They can all s*ck your d@#k!

Summary

The Church of What's Happening Now: The New Testament
Episode Title: "They Can All S*ck Your D@#k!"
Date: May 26, 2026
Host: Joey "Coco" Diaz
Co-Host: Lee Syatt
Special Guest: John "Body Shot" Leonardo (pro boxer)

---

Episode Overview

In this lively Memorial Day episode, Joey Diaz and Lee Syatt broadcast from NYC, joined by up-and-coming professional boxer John "Body Shot" Leonardo. The trio dives deep into themes of discipline, work ethic, overcoming nerves, and the gritty parallels between standup comedy and boxing. Expect stories from the grind, laugh-out-loud moments, and plenty of blue-collar New Jersey pride.

---

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Opening Banter: Life's Small Dramas (00:03–04:22)

• Joey and Lee catch up on Memorial Day plans, missed flights, and hotel mishaps.
• Lee tells a story about tracking stolen headphones via his phone, only to find them dumped by hotel staff.
  • “Customer service is at its all-time worse. So if you leave something at a hotel... you’re fucked.” (Joey, 04:16)
• They riff about the demise of cash payments at airports and Joey's generational approach to travel.

Family & Parenting in the Rain (04:23–05:45)

• Joey shares time spent with his daughter amidst New Jersey’s rainy Memorial Day, playing video games and enjoying family routines.

Introducing John "Body Shot" Leonardo (04:40–05:45)

• John, a 26-year-old pro boxer from Manalapan, NJ, is introduced—his father was a retired professional and is still his trainer/manager.
• The father-son boxing legacy is a central motivator:
  • “My father is a retired professional... I copied every move that guy made, even some of the bad ones. But, you know, jumping into this was: Can I do it? And finally, one day, he said, ‘Alright, you could do it. Let’s see if you got what it takes.’ Turns out I got what it takes.” (John, 05:17)

Boxing & Comedy Parallels (05:45–07:56)

• Joey draws comparisons between the risks of comedy and boxing: in one, people don’t laugh, in the other, you get punched.
• Joey and guest reminisce about the "golden age" of boxing and how the mindset then was more reckless—CTE wasn’t a concern.
• The mental toughness needed in both disciplines is emphasized.

Gym Culture & Overcoming Insecurities (07:56–13:36)

• Joey talks about joining Juice Box, an old-school, community-based boxing gym in Jersey:
  • “When I walk in those gyms, I’m very insecure...I think that’s why most people my age won’t go into those places. But I gotta be honest with you—everybody treated me great.” (Joey, 10:12)
• The gym fosters encouragement and family atmosphere, supporting people of all ages and abilities.
• John explains the gym rules: “Treat everyone the same. Nobody’s like, ‘I’m the best.’ We don’t do that.” (John, 12:24)
• Heartwarming tales of gym camaraderie and how newcomers feel welcome.

The Fighter’s Routine & Everyday Discipline (14:38–21:34)

• John breaks down his brutal training schedule—early mornings, balancing a township day job, running on lunch breaks, boxing in the evenings, and weekend sparring.
• He addresses the challenge of overtraining vs. confidence through preparation.
• Joey relates this to standup: “Nothing is worse than being on the mat knocked out...you know all the reasons why you got knocked out.” (Joey, 18:18)
• Both agree discipline and keeping routines tight is the foundation of their respective crafts.

Nerves, Losses, and Mental Recovery (23:10–27:56)

• Lee and John discuss coping with bombing (comedy) or losing (boxing), and the unique pain of disappointing loved ones.
• Memorable quote:
  • “As a fighter you have to figure out how to wipe it off. Sometimes that takes time. You got to dig deep, you got to be like, ‘Why do I do this?’” (John, 25:47)
• Both comedy and fighting involve looking inward after tough public failures.

The Importance of Coaching (26:56–29:34)

• The critical role of a coach or trainer—someone who motivates, sees weaknesses you don’t, and becomes your steady voice:
  • “You really do just hear your coach’s voice.” (Joey, 28:12)
• Listening to direction in the heat of the moment isn’t always easy, especially under exhaustion.

Getting Hit, Taking Losses, and Pushing Through (30:49–34:13)

• The team discusses the visceral realities of taking punches and the mental battle within every performer or athlete.
• Failure in front of family and friends is universally crushing.
• Both John and Joey reflect on not wanting to quit—even after failure:
  • “All those beatings I took would make you quit. What would make any difference if you get knocked out?” (Joey, 32:08)

The Rituals: Pre-show & Pre-fight Superstitions (43:44–47:30)

• Superstitions around food, caffeine, and routines before performing or fighting.
• Joey prefers not to eat, avoids distractions, and focuses on getting dialed in—whether for comedy, acting, or boxing.

Locker Room & Green Room Vibes (47:31–49:01)

• Insights into the mood before a fight vs. before a show—quiet, focused, often solitary, with energy simmering.

The Value of Nerves & Learning to Control Them (49:01–55:58)

• Both Joey and John view nervousness as essential fuel.
  • “When I stop feeling nervous, that’s when I quit.”
• Acting vs. performing comedy: Joey shares a story about getting a scene with De Niro and how nerves throw off even experienced performers (51:54–53:59).

Careers, Day Jobs & Blue-Collar Pride (63:04–66:26)

• John describes his affection for his township blue-collar job, even as a rising pro boxer.
• They celebrate the support and solidarity found in blue-collar communities—“it’s like a family outside of my family.”
• Discussion on boxers who keep day jobs for stability and camaraderie.

Boxing's Modern World—Promotion, Social Media, and the Business Side (70:31–75:56)

• John reflects on the importance of social media for boxers’ careers today, building audiences beyond just winning:
  • “It’s entertainment. Anything where you’re selling tickets…”
• Financial realities of lower-to-mid-tier pro boxing: variable purses, dependence on ticket sales and promotion deals.

Science, Art, & The Mental Side of Boxing (78:55–83:53)

• The science and artistry of boxing:
  • “We’re all artists. You’re a boxer, but you’re an artist. Everybody has a different way of doing the same fucking thing.” (Joey, 81:06)
• The origin of John’s nickname, “Body Shot,” and the discussion of knockouts—why body shots are his weapon of choice.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• Joey on gym insecurities:
  • “When you’re an older character like myself, I’m not the best built guy, but...I don’t care how old you are. You could walk in there and one of those motherfuckers come up to you and go, ‘Hey man, you need me help?’...It’s just one of those places that they encourage you.” (10:12)
• John on his loss and recovery:
  • “Right after that first loss, I remember I took like a week off and I went right back to the gym with a swollen eye. I was like, it’s time.” (25:47)
• Joey on nervous energy:
  • “When I stop feeling nervous, that’s when I quit. Every time you fight somebody, there’s that little doubt...” (49:46)
• On artistry in the fight game:
  • “There’s a thousand ways to throw a liver punch. I might set it up with a 1, 2. I might set it up with a 1 uppercut and then that left. So his hands are already up. It’s—a science.” (Joey, 81:53)

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:03–04:22: Opening banter; travel woes & hotel theft story
• 04:23–05:45: Joey’s rainy family weekend
• 04:40–07:56: Guest intro; legacy and philosophy of boxing
• 07:56–13:36: Overcoming gym anxiety; gym culture
• 14:38–21:34: A week in the life of a pro boxer
• 23:10–27:56: Losses, nerves, and bouncing back
• 43:44–47:30: Rituals and routines before performance/fight
• 49:01–55:58: Embracing and channeling nerves
• 63:04–66:26: Blue-collar work, stability, and pride
• 70:31–75:56: Social media, promotion, and business realities in boxing
• 78:55–83:53: Boxing as science and art; power of body shots

---

Episode Tone & Language

• Raw, unfiltered, conversational, and irreverent—classic Joey Diaz.
• Laughter-laden, but with plenty of hard-earned wisdom.
• Affectionate ribbing, encouragement, and New Jersey pride pervade.

---

Conclusion & Final Thoughts

This episode masterfully weaves together the worlds of standup comedy and professional boxing through stories, lived experience, and plenty of laughs. Whether it’s about getting hit in the face or bombing onstage, the message is the same: keep showing up, embrace discipline, don’t let nerves knock you out—mentally or physically—and, above all, support your people.

---

For More:

• Tickets for John Leonardo’s June 13 fight at Tropicana: DM @OfficialJohnLeonardo
• Lee’s shows: leescsyatt.com
• Joey’s shows: back in August, residency in Brooklyn in the works

Sign-off Quote (87:10):
“...have a great week...Don’t forget to get John Leonardo tickets if you’re in Jersey support. He’s another Jersey boy, so give them what you got... And remember, let them all suck your dick. Sa.” (Joey Diaz)

---

Transcript

[A]

Kick this motherfucker mule. What's going on? Beautiful people. Happy Memorial Day. What'd you do, stay in and get the rain like we did? It's Tuesday, May 26th. The Church of. What's happening now? What is it?

[B]

New Testament?

[A]

New Testament. The power of Christ compels you motherfuckers. How's everybody doing? Lee? What's happening, brother?

[B]

Oh, good week, Good weekend. But I. I don't know. I gotta go to better help. I gotta do something. I. I've been up. I don't know what it is. I missed my first flight.

[A]

Oh, you missed a flight with us too.

[B]

I should have missed a flight with you. But you were nice and held it for me. I was being cheap. They wanted 150 for an Uber from New York to JFK. And I was like, I don't want to do that.

[A]

It's all part of the business.

[B]

I. I should have. But I make 400 for the weekend, so I want to do 150 for that. So then I was like, ah, I'll take the train to jfk. The one you wanted me to take when we shot the documentary. I found the train. I was. I ran, dude. I was sweating.

[A]

You're still sweating?

[B]

I'm still sweating. I missed it by two minutes. A bunch of people missed the flight. But I. Oh, I was so pissed. And they. They wanted me. They put me on standby for the 8:30, like four hours later. And six people would have had to miss the flight. So I drove to Charlotte this weekend. Drove to Charlotte and then yesterday I drove back, stopped in Baltimore, got some crab into the spot in Baltimore. So overall a good weekend. But have you ever missed a flight?

[A]

In the early days, I'd miss them on purpose. I get so up. I don't want to get on that flight. Forget to get on the next one.

[B]

I've. Dude, I'm a nerd. I'm nerd. I've never done it. It sucked. But the weekend was good. How was your weekend?

[A]

Start going out a little earlier. Yeah, that's it. You already played with fire twice. It's time for you to go. You know what? Two hours before. You're a computer guy, so you got computers. See, I go to the airport. I don't know how to log on. So I'm sitting there with no Internet like a fucking idiot at the gate, listening to my phone or music. You guys got computers and you know how to log into? I sit on a plane with no Internet.

[B]

Your phone has Internet without wifi, huh? Your phone has Internet, that's what everybody tells me.

[A]

It's never there for me. Never there for me. And then you get on United and there's no fucking Internet. You got to buy it the night before. They don't take cash, you know. What the fuck you try to pay

[B]

for Internet with cash?

