From $1 Paychecks to World Champion

Regis Prograis1:10

Really? He wanted to go into it.

Regis Prograis1:31

Right?

Regis Prograis1:37

Right. It I feel like it is, but I one thing I always didn't want to be I didn't want to be those older guys that was just all beat up.

That's right. That's one thing I I mean, so it is I think it's it's harder, but I didn't want to be I don't want to walk away when you get beat out the business. That's the thing. I didn't want to get beat out. I want to walk I want to walk away on my own terms. And a lot of fighters, they don't. They keep they they go back and um I go to these the Hall of Fame weekends.

Regis Prograis2:06

And man, it's sad to see these legends and they just beat up. They real beat up. They they beat up real bad. And they can't speak. Their balance is off. they can't. I'm like, I don't want to be like that. So,

I have my health and I love my health. I love where I'm at right now in my career. I'm just lifting every day and I like that. Like, I'm getting bigger and stuff. I want to be like that. I don't

Like I miss fighting, but I don't miss it to what it's going to like deteriorate my health.

Regis Prograis2:45

Right now? I've been doing real estate for a while for for a long time. I always made sure I always invested after I fight. I always make sure I invest something, you know? So, I I've been doing real estate for a long time. Of course, I have a money manager with stocks and stuff like that. Right now, as far as what I want to do, um, not dealing with money really is like I'm probably do like a p I already had shoot I already been shooting podcast.

I've been doing that already. Movies kind of want to get into that that type of stuff. Um, of course I I had a book already. I have a book out. I'm gonna do another I'm getting a part two of that book. What else? Have probably do a cartoon also.

Regis Prograis3:20

And Yeah. That's that's really And then open a business out here too. I have a I have a friend. He opened like a recovery center. Matter of fact, you got to go to if you can out here.

Regis Prograis3:29

He has a recovery center and we he wants to open a second one and I'll probably be involved with that. And that's something I really really do want to do.

Regis Prograis3:38

No, sports. Sports. It's a recovery center. It's called Cold Summer. And um it's really just a place, a two-part place. One, one side is a cafe and the other side it's um it's like a sauna, cold plunge, um compression um compression shorts, and then a red light therapy. Okay.

And so, and it's a real it's matter of fact, it's the airport right here. It's right around the corner from here from the airport. So, um I want to get into that, too. That's something I just I feel like I would want to do, be involved with.

Regis Prograis4:31

Yeah. Yeah. I I mean, I played everything. I played um of course when I come up where I come from basketball, football, I ran track, I did karate, I did swimming. Um I played a little baseball but not for a team. Um tried a little my hand a little soccer and stuff like that. But I did all that type of stuff, but fighting was my thing. Like when I when I started fighting, it was just like that was it. I loved it. So earlier my in at first when I was younger, I did karate.

[snorts] Um what happened was I did the karate thing and then I was hurting people too much. So the sensei he was like he told my dad he was like no he can't do karate because we was spawning the gloves you know in karate gloves. Well at first when I was young I did it when I was way younger and then we was kicking and stuff and then I I stopped I think I played football or something like that then I came back so we got we start sparring and you know the karate gloves them little bitty gloves I was hitting people with that I was hurting them and so the sense it was late told my dad was like he can't do it he needs to box or play football go back and play football.

So I went back and I went back and play I played football, got [snorts] stronger, faster and bigger and stuff like that. And then um so what happened with the boxing story is I played I played football in high school and we used to always fight in the boxing gloves and the football players used to fight in the box [clears throat] and this how corrupt New Orleans is. The coaches used to watch us.

Yeah. So doing this every Friday or something like we would get the gloves and I would be like I would be fighting all the the bigger guys and after one day I I beat one of the the old I was in a tanger at the time I beat like a senior. I beat him up real bad. So the coach saw me he pulled me to the side. He was like man look like you probably don't have a future in football but you might have one in boxing.

And I felt it already. I was like all right. And then I I really like I think that day or maybe that week I turned in my football equipment and I was like I went to a boxing gym. Which boxing gym?

Honestly, it was it was some boxing gym in New Orleans. Um because it was it was very it was brief because my mama took me out because my grades dropped. I was going to boxing and that was the hardest thing.

That was the hardest thing I ever did in my life. When I started boxing, that was the like that was the worst workout, the hardest work I ever did in my life. When I first started, I was exhausted.

I remember just um just punching with the weights and doing push-ups. But I never did that type of stuff before. me now it'll be easy but back in the day it was hard for me so I was doing that type of stuff and um that was the hardest thing and so my grades started dropping my mama took me out and then I had to go back when when school ended which was May or something like that and then I went to a gym in a nightwalk called Running Bear Boxing Club I went there um and then Hurricane Katrina hit I went there from May to August and after that the storm hit and then took me to Houston.

Regis Prograis7:44

Right

Regis Prograis8:03

That's what I felt. So, my my confidence grew over time. It kept growing little by little by little. So, man, it's crazy. One of my friend I just talked to him right before I got here. We went to the gym in the night war and man, they had this dude named Red. They call him Red Dog, right? Man, this dude whooped my ass every day. It was like unfair how bad he would beat me. Like,

Regis Prograis8:27

No, because All right. So, when I went to when I went to this, this not the gym I went with my mama at first. This the this one I went back to summer time, the second gym. So, I went to a different box gym.

And man, so really, we didn't have a trainer. We was literally just train oursel in the yard. It was a ring outside in the yard and I was just going to I was obsessed with boxing. I was just going in the yard every day and just train. And he had he had like in his little garage he had like one heavy bag. I remember one heavy bag, one double end and one speed bag. That was it. He

Regis Prograis9:02

It was No, it was the coach's house, but he didn't never be there. He would just he would just like he he worked and he would he was an older guy. He would just drink beer and talk to us after we finished training. That's all. So he'll be like he'll just let us train but he won't really train us. So me and Red would be um sparring and man he I'm whoop me every every time I sp him he whoop me every day. He had a style to where it was just like real slick and I thought he was like the best ever you know until I went to Texas and I found out that he would the thing is he he would go to nationals and he was like he would lose and stuff to go na in nationals.

I thought he was real good but um he was just like real good for New Orleans.

Regis Prograis9:44

That's why he probably wasn't. He was just beating up on us. So, we thought he was like I mean everybody.

Regis Prograis9:52

Well, he was just better than us, though. That's the thing. I mean, cuz it's the thing is New Orleans isn't a fighting city at all. New Orleans just is not known for fighting. He's not known for boxing, that's all. So, he was whooping all of us, but he would go to different cities and stuff and, you know, he would lose and stuff or go to nationals and he would lose. He would fall short because New Orleans just don't have that. They don't have that talent like you know New Orleans is a a basketball football and track that's what we develop.

Yeah. We develop that type of stuff. But as far as fighters, New Orleans doesn't doesn't develop that.

Regis Prograis10:43

Man, I start getting a little bit I start hitting him a little more, but man, he was just he was levels above me because you got to realize I started late and so he was doing it since he was a kid and he was going to nationals and I was just starting. So just imagine, you know, like you have to go in there and start somewhere. So just imagine somebody that has that much experience. You know, he was like a Louisiana state champion years in a row and you know um and then like I I like I said he went to nationals or something like that.

So to go to nationals, you got to kind of be pretty good, you know. But somebody coming in off the street, like you said, a athlete compared to a fighter that's going to nationals, it's a it's a big difference.

Regis Prograis12:04

Stuck with getting getting whoop every every time we sp I would give whoop. But the thing is about me, I was always tough. I was a good fighter, you know? That's the thing. I wasn't a good boxer, but I always was a good fighter. Like I can take it. Like people that's probably why he can do it cuz

If I get one off, I'm hurt him. That's the thing. That's how it was when I was younger. like if I you can hit me with whatever and I was just always real durable, real tough. I can take a I could take a punch. So that's probably why he could take me he could hit me so much. But if I he knows if I land one and I probably sometimes I probably did he know all right it's going to hurt.

Regis Prograis12:35

That's why you know and I always was so when I was younger I was very very durable. Like I was just always a good fighter [snorts] and that's what kind of took me

Regis Prograis14:38

Everybody had different experience in Katrina. So, Katrina happened. Um, I was 16 when it first happened. My mom and dad they I didn't I didn't know at the time my my mom and dad had just got a divorce. I didn't know where my dad was at. He left he went somewhere else. My mom she was working in the French court at the time. So she stayed back. So it was it was me, my grandma, my grandpa and my sister and we had a cousin. [snorts] Usually the the the trip from New Orleans to Houston takes about 6 7 hours.

It took us like 18 hours because traffic. It was literally traffic on the road, you know.

Regis Prograis15:14

So you knew the storm was coming and and they your parents your mom was like get him out of my mom stay my grandma. So what happened was so the the mayor at the time was Ray Negan. Ray Negan got on TV. He said it's a it's a mandatory evacuation. You have to go. He said it's going to be like Hurricane Betsy. Hurricane Betsy hit in 1963. I think that's when my grandma was younger and she remember that on they had to get on boats. her daddy and stuff had to get on boats.

So she remember that. She said or if it's going to be because we wasn't going to leave. She said, "If it's going to be like that, we have we have to leave." And so that's why we we did that. We kind of we got out of there.

Regis Prograis15:51

My mom stayed. She stayed in the French. The thing is New Orleans is a you know, it's a bowl like this and the water just pours in. But she worked in the French quarters. The French Quarters was almost untouched. That's the crazy thing about it. like it was it was a lot of wind and stuff but as far as the flooding the French Qu didn't get touched and she was working in the hotel in the French Qu at the time so nothing happened to it.

Regis Prograis16:13

My house was in east now. My house got destroyed. My house had about 8 ft of water. We went back about 2 weeks later and my house had about 8 ft of water. My grandma house had about 13 ft destroyed. Like

Regis Prograis16:25

Everything was gone. Everything you own that's that's all absolutely that's gone. Destroyed you know. And it's crazy what water can do. Like you would think like man water is so strong. What water can do. Like I saw when I went back cuz we went back early. We went back about 2 weeks after it happened [snorts] and literally we saw a house that was here moved a house. You can see the it's insane to see that like what water can do to something is is I don't know.

