An Epic Trip to UFC 300 in Vegas With a Montana Crew

Our coverage brought to you by the Fusion Fight League. They just had their Fusion Fights in Great Falls- Bozeman and Billings are right around the corner. 

My whole family got real excited. I texted them around 6:15 Vegas time Saturday night: "Standing next to Chris Pratt right now." A few minutes later my daughter texted me that everybody was watching the UFC fight back home in Montana. (They're all Chris Pratt fans)

I never did say hello to Chris Pratt. He was talking to somebody at the VIP party we got to attend with our friends from the Bozeman-based Anthem Snacks. And then I think he went back to the arena floor shortly thereafter. But I did get to say hi to Green Beret and MMA fighter Tim Kennedy and several others. It was cool seeing Mike Tyson on the arena floor ahead of his much-anticipated fight with Jake Paul this summer too.

I also got to meet Andy Stumpf and the man behind the Montana Knife Company (photo below). Stumpf is a retired Navy SEAL who now lives in Montana's Flathead Valley and hosts a couple of popular podcasts. In fact, I listened to one episode on the flight down as he interviewed John Nores. (Nores is joining me on the radio again this Tuesday)

The best part of the trip? Aside from the UFC fight itself, it was the incredible group of patriots we got to hang out with down in Vegas. Big thanks to Anthem Snacks CEO Nate Kouhana for letting me tag along on this trip.

Nate Kouhana is a Green Beret veteran. So is Willie Blazer of the legendary Willie's Distillery in Ennis, Montana. He was on the trip (check out his t-shirt below). Greg Putnam is a Navy SEAL vet who now runs cattle for the Little Belt Cattle Company and volunteers with Warriors & Quiet Waters. Les Craig is an Army Ranger/CIA veteran who works in venture capital in Montana. Dustin Diefenderfer is the founder of MTNTOUGH and is an absolute beast. Ryan Rickert with Fan Up is a great guy. And, of course, Nate's veteran and military spouse team at Anthem like Paige and Drew are rockstars.

The best fight highlight of the night? Clearly it is this last second knock out by Max Holloway. The whole crowd was on our feet standing in amazement after this one: 

On being there in person: I wish I could describe the intensity of the crowd. Electric. Immediate, intense reactions. If you couldn't see what happened, you'd hear the crowd's response. The noise was so powerful, it reminded me of when you're riding a chair lift up a ski hill and you can hear the wind sweep through the trees.

Big thanks also to Willie's Distillery, Tatanka Cigars (Rocky Mountain Liquor), and Knockout Lifestyle with Corey Willis for sponsoring our UFC coverage! 

Read More: A MONTANA LOOK INSIDE THE UFC’S VEGAS PERFORMANCE INSTITUTE