[A]

Why not? Cash is the best. Oh, that's the last I checked. No, they don't take cash. They don't take cash at the airport? No, you gotta go fucking paperless. Like, they won't take a dime from you.

[B]

I love it. I will. I love to see you offer a flight attendant cash for the WI fi.

[A]

Always do. I've been offering those bitches money since Jesus left Chicago. That's the only way you get service. You know what I mean?

[B]

Oh, my God. But it was good. How was your weekend?

[A]

My weekend?

[B]

You had a week with Mercy.

[A]

I had the weekend with my daughter. And it was quite. It was great. I mean, you know, there was not much to do. She only asked me to drive her to a few places. We sat at home at night. She watched me play Grand Theft Auto and act like an asshole. You know, that was it. This fucking rain. I was just talking about this Memorial Day weekend. We had rain since fucking Thursday. Yeah, since Thursday. It was like. It broke you. Saturday I got up Sunday morning, I got up at 7:30 to pee and it was like fucking coming down. So I was like going back to bed. No reason to get up and drink a cup of coffee in the rain like an asshole at 7:30 in the morning. But what do you want from me? You know what I'm saying?

[B]

That's the best. And then. Have you ever had anyone steal something from you at a hotel? Yeah, dude. So I was. I was going to Charlotte by myself. And then when I missed the flight, I picked up my wife because I had to work during the day. So I drove. She drove down. We left a pair of headphones at a hotel in Virginia. We called on the way back up yesterday and I'm like, hey. Because you can track them. Like, hey, they're there. Like, oh, we don't see him. We don't see him. We can see him moving around. We get to the hotel. They didn't. First of all, they didn't call me. Said we left a pair of headphones, which they should have done. We get to the hotel, we track the headphones to the dumpster. Someone put them at the. In the top of the dumpster in a bag just because. Just to steal them. I do. People are so. It's gotten crazy out there.

[A]

Customer service is at its all time worse. So if you leave something at a hotel, just.

[B]

You're fucked.

[A]

You're fucked. If a nice Mexican lady finds. And she's Catholic maybe. But besides that, some white animal finds it, you're fucking done. My guest today is my brother, young kid. I met him about two years ago. I love this motherfucker. John. Body shot. Leonardo.

[C]

Sup?

[A]

Everybody get on to the mic, God damn it, already.

[C]

What's up, everybody?

[A]

What's going on, brother man?

[C]

You know, same stuff.

[A]

Thank you for coming on.

[C]

Appreciate you guys.

[A]

A big fight 13 June.

[C]

Yes, sir.

[A]

Father's Day weekend.

[C]

Yep. For my pops, man. Doing it for him, so.

[A]

And now he. He works here in the ring. He coaches you?

[C]

Trainer, manager.

[A]

Trainer, manager. Good, good. What else has happened? You like 24 year old?

[C]

I'm 26 now.

[A]

26. Holy shit.

[C]

Crazy.

[A]

And you went pro when you were 20, originally from Manalapan?

[C]

Yes, sir.

[A]

What made you want to fucking hit people in the face? That's.

[C]

Oh, they get startled. My father. My father is a retired professional. So, you know, I jumped in it because of him. You know, I copied every move that that guy made, even some of the bad ones. But, you know, jumping into this was, you know, can I do it? Can I do it? Can I do it? And finally one day said, all right, you know what? You could do it. Let's see if you got what it takes. Turns out I got what it takes. So here I am 13 years later, still going, still doing it.

[A]

God bless you, man. That's a tough fucking angle. If you think comedy's hard, that's a fucking tough angle. Comedy. You just. People don't laugh with this shit. You get punched in the fucking head. That's not bueno. You know what I'm saying? And I bet people would get funnier if somebody had a stick with a boxing glove in the audience. And every time he said a bad joke, they just. They just joked at you. But I've always been a big boxing guy. Like, I love watching it. I grew up in the golden age of boxing, you know, like everybody was fucking good. People have no idea about this. I don't talk a lot about this shit. Once a week I will get high. I do it four times a week. But once a week I'll pick a fight and I'll get high and I'll call Rogan at one in the morning and we'll talk about this fight. I'll make him put it on his computer and we just talk. Like last week it was mugabe against somebody, Duran or something. Two animals. And we came up with the conclusion that in the 70s and early 80s, people did not care about fucking ETD, whatever that CTE. When you forget. Yeah, bro. When you watch the beginning of Hagler, Thomas Hearns, none of them were thinking about cte. No, it's called one of the greatest round, first rounds of all time. They just went out there and started punching on each other. That's the difference between then and now, I think. I think people. You go into the ring, you listen. If you think about getting hurt, you're going to get hurt.

[C]

Yeah, of course.

[A]

You know, if you think I'm going to get hurt, if I do. If I do gymnastics, you're going to get hurt. So if you go into a fight thinking, you know, and it's the same, I truly believe in it. But I love all that shit. Loved it. When, as I got older, I started checking up benefits of boxing for old people. And they were like, this is the best thing you could do. Best exercise you could do when you're over 50. So I was driving by Juke juice box every day. I didn't know what it was. I thought it was a juice place. Shit. And then finally I went on their website. They're Mexicans, they got no website. They have like a little blurt juice box.

[C]

Yeah, we got Instagram. Yeah, we don't got no website, we use Instagram.

[A]

And I went in there and I met you, I met your dad. I've met some great people in there.

[C]

Yeah, we got characters in this, bro.

[A]

That is heaven going in there. In the mornings, I take two hits off the bong and I walk in there and Lewis doesn't even know.

[C]

He's got no clue.

[A]

He'll go, why do you smell different, Louis? He'll go, why do you smell different? It's refill, Louis. Yeah.

[C]

Yeah. That's the craziest thing, is how I'm. How I actually met Joey. The craziest thing was we used to serve food, right? So we're sitting there, we're eating, and he walks in one day to just grab a juice. And I look at him, I look at Lewis, Lewis looks at me, like, buys his juice and walks out because he had lost so much weight. I haven't seen him in, you know, in a long time. So Lewis goes, yeah, that's exactly who you thought it was. So when nobody was gonna say nothing. So then the next time he came in, I went, what's up? How Are you like. Nice to meet you. Like, it's an honor to meet you. You know what I mean? Like, you walked in the gym the other day. Like, it's not every day like a, you know, a high profile person walks into the boxing gym just at random, you know. And then we hit it off, we start talking, we start having conversation. But that was just a cool thing, you know? He, like didn't. I almost didn't recognize was he had lost so much weight. I was like, whoa. But.

[B]

And you weren't going in there to check out boxing. You just wanted to juice?

[A]

No, I went in there the first time, I didn't know what the fuck was going on. Whenever I boxed it, I always get a juice on the way out. I get the fresh cantaloupe. Tremendous. And the recovery one with the honey.

[C]

Yeah, the honey and the ginger.

[A]

Yeah. And I don't like honey. I'm allergic to honey. And I like that drink. Yeah, yeah. I got all. Like kids eat peanuts. They get all. I eat honey. I get all up, up. You could tell I have like a little red thing here.

[C]

It makes you break out. And he picks it up. Anyways, I'm going to just drink that song.

[A]

It. Well, you know, I'm not going to die. And it's good for you. Honey's really good for you.

[C]

Yeah, we use local honey, too.

[A]

Yeah, local honey. Nice. It's got autism juice in it. Yeah.

[B]

So once.

[A]

So once the beast stings you, you're all autistic.

[B]

And

[A]

it was really, you know, listen, man, when I walked in there, you know, when you're an older character like myself, I'm not the best built guy, but when I walk in those gyms, I'm very insecure. Very insecure that somebody like you might come up to me and say, go home, bro. Go home and make a sweater. Do what old people do, you know? But I gotta be honest with you. And I think that's why most people my age won't go into those places. Because they think they're going to not get bullied. But people get judged. Yeah. Hey, Pops, you know this shit. I went in there and, I mean, everybody treated me great. I mean, it's just. There's times I'm hitting the bag. And the guy that fought last week, the black dude, Terrell, I love that motherfucker. He'll come over and put the mitts and. Come on, Joey. Three minutes. I'll work with you. It's all. They're always trying to push you. And then I got my Friend to go down there. Tricky Nikki, cute girl that goes down there now with another girl that does. Sweaty girl, fucking. They go down there.

[C]

I've been seeing them on Instagram, and

[A]

they fucking love it. Those two girls, Tricky Nikki calls me every night. Like, man, thank you for turning me on to that place. I took her down there with me. And then the holidays came and it got busy. And then she called me one day, she. Cause I'm gonna go down there with some other girl. But that's the thing about that gym. I don't care how old you are, you could walk in there and one of those motherfuckers come up to you and go, hey, man, you need me help? And you sit there and go, wow. And I sit and watch how they treat other people. They treat other people the same. It's just one of those places that they encourage you. I'm gonna go there till I die. I'm gonna either die there. Like, I don't want to die on yet, because I got no reason not to go there. I got no reason not to go. I went there eight days after my knee surgery. Would I go anywhere else? No. But I know if I fall and break my leg, I got Louis, I got you. I got Big Joe, I got the Puerto Rican trainer. I got the four girls in the morning, you know? And I love going Tuesdays and Thursdays because it's the girls. And those girls, the big tall one, the Muay Thai fighter. That's my girl.

[C]

Yeah, they're great.

[A]

They're great.

[C]

You know we got rules in our gym, right? So the biggest rule in our gym is it doesn't matter what level you are, right? You could be a professional like me. You could be an amateur. You could be someone just walking in. You come in, you treat everyone the same way. Nobody's like, oh, I'm the best. We don't do that at the gym. That's not cool. Like, you want to welcome these people to be the next you. You know what I mean? Like, I'm a professional. I want all the guys underneath me to be able to one day do this. You know what I mean? They come in, they shake everyone's hands in the gym.

[A]

Everybody, hi.

[C]

And goodbye.

[A]

Always, always.

[C]

You know what I mean? Hey, good morning.

[A]

And it aggravates the fuck out of me because I'm dying. I'm hitting the bag. I'm at 2:30 and some guy come up to me, joey, man, thanks for coming today, okay? Let me keep dying here. What are you gonna do? You come In Thursday, like, what the. There's a kid there that's talking to me about stand up comedy. Now I talk to him about stand up comedy. But my favorite all time there is the sister in law.

[C]

Oh, you talking about ll, that's her name.

[A]

With the four kids.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh, that's my girl, though. I went there a few months and I'm like, I don't know what's up with this girl. She's the nicest girl in the world and she always goes out of my way to help me.

[C]

She makes all the juice too.

[A]

Yeah. And I bust her balls about that.

[C]

She kills it.

[A]

And then I saw her bring her father in. He's in a wheelchair and she was holding the mitts for him. And I'm like, this girl's a real deal. And I love it at that. She brings me tamales on Saturdays and.

[B]

Oh, that's your tamale hookup.

[A]

My tamale hookup, bro. It's like a family down there. And we both missed the parade this morning. Yesterday. Yeah, I missed the parade yesterday because this comes out on Tuesday.

[C]

Yeah, that's.

[A]

I just drug up the story. And they're all there walking down the street like, they told me to show up because they were going to pull me. They go, we're going to pull. You don't even need to walk the three miles. We'll just pull you. I'm like, holy.