It's it's just it's something you have to see. It's something you can't even explain that stuff. Like we saw I would see boats on top on top of houses, cars on on a type of house, a house move down the street, you know, to see that stuff is is just insane. So we went back and I mean all the furniture just all over the place. The smell was something you can't you can't even describe the smell. Um it was it was it was bad.

Regis Prograis17:19

Salvage nothing. You couldn't salvage nothing. I mean, I I had just the thing about I bought I had just bought some Prada shoes right before school started.

Regis Prograis17:27

I always wanted my products, man. Me and my friend bought some Prada shoes. I salvaged my PRA. That's it. It was dirty out, but I got them. I washed them off and stuff. I got my PRAs back. But um cuz I I worked for the whole summer time, almost the whole summer time. I worked to get those Prada shoes to to make some money. And um I got those shoes and that was it. I couldn't get nothing else. Everything was just destroyed.

Regis Prograis17:51

Yeah, I I went back to Houston. That was it. I went back to Houston.

Regis Prograis17:57

Man, we stayed um we went I think I I counted like we moved around 18 times. We stayed in um they had this a guy we knew through a cousin. Um we stayed in his like garage. All of us family. We stayed in the garage. We stayed some other people houses. We stayed hotels. We just went back and forth just like just a lot just moving around back and forth. We went to um Mississippi for like three week three or four weeks went to Mississippi. I lived in Slidell for a little while.

We moved around.

Regis Prograis18:29

It for me it's it sound like it was but for me I liked it. It was an adventure. It was I was 17. Now I turned 17 and um moved all around. I loved it. I went to five different high schools. So, I just moved all I kept moving around and I kind of for me I loved it.

Regis Prograis18:48

I liked I did like it. I I did like cuz all the girls like you when you go when you go to different guy

The new guy all the and so like I was I was from New Orleans

Regis Prograis18:58

You know I had tattoos when I was younger too. So I was like the bad guy. How old were you when you started getting tattoos?

I was 16 when I got my first tattoo. This one my mom name. So I had tattoos and we have a in in New Orleans you have a reputation. Everybody had a reputation in New Orleans for being like this bad guy. So I was quiet. I was always quiet. I don't like I'm not going to just make a friend if I don't you know I need to know people first. I need to My sister was different. She would talk to everybody and warm up to them real quick.

For me I would like I have to vet out everybody I'm talking to, you know? So I would go into schools real quiet and people was kind of scared of me cuz like I'm from New Orleans. I'm red. I'm from New Orleans. I got tattoos and they find I'm a boxer. So like literally nobody wanted to mess with me, you know? And I was proving it too. Like if like the crazy thing when I went to um when I went to Houston at first, well when I went to cuz I went to Houston back and forth.

I went to Houston, then I moved to Mississippi, then I went moved to SL then Mississippi went back to Houston. But the second time I went to Houston, that's why I graduated from Westside. And people were scared of me and they didn't don't even know who I am. They was scared. They heard I'm a boxer and uh and um of course I got tattooed from New Orleans, but they didn't want to mess with me. But I never even proved it. People just knew I boxed. That's all.

But man, I loved it. I'm not going to lie. I did like going to a bunch of it was thinking about it now, it's a cra it was um like a crazy experience, but I did like I liked it at the time.

Regis Prograis21:18

No, not Char the Savannah. So it was Savannah Boxing Gym. Charles opened gym a long time after

Regis Prograis21:24

We all Yeah, we all came up in Savannah Boxing Gym. man that they had.

Regis Prograis21:29

No, it was Savannah. Ronnie was there though. It was It was Willie Savannah. Willie was the owner. Um Willie and Claire Savannah, I still talk to Miss Savannah. Willie recipe, he died a few years ago. And Miss Savannah, she's still running the gym right now. But Ronnie was there and

Regis Prograis21:45

Man they have to make a movie about this gym. That gym was special, man. Like at the time, Ronnie was the one of the head coaches there. And the biggest name there was like Holyfield. Holyfield was there. He was at the end of his grip, but he was there. I remember De La Hoya coming in. Shane Mosley coming in. Um, Vin Motor, I think he died. Um, Omar Herring, he died, too. Um, the Charlo twins, it was me, it was Hila Williams, it was dude named Lenard Lane, he was a good pro, too.

Um, London Lara was there. Rigendelle was there.

Regis Prograis22:19

They have to make a somebody has to make a movie about that gym one day. Like it was so much talent in that gym is is insane. And so I was for me

Regis Prograis22:40

The most better talent, even better people like that cuz

Regis Prograis22:47

Right? Well, I the thing when I was younger I was bleed a lot too. I told you like I was a fighter. So you can hit me and I can bleed but if I they know if I hit them I'm hurt them. So

What happened was I was sparring with some guy one time and the trainer he said like when I hit him he could see the punch through his back. Yeah.

And I was I was I was fighting somebody of like nobody no fights just like me, you know. So I hit somebody and so after that they had to put me with the like I said the twins and stuff. They had to put me with them all the the the guys that was going to nationals and stuff because I was too good. I was I was too strong.

Regis Prograis23:20

I was all I told you I was always a fighter. So I would like I would try to hurt people. That's what I would do. And still I just know how to do it. Like even I'm I'm starting to roll with jiu-jitsu and stuff now. But I just it's a natural thing for me. I just know how to It's might sound mess. I know how to hurt people.

I just know how to do it. So when I was younger, that's what I would do. Like you can box me. It's cool. You could be better boxer, but if I hit you, I'm going to hurt you. And that's what I would do. I would hit people and I I make sure I would hit them and I would hurt them because I would b my fist up real tight in the gloves. The harder you bought your fist up, the harder they hand it like a brick.

Yeah. So if I hit somebody, I'mma hurt them. So coming from there, like I said, I I was the first time I sp I remember I couldn't wait too. The first time I sp with some some kid and my trainer, the trainer at the time, um big said he said, "Man, I you hit him and I saw it through his back." He said then they had to put me with all like the you know the the the the guys that was going to nationals and I was my I didn't have no fights yet.

I was just coming in. So that's how I developed and they will man they would beat me. They would whoop me all these dudes.

Regis Prograis24:32

Yeah. I don't think so. I think they just

Cuz I wasn't quitting. That's what I want to do. I don't care. Like I can I mean maybe not maybe not now, but when I was younger I was so durable. I could take man I could take a punch. I would bleed. I'm talking I would bleed every day. I will bleed. I will bleed when I put my hand wraps on. I will bleed so much. My nose just always will bleed. And um but I was a natural fighter and I maybe they told me I don't know what they say but I wasn't quitting.

Like no matter what happened I wasn't quitting cuz I really just love that was something I just love to do you know.

Regis Prograis25:11

It it took a while because they were so experienced, I mean, I remember so

The dude I mentioned Lenor Lane. So, I remember spawning him one time. So, as an amateur, we always go Monday through Thursday after school cuz we was in school. So, one day I went on a Saturday. That's when [snorts] all the pros train that where all the pros will train in the morning time and then on Saturdays. So, one time I went, my coach was like, "Yeah, go on a Saturday. come on Saturday and come spar. I went on Saturday, man. And this dude, I I sp Lenor Lane.

He'll see it one day. I spot him and man, he beat the hell out of me, man. I'm talking about he

It I couldn't land the punch. He was just He was fat. He was older, too. He was a few years older than me, so he was older. So, he had the He was a man. He had man strength and he was fast and he was

I couldn't hit him literally. I think we sp four rounds. I probably hit him one time, you know. He beat the hell out of me and I'm like damn like but it made me realize all right it's another level to it and it just for me I my confidence kept growing more cuz I'm like all right and then I remember one time then um later I end up dropping them so I end up getting better. I kept getting better and better and better and I was like I'm I'm going to catch up eventually.

Regis Prograis26:21

Yeah, they had one of one of my friends, another dude that died, rest in peace, Tffy, he would say, "Man, when you turn pro, you going to be a monster." He used to tell me that all the time. He like, "Man, cuz I would hit so hard." He said, "Man, when you turn pro, man, once you put those eight those 8 oz gloves on, man, you could be a monster." And that's when I was like, not just starting off, but I was still, you know, it was probably a few years before I turned pro.

Regis Prograis27:17

Right?

Regis Prograis27:24

Exactly. Yeah. Cuz I fought in the Olympic trials. I lost Olympic trials, but then as a pro in my class, I think I probably accomplished more than anybody else except like Aaron Spence. Errol was I fought at 152 in the amateurs. I turned pro and dropped down to 140. But at 152, Errol was the champion, you know, he was the the Olympic

Regis Prograis27:45

No, he was in Dallas

Cuz he's buddies with his stuff, but he's in he's in Dallas.

Okay. All right.

Regis Prograis27:50

Well, I I fought one in New Orleans, but for me it's like that didn't count. I fought one fight in New Orleans before the storm hit, but then for me,

First one in Texas, I'm Man, it was so long. I can't even I

Regis Prograis28:14

I remember my first like probably my first loss. I remember that my first loss was like my 10th or 11th fight. I fought a dude named David Thomas and um I yeah I think it was my 11th fight and it was the Golden Gloves. It was the finals of the Golden Gloves and I lost that fight

Regis Prograis28:30

Houston Golden Gloves finals. Yeah, it was in Houston. It was just in Houston

Regis Prograis28:36

Golden Gloves. Yeah, I lost that fight and um I just remember after that coming back and I end up beating him. I came back for a rematch and I beat him years later. But we fought at uh we fought at the US championships in the the I think the city finals like Houston finals. Yeah. I end up going to state win the state and then going to nationals. I lost the national.

Regis Prograis28:58

Yes. As far as the US na US Open national something like that.

I was the Yeah. state champion.

Regis Prograis29:07

Colorado Springs.

Regis Prograis29:08

It wasn't the first time, but it was I I didn't go a lot of places when I was younger. Um, so yeah, like traveling with boxing was like it's crazy. I remember then I remember I won the it was called the in Kansas City have the the ringside world championships. I won that. So I think that was um that was a big confidence booster for me when I went to the the ringside national champion and world championships and I won that and it was four fights, man.

