Feature//Sports
THE POWERHOUSE
Richard Chou
www.guamsportsnetwork.com
BY: Patrick Lujan
We have a new CEO and a new board, and we’re very optimistic and excited for 2013. GSPN: You mentioned that there ARE big things coming up for you this year. Any connection with Guam? Chou: I’m always looking to make connections with my projects to Guam and this could be the year. I’m keeping my fingers crossed. GSPN: You go back and forth from Hawaii and California. How often do you come back home? Chou: I feel really bad. I should be coming back more often. (It’s been two years since Chou has been back home) My family is still here and a lot of my closest friends. I’ve got to make it a point to come back at least once a year. Every time I come back it’s such an amazing time. Prior to Strikeforce closing its doors and being bought out by the UFC, Guam’s Rich Chou was one of the important pieces in the big MMA promotion as the match maker. Here he is with fighter Jason ‘Mayhem’ Miller. (Photo courtesy of GSPN)
When it comes to the mixed martial arts industry, no one from Guam has made it further than Richard Chou. The 1997 graduate from St.
John’s Episcopal School was one of the main masterminds of the Strikeforce promotion as the match maker before it was bought out by the UFC in 2011. He is now still very much involved in the MMA industry, doing business in both Hawaii and California. The 1997 high school MVP in basketball and volleyball was back home on vacation recently and took some time out to talk a bit with GSPN. GSPN: Tell us about Strikeforce: how it was and the experience you gained. Chou: I got the Strikeforce job because I was a part of Elite XC and Strikeforce bought a lot of the Elite assets — TV contracts and fighter contracts and that’s when Strikeforce went from a regional promotion to a national promotion. Fortunately, I was a part of that and the last event [was Jan 12th]. GSPN: So what have you been doing since Strikeforce? Chou: I’m currently the VP of operations for ProElite and I do a lot of consulting work on the side with various companies who want to penetrate the MMA market whether it is clothing — I’m working with a beverage company right now. It was an interesting year (2012) for ProElite. We weren’t very active as the company was being restructured. It’s a public company so things move a lot slower than a private company.
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GSPN: What do you miss most about Guam when you’re away – other than family and friends. Chou: The food! It’s so unique here and one of the things that I miss, but there’s so many little things that make Guam what it is. It’s so special and unique from every other part of the planet.
GSPN: How about athletes like (Jon) Tuck and now (Ryan) Bigler making it to TUF? Chou: Oh man, I was very proud. It was a huge moment for Guam [when Tuck made it to the UFC]. I’m telling everybody to watch out for the Guam boys, here’s the first wave coming. GSPN: What is your take on the jiu-jitsu explosion on Guam? Chou: I think we’re seeing a transition, not just on Guam, but all over the country where it’s growing again. What got us started was jiu-jitsu being the foundation for MMA here. Then we saw everyone jump and go to MMA. Now we’re seeing more people go back to jiu-jitsu. I think it’s because it’s more of a lifestyle: women, children and old people can train jiu-jitsu every day. I think MMA is so brutal and taxing on the body, and a lot of people just don’t like getting hit, but jiu-jitsu is a gentle art. People are starting to realize that and I think that’s why it’s growing again.