[B]

In what?

[C]

In a wagon.

[A]

Like in a wagon?

[C]

Yeah,

[B]

the podcast. Let's go. Get him away. Let's go. Do it. Pull them in.

[A]

I feel bad for that dude that's pulling the wagon. That's a long three miles.

[B]

He's cutting weight. It's good for you to pull.

[C]

Good exercise.

[B]

Oh, my God.

[A]

So you, you train there and a couple other places.

[C]

No, I. That's my home gym. That's right. That's where I do most of my training at. And then I go spar at a lot of gyms. Right. So I go down to Philly a lot. I sport on in Philly. I go to Newark a lot. You know, pretty much anywhere there's work for me to get, I go, right. Because that's how you get better.

[A]

You go.

[C]

Yeah. You spar with these guys. Different, different level guys. Other professionals, amateur boxers, all kinds of guys. Was in camp with Stephen Fand. He was the champ of the world. Raymond Ford, who's fighting next week. Yeah, yeah. So I was in. I was in camp with Raymond Ford. He's fighting Oshaki Foster May 30th.

[A]

It's coming up next weekend?

[C]

Yeah, next weekend. Looking forward to that. So I've been in. I've been in camp, so world champion, guys. I've been to Jeron Ennis's gym down there, training, you know. Never sport with him because he's. He's ginormous. But I mean, just to be around these guys and be in the gym with.

[A]

It lifts you. Yeah, it lifts you. Something metal sharpens metal. It's like us. We could sit in New York City at the same club every night and do comedy and kill and it's the same shit. You take that same material, go to Virginia and you die a slow death. So that's why. That's why you travel, to learn the different. And sometimes you go to these places too early and you actually bomb because it's the Bible Belt, you know. You don't know about all this little bullshit that's underneath, but that's how you get better, by going up in front of different people and calling audibles, you know. Let me try that. I'm just gonna work on the one, two, step out. Maybe a fucking uppercut in the left, John shot, body shot, you know. So that's what it is. Another kid. The kids that come from Staten island, they have a nice gym. Staten Island?

[C]

Yeah, they have a really nice.

[A]

The kid that comes over is a. Fuck. What's the name of the gym? St. Cloud. I follow my bull. City something. We go back and forth a couple

[C]

of them because they. Because a couple of those kids come from different gyms on Staten Island.

[A]

Yeah.

[C]

And I can't even think. One of them is Hard Knocks Boxing Gym.

[A]

And the trainer over there, City something.

[C]

Yeah, I'm not sure.

[A]

Good dudes, man.

[C]

Yeah, real good guys. I come down, the one kid was helping me get ready for that fight. He was helping me get ready for one of my last fights before I got injured. And then I ended up, you know, taking a little layoff and then coming back. So he actually recently just joined this camp with me. Been driving up from Staten island to give me sparring and then, you know, he heads back home.

[A]

So breakdown right now. You have a fight in three weeks, basically, Right? What does your day consist of now on a weekly basis. I know you have a day job.

[C]

Yeah, I got a day job.

[A]

But what is your job consist of? Like, do you get up at 5 and drink eggs and run like Rocky?

[C]

Pretty much. So, like, the dudes I work with, they think I'm crazy, you know what I mean? I. I get up at between 4,35 o' clock in the morning and I either swim or do some kind of exercise. I do my swim, my strength training or my yoga. At 5 to 5:30 in the morning I get to work for 7. So I work for the township in Edison. I get to the work, I work the day on lunch. I put my running shoes on, I go out and run, I run two to eight miles, whatever I have time for, for that day. Come back to the shop, I change back in my work clothes, I go back to work, I leave work and I go to the boxing gym. That's what I do pretty much every single day.

[A]

I work a full time job and weekends included.

[C]

And I. Saturday mornings I just do my sparring and then Sunday I run, do a lot of stuff, man. Sometimes I, sometimes they tell me I overdo it, you know what I mean? My dad and my trainers are like, yo, it's time to like relax, you know.

[A]

But that make gives you confidence at least, you know, you did the work. Nothing is worse than being on the mat knocked out. And you know, once you get knocked out, you know all the reasons why you got knocked out.

[C]

So you're sitting there, yeah, something happens.

[A]

I know I gave it, you know, you did the work, you covered the spread. So that's fucking crazy. And you guys that work, like there was a guy in the UFC that was this big tough black dude, he would just come in and beat you the fuck up something Alexander. And you know, you don't really know. That's why I like 2020, all those boxing shows that tell you about, like John might come out and fight. And I go, I don't like John. But also they do a thing about your house, you with your dad eating and your daughter or your girlfriend.

[C]

Yeah, like the Showtime stuff.

[A]

Yeah, I like them. That's cool. Yeah, and once I watched that. He was a single dad, his wife left him with four kids. He would get up at five and go to Jiu Jitsu for two hours and then get on the truck and drive for ups till six, go home, cook for the kids. His sister would put him to bed and he would go right back to the gym till 10 o' clock at night and back up the next day on six fucking hours. I don't know what that tells me is you're fucking serious about what you're doing.

[C]

Yeah, that changes your.

[A]

That changes everything.

[C]

Yeah, it changes everything.

[A]

You're serious about your doing, dog this. Do you know how many nights I sit here at 6 and go after World News Tonight? I'm gonna Go to the boxing gym, you know, just to see the guy. I can't do it at night. I cannot work out at night. When I was a kid I could work out all hours a day. But at my age now I gotta get up and get it over with.

[C]

Yeah, you're not the only one, you

[A]

know, like I have a hard time fucking doing anything at night. When I do do it, I feel good about myself and I go, you know, I'm gonna keep doing this, never go back. Yeah.

[C]

Like the day's over.

[A]

Yeah. Now I gotta go fucking, you know, I'd rather get here at 10, 9, do an hour and get the fuck outta here and I could go home and at least I did my main thing for the day, which is take care of me. That's what I like, you know. So like now I'm going to PT twice a week, strength training twice a week and boxing twice.

[C]

Yeah, so you got a lot. You got a good breakdown.

[A]

Yeah. And that's what.

[C]

Good mix of stuff.

[A]

Good mix, you know, I want to get old gracefully. I see old guys and it's true, you have no muscle left. So you see how you walk, your legs get skinny and shit. I can't let that happen, Uncle Joey. So I'm going all. I don't care if I have to sit there in a wheelchair with one dumbbell and just fucking. Yeah, yeah. Not that you're gonna get pushed or anything. You just feel better. Yeah, you do, you just fucking feel better, man. When I do something early, that means I could do anything that day. If I have to drive to the gym with my 63 year old ass at 10 and say hello and listen, that's more than a lot of guys my age.

[C]

Oh yeah, trust me.

[A]

So I want to get it out of the fucking way and I feel better about myself. I tackled the most important thing of the day. Fuck the stage. I'm going to go on a stage now and rip them apart because I've got that confidence. I feel that much better.

[C]

You knew you got up early and you put some work in it.

[A]

Yeah. Not that it fucking. Not that boxing is going to make my comedy better and not that lifting stupid weight's going to. It's the discipline of doing it and then taking it over there. That's. That's world now. When I was like, you guys developing, I could talk all this shit. I was not gonna do anything. When I was like in the development stage of comedy. That's why I got up to £418. 4 fucking 18. Because I just didn't give a fuck. I wanted to do comedy, snort coke, smoke cigarettes and drink Coca Cola. That's it. I used to drink 30 Cokes a night at the fucking club. I don't drink alcohol.

[B]

Oh, well, like it's. I have a day job and I start. I start at 8, which is not. It's from home, so it's easy. But like, dude, that I can't. How many days a week do you get that 5am alarm? And you're like, I get.

[C]

Not much. I.

[B]

No. What time do you go to bed?

[C]

My girlfriend can't believe it. She's like, you are like the most motivated person that I know. I get up, I jump out of bed. I'm like, it's time to. Time to get to work, man. Cuz, like, if I don't work as hard as I can, there's a shot I might get up, to be honest with you, right? Because, like, even in sparring, you go to the gym sometimes, sometimes there's an ass whooping waiting for you. You know what I mean? You're going to war every single day. And if you're not on point sometimes you're due for an ass whooping. You know, I don't want to be that guy, you know, to get that ass whooping.

[B]

It's just so I'll. I bomb and it sucks, but I'll take a bombing over an ass whooping. Any. That sounds terrible.

[A]

Now, when you bomb on the way off the stage, do you know the reasons why you bomb? Sometimes you give yourself excuses like in a younger comic. Or do you go, it's on me. Let me get this out.

[B]

Usually it's on me. Okay, Yeah, I try to. I try to put it on me. And yeah, but it's just different. It's like, even if I like slacked off that week and maybe didn't do a couple spots, a bombing hurts. And it's. It's the worst bomb for me. And the difference, I think, between fighting and stand up is if I bomb like the last show of a weekend, I hate it because then I have to wait till the next weekend. But that's a four or five days away.

[C]

You ever blame the audience?

[B]

Sometimes.

[C]

You ever be like, this audience was

[B]

this sometimes, but it wasn't it. It sucks because then as soon as you blame the audience, Joey goes up and kills the same audience. You're like, oh, okay, all mic. But the thing, like, if I. The thing that always gets in my head is if I spent six months training for a fight And I have a rough night, whatever. And then I have to wait another six months to fight again. That would kill me.

[C]

Yeah, that's, that part sucks.

[B]

If I bomb, I'll go find a spot that night if I can just to get it off of me. Like that's the, that's the biggest difference is I can, I can get a, a new spot in a lot quicker than you can get a new fight in. Do you ever like, you like, I'm sure you don't, but like, try to call up the promotion, be like, give me a fight next week just to get like, just to get that stink off of you.

[C]

So my one loss I left there, I had fought a kid, a weight class Heavier who was 3 0, knocked three people out cold, like stiff them. They left there on a stretcher and they send this to me on a two week notice because an opponent fell out. And I look at this guy, my dad goes, I had sold 150, 200 tickets. Or my dad's like, so what are you gonna do? I'm like, I'm gonna fight him. What am I gonna do? Me? They're gonna return all the tickets, everyone, or I'm gonna fight him. I went there, I fought him, I lost a majority decision. I left there with two swollen eyes, one of them swollen shut where I couldn't see nothing and the other one just black and blue. And it's like you needed that recovery time. So I couldn't call up the promoter and be like, get him back here next week. It's like you're mentally just like not there, you know what I mean? Because you got hurt and like you had put so much into the camp and then that, that happens and it just breaks you, you know?

[B]

Yeah, I can't even imagine that that would, that would destroy me mentally is not being able to like wipe it off.

[C]

Yeah. And you have no. And as a fighter you have to figure out how to wipe it off. And sometimes that takes time. You got to dig deep, you know, you got to be like, why do I do this? You know what I mean? Right after that first loss, I remember I took like a week off and I went right back to the gym with a swollen eye. I was like, it's time.

[B]

Did any part of you think about quitting, like retiring like this?