I'm not going to lie. After the fight, like after four fight my jaw was done. I couldn't even eat M&M's. I was done. Even after the third fight, they had to fight another one. In the fourth fight, you fighting [snorts] and the thing is you fighting

Somebody that won three times just like you. So, this is the finals and this is a dude, you know, and then I remember I end up dropping them in the finals.

I like damn, you know, and I won the belt and that just that felt like real good. Okay.

This was before even before um going to national that time.

So, but one thing I had to for me since I started so late and came from Katrina, I had to play catchup a lot.

Yeah. I had to I had to get a lot of fights and like every weekend they would have fight. We would go to tournaments and I would have to fight fight fight keep fighting keep fighting keep fighting and that's kind of what and my confidence kept growing. That thing is in in fighting one of the main things is your confidence. You got to have confidence. That's that's probably one of the M. You don't have to even be you have to be good, but somebody could be better than you.

Regis Prograis31:28

That's a good question. Maybe my mom or something was paying up. I was So, as an amateur, I was still working. I started working, you know? I was

Regis Prograis31:38

I used to be I did a bunch of jobs, but eventually I became like a personal trainer. That's why I was I worked at LA Fitness for six years. Before I started making money, people don't know that. Yeah. Before I started making money, I worked at LA Fitness for 6 years. I was a personal trainer. Yeah. And then I worked at Title Bison for another two years. I didn't make my first big check till I was like 27.

Regis Prograis32:03

Basically, I had to do we we drove I think we drove to Kansas City. Yeah.

Regis Prograis32:08

I flew to some places. Well, I think that maybe my dad or mom helped me out. I'm trying to think. Maybe my dad or something like to help me out. Um cuz my dad had a he's worked for the state of Louisiana so he had a good job at the time. Then he started coming back around once I started boxing. The thing is my so my dad and mom had divorced when I was like 14

And um I think he started coming back around like when I was like 19 or something like that because boxing kind of put us together. He wanted to come see the fights and I was you know I was starting to get good at that time and so then he started coming cuz he was in Louisiana. He started come driving to Texas and come watch me fight and stuff like that. So I think

Regis Prograis32:44

My dad never was a fight. I don't know where the fighting come from. And your dad was an athlete.

He's an athlete. Yeah. My dad ran. He was a um he was a long-distance runner. He ran and um he played basketball. He played basketball college, but he wasn't good.

Regis Prograis32:56

Yeah. He wasn't good. Nothing like that. My my first love was basketball. Man, I love basketball. I had a picture. I just my my mama sent me a picture when I was younger. I had I was like nine or 10 and I had a basketball in my hand doing this. I love Man, I love basketball. The Alan Arson was my favorite player. I wanted to be like Allan Arson when I was young.

Regis Prograis33:20

Man. It's one It's crazy story, man. I get off subject, but I went matter of fact here they had the Ryan Garcia and um um Jamaati Davis fight and um NGM and one time, man, I I was walking down and I saw him playing at playing um craps playing roulette at the Ed Lverson and um somebody told me like, "Come down, come see Elverson here." And I went down like, "Damn, that's Ella Harrison." And the crazy thing, he knew who I was.

Regis Prograis33:47

I saw John Pascal, right? I saw John Pascal in um in the lobby, too. We was all talk about it cuz by the way,

Regis Prograis33:53

Yeah, light heavyweight. Yeah, I saw big dude [clears throat] um Canadian. So, I know him. Yeah. Me and he was in Dubai together stuff before. So, we all was um chilling and so we saw each other was up and [snorts] so he saw Alan Arson and then Alan Arson cuz he didn't want to be bothered by nobody. So, he was just playing. and he had his he had his guys there and stuff like that and um he didn't want to be bothered. So John John Prescott knew him and I was with him.

So he like he turned around like, "Oh, what's up?" Talking to me. I'm like, "Damn, this AI, bro. This like my hero, bro." When I was younger, we all wanted to be everyone wanted to be like the whole NBA is almost based off of him now. You know, everyone everybody got the the tattoos and stuff, but back in the day, nobody wanted to be like that, you know. But it's like, man, it was crazy. Alan Arson knew who I was.

Regis Prograis34:51

He was small and I was with him and I was small man. I was doing all that stuff. It's crazy how big he not you know he like a regular he not that big

Regis Prograis35:11

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Right.

Regis Prograis35:38

Is yourself, right? Exactly.

Regis Prograis35:41

I turned pro April something midappril maybe 18, 17 something. 2012, that's when I turned pro.

Regis Prograis36:25

Yes.

Regis Prograis36:37

My first manager was his name was Jay John's. So, you know, he was I mean looking back on it, he I think he was a good manager because he did he matched me with the right people at the time. But the thing is he didn't have the money. So, just like you said, we had to pay these opponents and so how we would pay him I had to sell tickets. That's what I had to do. So, about my first 10 fights probably like four or five of those I didn't get I mean got paid zero nothing like they give you a check $1.

Yeah,

Regis Prograis37:04

They have to give you a check. Say they paid you. It can't be free. So, they give you a dollar check. I still have those. I

Regis Prograis37:10

I still have those checks. I still

Regis Prograis37:13

I have That's I have them um I have them in a I have a picture and it's inside the picture. I have a big picture made of me and it's inside the picture, a part of the picture. So, yeah, I have those checks. But yeah, man. Like and I did that, man. I did that about maybe my first 11 12 fights probably like well 10 fights for sure. probably like four of those maybe. I think my 11th fight I didn't get paid either.

Regis Prograis37:59

I had 33. But I didn't have 33 for mine. But I didn't I wasn't getting that. I was paying for my own bonus. But he wasn't giving you a monthly, man. I had to work. That's what I'm saying.

Regis Prograis38:17

Yeah.

Regis Prograis38:31

It's like no 33 is the standard like when you're starting off now when you like for me my end of my career is like 10 or something like that% you know

Regis Prograis38:45

Short thing

Regis Prograis38:54

Yeah, of course. Definitely negotiate.

Regis Prograis39:02

Captaining the ship.

He's just getting the fights. I mean, he was a good man as far as giving me the fights because he he picked the right fight. He kept you busy.

He kept me busy, you know, picking the right fights for me and stuff like that. And like, so I had to do that for my first 10 really 10 11 fights. I had to do that. And then I signed with Lud Bella.

Okay. And so once

Regis Prograis39:24

No manager promoter two different things. So I was still in the I was still in a contract with him when I was with

Regis Prograis39:36

Yeah.

Regis Prograis39:37

So basically they you know once you get the promoter it does get easier. Okay.

You get a promoter then they have TV dates and stuff and then once you I I think I fought maybe

I think my 15th fight I fought on TV. That was my first TV fight and so I think I signed with Lou probably after my 10th fight. Well, I had I already I signed with him after my 10th fight, but I had 11 fight already scheduled. So, I got that fight out the way. So, really my I think three fights with Lou off TV and then the first one on TV and then it kind of took off from there.

Regis Prograis40:10

You Lou guaranteed me minimum. That was

Regis Prograis40:14

Ballpark like 5 to7500. some 5,7500 stuff. It depends on the rounds and stuff like that.

Regis Prograis40:23

Yeah, of course. TV fight now. You start stepping up, you know. So that's a good thing. I ran through everybody. I ran, man. I ran through everybody.

Regis Prograis40:35

Man, I ran through everybody. Showbox, I fought on. So at first when I first signed with Lou, like I said, after my 10th fight, I signed with him, but I had I had a fight over his schedule, so he let me fight my 11th fight off of that. Um 12, 13, 14, I ran through, knocked those dudes out. 15 I fought this dude in the Amos cohort. Um I did knock him out, but I broke like a showbox record. I think I it was like over thousand punches in eight rounds.

I did something like just throw a bunch of punches on him. After that, I knocked everybody out. Showbox. So um it was like Joel Diaz, I fought him. There was same thing. It was Hall of Fame weekend, New York. I went to that. I knocked him out in the second round

At the Turning Rock Casino. Turning Turning Stone Stone. I knock I knocked him out in the second round. Then I fought somebody else. Knocked him out in the first round. That's fought somebody else. Knocked him out second round. Then I fought like um Undone go down. Fought somebody. I fought five times on Showbox. I knocked everybody out. So that's when that after that um I had a big fight in New Orleans and then I signed with um then I did the the Super Series boxing and took off.

Regis Prograis41:43

He was my he he he was still my promoter with the super series I think for one fight or so. I don't know how he was involved but by that time I had new manager too.

Regis Prograis41:55

So right after so me and Jay had a contract for about 5 years and it got extended because I got hurt. That's another thing happened in my career. I got hurt. I had a um eye injury. I got thumbmed in my eye. That's the thing I can talk about too. I went broke. That's the crazy thing. And when I was younger, I went broke. So I had an eye.

Regis Prograis42:11

I was sparing with this guy. He throw uppercut. He would always throw uppercuts like this. So he thumb in my eye, popped it. And I never

Regis Prograis42:18

In sparring. I was sparring for the fight in sparring. Popped it. So this was after um matter, I fought I think I fought Abel Ramos or something like that. So at the time, man, I was told you I was a personal trainer. As a personal trainer, I was probably making like $1,000 a month, right? $12,000 a year, right? So I fought I think I fought Abel Ramos. I probably think I made like 30,000. So that's for me that's rich, right? That's really rich. You talk about that's a lot of money for me at the time.

So um yeah, I fought after I fought him I kind of stopped going to work and stuff like that. We start traveling. My wife my wife Brazilian we went to Brazil. She stopped working all that type of stuff.

Regis Prograis43:00

Yes. I got married early. I got y'all got married early this thing and we got married. I mean, I don't want to say nothing bad about we got married, you know, she Brazilian, so to keep her here, we had to get married and end up working out. You know, end up working out good. We had three kids and stuff like that. So, um,

Regis Prograis43:14

Yeah, I got real cool, you know, not together no more. Well, she cool. It's cool. It's all good. But anyways, it popped my uber bone.

Regis Prograis43:22

Popped it. Broke broke. It's a It's a bone that holds your eye up.

