In a behind-the-scenes moment for UFC’s MMA show that had grappling enthusiasts talking when it aired several years ago, former UFC welterweight champion Matt Serra found himself in an unexpected challenge from his purple belt co-host, Nick “The Tooth”.
The drama unfolded during the filming of a show where Serra and Nick work together. According to Serra, the confusion began when he watched a pilot episode where Nick made some bold claims.
“I see Nick the Tooth, and he’s a funny guy,” Serra recalled. “Oh, you know, Matt makes me look good. You know, he’s bold. He’s never on time. He’s later than I am. He’s got no hair. All we have to do is settle the grappling next.”
Perplexed by these comments, Serra confronted Nick immediately.
“I go, dude, what are you talking about? What do we have to settle? We just got to work out the grappling. What’s there to work out? What the f*** are you talking about?”
For Serra, a four-stripe black belt with decades of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu experience, the challenge seemed disrespectful.
“Where I come from, I’m an old school Renzo Gracie black belt. There’s a code, you know, where you don’t, it’s disrespectful,” Serra explained. “Like, you know, I’ve been around for a while on the mats. Like, you really think we got something to settle?”
Nick appeared confident despite the skill disparity, even claiming,
“I got your berimbolo, believe it.”
When the two finally hit the mats, observers described the session in stark terms. One witness compared Nick‘s defensive abilities unfavorably to that of a three-year-old child, noting how quickly Serra was able to secure submissions.
What makes the situation more interesting is Nick‘s apparent lack of awareness regarding Serra‘s abilities.
“What you don’t realize about Matt is that he’s super agile. He’s a four-stripe black belt. He’s a 20-year jiu-jitsu guy,”
someone pointed out.
After the grappling session, which observers described as an “absolute beat down,” Serra maintained he wasn’t trying to be harsh.
“I’m not a bully. I don’t want to destroy the tooth. It’s not a big accomplishment for me,” Serra said. “When the tooth and I rolled, you know, I was just, you know, showing him some technique. I don’t think I was too hard on him.”
The incident apparently extended beyond the mats. Serra mentioned a subsequent encounter during paddleboarding where Nick splashed him, with Serra declaring,
“I told him, yesterday we were in your ocean. Now you’re in my ocean.”
This goes to show that there’s jiu-jitsu and then there are those who are black belts who have competed and won and an appropriate amount of respect needs to be had.