[C]

I don't know. I don't know if I had those thoughts. I think I just had a lot of doubt in my mind. And at that time, my other coach had messaged me on Instagram to join our team. Which was like, everything happens for a reason, right? God is good. That's what, that's how, you know, I believe, you know, My father's with me. He's my head trainer, head manager. My other assistant coach is now Dustin Fleischer. He was six and oh, with five knockouts. He was signed to Roc Nation, the Jay Z. He retired and when he seen I lost, he had messaged me through Instagram and said, hey, listen, I watched your fight, I think I could really help you. And he's been with me four years now. My whole career got flipped upside down and had just improved. A lot of stuff that I was missing.

[B]

How important is the coach?

[C]

It's very important. That's who. He's not in there with you, but he's the one person that's there with you outside the ring, motivating you and pushing you and teaching you, which is like, you know, you need that in a fight, you know, especially when, you know, hits the fan, which in a fight it's going to happen a lot. You need that person there.

[B]

Does the between round things, does that help? Like if they're giving you advice, can you actually like focus, marinate on and like hear it or are they just

[C]

when you're as experienced as I am? Yeah, definitely. When I first started, it was just like over my head, you know what I mean? Like you're saying stuff and I'm not listening type of deal, you know? Yeah.

[B]

So I can't, I, I can't even imagine just letting that stuff in after between rounds. You must be dead, right? No, no, you're not dead.

[C]

Crazy.

[A]

Heart's bumping. Yeah, it's pumping, Jack. And here's the secret to it that he'll tell you in all those rounds with the 10,000 people, 5,000 people, and they're yelling and screaming. You really do just hear your coach's voice.

[C]

That's the truth.

[A]

You really do. And you got to listen to him. You'll see that he starts when he starts training you, he starts talking to you from a distance and he gets louder because he wants you to know his voice. So when there's 5,000 people, you have to zero in. And that's the voice you hear. That to me would be fucking tough. That's just, you know, unless I went up on stage with like an earplug and you talk to me.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Get rid of that joke. What the fuck are you doing? Say the joke about the mule, you know what I'm saying?

[B]

Right, right, right.

[A]

Yeah, but yeah, it's gotta Be you're going into war with him. He's just not there with you. Every time you get punched, that coach feels it. He's there, he's yelling, he's giving you instruction. He might see something that you don't see because you're locked in on something else. And you're like, I never even fucking saw that.

[B]

So why? Like, I'm a very amateur fan, but, like, and I watch more UFC than I do boxing. But you'll watch a fight in between rounds, the coach will be like, you got to hit him with the uppercut. He gets open, and then you go, and then the fighter goes in and doesn't even try the uppercut. And as a fan, like, why isn't he, like, is it just, why isn't he listening? Is it like, is it cockiness? Is it, it's not open? Like, when, when, when, when you see a fighter not listen to the coach? Why do you think that is?

[C]

There's a lot of different reasons for it, but I think the, the best way to, like, say it is, is some guys think that they know it all and they don't. And some dudes are just not in that good a shape that when, once they get exhausted, anything that they're going to be told, they're not going to listen to, that's the biggest thing, right? He's like, you can say whatever you want, but when you're exhausted, you may just not be able to get it off. You know what I mean?

[B]

Okay. It's just a completely different

[A]

king.

[B]

I, I've had this theory forever. I, I, I've, I don't know if I've been punched in the face. Like, I don't know how you brush that off in a fight and don't, like, just like, immediately quit. Like, there was that. I don't, I don't even know what fighter it was. Yeah, cry. There was a boxer. It was two big black dudes. During the announcements, one dude just left the ring.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Do you remember? You've seen that. It was the, the, the, his opponent came out, he looked, he's like this, and he just let, how do you, how do you get punched in the face? You're like, this is great. Like, that just sounds terrible.

[C]

You know what it is, too, is like, when you do something so long, it's just like second nature, right? Just like anything. Like, like, to me, like, you guys getting up on stage, I can never do that. I can never do that.

[B]

It's so much easier.

[C]

No, it's not. I'm bad. I'm bad with crowds. I said. I say this to my girl all the time, too. The only time I could be in front of a crowd is when I'm fighting. You don't see me out at bar. You don't see me out at Osprey. I don't go out into crowds. I don't do that to get up on a stage and talk in front of a crowd. Nah.

[B]

I bet I can teach you to do that before you can teach me to box that.

[C]

I accept your challenge. Oh, Juice box. Next week, we get them down.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, I'll box a bag. I don't.

[A]

Oh, let me ask you a question.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Your mom went to see you in San Diego.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

I think you ate a bag of dick. Oh, yeah. How bad did you feel?

[B]

Terrible.

[A]

Okay. And did you quit?

[B]

No, but I didn't get punched in the face.

[A]

It doesn't matter. That's every. Listen, you don't want your mother seeing you get beat up or suck on another man's dick, okay?

[B]

No, you're not.

[A]

That's what mothers never want to see. Okay? Your mom does not want to see you get beat up. So you just ate an egg. Listen, and I'm not picking on you.

[B]

No, no.

[A]

I'm talking to you from even experience. I remember years ago, dog. And you know what? I hated that dude till he died. When I heard he had cancer, I'm like, thank God. About 20 years ago, I did a show at Caroline's. Do you remember that show? It's Latino. It was like the Latino Comedy Festival. And this motherfucker, you know, North Bergen, they all come out. They all came out. I had, like 80 people there, people that had jobs. The next day, it's Wednesday night. This guy told me my set was at 10. He put a salsa band up before me. And I had to go out there, and I just ate a bag of dick. Cause I don't eat. I'm not even brown, you know? They were looking at me like, who's this fucking white guy? And I remember having to drive home with them, and your uncle was like, yeah, you got to quit. Like, shit like that. New Jersey people, they just tell you it's time for you to quit, dog. You know? I didn't quit. Why didn't I quit? All those beatings I took will make you quit. What would make any difference if you get knocked out? It's something to learn from every bombing. You fucking learn. Especially when you invite all your friends. You're gonna have a good night. Your Girlfriend comes with the mink.

[C]

Oh, yeah.

[A]

And now you go up there and die a slow death and they're telling you you did great. And that even makes it worse.

[B]

Oh, I know.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

When they tell you that you did

[B]

great, that's happened to you. You've lost a fight. Be like, I didn't.

[C]

Yeah. This. So that one loss is a pro that I have. Right. I wasn't sad, I wasn't upset. I took it like a man. Me and the kid hug, we shook hands. Yo, good fight. I climbed out of the ring and I was undefeated at the time, so I had lost my first pro fights. I climbed out of the ring and I remember the saddest thing was my girl hugging me with tears coming out of her eyes, saying, it's okay, it's okay. And her being heartbroken and everything hurt more.

[A]

More.

[C]

Yeah, yeah. Made me hurt more. But it's like, oh, I gotta, you know, like he was saying, like, you know, they come out looking all nice, like, oh, after the fight, it's gonna be a win. We're gonna go out, we're gonna have a good night. It didn't turn out that way.

[B]

Do you ever have. Maybe not at this level yet, but I always, whenever I see a fighter have like a afterparty that they're promoting and they, they lost the fight and they still have to go with a. With sunglasses on. I can't imagine going to a club

[A]

after you stitches in your lip. Hey, how you doing? Listen, the party's canceled. Ain't no party, right? I got beat the up. You want me to go out there in front of my friends and people hugging you? No, no, no, it's. That's one thing. I always go, that's ballsy. Yeah, the schedule an after party before a fight because you don't know what's going to happen.

[C]

I always schedule one.

[A]

Do you always. Where do you.

[C]

So I'm fighting in the Tropicana, so we did a damn good sports bar. So crazy shit. We're having a good time. I get there all, you know, all my, my work friends are there, my friends are there, family, fans, everything. Having a good time hits about, you know, but there's other people in the bar, right? So it hits about 2, 2:30 in the morning. We're hanging, Marco's getting kind of tired. I go, all right, we'll leave in like 20, 30 minutes, we'll head out. Cuz my grandmother lives down in Egg harbor, so we sleep down there this way. The next morning I get up, I Can hit the beach. I get a coffee and just chill. No more ac. Anyway, I said, let me go to the bathroom and then we'll leave it dirty. I go into the bathroom. Two people fucking in the bathroom. Right when you walk in. I walk out of the bathroom, I grab her, go, yeah, never mind. It's time to go. Let's get our shit, let's get the fuck out of here. I'm done. That's it. Once it hits 2am in AC, leave. Yeah, for real. It gets bad. And AC, it does. I'm like, let's just get out of here. You know what? After party's over.

[A]

They tell you when you sign into the Borgata to be a comic. When you sign, they make you sign some that says they're not responsible if you leave the property. Because whenever you're in ac, people tell you to go to that sandwich place. It's a sandwich place. White House Tower. Nah, I never heard they told you. I remember asking a lady going, how far away from the White House? She goes, listen, we don't want you leaving the hotel and at night. We don't want you leaving at all. Please do us a favor, call us. We'll figure out a way to get you your fucking sandwich, whatever the fuck. That's the truth. And I listen. You tell me. I listen. And one time I was performing Atlantic City, and I had done my set and I went outside just to get air, just to see the show was still on. There was like a headliner and stuff. Oh, I could see them already plotting. Like, you could see two guys across from the entrance, and when somebody would walk out the guy at the entrance to do something, the two guys would follow you. I saw it. I saw it. I saw my own eyes. I'm like, yeah, this is funky. Yeah, this is funky.

[C]

I had a fight where, you know which, you're really not supposed to do this, but after the weigh in, I said, I want some ice cream. I go, oh, there's a 7 11. I go into the 7 11. I'm like, this is the worst mistake I've ever made in my life. I grabbed ice cream and Haagen Dazs and I got out of there.

[B]

You still got the ice cream?

[C]

Yeah, I still got it, but I'm in there like, yo, at any moment in time, this place could get ran up while I'm in here. I was like, why would I do this for ice cream? Yeah, Never again.

[B]

How long have you been cutting weight right now? No, at that point.

[C]

Oh, at that point, I Was cutting weight for like, probably about a month, about four weeks.

[B]

You deserve ice cream.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh, man.

[B]

Is how good is what's better, the post weight cut meal or the post fight meal?

[C]

Man, that's tough. I think the probably after the way in eating right is the best because

[A]

that food tastes good. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that food tastes really good.

[C]

Yeah. You know, you earned it.

[A]

You know what I mean? If you eat a piece of with mustard, it's good. You're like, that was good. I'll never eat it again, but it was good. Think about it. You've been living like a bumpy for eight weeks, but you still, like, you

[B]

can't eat a lot because you don't want, like, you don't want to be.

[C]

You can't overdo it. So I have a, I have a cycle that I follow. But I make sure I throw some sweets in there because, you know, I gotta enjoy something. You know what I mean?

[B]

Right?

[C]

Like, I, I do like, I do like sweet potato or like yams, and I cut them up and I put like almost like Thanksgiving, like the syrup on them, I put them in the oven. That's like my like, sweet thing. It also gives you a lot of energy. You know what I mean?

[A]

It's like, I thought it was like an ice cream too.

