It was the beginning of a new year, a fresh start for many as 2022 made its grand entrance and was here to stay, at least for the next three hundred sixty-five days. If 2020 and 2021 has taught us anything, it’s that these next three hundred sixty-five days will come and go in no time, and before you know it, we’ll be welcoming in another new year in 2023. It may seem like a long time at first glance, but despite everything going on in the world today and for the past two years, time keeps going and the clock keeps ticking. There’s no changing that.
New year, new me.
That’s how the saying goes, right? People make New Year’s resolutions each and every year in hopes of bettering themselves. Whether it’s a minute or a vast change they’re seeking, the goal is the same with an endgame in mind of bettering one’s self. It’s not always that simple. Sometimes it isn’t the person that needs to change, it’s their environment and surroundings that need to be changed in order for them to be the better person they strive to be, or to be the person that they truly are.
The landscape of MMA has changed quite a bit over the course of 2021, from new champions replacing those who have been the face of their divisions for years, to UGP growing even more through expansion such as Everest and the recent acquisition of G2 to even further cement itself as the premiere MMA company in the entire sport. Although some things have remained the same, the majority has in fact changed UGP’s identity today compared to what it was just last year. With those changes comes growth for not only UGP, but MMA as a whole. You either evolve or face extinction, something we’ve seen time and time again when it comes to particular fighters and the camps they aligned themselves with.
2021 was a year of nothing but change for Roscoe as it laid the foundation for 2022 and the years to follow. First there was the departure from Real Killas which led to the creation of Hit Squad in a partnership formed with his brother in arms, Donnie Calabrese. Then there was the fight against Kennard Rozier in the peak of summer where he first dipped his toes into the openweight waters and wanted to swim with the sharks ever since. Champion versus champion, a clash of the giants from both the cruiserweight and heavyweight divisions. During the months leading into the summer a contender was rising through the ranks and rolling over anyone in his path to a fight for the UGP Cruiserweight Championship that Roscoe had held for over a year and a half. That contender was Gauge Lattimore, the current king and champion of the cruiserweight division.
Losing the championship hurt at first, but it opened the door to more opportunities and growth, something Roscoe had been looking forward to even with the Cruiserweight Championship in his possession. His reasons have been clear and straightforward from day one. His identity isn’t just the cruiserweight champion. It was time to move on. With a three year professional career under his belt going into the fight against Lattimore, over two and a half of those years were spent as the cruiserweight champion. He had fought any and every challenger there was to fight in the division, some more than others.
One name in particular that found itself placed across from Roscoe’s on the card belonged to Daniel Fisk as the two would fight three times over the course of a year. The world witnessed the Cruiserweight Championship go back and forth between the only two champions in company history prior to Lattimore. Needless to say, it got old rather quickly, in fact it was the main reason Roscoe distanced himself away from the Real Killas facility to train in Las Vegas, which eventually led to the departure previously mentioned. With all that behind him, it only felt right to close the door on the cruiserweight division and make a name for himself outside of it, a fresh start that was long overdue.
When one door closes, another door opens. The change had been made, but at the end of the day it felt like the same old shit when behind door number two was no one other than Fisk, the current UGP openweight champion at the time and former G2 grand champion. November would shortly follow as Roscoe’s first official fight in the openweight division was to take place, where he would find himself standing across from Fisk for the fourth time, but this time with the Openweight Championship on the line. Just like the two times prior when Fisk defended a championship against Roscoe, this time wouldn’t be any different as his reign was quickly ended before it even began. Full circle in a matter of three years building to this point and just like that, it was all behind Roscoe.
Roscoe can’t take all the credit for finishing Fisk to become the new openweight champion. Give credit where credit is due. Lattimore not only defeated Fisk for the G2 Grand Championship, he wounded him, making it that much easier for Roscoe to come in and deliver the final killshot. It wasn’t long after when the news broke out about UGP acquiring G2, and the unification of the Openweight and Grand championships from both companies. Roscoe Robinson versus Gauge Lattimore II, only a few short months following their first encounter inside of the cage. Full circle? No. There was a mutual respect between both Roscoe and Lattimore, the two brought out something in them the world had never seen before when they first fought. This was the beginning of a new era in UGP and who better than them to create it with the Ryujin Championship.
New year, new championship.
January 07, 2022
Palmdale, CA
“A fucking sideshow…”
It was a late Friday evening at the Hit Squad facility. Most everyone had gone home for the day, leaving only Roscoe and his uncle to sweep the floors of the empty gym. Fight night was right around the corner and with that, it was now time to slow things down a bit to rest for the upcoming battle ahead.
UNC
“What the hell are you talking about?”
ROBINSON
“The fight with Gauge in two weeks! This is supposed to be big, but instead it’s the sideshow on a fucking rasslin’ event.”
UNC
“It is a big fight, no matter where it takes place.”
ROBINSON
“That isn’t the point! Not only is this the follow up to the robbed 2021 fight of the year, it’s the birth of something new for UGP and MMA. Yet here we are, a side attraction for sports entertainment.”
Stopping in his tracks, Unc shakes his head before looking over to Roscoe.
UNC
“If that’s how you really feel then why have you even bothered training for this fight? Why are you going through the motions training with Jason Jackson when he has a fight coming up as well. I’d bet my last damn dollar he isn’t looking at his the same way you’re looking at yours.”
ROBINSON
“Why bother? Did you really just ask me that?! I bothered because I care about the fight itself. I bothered because this fight means more than the rasslin’ matches it’s sandwiched between. I haven’t been wasting my time, and I sure as fuck haven’t been wasting JJ’s.”
Over the recent weeks preparing for the upcoming fight with Lattimore, Roscoe had been doing a lot of one on one training with Jason Jackson, who has also been training for his big return to the cage.
ROBINSON
“Don’t get it twisted, Unc. I care about the fight, the training and preparation going into it. We just deserved better.”
UNC
“Deserve? Really? You’re getting what you deserve with that hefty price tag of yours just to step into the cage. The fight is going to be seen regardless of where it’s held, and from the ashes the Ryujin Championship will rise along with its inaugural champion.”
ROBINSON
“To be honest, at this point it isn’t even about the championship.”
UNC
“Oh, really?”
The gym goes dead silent as Unc looks to Roscoe and asks with all seriousness. Without the slightest hesitation, Roscoe fires back.
ROBINSON
“You heard me! The fight is the fight, and I can confidently say right here and now that this isn’t going to be my last championship fight. More will come, I still have a whole career ahead of me. Now it’s about getting one back because there hasn’t been a single person who has beaten me without it coming back to haunt them on the rebound.”
UNC
“Is that so?”
ROBINSON
“That’s a fucking fact! Seth Daniels… Daniel Fisk… you already know this! Now it’s time to get that one back from Gauge. Look, I couldn’t be happier that he’s the face of the cruiserweight division, I was stepping away from it regardless. But come on, Unc, I just have to run this one back! I don’t give a fuck who it is, no disrespect intended either, but you don’t beat The Shooter back to back. I’ma get one back on you and that’s facts.”
UNC
“New year, same Roscoe fucking Robinson…”