There has been some good back and forth between you and Cole Miller for your upcoming fight at Ultimate Fight Night 18 on Spike TV. Is this mostly just to hype up the fight or has it become a serious war of words between you two?
I don’t really know to be honest with you. I made a comment about his fight with Jorge Gurgel and he overreacted. I guess he is trying to convince himself he is good enough to be in this fight. I am not losing any sleep over any of it.
A few questions about your time on the TUF House:
You ended the show by promising to be back as a fighter after originally saying you “should flip burgers” Have you thought about doing a commercial for one of the major fast food chains? I think MMA fans would get a huge kick out you “flipping burgers” in a Burger King commercial!
That would be awesome! I would love to do that. I will talk with Dana and see what he says.
Did you make a conscious decision to play a “bad guy” on the show, knowing that it would set you apart from everyone else in the house? Do you believe that MMA is half about the persona and half about the fights themselves?
It was not completely on purpose but I thought, I might as well play it up. I wanted our season to be more exciting then Season 7, which was boring. I wanted to make it entertaining for the fans watching and hopefully bring new fans into the sport. I think they will be happy with the DVD sales for our season.
Do you maintain any type of relationship with your TUF 8 coach, Frank Mir?
Frank is a real good guy. I actually talk to him when I see him. We got the chance to catch up at UFC 96 in Columbus. I didn’t think they would air everything they did. I apologized to him for some of the stuff that went down on the show and he knows I am genuinely sorry for it. So our friendship is where it needs to be.
As of November 3, 2008, you became an official part of the Xtreme Couture team. How did you put yourself into such a dream scenario?
My management company actually set it up for me. Shawn Tompkins decided to take me under his wing after the show finished airing. I was a bit surprised that anyone wanted to help me out after that but Shawn did and he has been great. I think I have proven myself to all the other guys at Xtreme Couture. They like the intensity I bring to my workouts and I have shown myself to be a good training partner. It’s been a really great experience for me training there.
What fighters do you primarily train with at Xtreme Couture?
I train with a lot of the lightweight fighters, guys like size. I train with Tyson Griffin, Gray Maynard, and also Ryan Couture. I also train with some of the welterweights like Jay Hieron. I have also been training a lot with Martin Kampmann lately which has been a good experience.
Has Randy Couture played a “mentor role” for you during your time at Xtreme Couture?
Randy is a cool guy. He has actually gone out of his way to talk with me and give me advice. He is pretty busy with all he has going on. He trains a lot of the guys his size in the gym so I don’t really train with him. But he is my cornerman for my fights so you will see him April 1 when I take on Cole Miller.
Cole Miller has said he is going to “smash you.” I am sure the guys at Xtreme Couture are coming up with the perfect strategy for you to counter whatever Cole tries to do. What is your game plan going into the fight?
I don’t really need a specific game plan for Cole Miller. I have seen his fights and I know what he is about. He is really underestimating my ground game. I can handle the fight wherever it goes, whether that is standing or on the ground.
The only hole I had in my game was conditioning and that will no longer be an issue. My training at Xtreme Couture has taken all aspects of my game to a whole new level. And for the record, most of the guys I train with consider me a ground fighter, so I am not worried about what Cole Miller is going to do.
Who gave you your moniker “the lunatik” and do you think it still fits given your polished commitment to the sport of MMA? I know you are committed to having a ten year career in MMA, isn’t that correct?
Dana actually gave the nickname to me at the tryouts for TUF in Boston. I was talking a lot of sh*t and Dana would say “where is my lunatik?” I took it as a compliment because Dana actually knew what I was about from the very beginning and understood what I was doing. Who better to give you a nickname then the president of the company himself.
A lot of people may also not realize your brother Rob Browning is an MMA fighter. It is rumored he was one of 16 American fighters chosen to compete in the season-opening elimination round. Can you add anything to this news and also tell us about your relationship with him?
Yeah it’s true. A year before I turned pro, Rob had to stop training and focus on some other things in his life, like school. But when the tryouts were announced he starting training again and is ready to take MMA seriously. He will be a great addition to the show because he is just like me. We love to fight and entertain the fans.
MMA has too many boring fighters who taken themselves too seriously. This sport is also about sports entertainment. Look at Muhammad Ali. Not only was he a great boxer but he knew how to entertain the fans. Float like a butterfly and sting like a bee. Ali was the greatest boxer to come out of Kentucky and I want to be the greatest MMA fighter to come out of Kentucky. When it is all said and done, I want to have roads named after me.
I read you actually started training for combat sports at the age of four with your brother. What was that experience like for you growing up?
I am not sure where people get that from. I actually started training for MMA when I was 20. I grew up in a house full of boys so we liked to rough house and I liked the traditional martial arts movies so we would emulate those.
Well you did start out a high school wrestler and you have also trained in BJJ and Muay Thai. Can you tell us a little more about your background in the different MMA disciplines?
I actually joined my wrestling team my senior year and went to state. So that is where I got my start. From there I started training in other disciplines. I want to be a versatile fighter so nothing is off limits. My big thing right now is strength and conditioning. If you gas in a fight you’re done.
I am also working a lot on my boxing power. People wrote me off as not having KO power but on the show I was more concerned with working on my technique. Make no mistake, I have knockout power.
You will be fighting alongside fellow TUF 8 alum Ryan Bader, who will be taking on Carmelo Marrero. Will you be rooting for Bader and what is your relationship with the 205 pound TUF 8 champ?
I like the guy and I am glad I didn’t end up drowning him in the pool during the TUF show (laughs). I will definitely be rooting for him. I want everyone to know just how good the fighters were during season 8 of TUF. Bader is a great wrestler and will show that next week. We are going to put on a good show for all the Spike fans.
With a win over Cole Miller, what type of fighter do you see yourself taking on next?
With a win, I think I will be ready for the next level of competition. In 6-12 months, I hope to to be on my way to being a top 10 fighter.
Do you have an early pick for the following fights?
UFC 97: Liddell vs. Rua: Chuck Liddell
UFC 98: Evans vs. Machida: Rashad Evans
UFC 99: Franklin vs. Silva: Rich Franklin
UFC100: Lesnar vs. Mir: If Lesnar keeps progressing at the rate he is, it will be hard for anyone to stop him.
UFC 101: Penn vs. Florian: 100% Penn
UFC 102: Couture vs. Nogueira: Randy Couture for sure
Lastly, can you tell us one thing about Allen “Junie” Browing that would shock the fans?
I am actually a very sensitive guy who likes long walks on the beach, etc.
Its time for shout outs: who would you like to thank?
I would like to thank Tapout, Denaro Sports, Xtreme Couture, 4Smma.net, and JunieBrowning.com.
Thanks again Junie. We look forward to your much fight with Cole Miller, which will be a part of Ultimate Fight Night 18, this April 1.