[C]

Yeah, but like, I have to have something sweet with every meal, like after this. Yeah, but that's like my favorite thing after steak.

[A]

Or eat pasta.

[C]

You know I eat pasta. Yeah, of course. Got it. You know, I think this steak might slow me down.

[A]

It might slow you down?

[C]

Yeah, I don't think it's heavy.

[A]

Unless it's the next day. The fight's the next day.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Not bad to get a nice steak. Fucking little lobster tail.

[C]

Yeah, lobster tail sounds good.

[A]

And then fucking go upstairs and just rest the next day. I, I, a person told me this once and I was like, what are they talking about? They said on fight day you should really do nothing. Yeah, Fight day. Even comedy. Like, if I have a big show on a Saturday night, over a thousand people don't do nothing. Relax, breathe, maybe write, read a book.

[C]

That's it.

[A]

Fuck the wife, whatever. But don't do much. Yeah, don't do much. That's what she's there for. On a Saturday. Not the. I don't need you here unless you're gonna suck my dick to relieve the tension. You know what I'm saying? Tell me what anecdotes? What are you gonna do? I need you here to, you know, clean up the excess garbage. In my body.

[C]

Give me calm.

[B]

Is that still a thing not to. Not to have sex in the training camp?

[C]

Yeah. Oh. So it's two weeks before five. That, that's. I always, always run it. Two weeks before five?

[B]

How quickly after the fight?

[C]

Right away.

[A]

Quickly. First thing, right after you eat that sweet potato.

[C]

Right? Of course.

[A]

He goes to the sweet potato. Right. To the Monqua. Why fuck around?

[B]

Oh, that's amazing.

[A]

What's happening? Beautiful people. Uncle Joey for DraftKings. Listen, let me ask you something. What do you get when you combine bingo style bonuses and slots? I'll wait. Kachingo DraftKings Casino is the exclusive home of Kachingo Slots. New casino players play $5 and get 1000 Flex spins. 1000 Flex spins. Claim 50 spins a day for 20 days on your choice of over 100 slots, including Cashingo. Download the DraftKing Casino app, which I love. Sign up with code JOEY. Slots J O E Y Slots. S L O T S One word to claim your flex spins and experience Kachingo the feature you can't play anywhere else in partnership with DraftKing Casino. Well, hey, the crown is yours. Gambling problem.

[C]

Call 1-800-GAMBLER in Connecticut. Help is available for problem gambling.

[B]

Call 888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org Please play responsibly.

[C]

21 and over physically present in Connecticut,

[B]

Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, West Virginia only, Boyd and Ontario. Eligibility restrictions apply.

[C]

Non withdrawable spins issued as 50 spins per day for 20 days.

[B]

Valid for select games only and expire

[C]

each day after 24 hours.

[B]

See [e-mail] promos ends July 2020 second at 11:59pm Eastern Time.

[A]

Hey, Uncle Joey here. How have things been in the bedroom lately? A little boring. Right? Spice it up with Blue Chew Gold. Blue Chew Gold is a 4 in 1 tablet with a new formula designed to boost blood flow and arousal. No more waiting for the pill to kick in. No more performance anxiety. Just the results you want when you want them. I love Bluechew Gold. I'm 63 and my dick looks like a fucking firecracker. You understand me? So see for yourself. Why Bluechew is the number one erectile function dysfunction. The process 100% online and super simple. Don't let your mind get in the way of a good time. Discover your [e-mail] we got a special deal for the church family right now. When you buy two months of Bluechew Gold, you're going to get a third one on the house free with Promo code Joey. That's promo code Joey. J O e y visit bluechew.com for more details and important safety information. And I want to thank BlueChew for sponsoring the podcast. Hey, what's up Uncle Joey here. If you're looking for a rush, check out Ultra pouches. Ultra pouches are designed for mental clarity and enhanced focus, nicotine free, caffeine free and packed with vitamins. Ultra pouches come in five great flavors. Cool mint, wintergreen, tropical watermelon and all new blue razz. This is tremendous. You just pop one of these open. Pop, pop, pop. Ultra pouches give you a little lift anytime, anywhere. It's like a nicotine pouch without the side effects. You're gonna love them. Ultra is the ultimate guilt free pouch delivering instant focus and mental clarity without nicotine or caffeine. What I'm going to do for you is this. New customers can use Code Church C H U r C h to get 15% off at takeultra.com again, takeultra.com for 15% off with code church C H U R C h After you purchase, they'll ask you where you heard and just tell them the church sent me here. Besides that, you're gonna love them. They taste great. And that's it.

[C]

Do you, and it's for both of you guys before a show. Do you eat the same thing? Do you drink the same thing? Is it okay?

[A]

So I can't eat before?

[B]

No.

[C]

Oh, you can't eat before a show. What's the reason for that?

[A]

Slows me down. Oh yeah, slow me down.

[C]

No. Coffee, cup of coffee.

[A]

Maybe like a soda or an apple in the back, some piece of fruit, whatever's bad.

[B]

I'm a little superstitious. I like a sugar free Red Bull. That's what I like every time. Not every time, but like with my day job, if I'm going out, like if it's during the week, I've been up since 8, so I'm tired, so I like a little bit of energy. But I'm eating. I can eat before a show now. When I first started Joey, it's one of my favorite burns ever was my first show, I was so nervous and I went, I drove like two hours to get there. Now I hadn't eaten anything. I was 300 plus pounds and all I could squeeze down was like half of like a side Caesar salad. I went to him, I was like, hey, can you eat before shows? I couldn't eat. He's like, you're looking just, you should do more Shows then. But no, I can't. Some people can. Some people go, I'll have a steak between shows. I was gonna ask because, like, I'll feel heavy. Like, I just.

[C]

Yeah, that's heavy.

[B]

Even if it's like a healthy thing, I just don't. Brother, it's not the adrenaline.

[A]

Let me tell you what it is. It's not the steak. It's us five going to dinner. I got to talk.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, you got to get the jitters out.

[A]

Talk. No, no, no, no, I'm talking. It's an hour dinner. I got to go talk for an hour. But I'm sitting here dicking around with you guys, trying to make you laugh. Now I go on stage and I eat a bag of dick. Because my focus shouldn't have been on that dinner. It should have been on the stage. That's why I really don't eat, okay? Because I don't have time for this shit. If somebody starts saying something, I don't have time for it. So before that happens, I'd rather not eat. I'd rather not see anybody after 5 o'. Clock. I really don't want to see anybody,

[C]

headphones on, music or no.

[A]

Sometimes, yeah, but just. You just want to rest and think about what you're about to do and, you know, visualize what's gonna go down. So if I go to dinner, I take my eye off the prize. That's what I'm trying to say. Not that I could eat, though. I'm a fat fuck and I smoke pot. I could eat every fucking day, but just there has to be some type of. And that's my game plan before a comedy show. I don't like to drive and be late or be in a rush. I don't like any of that shit. I wanna get there, sit, relax, maybe smoke a joint, keep it light. I don't want no fucking politic talk in there, or none of that shit. Just keep it light. When you go up there, you fucking get every emotion. If I go on stage and I'm already pissed that you motherfuckers are eating hummus, you know, it kind of. So I try to keep it. And that's. Listen, that wasn't always. That was when I started making money because I got to think of them now I'm opening for you. I don't give a fuck about these people. I'm worried about the 400 I'm getting for four shows, you know, and how that's not going to help me pay the rent. So I got to rob one of these purses after the show, you know, it's all part of the. You want to give them the best possible show. You know, I'm already 50. 50. Let me give him the best possible show. So everything has to be tight like that. And that's my mind. That's the way it works for me.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Everybody else is different. Some people like people around them and stuff. I love my family. I just don't want anybody in that hotel room, me telling me shit that I don't need to hear, you know?

[B]

Yeah, what's the. What's the green room? Because, like, before I started, see, I thought the green room was going to be a party. I thought it was going to be great. The green room for a comedy show is us3 on our phones like this the whole time. Like, no one says that. It's very quiet. Like, is your great. Is your, like, locker room like a bunch of music? Are you jumping around?

[C]

So this last fight, they gave me my own locker room. So it's just me, my four cornermen. That was it. We were just chilling. And you met Kevin, my buddy. Kevin Coleman. He's a. He's a cop now. He's also a pro fighter, but he's one of my cornermen. He's been with me forever. He's my best friend. And, you know, he's in the locker room trying to get me amped up. And I don't know if you ever seen any boxing movies or if you watch any Muhammad Ali clips. You know, we're in there, the opponents out in the hallway, seeing the doctor, and he's in there going, handcuff lightning throw thunder in jail. He's yelling this, like, you know, trying to get me hyped up, but being, like, stupid funny. You know what I mean? He's doing that the whole time. This kid that we're fighting, just walking past the locker room, like, are these guys doing. Like, that's how he's getting amped up, but, like, I'm just. Just funny.

[A]

I am amped up, but I'm more potential energy and kinetic energy. When I'm sitting there looking at the phone or watching something stupid, I'm not sitting there doing either. I'm thinking, and I'm getting hotter and hotter.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Because I got to be a little bit pissed off before I go on stage, but on my own, pissed off. Like, I got to think about something happened when I was a kid.

[C]

They get started out.

[A]

Yeah, all right. And it's like a slow. You put the fire on simmer. You Know, I don't want to go all the way up, but I put it on simmer, and that's what I'm doing. When Lee's on stage or somebody else on stage, I'm just getting ready. I'm listening to them, but at the same time, I'm just thinking about, I want to go out there and fuck these motherfuckers up.

[C]

Now, let me ask you a question. So now, right, I watched you growing up. I watched you on My Name is Earl. I watched you on the Longest Yard. Now, is getting ready for that different than doing standup comedy, Right? Cause I'm sure they got food laid out, they got all this stuff laid out, right? Is it a different mindset for that? And is it a different.

[A]

I was always nervous. Let's get this out of the way. I'm a pussy. I want to feel nervous. Because when you feel nervous, you're gonna feel something. When I stop feeling nervous, that's when I quit. Quit? That's it. Quit. Every time you fight somebody, I don't care what you're thinking, there's that little doubt.

[C]

Yeah, there's always nerves.

[A]

There's always nerves. And you have to learn how to deal with your nerves. When I have to shoot something, I mean, I just watched something the other day that was here. We were watching it, and I'll give you an example. I did a boxing movie with De Niro.

[C]

Oh, okay. I never actually seen it, but now I gotta go watch it. Now I have to go.

[A]

It's probably on right now. It's terrible.

[C]

It's terrible.