Regis Prograis43:28

It didn't swell up, but I couldn't see. And I heard it pop and like I told you, I was real durable in SP. I don't care. Hey, you can whoop my ass. I'm coming, you know, no matter what. I stopped sparring cuz I knew something was wrong. You

Drove him right there like, "Yeah, something happened." You know, I was throwing up and stuff like that. They was like, "Go get checked." I went, they told me. So, I was out for And at first the doctor told me I I cried in the car. The doctor told me, "You'll never fight again. That's it. Boxing done." I was like, "What?" Like, "Bro, I was in the car crying. Didn't know what I was like, "What I'm going to do? Be a person trainer forever." You know, like, you know.

So, then I But the thing is, I stayed in the gym the whole time. I couldn't spot nothing but I stay I I went to gym every single day if I was sometimes

Regis Prograis44:09

They at first they told me it would take surgery. I went got like four different opinions.

Regis Prograis44:14

At first they told me surgery. You said you they said you'll never do it again. You never box again. You have to have surgery. So then I waited cried in the car told my manager told my my trainer. I'm like you know um they told me I never fight again. And they said just wait, you know, let's So then after that, I probably waited [snorts] a few weeks. I went back.

They said,

Regis Prograis44:35

You get They say you can get a a surgery.

They told me I can get some type of surgery. Yeah.

But I I just was like, they said, just wait. My manager and and Bobby at the time I training, he said, just wait. Just hold off. Don't worry about it. They was more [snorts] calm to me. I was like, man, they told me I'm never boxing again. So I was mad about that. So I went back a few weeks later. Um yeah, I went back. They said then it was it was getting better. They said you probably don't need surgery but you need to heal it but you still can't box no more.

It'll heal by itself but you can't box. So then I I waited I went back I went another doctor they said it's getting better you know it's getting better. You might can fight again. I like all right it's getting that that's better for me. Then I went back the last time the doctor said you're good. It's healed like it's it's going

Regis Prograis45:35

He said, "You can fight. You can fight again. Just don't get hit for like the next I think the next month or something like that." So we scheduled a fight. We we scheduled so I can still train and stuff like that. Like I said, the whole time it was nine months. The whole time

I was training. I would go to gym just to hit the bag. Sometime I go to the gym just to punch the wall to make my knuckles harder. I just go in the gym just to do this for like an hour just hitting the wall. Boom boom boom boom boom just to make my knuckles harder so when I got back and I'd be ready and just stand in shape, you know. And um but yeah, I went man I went broke and um I lost lost everything.

I had to still go to work and stuff like that. So it was a and I remember going New Orleans and like I was crying. She was like, "I don't know what we could do. We ain't got the money for the rent." And I just I never felt nothing bad about it. Like I asked somebody I I asked my her uncle. He paid I had rent to pay. He paid for my my rent was $1,000 a month at the time. He paid it and um I literally the next fight I just paid them right back soon as I the next fight I fought cuz I had to get a tuna fight again.

I fought in um I fought in Mississippi right by New Orleans. It's like probably hour and a half from New Orleans. So all my people from New Orleans came same I knocked dude out in the first round. The check was only $10,000. He gave me four. I had to give him that. So literally all the money was gone because I had to pay my had to pay my coach, my manager had to give him back his money to 4,000. I got 10,000. So it's all gone.

But

Regis Prograis46:56

10%. Usually the trainer get 10%.

Regis Prograis47:02

No, I was still I think Showbox Showbox was still there at the time. Yeah, Showbox was still there. And it's crazy how things happened for me. It was like I always had something an angel or something sitting on my shoulder because then my that's when I fought Joel Diaz and I stopped him in the second round.

Regis Prograis47:28

Fighting real guys. And I went out I stopped him in the second round.

Regis Prograis47:33

No. We was both undefeated. He had more knockouts than I had wins. I think I was 19. I was 19 and0 with 16 knockouts.

I think he was 20 something and0 with 19 knock. He was probably like 22 and0 with with 19 knockouts. So it was a it was a big fight.

Regis Prograis47:49

And I stopped him in the second round.

Regis Prograis47:52

Yeah, it was.

Regis Prograis47:54

Honestly, I forgot 60,000 or something.

Regis Prograis47:58

Yeah, that time. Biggest payday sponsor.

Regis Prograis48:08

Yeah. The half by about half. Okay. About half or something like that.

Regis Prograis48:17

So that was my last fight after that. That was my last fight. Jo did. So

Regis Prograis48:28

Right? But he could have had way So this is what happened with this. He could have had way if he would have I I in if he would have been greedy. He wanted to be greedy, right? So the the contract ended.

Regis Prograis48:44

Right? Exactly. Right. So he wanted to be greedy and he could have got way more. So at that time um that's when I like I fought for that that amount and then after that I signed my name for way I ain't going to tell you how much money I sign literally sign your name for this I got money after that but I signing away

Well to sign with a different manager.

Oh

Regis Prograis49:14

Oh no no I ain't going to say that. I ain't going to say the amount. I don't say the I ain't going to say the model or I'm not I'm not saying no I ain't saying no mom came but

Regis Prograis49:23

I signed with Church Hill with Peterberg Mark Wahberg and Sam was the manager but it was but it was Peter Welch and Mark Wahberg were the face

Peter Peter Bberg and Mark Wahberg the face of it. Yeah

Regis Prograis49:38

Yeah. Sam did everything, you know, but I invited Jay. I said, "Look, the contract over, but you I still want you to be a part of it, but he wanted to be the full manager."

And then he the contract was supposed to he he tried to get more money. I'm like, for more time and more I think the first contract was like 5 years. He tried to get a contract for like seven years. I'm like for more money. I'm like like or the same 33%. I'm like why would I do that? That's insane. You know the contract

Regis Prograis50:19

No. I mean, they go they'll get it back from the your purse,

Regis Prograis50:29

Lower. So, let's just say it's 10%. Now I'm I own 10% of you and as a thank you. Here's a check for quarter million bucks, whatever it is. Yes. That Okay. So So you tell Jay, "Jay, I've got this offer." I didn't tell No, I didn't tell him that. I said, "Look, you can still cuz I know I was one of the I was a free agent. I literally just came off Showbox. My record is 20 and0 with 17 knockouts. I was ranked number two or something like that in the world."

And so, and I'm a free agent. I know what's coming my way. I already know what's coming my way. So then after that, that's when I really started just the money just started running.

Regis Prograis51:08

Maybe 15 or 16.

Regis Prograis51:11

Yeah, when I lived in LA.

Regis Prograis51:13

No, not when I lived there. No, that's before. No, I met you when I lived in LA.

Regis Prograis51:23

No, they had about two or three guys at a time.

Regis Prograis51:30

I said look the contract over. You know I still you I still use you. I still have you in the you know. But he gave me another contract which was which which was worse than the first one. Like why would you give me a insane like it was like seven the first one was 5 years. The second was seven years. So you want me in my whole almost my whole career? No. And then it was for

I think a bigger percentage. Like why did I do that?

Regis Prograis51:56

He didn't want No, he didn't want to do it. And that was

Regis Prograis52:01

He just didn't want to do it. I was like, "You sure?" Like, he didn't want to do it. So, all right. So, then I went to LA and that was it. Once I went to LA, they they they turned my mind, you know, cuz I was out there. First off, they flew me out there. Um they flew me and all my people out there. I met with Wahberg and Peter, went to the movie set, all that stuff. We on the beach. They put me up in nice hotels right on Santa Monica Beach.

I'm like,

Shutters. I forgot what the name of the the hotel,

Regis Prograis52:36

Hotel on the water on right in Santa Monica Beach. I'm like, man, it's

Regis Prograis52:41

Yes. It's like it's nowhere I'm going back. I can't I can't go back. Okay. I can't go backwards, you know?

Regis Prograis52:49

Now I do. I didn't have it at time. I didn't have it at the time, but now I do. It's like I it was just a eye opener for me. We was on the beach man at the time with the girls. Oh, it was just I loved it.

Regis Prograis53:15

I think it's Judas." No, Judas Andango. So, I fought him same thing. Knocked him out second round, you know. knocked Julius out second round and it it really that really put me on the map because the fight before that Crawford stopped him but he he Julius was a former unified champion. He had two belts and him and Crawford fought for undisputed and um Crawford stopped him in the third. I stopped him in the second round so that really put my name up there. I really beat the hell out of Julius and Julia if you look at the height difference Jul I was looking up to him he was so tall he was like 6'1 or something like that.

Regis Prograis53:51

No. I wanted to hurt him. I thought

Regis Prograis53:59

Probably my l my at the end of my career." I tell people now, don't judge me after 35.

Regis Prograis54:04

Don't don't judge my say the same thing.

I say don't judge me 35 and before. If you look at 35 and before,

I lost one fight. Yeah,

I lost to um Josh Taylor and I thought I still thought I won that fight.

Regis Prograis54:33

That's why I felt like I won after I lost.

Regis Prograis54:44

Man, I man I I whooped And real bad. Then after that, we fought um before the Super Series I fought in New Orleans. Excuse me. I fought in New Orleans. I fought Jose Velasco in New Orleans. I stopped him in the A round. Then after that, we go to the World Super Series.

Regis Prograis55:00

The World Super Series at the time, um it was a tournament, the best in the world. If you sign up, it's like I loved it because I always wanted that like, uh you have to fight this. It's no ducking in there. You have to fight. The winner fights this win. The winner fights.

It's a bracket. You have to fight. So really the And it kind of went the way I thought it was going to go. I felt like I was going to fight either Josh Taylor or Ivan Bar cuz that was the bracket how it was the bracket. It was like

This. It was like me on this side. Everybody felt like I was the favorite going to the whole tournament. I was the favorite going to the tournament. So on my side and then it's this side. And for me, I thought it was it was like the um either I recheek or or Josh Taylor was going to be the opponent for me. So, I remember meeting him and stuff and I'm just looking at him and we kind of, you know, um sizing each other up and stuff like that.

I felt cuz we we met in Moscow and like I said, man, that's like for me coming from New Orleans being in Moscow. I know it's insane. Like I just for me, I had just fought in New Orleans. I was the only one that just fought too. Josh, he had to leave because he had a wedding or something. He had got married. Something I don't know something he had going on. But I we all met there for the um thing. We had to go um take pictures and do all

The pre-ournament. Yeah. Press conference and all that type of stuff. And I I was sizing him up, sizing Barek up. But

I just felt like that's that was going to be the fight. So everybody like I was the favorite though going into the fight. I was the favorite of the whole tournament, you know. But I just Yeah, I love that. I love that experience.

