The Common Thread by Jerry Gladstone

Author:Jerry Gladstone
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Morgan James Publishing
Published: 2016-12-16T16:00:00+00:00

Dan Caldwell

“PUNKASS,” FOUNDER OF TAPOUT

Dan’s Journey:

DRIVE-BY SHOOTINGS → NO “PLAN B” → WORLD-RECOGNIZED BRAND

One of the common threads in this book is overcoming challenges to trail blaze a path to success. In order to do this, you need to be a game changer. That means you need to find new, innovative ways to keep moving forward and indulge your passion. Dan Caldwell is a game changer, and his personal and professional success serve as an example of what we all can achieve.

Imagine investing $200 in something you love and watching it grow to over $200 million in just ten years. That’s exactly what Dan Caldwell did back in 1997. He and his partners, Charles “Mask” Lewis and Tim “Skyskrape” Katz, founded TapouT, generally recognized as the first brand to represent the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).

They had little money, but big hopes and dreams—and a love for what many saw as a brutal sport. In their eyes, MMA was a respectable sport that offered them a real opportunity.

Originally sold out of the trunk of a car, TapouT’s line of apparel has grown into a true market force, and is now sold in over twenty thousand stores worldwide. It’s a serious competitor with the likes of Nike and Under Armour. TapouT’s rise to international success goes hand-in-hand with MMA’s own historical rise in the world of sports.

MMA, a full-contact combat sport that allows the use of both striking and grappling techniques, draws on a variety of other combat sports and martial arts. In 1993 it was still illegal in most states, when an eight-man tournament with no weight classes and few rules debuted in Denver as the Ultimate Fighting Championship (later renamed UFC 1: The Beginning).

The age-old question of which martial arts discipline was the most effective finally would be answered. The competitors’ fighting styles included boxing, traditional martial arts, kickboxing...and even a 440-pound Sumo wrestler. The answer was “none of the above.”

The most unlikely participant shocked the world of combat sports that night, weighing in at only 170 pounds. Brazilian jiu-jitsu artist Royce Gracie easily defeated world-class athletes in other disciplines, achieving most submissions by lying flat on his back inviting his opponent to go for what looked like an easy victory. Royce then used his legs and arms to maneuver his competitor into positions that few had ever seen or experienced. Royce inflicted pain or restricted breathing to such a degree that each opponent would “tap-out,” signaling that he was surrendering.

The developers of that first UFC championship planned it as a singular tournament, but it became a huge pay-per-view event that begged for a sequel. So a new sport was born—along with a new vocabulary and a new palette of fighting skills. Arm bars, triangles, rear-necked chokes, leg locks, and a host of other techniques were exposed to the mainstream.

One of my favorite descriptions expresses it well: it’s like playing chess with human body parts. If you don’t tap-out, your arm or leg can easily snap—tap or snap!

Royce

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