[A]

But I'll. I'll describe a scene to you. When I got there, I'm like you. I get off the plane, they drove me to my hotel. I walked my hotel, and I got right on the phone with them. I'm like, where is everything? They're like, well, you don't have wardrobe till tomorrow. I don't give a fuck. That's the first thing I'm doing. I'm gonna smoke a joint, but I'll be down there. When I come down, I'll let you fucking gear me up and shit. And then while they're shooting, you go walk around the set. You just watch. You watch the tempo of the set. You know what I'm saying? Like, how this guy's shooting. Is he making you do a lot of takes? Is he nice? You know, you just watching. I'll never forget that while I was sitting there watching, De Niro came in and everybody was going nuts. I just sat there. I didn't say a word. And he had to do a scene with LL Cool J. Now I'm watching these two for 10 minutes. Rehearse. I'm watching them. I'm watching them. They're doing the tap. You stand here. I stand there. Beautiful. Action. LL Cool J fucked up. Let's do it again. LL Cool J fucked up again. Again, again. He could get the line out. And then finally got it out, and they shot the scene. I'm like, that's fucking weird that that happened. Okay, next day, I gotta shoot a scene with De Niro. This is like an easy fucking scene. He says something to me, and I say something back. And we're wrapped. That's how quick it was.

[C]

No mess ups.

[A]

No mess ups. Okay, one shot. No, that's great, bro. He came, he hugged me. He goes, you ready for this? We talked, we rehearsed for like five minutes. It was two fucking lines. Two fucking lines, guys. And I'll never forget when they said, action. He walked up to me and he started talking to me. And I'm like, cut. Like, joe, you okay? I'm like, yeah, I'm okay. Because when he came up, he wasn't De Niro no more. He was every character. I had seen him play Casino, the fucking guy when he was the murderer. I'm looking all. And I forgot my line. I don't know what line to tell. I don't know if I'm in Goodfellas. I don't know if I'm in Mean Streets. I don't know what the fuck I'm in.

[C]

Gero's dad.

[A]

Yeah, in the Bronx. I lost it like, three times. And then I caught it. Then I got it, because just being around him made me fuck. And then after that, I was fine. The next couple days, me and him were rocking. But that scene taught me why LL Cool J was nervous. That's why LL Cool J was fucking up.

[C]

Yeah, you got to see it.

[A]

You got to see it. I got to see it. Like, everything's cool until a light comes on. Like, everybody. What's Mike Tyson's Everybody has a plan till they get punched in the face. I got punched in the fucking face. And that's what happens. And if you see it that way. So to answer your question, acting is a little different because I'll go out there and warm up with the guy, and then I'll get my body movement, how I'm going to lay it out. And then you just lay it out. If it's a big time director or you're Reading with a big time actor, you're going to have a couple, you know, hiccups. We're human, man. That's supposed to be. But you pick it right up. You pick it right up. And if I have to shoot a scene, like, that's why if I have to shoot a movie, I won't make plans after the movie.

[C]

Why is that?

[A]

Because I'll be thinking about the plans.

[C]

Yeah. Instead of.

[A]

And then that last scene, I can't say the words out because I'm looking at the clock. I'm in a rush, thinking about what I got to do. So I eliminated that. There's all these things you learn to eliminate for you to feel comfortable in what you're doing.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

You know?

[C]

Yeah. And I know the feeling of that. So I know when I make plans for after the gym, when I do very, it's like, oh, I gotta get out of here. Right. But it's also like, I gotta get this shit done. I gotta train.

[A]

Yeah, yeah. So it's kind of weird. Like I said to you, I love being nervous. I love getting to a show and being confused. I'll be fucked up. And him and none of these guys could tell. I'd just be sitting there and I'm going through my own fucking hell. You know, I bombed last time. I'm too old to go on stage. Maybe it's time you quit. You know, you got a pimple on your forehead, you're fat. You get all this shit that people are saying to you. Nobody's saying it to you. It's your own mind fucking with you. And you have to learn how to balance that out too. Yeah.

[C]

Are you nervous for him? Like as a friend, like, because when my boys fight, my heart's like, yeah.

[A]

That's why I can't go see my friends.

[C]

That's what I'm saying.

[A]

Like, I can't.

[C]

Are you nervous when he goes on stage?

[A]

A little bit. Yeah.

[B]

A little bit.

[A]

I'll go see the beginning of his set and if he's got him, I'll walk away. I know he's got him not checking like eight minutes later on. Yeah, but am I nervous for him? No, because I want him to do well. He's going up before me. Yeah. I don't want to put my maluk nervousness on him.

[C]

So what about you? That's the same or for him?

[B]

No, no. I could see it more. Like, if I have like some, some comics at my level and they have a big show, I'll be like, excited for them. But I met Joey and he was, you know, doing the con, like doing great shows, like to me when I, because I wasn't doing standup when I first met him. To me, the idea that he got nervous was surprising to me because he was just, to me, like, he'd go up there and explode. I was like, oh my. I didn't. The idea that he got nervous like he did. He's not nervous. No, I, I think it'd be more. Because there's no. Even if you bomb. It sucks, but it's gonna be okay. Maybe, Maybe for Netflix. I was like nervous or excited for you.

[A]

I was nervous.

[B]

But like big, like big stuff. Like a special, but no regular set. I'm excited to, to see him and I'm excited for him to do well. But no, I don't, there's not. That's why I, when you say you're like the, the, this is scary to you even. I don't know, it just, there's like, it's not life or death. I'm not gonna, I'm not, I might not lose an eye. Like, like, like the fighting thing. To me that, that is just something that I can't even wrap my head around.

[C]

I'm getting you down to the gym. It's. I, I, I gotta get you in there. I have to.

[B]

You know what?

[C]

Something. I need to convince you that it's okay.

[B]

I need to do something. I don't know if I want to get punched in the face, but.

[C]

Oh no, none of that. I just want to get you to hit the bag. I just feel like.

[B]

Does it help with your lungs? Oh, yeah. I'm having some lung issues and I don't, I need, like this weekend showed me. I need to figure out a way to get them stronger myself.

[C]

Oh yeah.

[B]

So if boxing, I also got some

[C]

supplements you could try for your lungs. Very good stuff, like lean and stuff like that.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Really good core to set. Mushroom.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Really good stuff for your lungs. It'll help flush out a lot of the stuff.

[B]

Okay. Deal. I would, I would love to try it. I, I don't know, it's just very different and it's weird to me cuz, like, I don't know, I get, I get ex. I don't really get nervous for shows anymore. I, But I haven't had like a special, I haven't had a TV taping auditions. I guess I get nervous for. But most of the time I just get like extra excited. I'm just so, I'm just so pumped to go on Stage.

[A]

Well, the nervousness turns into energy.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Okay, let me break it down for you. The two fighters on the main card, John Leonardo. Boom. He comes out, he does his thing. He's fighting Nick Askoise from the Bronx. He comes out and does his thing. Awesome. They put your hands together. All right, guys, we're going to have a clean fight. Keep it above the waist. This three knockdown rule. Blah, blah, blah. You guys ready? You ready? You ready? Yeah. Now you go back to your ring. Right there in my mind is, when I'm a boxer, I start getting nervous. As soon as I go back to that ring, as soon as I go back to my corner and I gotta do all that shit. I hate when the people put the camera on the box. I would lose my mind. If I'm about to fight and getting warmed up and all of a sudden this guy comes with a camera, I'm having a heart attack. My walk to the center of the ring is going to be nervous. But once either he throws or I throw, I'm in the game. I'm in the game. I'm slow, I'm retarded. So you might have to hit me three times. I might have to see a little blood to really get your heart pumping, and then you're in there. But that whole walk is the one that always interests me from shake hands and come out boxing. Once you turn around, there's no. There's no going back. There's no going back. And that's the moment of truth. So those five steps is nervous energy. Just nervous energy. You're watching. But once you throw a punch and get like. Once I hit the microphone and I go, what's happening? You bad, right? That's it. Me saying bad took everything out of me. Now I could just dump. I'm ready.

[B]

I guess when I hear nervous, I think it's like a negative thing, but maybe it's not negative.

[A]

No.

[B]

Okay. Because yeah, I'm a nervous person normally, and that's a negative thing.

[A]

How many people do? Look at what this guy just told you. This young man is a Fuck. He had 60amateur fights, 15 pro fights. He goes up against gorillas every fucking day. What did he just tell you? He wouldn't go on stage if you fucking paid him. Because that's the most fearful thing in the world. That's when shit falls apart for you. What happens to him on stage is when I go to the doctor and they show you a big needle, right? I just fall apart inside. You just fall apart. You know, Know. So that's the way you have to look at these things, man. It's. It's energy, nervous. All turns into you being a fucking animal, okay? You're driving down the street, some guy cuts you off, he gives you the fucking finger. You're like, I need this. You know, you don't say nothing. You know the deal. He gets out of the car now and starts saying, you did this, you did that. Now you got to get out of the car. You're fucking nervous as fuck. You're in the middle of the street. Yeah, but once this guy does something, you get into it, you're not nervous anymore. It's like anything else, you know? It's like anything else in life. We're all nervous for anything. I gotta. I'm fucking. He's fighting to eat. It's not just amateur fighting no more, right? I'm fighting. I'm doing comedy to feed my daughters or my wife, you know? So this is it. This is how I feed my family. If you quit at any level, you weren't meant to do this anyway, and that's fine. You gave it a fucking try. You couldn't deal with nerves. There's people I've known that quit comedy because they didn't want to travel, they did not want to go on the road. That. That was an out for them. So they rearranged their comedy career to do a day job and then do comedy at night in the local clubs. Whatever works for you, man.

[B]

People must quit boxing all the time, yo.

[C]

So it's crazy he said that. So my father was in camp with Kevin Rooney and Teddy Alice, who trained Mike Tyson. Both of them. My dad had an opportunity to stay up in the Catskills in New York with them. My dad didn't want to leave Staten island, so he didn't. So he ended up retiring. But I was six, three and one as a pro.

[B]

He retired and he just didn't want to move out of.

[C]

He just didn't want to do what was best for him to move forward. Because obviously training with the best trainers in the world at that time would have moved him up. My dad was in the gym sparring with Vinnie Pazienza, who was a five time world champion. I'm sure you've seen the movie Bleed for this. He was the guy with the halo on his head. Yeah, man. I was in the gym with him. My dad was sparring with Buddy McGirt. Top level guy.

[A]

Buddy McGirt. Holy.

[C]

Yeah. My dad was in the. That was one of my dad's main sparring Partners do you think you were?

[B]

Does he regret it, or is he happy? Was he.

[C]

I think he's living through me.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Right. It's like, don't make the same mistakes that I did. You know what I mean? I don't. I do everything I have to do. The only thing is, I. We were just saying this because I got injured, right? Again, like normal. He goes, you're the only kid who gets hurt constantly. So I don't get it. He goes, I never got hurt. You know what I mean?

[B]

Well, you're sparring every day. It makes sense that you get hurt, right?

[C]

No, I mean, I guess. You know what I mean? I mean, I'm running. I hurt my knee, I'm sparring, I hurt my wrist, I'm lifting, I hurt my back. Yo, I'm 26 years old. I know I do a lot of stuff, but, like, I'm always getting hurt, always. So. But other than that, I don't do the stuff that he did. You know what I mean? Like, this guy just did crazy stuff always. And then would go to the gym. So if this guy would be out drinking and smoking, hanging with his friends, and then show up to the gym, you know what I mean? Like, he's just. I don't do that stuff. I just go. That's it.

[B]

Is it? How excited are you to quit your day job? And I'm. I'm not, I'm not trying to get you fired. I'm sure it's a great job.

