Bellator MMA lightweight John Alessio made headlines weeks ago when a post on Reddit revealed he is working for Uber. Fans and even some media suggested the Canadian was working for Uber because he was broke from his fighting career. Alessio (35-17 2 NC) spoke to MMAOddsBreaker on Episode 132 of The Parting Shot Podcast about this and also discussed a variety of other subjects. The Uber Reddit post and the article that suggested he’s working for them because of money issues “The guy I gave a ride to did the Reddit post, everything was cool there. He was actually a great guy; he even talked about how I was getting into law enforcement. But then when that article came out, basically saying I was [I had] no retirement, I’m broke and resorting to Uber. The guy should have done two things, first if you’re a reporter and you hear something, you reach out to that person [first]. Then if you reach out and the person doesn’t respond to you, then you come out with your article and you state in there he wasn’t available for comment. You don’t just go and twist words around and make a story out of it. It was horses**t and if you even read the guys quote from Reddit he even says I was getting into law enforcement. He probably didn’t even read the whole Reddit quote where the guy stated how I was doing this for some side cash while my wife is at work. For those that don’t know I also own a clothing store in Las Vegas, my wife is a bartender at the number one nightclub in the nation. It’s not that I need money or that I’m homeless. I have two cars; I live in a 2800 square foot home. The only thing that he was [right about] is that there is no retirement plans for fighters.” Starting his fighting career in an era without social media and dealing with criticism now “There was nothing like this at all [when I first competed]. People form their own options real quick. I saw someone had posted the same article on Facebook and someone tagged me in it. I start reading the comments, and its like ‘This guy wants us to feel sorry for him’ and I’m like ‘wait a minute; I had nothing to do with this article. I didn’t reach out to anybody to tell them I’m working for Uber and that I’m having hard times.’ I got a business and I’m going into the police academy, don’t feel sorry for me. It’s just annoying.” His business “The Sweat Store” which he co-founded with his wife “We’ve had it for 2.5 years now. It’s basically a yoga workout apparel store, no fight brands or anything. Picture Lululemon, but we carry multiple brands. I always call ourselves the Footlocker of yoga clothing. We have like 15-20 brands we sell. It’s women’s clothing, yoga, pilates and it’s been doing great.” Not having a rematch with David Rickels after their controversial fight at Bellator 139 “[Bellator] never even approached me about it. This is where I’m at too, as I’m going into the police academy and stuff. That kind of stuff is much more important to me right now, the next step in solidifying my future. Instead of picking a bone with Rickells or anything, I’m kind of past that. I don’t really care too much. Yeah it’s unfortunate it ended that way but I walked away healthy and fine. He just went on to get his ass whopped by Chandler so that’s ok [laughs] When it comes down to it, it was totally intentional. He threw the knee when you shouldn’t throw the knee at somebodies head. Now with that said did he do it maliciously? No he didn’t. It was a mistake, a lapse in judgment but it was still an illegal move. I’m sure he was chocked at himself for doing it.” What’s next for him in his fighting career “I’m really close to the end here when it comes to fighting. There are some matchups out there that I think would be fun. But as far as chasing the Bellator belt, I’m not doing that anymore. Being 36 you know Will Brooks is a great champion, Michael Chandler, these are young guys. It’s just not where I want to be as far as fighting’s concerned. Now there are matchups out there that interest me like Josh Thomson or Karo Parysian. These are guys under the Bellator banner that are seasoned warriors like me. Do they want the title shot? Probably they would take it. But is that realistically what they’re going for? Probably not, they’re just looking to entertain and make some money. I’m just not there anymore; I’ve got too much going on. My family doesn’t really want me to fight anymore; I’ve got 56-fights, I’ve bene everywhere, what else is there really for me to do except besides doing it selfishly? That’s the only thing that’s left. I’m fighting because I love to fight. I love everything has to do with getting ready for a fight, it’s very addictive. Now would I be really sad if I never fought again? I think I could live with myself. Am I ruling fighting again out? No not at all. I think once I get down to the police academy and off probation I’ll definetly have more time. So I mean a year from now I could be back in there, I still have a Bellator contract so we’ll see.” Last time he spoke with Bellator “It’s all my manager, I don’t have any direct communication for them. If they call and ask for something he lets me know. He kind of knows where I’m at right now too; he’s not putting any pressure on them to fight me a fight. They knew before the Rickels fight that I was getting ready to go into the academy. It’s kind of a mutual [thing]. They’re going to book their other lightweights and that’s fine with me. Can I announce my retirement? No, I just can’t get myself to say it’s over.” Interest in becoming a police officer “It’s all my manager, I don’t have any direct communication for them. If they call and ask for something he lets me know. He kind of knows where I’m at right now too; he’s not putting any pressure on them to fight me a fight. They knew before the Rickels fight that I was getting ready to go into the academy. It’s kind of a mutual [thing]. They’re going to book their other lightweights and that’s fine with me. Can I announce my retirement? No, I just can’t get myself to say it’s over.” Making it into the police academy and what it will entail “The academy itself is about six months. Once you’re out I think you do 20 weeks of field training, so you’re basically an officer at that point. You’re out on the street but you have a partner that’s senior to you and just making sure that you’re doing everything correctly. Every three weeks you change trainer officers. Once you’re doing your three weeks you’re on your own. Right now I’m completely doing the best I can in the academy, it’s going to be long 10-hour days. The physical fitness stuff is going to be rather easy for me. But there’s going to be a lot homework, studying law and everything. Just like fighting you want to be your best, my goal is to graduate top of my class. Be an excellent marksman, all of that stuff. ” You can follow John on Twitter @johnalessio79 and you can listen to the full audio version of this interview below (54 mins in)