And that trophy was so insane.

Regis Prograis56:29

gold trophy, man, with the belts and stuff. For me, that was better. Like, it would have been better than the belts to me. Josh Taylor got it, but it was

Regis Prograis56:45

Cruiserweight design.

Regis Prograis57:03

Is a bad man.

He is a He's a bad boy. He's a bad boy.

Regis Prograis57:13

18 19

I think 19. Yeah, 19 2019 cuz that's when I became the fight before that became a world champion. He did too. You know, we became

Regis Prograis57:28

The WBA.

Regis Prograis57:31

140.

Regis Prograis57:33

Junior Welter weight. Yeah. 140.

Regis Prograis57:38

Then I go to the finals again. You must be like riding a high like dude I'm loved and I didn't think the fight was going to happen. And the thing is they kind of I mean I don't know if it's the develop thing or what but they kind of they kind of forced me into a corner because it's like and I'm glad the fight happened over there but

Why I'm the number one seed in in a in a in a tournament. I'm no I'm expect to win the whole thing. They made me go over there to the UK and stuff like that fight from Scotland. [clears throat]

Yeah. So it's basically his backyard of course you know and

Regis Prograis58:10

It does make a big difference. I I do feel like if the fight was here in the United States, I would have

Regis Prograis58:16

It could have went either way. I do feel like, but still, even leading up to the fight, all the stuff and cap and all that stuff, like we had to just all the adjustments we had to do. And one [clears throat] thing we had to do, one thing they they kind of I'm not going to say they tricked me into doing, but I had so much me to do out there. When I was in the UK, I was doing so much me. They wanted me to do so much stuff.

And it's like they're while they doing it, they playing tricks with your mind. I'll talk about that too for other fights coming up. The media can get in your mind.

Regis Prograis58:42

The media can really really get you. They they have these um these narratives and they can they can kind of get in your mind and stuff like that. So, u man at the time I was doing so man I know he was probably just training and resting and I was doing media. They had me man some days I was like in a car for about seven hours just in traffic cuz London super traffic a lot of traffic.

Regis Prograis59:30

Yeah. I need I I love my loss. I needed my lawsuit.

Regis Prograis59:40

Yeah. It was They Bobby said some of that a little bit, but cuz they wanted me to do way more stuff, man. They wanted me to They wanted me to cuz I was free, you know? I was free diving, right?

Yeah.

And spear fishing and stuff like at the time. They wanted me that when I was living in LA, they wanted me to jump in the the London whatever. They wanted me to jump in there and go to the bottom and and go out there and it was rain. It was cold. But I was like

Regis Prograis1:00:05

My dumb ass wanted to do it. I was like, I can do I can because it's like 50 feet. I can go to 50 feet. They was like, yeah, go do that and see if you could do it. We record it. I'm like I was like, hell no. He got a fight. Why would he do that? So

Just And then I was I had to do I had to film at museums. I had a man I had to do all kind of stuff like that. Walking through all

Walking through all the people and crowd. I'm I'm pretty sure and my dad was my dad was there at the time. He was like, "Why y'all doing this?" You know, like you [snorts] probably doing all this media and Josh Taylor probably,

Regis Prograis1:00:37

Yeah. I didn't know I didn't ain't know no better looking back on it, but I I didn't know better.

Regis Prograis1:00:43

Bobby is the trainer. Bobby Bobby Bettney.

Regis Prograis1:00:47

Bobby, good coach. Bobby.

Regis Prograis1:01:01

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I didn't feel like I got tired man. I don't know like so the early rounds I I came I remember I outboxed him you know. I was out boxing him but then we got into the fight. And so we got to the fight he kind of stepped it up. He got into a fight. I think it kind of it made a little close and stuff like that. But what happened was one of my other trainers, Chris Chris Hernandez, I forgot which round it was, but he he came.

He was like, "Man, what what you doing? You'll give up all this hardware. Step it up." And so that's when I woke up and I start stepping up, but it probably, like I said, maybe it was too late. Maybe I could have stepped up a round or two before that, but I remember hitting him. I remember like

Coming out even in the first round, hitting him with body shots. I heard and just outboxing him, moving, you know, he couldn't The thing is he couldn't outbox me at all. Was was his eye all swollen shut?

His his eye was swollen shut. His eye was real bad. It was real bad. His eye was swollen shut. And I was hitting remember backing him up and all that type of stuff. But one thing in the fight, I talked about this a bunch of times, man. It was one round. I think it was round nine. And I remember he threw a jab. He threw a real hard jab. He stepped in. Boom. He was southpaw too. He stepped in a real hard jab cuz he couldn't touch me cuz I was real at the time I was real slippery.

My head was just always doing this. So it was just things was just going. So he had to hit me in the body and stuff or get in the inside and try to hit me. But from the outside he couldn't hit me. I was out boxing him. I was just out boxing him. So but I remember one time it was I think it was round nine. He stepped in a real hard jab and I went I slipped it easy too. Real easy. And it hit me on my shoulder and I heard the crowd say ah.

And I'm like damn I'm probably going to lose. That's when I thought it. I'm like damn probably going to lose because they thought that punch landed. I'm I knew the punch didn't land. It didn't land at all. Like I literally I remember him stepping a real real hard jab and it was just it was real vivid and I just I slipped with either right left. I went boom something like that and it just hit me on my shoulder and I heard a crowd [sighs] like something happened.

Regis Prograis1:03:14

Yeah. Exactly.

Regis Prograis1:03:29

It was a close.

Regis Prograis1:03:55

Yeah.

Regis Prograis1:04:04

Yeah. No, it it was going through my head in beginning and stuff because that was the narrative going into the fight. Everybody saying that you got to knock him out and I thought I was going to knock him out. I definitely thought I did too.

I thought I was going to stop for me. I thought I was going to stop Olympic gold medalist.

He was Olympic something a silver something like I

Regis Prograis1:04:25

I'm I'm going to give him credit for this. He wasn't scared of me.

Regis Prograis1:04:36

He wasn't He was He was confident. He wasn't scared of me because going to all the fights, I can feel my opponents. I can look at him. I can see they they got a little something. They they might be a little fearful.

Regis Prograis1:04:47

I think Diaz was he was confident, but he was I think Diaz was confident. Andongo, I think he was confident, too. But he I think he underestimated me.

Regis Prograis1:04:59

And I think Diaz underestimated me, too.

But there was they had false confidence. Josh Taylor had real confidence. He didn't underestimate me. He thought he was better than me. That's why. So he wasn't scared of me. He, you know, but he he didn't underestimate me. He knew how good I was, but he he still thought he was, you know, he still thought he was better than me. That's why he wasn't scared. I could tell he wasn't scared of me. Some Sometimes you could tell look at people eyes, you could tell

He not scared. So, I do give him credit for that.

Regis Prograis1:05:57

Nastiness.

Regis Prograis1:06:00

Oh yeah,

Regis Prograis1:06:02

Yeah,

Regis Prograis1:06:10

I mean, mutual respect. It was respect. We took He actually texted me like, "Hey, you want to have a burger?" or something like that. We met, we talked, and you know, that was it. It was, you know, it was all good.

Regis Prograis1:06:28

The thing because we were sitting across each other and like was looking at each other and I could tell like, "All right." He not scared. I mean, he was like, "Oh, you this." And he was I can see through your fake bravado and stuff like that. Like, this ain't fake. Like I I say, "You going to get it like you going to see you going to get it." So, we was that we was both real confident. We were we both was like super super confident in ourselves, you know, cuz I was I'm always like I'm [snorts] cocky confident.

Regis Prograis1:06:53

But I'm not a bully. I'm just like I'm just cool about it, you know? That's why I like all right, you going to see, you know? I'm not I don't got to be scared. I'm not scared or nothing like that, but I'm just like I'm cool. You know,

Regis Prograis1:07:20

But that stuff all matters,

Regis Prograis1:07:29

Right. Yeah. I should have stepped up a little earlier, but it is what it is. It is.

Regis Prograis1:07:35

After that,

Regis Prograis1:07:47

No, because people were saying stuff online what they thought, but it wasn't true.

Regis Prograis1:08:05

Yeah.

Regis Prograis1:08:07

Yeah. I actually after so after that I actually I went to um the crazy thing bro like so we thinking like I thought when I was younger I thought man you lose you feel so bad man I lost and I felt good like the crazy thing like I'm not saying good from the loss but like in life I felt good man I was living in LA at the time I went back and I was like I went back home I used to be you know spear fishing I was on Malibu just looking like I love life

Then I went to Hawaii I like that I love it. Like I'm loving life. Then after that, um, right after that was like Christmas. Then I bought my mom a house. Before I bought my house, I bought my mom her house or whatever. I surprised her with a house. I bought it cash. 3 315 or something like that. Just cash money. Bought my mom a house. It's like, damn, bro. I'm just

Regis Prograis1:08:55

She cried. She loved it. And tell you a story about that. A whole different story. But, you know, at the time she liked the house and stuff like that. And it was like I was just like I just felt good. I just felt real good about life. life was just really really good. So it's not even about wins or losses like I just felt like good about life period.

Regis Prograis1:09:39

Oh, crazy. I don't put on blast. She didn't want it. She didn't want the damn house, but talk about that a whole different time. Yeah. But she and she eventually she in and out. But it end up being a good thing because um she didn't want I turned to investment. I turned to investment property. It was Airbnb. It worked out good for me at the time. So, it was cool. But yeah, it was just I remember just after that. But then after

So, after that I was living in LA. that I moved back to Texas and I feel like maybe LA made me a little soft too. That's why I was thinking like, damn, maybe cuz that was the first fight

I like I moved to LA after I fought Relic. After I won the title, then I moved to LA. I was like, I got to be here, you know, cuz we did camps. We did we used to go to LA for two weeks um and do a camp for two weeks and I remember and I still got one of the videos.