[C]

Oh, I love my day job. Yeah, I, I think even if I. Even if I make it big, because this is something that the guys asked me on the job is I love my day job. I love it. I really do. I have a great job. I work for the township. I work for the sewer department, and I work with great dudes. Listen, when you work blue collar, you make more friends than anything, right? And, like, these dudes I'm fighting, they all buy tickets, they all come out to support. Like, it's like a. It's like a family outside of, you know, my family.

[B]

And I'm. I'm sure they're great. And I'm tr. I have. I work a day job and, and they're very nice. But the idea to me, all I, I. I just daydream about the day that I can. I'll make all of my money from standup. That. And I won't have to, you know, you won't have to. To wake up early to go work out and then go to the day. You can just Focus entirely on one thing. You think, you think. And I'm, I'm, I don't know, I don't know why, but I'm big on. You said if you make it big, I'm big on like when I make it big. So like when you make it big, you think you'll still do this job?

[C]

Yeah, I think so, yeah. I mean there's dudes who made it big, fought big fights, right? You look at Joe Smith Jr. Right? You know, Joe Smith Jr. Is another name. He fought Bernard Hopkins. He's from Long Island, New York. This dude was a, I'm not sure if he worked for a private company or if it was union, but he worked for the tree service. So. Dude be cutting down trees, It's a hard job. I, I do some tree cutting on my job, you know, around the sewers to clear stuff up. It's a hard, it's a hard gig. So that dude would do that all day and then go to the gym and train. This dude ends up becoming a two time world champion for nights fights. Bernard Hopkins. Pretty sure he still works. You know what I mean? It's like gets up, goes to work, made some money fighting. But what are you gonna do all day? You know, I don't know.

[B]

I, I figured in my head even just with boxing, like you'd have more time to like maybe do treatment so you don't get injured or, or like you'd be able to travel around to different gyms or. I don't just, just have put more of your mental focus on it.

[C]

Yeah. And I, so before I worked this job I did demo, but before that I didn't work at all. So I did all that, but now I have a job where like I said, like I have enough time to make money working. I have a full pension, I got benefits, which I need. Yeah. 26 years old, I got great insurance. I went to the doctor's office for an X ray the other day and no co pay, Nothing. That's beautiful. 26 years old to be like, hey, no issues, that's awesome. Then it's a blessing.

[B]

So you can see you doing this the rest of your life and just boxing. Would you be a, would you be like, let, let's say you went and were able to fight for a world championship, could you do that and do this day job?

[C]

Absolutely.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

Absolutely. Yeah. Not saying it's a, it's an easy job because it's not. You know, some days are lighter than others, but to get up, train and then, you know, run on lunch and then train again. I'm in at 7 and I'm out at 3, 3:30. So it's like, it's not. It's not a long period of time. It's a. It's a short eight hours, you know what I mean?

[B]

Right.

[C]

Get a long enough lunch, it's a good gig. You got, you know, people there that you want to chill with all day, and it's. It's cool. You know what I mean?

[A]

Guys you looked up to, like, the guys you look at now, boxing. Who's out there that you look up to? Like, in the beginning, I'm sure you like Muhammad Ali or somebody else. Who are the guys you look up to?

[C]

I looked up Tora, Toro, Gotti, you know, God rest his soul, you know, like one of the Jersey legends, one of the best, right? Arturo Gotti. He had all those. Those three crazy fights with Mickey Ward. He fought Floyd Mayweather. He fought like a lot of these guys. And even some of the fights he would get whooped up in, he showed heart. He would show up there to fight, you know, and if you watch me fight, I try to fight like him, fight like my dad. These dudes who was like, let's fight. I'm not here to run. I'm here to. To fight in the center of the ring, you know.

[A]

You said Bernard Hopkins, he's one of my favorites.

[C]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[A]

He's one of my favorites. I got to meet him, and he was great on the best damn sports show. But it was right after he beat the out of Felix Trinidad.

[C]

Oh, shit.

[A]

Holy shit, man. He was. When I met him, he was about 40 something, and he was dropping some fucking wild knowledge. Him and Anderson Silva both have the same technique. They want to get home and look exactly how they did when they left the house. So most of their work is on fucking range and evasion and fucking, you know, And I like that type of fighting. Nobody says you got to go up there and beat the fuck out of somebody. You just got to go there, slice them up a little bit. Yeah. But these guys, that's their attitude. We want to look, when we come home to our family, we want to look the same way we left.

[C]

Yeah. And I agree. Of course, you know, that's the way it is. And I'm sure you see me spar, you see me fight a little bit, and I like that toe to toe action. I liked. I like to put on a performance. I sell tickets.

[A]

I.

[C]

People are gonna get what they paid for, I guarantee it. When you come See me, you give a.

[A]

About the people. Yeah, Tickets. Me too.

[C]

Don't get me wrong. Don't get me wrong. Like, I have a family at home, but if you watch me fight, even on the inside, I have a technique where I don't get hit. And you know, it's an old school technique. I watched a lot of guys like Roberto Duran, like, this dude would sit right in front of you and not get hit.

[A]

Durant. Yeah, right.

[C]

Julio sees our chat.

[B]

I'm only seeing clips. But Ali, like, in fights, he just puts his hand and just does it. And the guy's like throwing 8, 000 punches. Does it him once.

[C]

Those days are over, man, like, that was just old school boxing, right? It's like if a guy does this, I'm hitting him in his body.

[B]

Oh, okay.

[C]

Right. That's, that's just older old school time, you know, guys head hunting and, you know, looking for stuff like that. Those days are over, man. Boxing has evolved so much with the gloves, with the defense, with the rules. Like, there's, there's all this stuff now, is it? And the politics, of course. So it's a lot of stuff.

[B]

And I don't, I don't want to speak for everyone who's, who's listening and watching, but I start, like, I didn't grow up with boxing. It just wasn't in my family. But then UFC took off and I, I got into that. But like, for anyone who's like, watching and maybe like, has watched a lot of UFC but hasn't really got into boxing, like, what is it about? Like, how do you sell box? Like, why, why would, how can you get, like, new fans? Like, why would you, what would you tell people who might not watch boxing?

[C]

Well, the biggest thing I would say is, right, like, the, like, how does everyone get their name out today? Social media. It's Instagram. You see all these dudes making crazy videos, right? They got that one kid, right? I'm sure you've seen him. He's like, you know, day one, I'm going to fight my followers, right? Like now he's doing it. He's like doing it with like, Jake, Paul, Logan, Paul, these big name guys. I'm sure you guys seen it. Throws the gloves down on the. And they. He's dressed up as like, you know, different characters. Yeah, you know, it's like, how did that dude get so big? He just kept making videos.

[B]

So that's important for you too?

[C]

Yeah, I think that's, I think that's very important. I think it's very important for all of us in the, in this industry of entertainment. Right. Because that's what boxing is. It's not, it's a sport, but it's entertainment. You know, anything where you're selling tickets for someone to come watch it, you

[B]

know, and like, are you, are you aiming for a specific promotion or.

[C]

You know, right now I'm a free agent. My dad's my trainer and manager and when something big comes through, you know, hopefully me and him will discuss it and we could get signed by somebody that'll be.

[B]

So what about the Olympics?

[C]

Yeah, that wasn't, that was never a dream of mine. No, it's never a goal of mine. I think the goal was just to turn pro and to win a world title. That was my real goals. That because like in the US the, the amateurs do the Olympics, not the professionals. So that's like the last stage before you turn, before you turn pro. Like the high level amateurs will do the Olympics and then turn pro after that.

[B]

Oh, I thought, I thought Olympics you could be pro now you can't. It's still.

[C]

Only, I'm not sure if they changed it, but.

[B]

Okay.

[C]

I think this, this last Olympics they just did was all amateur still.

[B]

Oh, okay.

[C]

Yeah. So it's never, never a goal of mine.

[A]

What was your, what is your primary goal today?

[C]

My primary goal is to win a world title. At 122 pounds.

[A]

What's the difference between you and Ryan Garcia?

[C]

What's the difference between us? He's huge. He's like. So what did he just fight? I think he fought his last fight. Either 147 or 154. His last fight. Now he's getting ready to fight Chris Eubank or not Chris Eubank. Connor Benny. That's going to be a big fight. So I'm not sure what weight they're going to fight at because they're big dudes that's like six weight classes heavier than me.

[A]

150. He still gets blown over by the wind.

[C]

Yeah, no, he's pretty big actually.

[A]

Is he big?

[C]

I've never seen a big guy.

[A]

He used to go to Comedy Store. I didn't see him at night when I would be there. But I like his videos. I like how he.

[C]

And that's how he blew up, right? Social media. He was on there hitting the double end bag and doing all this fancy stuff and he blew up on Instagram, blew up on Tik Tok. He did all these big things.

[A]

You know, it's wild what the Internet does now. It was Just a time that if you wanted fans, you just won. Yeah, keep winning. The word gets out he's eight and oh, now people want to go because now at that point people want to see you get knocked down when you're eight zero. Yeah, and then you're nine and oh, then you're 10 and oh, and now they're like, all right, this guy's serious, you know? Yeah. But now everything's social media. As long as you have the ghanas to back all your videos that you make, you know, what good is it going in the ring if you're beat up?

[B]

Oh, I, I do love that. Whenever like there's a few videos of like, you know, like the oppressed tours and like one guy's talking and being a real dick and like the other guy's just being real quiet and they like this big showboat and then they get into the, into the ring and then, and then the guy who, who hasn't said beats the other guy. That's my favorite. And I, if you, if you can't answer this, that's fine. But like we were talking earlier, I'm, I'm featuring most of the time. It means I'm like second out of three before the big guys and I, I'll make a, at a club, the club pays me $100 a show. What? Like for a boxer of your level, what do you, what do you expect to make average?

[C]

So at a boxer on my level, it honestly depends, right? So like there's a bunch of promotions. You could get a phone call, right? At my level, I had gotten a phone call to go to Japan two years ago to fight this guy that Floyd Mayweather did an exhibition against. So this dude was like a multiple time world kickboxing champion, right? So they send it to me, right? He's 30 in boxing. They go, oh, you interested in flying out to Japan for this fight? The guy's three zero. So I look him up, I go, yeah, but he's like 60. And oh, kickboxing, they're like, oh, so what, what do you mean so what? This Dude's technically like 63. And oh. Anyway, another guy that I know took the fight. It happened to be like a hundred thousand dollar fight fight. So at my level you could get a local show where it's like, you know, you start at 2 grand all the way up to 15 grand depending on how you do with tickets. Or you could get a call like that where it's some bigger money. So now let's say you go there and I beat that guy, my next fight could be a million dollars, you know? Wow.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah, so, but even so, like, ticket sales impact your.

[A]

Your pay.

