MC: Yeah, I think everything is going to be fine here in the end. Pretty
scary moment for me -- total paralysis for about ten minutes or so. I have
almost all my feeling back now. I still have some numbness in my hands. There's
still a lot of soreness, stiffness in the neck. As we do this interview right
now, I'm still on painkillers.
Q: What exactly happened?
MC: I've had a bad neck for quite some time. Actually, it had been going
very well for me for a long time. It was sort of a freakish incident where
me and my partner Kevin Randleman were going about three-quarters-go, and
he had gotten me up in the air using a wrestling throw. His feet kind of
slipped out from underneath him, and I pretty much absorbed his weight and
mine right on the top of my head. [The fall] snapped my neck back, and I
lost feeling in my body.
Q: Obviously, that was a frightening moment. What thoughts were going through
your head at that time?
MC: I was laying there mostly thinking about my two kids. Who was going to
take care of my children? After a while, I even got a little bit selfish,
and I was wondering who was going to take care of me.
Q: I imagine someone called 911?
MC: Yeah, they had to call the paramedics in. The ambulance came in, and
I got carted away on a stretcher -- that's the first time that's ever happened
to me in my life. [It's] just not a good feeling being driven away to the
hospital and the uncertainty of what exactly was wrong. They took initial
x-rays, and they showed a couple fractures on the neck. That was a scary
situation, but when I got the MRI, there were no fractures. I do have some
bone spurs in the neck.
Q: So, there wasn't much question that the fight against Don Frye would have
to be cancelled?
MC: I would have to say it was over right from the get-go. I was just hoping
to be able to get the feeling back, be able to walk, and be able to take
care of my children.
Q: How many days were you in the hospital?
MC: I spent three days in the hospital.
Q: You mentioned the doctors told you that you had a few bone spurs. What
else did they say? And how has your future in fighting been affected?
MC: I have some bone spurs. I have a little bulge in there. Surgery is an
option, but I've already talked to some neurologists who have told me it's
not necessary. I do plan on avoiding [surgery] and just really strengthening
the area and being more careful. I feel like it was a freakish incident,
something I can avoid in a real fight. I have to think about my kids and
consider if I want to risk this. As we talk, my answer is definitely. This
is what I do. I'm not going to deny it; there is a lot of fear involved.
But as every day passes, I'm confident the fear will leave. I'm just going
to work hard, and I still plan on coming back. I feel absolutely horrible
to the Pride organization, the fans out there and Don Frye himself. He really
deserved this rematch, and I was really looking forward to putting on a good
show. I feel like I've let a lot of people down. But I've been down before,
and I'm not the type of person that stays down.
Q: How long do you estimate it will be before you can get back to training
or even step back into the ring?
MC: I hope to be back as soon as possible. I'm letting things heal up here
a little bit. It feels better daily. My range of motion is pretty well all
the way back. I've been seeing a chiropractor who's assured me that I can
live to fight another day. It's really up to me. At this point, I owe way
too many people another fight. Especially the Pride organization, who have
been so good to me. I really hope they'll give me the opportunity to fight
again. If they don't, well, I don't blame them, but if they don't, I'll be
back in the UFC. I have to fight again.
Q: Is there anything else you'd like to say?
MC: If this was the stock market, I could see a lot of people selling off
[my] stock, but I can promise those who hold onto the stock, the value is
going to go way back up. I am going to rise back to the top, and I will be
on the champion platform again. I guarantee that.