We was um we was in a palisades. You lived in Palisades, right? Yeah. We was in the I love the Palisades, man. We was in the Palisades in the house for camp and man, I just loved waking up every day being the Palisades. say was heaven on earth to me. I never felt better about myself when I was there.

Regis Prograis1:11:07

Man, it really was. I love that.

Regis Prograis1:11:12

Then I had to go back down. I fought um so I had to wait a year after. So,

Regis Prograis1:11:19

Oh, that's right.

Regis Prograis1:11:28

I had a fight with Maurice. So that's what happened. I was I was in camp for Maurice Hooker.

Regis Prograis1:11:34

Yeah. Pandemic hit. After pandemic hit, we try to revisit with the zone

And um he blew up to 147.

Regis Prograis1:11:42

And I was like, I'm not I'm not fighting at 47, you know. I'm going to fight at 40. I want to be a champion at one. I was so adamant about being a two-time champion. That's what I really wanted to do. So I was like, I'm not going to 47. 40 for 43. No, I'm going to 140. That's why no I think I think we said 43 or something like that and we just couldn't

Regis Prograis1:11:59

He couldn't make the weight he was too big so that fight got scratched and then after I had to wait more so then I end up moving back to Texas and um then I fought Javvante when Javvante fought Leo Santa Cruz I fought on that and I fought a dude and um I stopped him third round they was all think oh he washed up he this he had he had his chance at the top and I I fought Juan Horaldes same thing I stopped him. I stopped him in like the third round and so they're like, "All right, he's still who he is."

Regis Prograis1:12:48

They put you back. They put you down. It's like call it the boxing purgatory. Once you lose a fight in boxing, that's kind of what they do. But for me, I always believed in myself. I moved back to Texas. I got back on my grind. Um I like I said, I feel like when I was in LA, I was kind of spoiled. I loved LA too much, you know? It was like a when I lived there, it was like we had pandemic. It was like a party house type of thing.

It was like it was too much.

Regis Prograis1:13:11

We had a bunch of people in the house. We was playing pandemic. We was playing ping pong every day. Just enjoy. We had people over there every day. It's like, no, that's not the fighter lifestyle. And I did a lot of mistakes in my career, but that's, you know, but then I had to lock back in. I moved back to Texas and I locked in and you know, back around my trainers and stuff like back in the gym, back around my trainers and I I came back, got back on the winning trail.

I I fought Juan Herald, I fought Ivan Red Catch and I fought um Terrell McKenna and I stopped all them. Then after that, I get the the shot with Ber the world title.

Regis Prograis1:14:22

It was I definitely felt I felt it. Yeah. Nobody wanted to fight me, you know, if they wanted to put me in there with the pro, but they did. They put me in there with her, one of the guys out here in Vegas, and he thought my time was up and

Regis Prograis1:14:34

I stopped him, you know. So that was like damn.

Regis Prograis1:14:41

Zapeda for the belt.

Regis Prograis1:14:44

The WBC. And that's

Regis Prograis1:14:46

That was in um in LA.

Regis Prograis1:14:48

In LA. Stopped him. Same thing. Stopped him 11 round and I'm back. Back being a world champion.

Regis Prograis1:14:55

22. 22 23. One of those one of those years. Um

Regis Prograis1:14:59

I I don't even know. I just was so excited. Like I that's what I wanted to be. I waited three years for that. Three years to be a champion again. And I that's why I was so adamant about not fighting Maurice Hooker because I wanted to be a champion at 140. You know, I kept my weight down. I did everything. I didn't blow up or nothing like that.

I stayed training every single day. And I was like, I'm going to be a champion at 140. And it was like it took me a long time, but

I did it. And it just felt like super good to to be there.

Regis Prograis1:15:50

Got some movies and was the one in Boston, Spencer Confidential with Mark Wahberg. And then I did one with um called Bay You Caviar with um Cuba Gun Jr. that was shot in New Orleans. How was that?

It was cool, man. I like I like I mean I don't see myself being an actor because you got to be on a movie set um all day. Especially the one we did in Boston, man. I was in Boston in January. Cold. Super cold. Like no, I don't like it, you know. But anyways, um so when I was

Regis Prograis1:16:20

I know we had to wear the stuff. We had to wear the the set clothes. I had to be like a gangster or something in the movie. So I had to wear what they put on me, you know. But it's crazy cuz when I was there, well Pete was there when I was when I first came. Pete was there. He was the dire. So I was in his trailer laying down sleeping all that type of stuff. I remember one time I I went lay in his trailer and it was all nice, you know.

He got a big nice trailer. Him and Wahberg came in there. Him and Wahberg his son um they came in there talking and stuff. They're like, "Who was sleeping?" They s they came and they saw me. I was just I was laying down. I heard I was like up.

You had like a small part.

Regis Prograis1:16:51

I'm in there sleeping. They I hear him in there talking stuff. I'm in there asleep. I'm like I'm tired. I'm in there sleeping and they in Pete trailer in his bed in his trailer and stuff like that cuz he said, "Yeah, come in here." So, I'm in there. But with the So, but then when Pete left, man, used to s the trailer.

It was like a It was like a bathroom. The trailer was so small cuz he left and then they took his trailer away and I had to be there for like one more day.

Regis Prograis1:17:21

My trailer with my I'm like, "Oh, this what y'all got?" The extra trailer. I'm like, "Oh, this got to get hell no."

Regis Prograis1:19:07

Right. Right. Right.

Regis Prograis1:19:09

go out there, go to Boston, get paid just to like have fun, be on the set and stuff. But, you know, it was

Regis Prograis1:19:26

I don't know. But I think they broke up. I think Churchill kind of

Regis Prograis1:19:31

Something happened with with with with Sam and Pete and stuff like that. Something happened cuz I still talk to Pete. I still talk to Pete to this day. Me and him still cool.

Regis Prograis1:19:40

Yeah. Yeah. Sure did. Right. So, Pete was um Pete I still talk to him. He's still cool. I can still, you know, I we still cool, but I think Sam stayed in boxing. Pete didn't really want to stay in.

Regis Prograis1:19:40

he wanted Pete wanted to be in a dress room with the fighters. Pete just like boxing. He go, you go at his um his gym, go spa and stuff like that. He just want he want to have a few fighters just to do it, you know.

Regis Prograis1:20:40

He didn't care about that stuff. Yeah. He just wanted to do it and um like I but Sam stayed in boxing so they kind of they broke up and stuff. Um

Regis Prograis1:20:50

Sam was a good man at the time. I think Sam was a good man. He did some stuff that we didn't agree on. But

Regis Prograis1:21:00

He he was he was he was running a gym, you know? He kind of but that's what he wanted to do. So Sam's still a boxing guy.

Regis Prograis1:21:09

I saw him at the um I saw him at the the last fight in um in London with Yeah. when I first kind of been he was one.

Regis Prograis1:21:21

Oh, man. That's now this is a mess right now. So, then I let some friends, some people not even friends, some people getting I'm getting two right now because I let some people getting in my mix. Um people just wanted to be in there, you know. know people won't kind of be in my mixing store. I let some people in there and even right now I'm still going through real noise and [ __ ]

Regis Prograis1:21:57

I needed one but not them.

Regis Prograis1:22:19

My trainer at the time, he came to my house and

Regis Prograis1:22:22

Not Bobby. Evans, the strength condition coach.

Oh. Oh, Evan. Big we got, you know, he came. He was like, "Man, you need to hire my friend. He need that." And at the time, I didn't want a manager because the stuff Sam did. I wasn't trusting nobody, you know, because Sam did some stuff that I was like, "Man, you know, he put me in some mess and stuff like that." So then I was like, I didn't know who to trust. I really didn't, you know, it was it was a hard thing for me.

So I let somebody maybe I did talk to you about that, but I didn't tell you what I was doing. But anyways, so I had him I had this other dude come in. He was one of Evans friends came in. He was like, "Oh man, let him do this. Let him work for you." Like, all right. So, then the dude came to my house and it took a while. I didn't trust him at first anyway, but it took a while and he was like, "Chimp, I'll never he looked at my face, champ, I'll never charge you a dime." And now he su me.

But anyways, you know,

Regis Prograis1:23:15

Well, his thing was he wanted to he wanted to um put people underneath me. That's why

Regis Prograis1:23:28

He wanted to open a promotional company in my name and run these guys under the bring a bunch of guys. So that's how you in theory sounds like a good idea.

Yeah, that's what he wanted to do. But at the time I told you at the time I was a free agent. I was like when I had I was the world champion a free agent.

Regis Prograis1:23:45

Yes, I probably could have. But that's when I went signed with um I signed with Matram. I had I had deals. That's when I had a deal from Matum and from Top Rank and um I end up going Matum way.

Regis Prograis1:23:57

But he was I let him be in the mix and like I said and it it it still cost me right there.

Regis Prograis1:24:09

He just said he sold me. He literally said I So

He said he was my manager. He said he

Regis Prograis1:24:24

We never had no type of

Regis Prograis1:24:34

Supposedly this stuff I don't know, you know, but I had another friend doing

Regis Prograis1:24:40

I got a deal with Matt.

Regis Prograis1:24:45

I don't I don't know. I don't know what he was doing. I don't know. But I had to The thing is like he he was this was a while ago now. I mean this was like 2 3 years ago now. So he um

Yeah he was suing in Texas if somebody sue you and I let it go because he never had he don't have a contract. He said he'll never charge me none of that stuff. So with me I let it go for a long I just I got stuff to the house like I don't care. But I saw a lawyer like nah you got to take care of this you know because it could be serious. So I had to hire a lawyer. I had to pay a lawyer to kind of deal with this stuff.

Regis Prograis1:25:21

Yeah. Well, I got Yeah. He said, "Deal, you got to deal with this stuff." Right. So, I had to pay I got to pay a lawyer to get that off me. Um,

Regis Prograis1:25:30

Sound Matt.

Regis Prograis1:25:33

Then I fought Zerilla. I fought Zerilla in New Orleans. Um, wasn't a good fight. I dropped him, you know, got the decision, but it was it was a close fight. He just ran around. So then that's when everybody start figuring out how to fight me, too.