[C]

Yeah, ticket. Ticket sales impact your pay. So depending on the prom, depending on the promotion you work with, you can make a deal where it's like, hey, you're gonna get a flat paycheck. And then if you sell this amount of tickets, I'll give you a percentage out of it, which is great. I love that. I got a great promoter I work with. I work with Boxing Insider. He pays me very well. He loves that I sell tickets. He loves my personality, loves me. And my dad, he's like, I want to work with you guys. I think I could help you. Great guy. There's not a lot of promoters that are going to do that for you, you know what I mean? A lot of guys want to, you know, they want to hold the money. They don't want to give it to you. They're selling tickets to make money. They don't want to pay you that much. You know what I mean?

[B]

That's pretty ballsy to. With a, a professional boxer. And it's like, if someone's going to stiff me, what am I going to do about it? If someone's going to stiff. You could punch them in the face.

[C]

Yeah, I mean, that's true, but.

[A]

But then you got the reputation of punching promoters in the face, and that ain't that good.

[C]

There's guys, there's some fighters that promoters don't want to work with. Yeah, they're crazy, bro. No one wants to deal with that. They're like, I'm gonna have this guy on my card and it's gonna be a problem, you know what I mean? Not even if they're getting paid, it's still a problem. Some guys just have a problem with everything.

[B]

Really.

[C]

You know how that is? It's just problem childs.

[A]

They're.

[C]

They're around. You know what I mean?

[A]

No, it's crazy, Lee, that I didn't box growing up. I enjoy. I was a criminal. I enjoyed boxing. I enjoyed the era that I got into. And when I was, I don't know, 40 something. I was £400. I had to lose weight. And I shot a boxing video for Showtime. Oh, yeah, stupid promotion. I played one of the trainers and fucking. The dude who played the main trainer was a real time trainer. We. And we did the video at. What's his name? Spot. Oh, Spot. Wild Card Fortune. So it's pretty interesting. I'd never been in there on the way Out. The dude told me his name was Macafoli. Rest in peace. And he goes, I think you should start coming to see me. I'm not going to kill you. I'll pay you. Just pay me 20 bucks a session. I don't know about that. He goes, just do it. Come by and see me. If you don't have money, come by anyway. And what happened was that time the guy who trains, Ryan Garcia, now his strength and conditioning coach. Yeah, his name is Justin Fortune. It was Justin and Naka worked for Pacquiao. They got into an argument over money and they left and opened up their own gym and dog. I learned a lot of shit. I learned that boxing was a science. I saw a lot of gorillas come in there and guys like you just put them away. I loved when guys are coming with tattoos and bracelets and shackles and. And all of a sudden they would bother Justin because they were like actors. We had one primary actor from csi, the whole csi, he was a white kid, fucking dick, wouldn't talk to nobody. But Paramount was paying Justin 400 an hour to train him.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

So Justin would train him. This went on for about two months. And every time I was leaving, I would hear him say, justin, come on, put me in there. I could fuck these guys up and just be like, bro, you threw two punches on csi. You know what I'm saying? Now you want to be a box? And the guy's like, yeah, I could do it. He'd come in every day, 800 gloves, the best of everything. And finally Justin put him in there one day, took the guy like, what happened? 10 seconds to guy picked up his boxing gloves, picked up his bag and never came back.

[C]

Really think like, yeah.

[A]

Oh, yeah, yeah.

[C]

You know what it is about being a fighter is a lot of people who haven't get hit. So this. We're going back to some of the stuff you said. A lot of people haven't gotten hit. When you get hit, you get rattled. You get rattled when you're a fighter. That rattle feeling is not there. Cuz you do that every single day. That rattling feeling for you to rattle me. You got to hit me with a bat when I'm not looking. Because for you to really rock me, you really got to. You really got to rock me. Because every single day I'm getting hit, getting hit, getting hit. It's like. It's like nothing to me.

[B]

Where's the worst place to get hit? Body, head.

[C]

Oh, I getting hit in the body.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Oh, man.

[C]

No, that's right there that's why they call me Body Shot Man.

[B]

Oh, that's your name?

[C]

That's my Nick. That's my fight nickname. John Body Shot.

[A]

He's a body shot type of, like, liver like.

[B]

Or. What's the liver?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

What does it feel? I've. I've. Dude, I. I've lived my whole life purposely to never know what that feels like. What is that?

[A]

It just on your body?

[C]

Yeah. Shut.

[A]

Shuts it down, Lee. You can't think. You can't see. The best place is the floor.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, he's right.

[A]

Best place is the floor. Just stay there. Don't worry about nothing. Yeah.

[B]

Getting hit in the balls.

[C]

Oh, my God.

[A]

Oh, my God. Yeah, you.

[C]

Like he said, your whole system shuts down. Like, you could get hit in the head. You see guys get up, right? You've seen me and Frankie were talking about. On his podcast, we're talking about Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury. When he got up, everybody was like, yo.

[A]

Yeah, what the.

[C]

These, dude, you hit someone in the body, most of the time they're not getting up.

[A]

They have to think about it for two or three minutes.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

And that's when you do the rest of your punching while they're thinking.

[C]

And I got six knockouts. Five of them are from the body shot.

[B]

And is it. Because when I think knockout, I think that means I'm, like, passed out and the birds are going, like. Knockout just means you're like, you ain't getting up.

[C]

Yeah. You ain't getting off. Like.

[A]

And the birds are going around you. Yeah, they're going around you, and they're laughing at you. Bum.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Holy. It's not like in the movies where they whistle and, like, that.

[B]

They're mocking you. Oh, my God.

[A]

It's just crazy how when I learned it was a science, it made my life that much better. And to even get more deeper, we're all artists. You're a boxer, but you're an artist. Yep. Okay. And when you look at an art, you can see that they're all kind of the same. They all start in the middle. Whether you're talking about Jiu jitsu, stand up. There's something that correlates, something I tell people.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

You can learn a thousand ways to draw a jab, right?

[C]

I could.

[A]

You could teach me a couple different ways. Yeah.

[C]

That's the truth.

[A]

There's not just one way. That's why it's an art. There's a couple different ways to me to get in. It's how I set it up. What do I do with comedy? I got a great joke. How do I set it up?

[B]

Right?

[A]

Same thing, guys. It's the same fucking thing when you're an artist. George is fucked up as he looks, he's an artist. Leave George alone in the room with the Yankee game on. Get cigarettes, a soda and watch him fucking cut those frames and watch them. They're artists. I don't know much about framing, but I'm sure at one point he'll say to me something similar. I see that with boxing, with comedy. It's the same thing. We're covering up. We throw a joke and then we cover up and shit. Then you throw two more jokes. It's the same thing. It's all the same. It's all an art. And once you digest that, it makes your life so much easier. Listen, when people say to me, you're an artist, they say, you know what? You're a cunt. I hate being called an artist, but after like 20 years, that's what we are. Because everybody has a different way of doing the same fucking thing. That's an art. There's a thousand ways to throw a liver punch. I might set it up with a 1, 2. I might set it up with a 1 uppercut and then that left. So his hands are already up. It's. It's. Bro, it's a science. You could weigh 100 pounds and beat the fuck out of 200 pound people with quickness. To science. Yep.

[C]

It's all about, you know, knowing where to land that punch.

[B]

Is it? I don't know if I want to say harder, but like when you're talking about like the heavyweights like that, in theory, they're stronger than you.

[C]

Oh, yeah.

[B]

Like, is it, is it harder? Like, are you more technical at your weight than the big guys?

[C]

No, there's technical guys in every weight. That's, you know.

[A]

He could move, though, compared to a heavyweight.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[C]

But then if you look at like a guy like Tyson Fury, right, He can move, he can move, he can move really good. I think there's really good fighters and there's really good athletes at every single weight class, right. We're not talking about being out in the street, right? Because if I got to get into a ring with a heavyweight, with a guy who knows how to fight, done, right? If you're out in the street and you get a guy who doesn't know how to fight, most likely you're gonna get rid of them. You know what I mean? Because as a pro fighter, you're in condition. I'm in condition to exhaust you, right? When I mess around my buddies at work, I tell them it'll only take me 30 seconds to exhaust you. All they'll do is faint you a couple times. Go like this. As soon as you're exhausted, I'm gonna step in and I'm gonna hurt you. That's gonna be it.

[B]

And you're a very nice person. I'm. I'm sure you're gonna say, no, you're very nice. But if I had the skills that you had, I'd be walking around looking. Super fight. I'd love to. Like, I. I got into an altercation on a plane a couple weeks ago. If I. If I was a boxer, I would be. I, like, would have been like, oh, please, please, hit me first. Like there's any part of you like, no, you never have a bad day. Like, oh, I want to punch somebody.

[C]

He's a super villain. There's no doubt. I'm bringing you to the gym. I want to set you up at your next show. I want someone to take the swing, and I want you to finish it. I want to see it.

[B]

Dude, if I knock somebody out, that'd be the happiest. Do this. Dude, there's people I. And I'm not an angry person, but there's. I've had, like. I don't know if you guys have ever had it. Like, if. If. If I lose my job, if. If I lose everything, I have like a.

[A]

Let's.

[B]

A couple. A list of, like, two, three people. Let's go shoot them before thing. Like, oh, if there's a few people that. If you taught me how to punch and I can, like, if I felt confident, I would love that.

[C]

We're gonna set up this fight for you.

[B]

Let's do it. Yeah, let's do it.

[A]

A little celebrity fight. You could fight Ray J. Yeah.

[C]

Oh, did you watch it?

[B]

I saw the. I saw the little nod on his head.

[A]

He got knocked out. He's like, man, it was fixed.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. He got on the bike like, oh, man, why'd you do me like that? Everyone's like, you know what I mean?

[A]

The guy tortured him. That MC tortured him. You're a lop. He said a bunch of stuff to him. Well, brother, I'm happy you took the time out. It's really great to talk to you. Like I said, I'm friends with Mom, Dad. I love them all. Your mom always says hello to me whenever I see it. And July, June 13, we're at the Tropicana, sir.

[B]

How do they get tickets?

[C]

I sell tickets by hand. You could always DM me on Instagram. It's at Official John Leonardo. Or you could go on to the website, Boxing Insiders website and buy tickets right from there.

[B]

But it's better if they buy it

[C]

from you better than you buy from me.

[A]

There you go. Yeah. He takes the skim off top. Where you at this weekend?

[B]

This weekend I'm with Jessame Peluso, Nyack Levity Live. One Friday to Saturday.

[A]

That's it. Just three shows.

[B]

Three shows. Go to Lee sciat.com for all my shows. I'm going a lot of places this summer.

[A]

I got. I got nothing. August 7th and 8th, Oceans in Atlantic City. That's where we're starting off. I'm healing well, so I have some better dates in June and July. I want to run a residency up in Brooklyn.

[B]

Nice.

[A]

Like every Wednesday for a month or something, you know? So that's why I'm looking to do just something, because I can't perform in New Jersey. So that's what I'm telling you, motherfuckers. Have a great week. Thank you. Don't forget to get John Leonardo tickets if you're in Jersey support. He's another Jersey boy, so give them what you got. We only have each other with blue collar in Jersey. So, Lee, everything good?

[B]

Everything's great.

[A]

Everything good, John?

[C]

Yes, sir.

[A]

I love you, brother. Thank you very much. I love you guys. Same bad time, same bad channel. I'll see you next week. And remember, let them all suck your dick. Sa.