Participation rates of mixed martial arts are growing across the nation. The next big name could be in our midst. A Hoboken based instructor recently competed to become the next “Ultimate Fighter.”
Louis Gaudinot, a sensei from Tiger Schulmann in downtown Hoboken, is a contender on the popular television show “The Ultimate Fighter,” season 14, currently airing on Spike.
The winner of the show’s contest receives a contract to begin fighting in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, the highest level of MMA fighting in the nation.
MMA is a sport that combines the tactics used in wrestling and boxing, among other fighting sports. Gaudinot, 26, started training 20 years ago.
The Ultimate Fighter, season 14 airs on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. on Spike.
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Gaudinot said he was one of the smaller fighters on the show, which was filmed in Las Vegas, Nev.
“The weight classes there are 135 pounds and 145 pounds,” he said. “I usually fight at 125 pounds, so I moved up just for the opportunity to be on the show. All of the guys were bigger than me.”
Although Gaudinot said he takes a lot away professionally from being on the show, it’s an experience he wouldn’t take part in twice.
“There’s no radio, no internet, no television, and no contact with the outside world,” Gaudinot said, reflecting on his time during the six and a half weeks of filming. “I have a three and a half year old daughter and I couldn’t talk to her. It was definitely difficult to be away from my family.”
Gaudinot said he even had a death in the family that he wasn’t able to learn about due to the circumstances of the show.
“While you’re out there, you live in a house and you have a private gym,” he said. “But everything’s closed off from the public. You’re in the house for the whole six weeks.”
The 14th season of the show began airing approximately a month ago, and it runs until Dec. 7. The show airs every Wednesday at 10 p.m. on Spike.
Gaudinot added that he hopes he’s able to convey some of the messages he learned in Las Vegas to his students in Hoboken.
“I definitely learned a lot during the six weeks,” he said. “It won’t alter the way I teach, but I picked up on a few little tricks.”
Recognized on the streets
Gaudinot said he has seen the sport grow during his time training.
“If you go in the stores now, you’ll see MMA action figures right next to the wrestlers,” he said. “The sport is going more mainstream. People recognize me from the show around Hoboken. A lot of people watch the sport now.”
He added that it’s also become more commercially popular, perhaps making money when it hadn’t in the past.
“[MMA] has billboards on Route 80 for the major fights,” Gaudinot said. “You didn’t see that four or five years ago. People are starting to understand that it’s not human cockfighting. There are rules and regulations.”
As far as his experience teaching in Hoboken, he said the ages and experience levels of his students vary.
“I teach people from ages five to 65,” he said. “Sixty percent of the student base is adults over 18. We get a lot of kids from age five to 13, but it’s mostly adults in the school.”
Gaudinot added that the style of fighting has also morphed over the years.
“When I first started training we would just do basic karate,” he said. “Then there was some boxing, and a little bit of wrestling. Then we started doing Jiu Jitsu. The sport is always evolving.”
He said many of his students don’t plan on competing professionally, but they sign up for the class because of the strenuous workout and the lessons learned.
Is Gaudinot the winner of The Ultimate Fighter? Well, he can’t say. If he did say, he could be sued “for a lot of money,” he said.
But even if he’s eliminated from the show, viewers can still catch the Hoboken based sensei every week until the show finishes on Dec. 7.
“They keep everyone there for the whole show,” he said.
The Ultimate Fighter, season 14, airs on Wednesdays at 10 p.m. on Spike.
Ray Smith may be reached at RSmith@hudsonreporter.com