Regis Prograis1:25:51

Everybody. So that's So when he ran around, that's when everybody figured out how to fight me. Everybody just move. Don't stand in front of me cuz you know I'm a fighter. You know, people couldn't figure it out. But Zerilla was a The thing is he did that because he was a last minute replacement. I was supposed to fight I forgot the dude name. The dude actually I was supposed to fight. He actually became a world champion at 147. He's won a belt. Liam Power. I was supposed to fight Liam Power.

Just became a world champ. I swear to fight him, but he got hurt in camp and um then uh Zerilla was the last minute replacement

And he ran around literally he just stayed around the whole time for 12 rounds. He just ran ran around and ran cuz he was last minute. He just came beat him in decision. You got WBC belt. What's next?

Still got Deon Haney and I fought Deon and I fought Deon Haney.

Regis Prograis1:26:38

Yeah, he he he he beat me 12 nothing. just beat me. And that I mean I'm not gonna take nothing away from Devin. Um cuz Devin was good. I think like no matter what that night I would have lost no matter what. That night I would have lost to him no matter what. Like but because mentally I wasn't there.

Regis Prograis1:27:01

Uh

Regis Prograis1:27:07

Yeah. I mean, yeah, just getting there was, you know, between a press conference getting in my head and stuff like that. Um, I did a whole camp in LA. The whole I mean, well, I did like a three-pole camp. First thought camp was too long. I did like a four month camp. Started off, of course, in Houston. Um, and then the fight kept getting pushed back, stuff like that. Then I went to LA, then went back and then went back to LA again. Just going back and forth, messing with girls, man.

Our house was like the camp house was just, you know, the camp house just not focused. That's the main thing. We just wasn't focused in there. Like it wasn't just me. I had my my sister in there, my my uh my coaches having girls there. It was just

Yeah, bro. That camp that how that camp was just I'm not going to say the worst camp because I I still train every day. I still train about two three times a day. I still did that. But you got to be focused. That's as a fighter. I tell all the young fighters, you have to be focused. And it's not just inside the gym. It's out. The matter of fact, the most important time to be focused is outside the gym, not inside the gym. And we wasn't like I train, man.

I had a girl waiting on me at the house. Yeah.

Or like right after I get to the house, usually I should be taking a nap. I got a girl there, you know, going out to eat, going to movies, doing stuff. And this is when for me, this one I knew I was going to lose. So this is a week before we left to go to San Francisco for the fight. I go I go to this girl house. So I made excuse for myself. So Sundays we don't train. Yeah. So Saturday night I went and I stayed up, man.

I stayed over there till about 7:00 in the morning. My coach Evans was tripping. He was throwing [ __ ] in the house. But I It was my fault. I was wrong, you know. But this why I know I was going to lose because I was over [snorts] there and my daughter called me. my middle daughter, Kisa, she called me and um she facetimed me and at first, of course, I'm not going to answer. I'm with the girl and stuff like that. And we was we, you know, we don't believe in the sex stuff.

We wasn't doing nothing but still being over there, right?

So, I'm over there till like I said about 7:00 in the morning. She called me and she crying and I'm like, "What's up? What happened?" She talk about her ear hurt and I'm in I'm in LA. What I'm going to do? She in Houston. I'm here in LA. And um [clears throat] then what I'mma do? What I'm going to say? like go tell your mama you know I can't her mama asleep but what I'm going to say get on her mama ask but look what I'm doing I can't say that you know cuz you know her mama's sleeping she crying for that but I'm with a whole you know I'm with a whole another woman right now so that's for me that's when I felt like that was a sign like

I probably got lose and this was a week before I went to San Francisco one week before

So yeah [snorts] man that was that that camp was like if I have if I have any like uh any advice for up andcoming fighters like you got to be serious like inside when camp's thought you got it got to be camp.

Regis Prograis1:30:18

My problem wasn't drug alcohol. Our problem was the women for sure. We all got vice. Everybody Everybody in the world got some type of vice. We all got them. But mine was the It was Mine was the women that

Regis Prograis1:30:32

Yeah. Probably I think more than that. Seven different moms. Like nine or something. I don't you know, but yeah, mine was the my advice was it was Mine was the woman. Yeah.

Regis Prograis1:30:55

Yeah. Well, we went to the corner and um the the ref was like, "Man, you going to show me something? What you going to do? You going to show me something?" And J was like,

Regis Prograis1:31:07

Right, bro? And the thing is, bro, I don't want no disrespect to Deon, but Deon don't got no power. The thing is, if Deon had power, he'd have stopped me for sure. I didn't want to be there.

I couldn't [clears throat] wait till the fight was over. I'm bro I'm telling I could not wait till that fight was over. I did not want to be that I really wanted to quit but I'm I can't do that cuz I know if I would have quit the fight it'll look like terrible you know it it'll look real bad on me but I did not I did not want to be in that fight. I wanted to quit before the fight started. I knew like I didn't want to be here.

I'm in the dressing room warming up and I'm like I don't want to be here. Even even in um going into the fight before I'm calling my coaches man. I'm like man I'm nervous. I never been nervous before a fight. I'm like, man, well, the last fight, too. I'm like, man, I'm I'm nervous. What's this? What's that? I'm telling I told my dad, come up. I told my sisters. I told my wife come up. I told my trainers. I'm tell all them telling like, "Bro, I'm nervous about this." And they're like, "People trying to talk to me.

My head gone." Cuz I

Regis Prograis1:32:06

He was a just getting embarrassed. What happened? I think just getting embarrassed getting I didn't think I was gonna get stopped because I know Deon didn't really have no power but just getting embarrassed and kind of you know what happened you know I didn't I didn't want to be there like man I didn't I couldn't wait I'm talking about in the fight I couldn't wait I remember being like the third round like damn when it's going to be over

Regis Prograis1:32:26

I did not want to be in that fight

Regis Prograis1:32:32

Think at the time no I didn't think at the time but I knew I'm not going to say I knew it was the end was coming But no, I I didn't think boxing was over, but that night was just it wasn't there

Just because too many things went on in camp. You got to have

A heavy fighter is a dangerous fighter. You got to be you got to be focused. You know, in camp we wasn't focused. You know, we had like a damn near like a party house, you know, like it was, you know, I would train every day, but you know, it's about, like I said, it's about what you do outside the gym, not just inside the gym. And we was in LA. I love LA, of course. I was in LA just doing all kind of stuff. and got distracted.

I had this girl got, you know, was with her like every literally every day. Like I got there on a Sunday night and we start training Monday. By Tuesday, she was at the house by Tuesday. She was there almost every day. Like probably every other every day, every other day. Something like if I'm not if she not there, we going out to eat. We doing something like that almost every, you know. So I'm still training, but I'm not there. I'm not focused, you know.

Regis Prograis1:33:38

I just felt bad about I felt bad about myself. I knew like I I knew I wasn't focused. Um all my people was there too. Everybody all my all my friends and stuff they came and like they was crying and stuff and but my in the dressing room my dad was crying. My dad like super not emotional. He was crying and stuff like that cuz and he was crying cuz of happy tears like mad about the fight. happened because like after the fight though something crazy happened to her like everybody embraced me.

All my people was in the dress room. Everybody wanted to be around me. Usually after a fight like everybody leave you. You gone. You in the dress room by yourself sometime. I heard it from some people. All my people came. Everybody was all my people from New Orleans, everybody. We came. It was like nothing happened, you know. It was like I didn't lose and nothing like that, you know. So, and then after that, like I said, it's crazy cuz after losses, I felt like that night I felt bad, but I went back.

I went back. I always go back home. Go back to New Orleans. And I went back home and like everything was good. We had a big Christmas party cuz I fought December 9th. Yeah.

Christmas December 25th. So, I went back. I I rent a big Airbnb for everybody to be in there. And we just had a bunch of fun.

Regis Prograis1:34:49

No. Talk about pay. that. But that was a big payday fight.

It was a big It was a big payday. Yeah. It was

Regis Prograis1:34:58

So after I try to get back on the thing, I I had to give myself some time. Then after that, we fight.

Regis Prograis1:35:06

Oh yeah.

Regis Prograis1:35:09

With this fight,

I felt like he should never won that fight. I'm not going to lie. I felt like Jack should have never won that fight. I was real confident. Real show myself. Real confident. Everything was Everything was smooth in camp, too. I learned my lesson from the Deon Handy camp. So, I was like, "All right, I'm not doing that. I'm not I'm going to be I'mma be focused. I'm not going to be so distracted and stuff like that." So, we we did have a good camp in that fight.

Um, get into the fight. Yeah. I get into the fight and man, I'm outbox. Same thing. Outboxing Jack. I actually dropped him with a jab.

I get back to the corner. I think the sixth round or something like that. And my coach is like, "Man, I don't know what the score looking like." Everybody say I'm up though. Everybody say I'm up on the score calls. I dropped them and all that. I get back and um they're like the coach like, "Man, I don't know. You you might got to do something else. I don't know what the score goes looking like." I'm like, "All right." So, I get back out there. I step it up.

I start pressing him. That's what he wanted. He dropped me. Boom. After I got dropped, um I know we fell some type of way. We both fell. And I sprained my ankle. Then that was that was it after that. Once I sprained my ankle, I rolled my ankle. It was bad. And um I just I was just fighting after that. I couldn't really move or nothing like that. But and then another thing, but Jack was better than I thought.

I was like, Jack, bro, Jack, he was just awkward.

That's right.

He was real awkward, but he didn't.

Regis Prograis1:36:29

He's tough. Jack is tough. He's a champion, too, at 47. Um, but he's he is real tough and he's awkward and he's he's better than I thought. I'm like, bro, I'm looking at Jack. Oh, I'mma kill this boy. Like, I'm like, oh, I'mma kill Jack. I'mma kill him. But he's more awkward and he's he's better than what I thought. and [snorts] he, you know, he won he won that fight. So, um, then getting back into it, I never, I ain't gonna lie, I never wanted to go to UK.

I never like going to UK. I lost three times in UK like I hate the damn UK, you know, but I don't regret it cuz I got a lot of fans over there, you know. I always put up tough fights and stuff. I never by I never been stopped in my career, you know, put up tough fights, but like I just like, man, why I got to go to UK? I I do understand why because it was not I'm not going to say it was nothing else but same thing that that guy I told you about he put me in that position.

