruce Springsteen., Bob Dylan,

411Mania Favorite day off activity?

Red "I love going to movies. The last one I saw was Tropic Thunder. I'd give it a 6-7."

411Mania Favorite movie?

Red "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind"

411Mania Red., I want to thank you for taking time to introduce yourself to our readers and we wish you the best of luck in the future. Before we go is there anyone you want to give a shout out to?

Red I'd like to thank my sponsors. Sprawl, Jesus Didn't Tap, of course Suckerpunch Entertainment,Tapout of course Duke Roufus, all the guys I train with at ROufus sports.