Regis Prograis1:37:20

The new Yeah. But I So in camp acting manager I Well so what happened in camp? I told him look bro I can't you can't do this. You know I like I can't have you negotiate for me doing what you doing whatever you doing for me. I can't have you doing it. Cuz it was him and another one of my friends that was doing it. I said I can't do this. So, I hired Brian Peters, which was a real manager. I hired him in the middle of that, like probably

Maybe a month and a half before the fight, I hired him. And so, of course, the other the old dude, he didn't like it.

Regis Prograis1:37:50

And that's when he started all this stuff.

Regis Prograis1:37:52

Yeah.

Regis Prograis1:37:59

He did with small guys. Small fight.

Regis Prograis1:38:05

No. Close. He was the one put me in a position. I didn't have to do that. Why would I have to go to the UK, you know? I didn't have to do it.

Regis Prograis1:38:12

For not a real title? Something. It was 12 rounds, but something like Jack had a WBO something. Not the real one. He didn't have the real one. So,

Regis Prograis1:38:23

So, he put me in that position doing that. And it's like, man, I guess so. But it was Jack Cat. I'm like, bro, I don't care. It's Jack. I can beat Jack. You know, he was still better than I thought, but I was like, man, I could beat Jack. It should be an easy fight for me with Jack Catar, you know. And um yeah, and then after that I was supposed to fight this when I knew the end was near because I was supposed to fight Oscar Dearte.

Regis Prograis1:38:46

Two weeks before the fight I got hurt. I never been hurt in a fight. I I had to pull out a fight. I never had to pull out a fight in my life. Never had to I never got hurt in camp. I mean I got hurt, but never had to pull out a fight. I had to pull out the fight. I got hurt in in the camp and I had to pull out. So I was like, man, like damn, I don't like this. like to have to pull out a fight is like damn I never did this in my whole life.

I had to pull out.

And so then that happened. Um then I had to go back to the drawing board again. And but even in that camp, man, like I was like I was not sparring good. Even my friends like, "Bro, you good? You all right? Like what's going on? You good?" I'm like, "Yeah, I'm straight." You know, but I probably wasn't.

And um but yeah, I was I was going through I still was going stamping, going through all the personal stuff, too. I guess that's what kind of was going on with me. And then after that for then I fought Jojo and I came back here. I came back to um came back to Vegas for that for that game.

Regis Prograis1:39:42

Beat Jojo then trying to figure out then we we trying to figure out what's going to happen. I don't know. I came back here. So or was this was supposed to happen. So I came back here. I I beat Jojo. I came back here really to be honest to run away from home to get away from because all the personal stuff was going on. So I had to get away from that. I came here to train

Regis Prograis1:40:03

To I came back to Vegas to train, but I didn't have a fight yet. But then they was talking about me and Barbosa was going to fight, but I never got a contract, but I just stayed in the gym. I didn't get a contract to fight nobody. I just stayed in the gym. So they they offered me like Barbosa fight. Um well, they say they was going to offer they didn't I never got a contract. They said I was supposed to be Barbosza. And that even Barbosa hit me up on um Instagram.

He said, "What we going to do it? Come get ready." So that's I literally went over his word. He's like, "Yeah, start getting ready." So I'm like, "All right, I came to Vegas to start training." And um nothing never happened. Nobody never gave it. Kenny Sims, my one of my gym partners, end up getting a fight with Barbosa. But anyways, so then they offer they I think they offer like um Frank Martin too. Yeah.

But like on a three-week notice. I'm like, "No, I'm not doing that. Why would I f you know out here too in Vegas on three week notice?" And then the kind of been thing happened. Then kind of been happen. And I was like, "All right, I'm for boxing?

No, not Zufa. I mean, it was he signed with Zufa, but

I don't know. You know, he signed with the Zufa thing, but yeah.

Regis Prograis1:41:08

Eddie.

Regis Prograis1:41:10

No, I think I was a free agent.

I think No, I was I'm tripping. I say Ed, I'm Oh, I messed up. It was Oscar Golden Boy cuz

Regis Prograis1:41:21

I had three fights with Oscar.

Regis Prograis1:41:23

I would have had one more, but I'm so Jojo Diaz. Jojo then this fight.

Regis Prograis1:41:28

Yeah. This fight they wanted they they wanted to fight me and stuff like that. So then I was like all right let me let me go ahead and um

Regis Prograis1:41:41

Was at the fight.

Regis Prograis1:41:47

It was a big fight.

It was Turkey. It was Netflix. It was a lot.

That's right. Netflix Netflix. It was a big Netflix deal. So then I did that and in that camp same thing I did not want this. I did not want to fight. That's why I wanted to I really wanted to retire and maybe do something else a a while ago but I was just like I'm in camp. They called me and I kind of get my mouth kind of get me in trouble cuz I I took it before I even thought about it. But

Regis Prograis1:42:29

I didn't want to fight I didn't want

Regis Prograis1:42:31

Now I didn't want you fight I and looking I could have beat him too

Still right now I I know I could have beat him

But I I almost had I didn't maybe I didn't want to

Regis Prograis1:42:42

I just I've been want to be done with it for a while I was just like I just

And and so in that camp Like one day I woke up. I remember vividly. It was a Thursday. I got up cuz usually I I in camp I I would get up first thing I would get I would meditate. I always meditate for 10 minutes. I get up a little early, meditate for 10 minutes. Then of course brush my teeth and all that type of stuff. Then I would go down, take my creatine, take all the I had to take all these vitamins every day, drink a gallon of water.

I was just like, man, I just don't want to do this no more. Like it's it feels so good now to live free. I don't have to, you know, I take creatine because I want to get big and stuff like that, but I don't have to like

Regis Prograis1:43:20

It's not a job no more. I don't have to. I train cuz I want to, not because I have to no more.

And I remember doing that and then I'm like going to the gym and it was a Thursday and I remember like in the gym I always start off 10 minutes jump rope and I remember jump roping and I did not every step cuz we jump rope like this. every step. I didn't want I did not want to be there to I wanted to be I did not want to be in that gym and Thursdays are hard days cuz we got drills and stuff like that. I remember the drills.

I remember I felt like that was my last day in a gym.

Regis Prograis1:43:51

I was like and I had like three three weeks before the fight and I did not I was like man this is my last day. I told my I told my one of my um the dude that wrote my book he like my sister and I my other sister I told him like bro I told him every day I don't want to fight. I don't want to fight. Everybody talked me into it. Like they talked me Listen, it got so bad cuz the day the day of the fight, I didn't want to fight the I'm talking about the day of the fight.

It's a few hours before I got to go to arena. So what happened was one of my one of my one of my friends. He walked me over to my mama hotel in the UK. I walked over there. I was like, I'mma just, you know, we ate and stuff like that. Then walked over there. I go to my mama hotel. I'm me and her. I brought my son with me. My son playing on the game. I'm laying in the bed with her. I'm like, "Man, I don't want to fight." She like, "Wow." I'm like, "Bro, I don't want to get hurt, you know, cuz I I had a little injury, stuff like that in camp, you know.

I had a hand eye uh what my rib something with my bicep. I had some things going on, but really the most thing was my eye and my hand. That was cuz my like my last day of sparring, that same eye told you about earlier, I got hit in my eye. I couldn't see.

Regis Prograis1:44:57

My literally my last day of sparring out here in Vegas.

So, I got hit in my eye anyway. I couldn't see. It was blurry and stuff like that. And I'm thinking I was like, "M." So anyways, going back I went back to the room. My mom I'm laying in the bed with her. I'm like, "Mom, I don't want to fight." She like, "Why?" I'm like, "I don't want to get hurt. I don't want this. I'm making excuses and stuff like that." She like, "Boy, just go fight." Like we came all the way out here. You got to fight.

My mom not a Collin type of person. She not

A soft person. She like, "Fight. You got to fight."

Regis Prograis1:45:22

So I'm like, "Shit, all right." Still walking back,

My friend come give me to go to arena now. Walking back like, "Bro, I don't want to fight."

It got so bad. Look, I wanted to like I was thinking about falling out the van on Netflix. On Netflix. So people say, "Oh, he fell out the van.

Regis Prograis1:45:30

I'm in a in a car on the way to arena fight night." I'm like, "Bro, I don't want to fight. I still don't want to fight." Yeah.

Regis Prograis1:45:49

But then we get in the dress room. It's just like something clicked. Something turned on. I don't know what happened. Something clicked on me.

Regis Prograis1:46:06

I'mma slip or fall. I'mma hurt myself. I'm not going to fight. This is Bro, this is the fight going. I'm thinking I'm not going to fight.

Regis Prograis1:46:52

Right. Right. So yeah, I man, so I got in the dress room, still didn't want to fight, but then something just clicked in me like I I start put I put my shoes, I put my socks, I put everything on, I start warming, I start bouncing around. I couldn't sit still. I'm just bouncing b the almost the whole time. Usually you you know you want to sit still a little bit, but I'm bouncing around the whole time.

Regis Prograis1:47:14

Yeah. I put the gloves on, start hitting the pads a little bit. All right, it's it's feeling better. Then it's it's time to um it's time to glove up. All right, we now we going now I know I'm fighting. I got to fight for sure. It's time I'm glove up. I'm wrapped up really even before you glove when you wrap up you know cuz then when you wrap up his trainer my trainer got to go watch him train got to watch me wrap up. So I'm wrapping up

We watching the fights on the TV. It's like all right like we doing this.

Regis Prograis1:48:13

Right, man? So, yeah. But what happened was so I'm glad my I leaned on my son. My son had leaned on me. I leaned on my son. So he knew I told him look look at the struggle I was going through. Like I was this was the that camp was the worst struggle mentally the worst struggle I ever been through in my whole life. Right.

Regis Prograis1:48:32

I was struggling man. I was going through so much stuff. Mentally going through all the whole divorce thing. All that type of stuff. Going through all that type of stuff. So yeah. So, um, but in the dress room like I I told my son was there with me. I said, "Look, I I like right before we about to walk, I said, "Look, you know, I'm scared of this fight. I don't want to fight, right? I'm like, I'm nervous. I don't want to fight. I don't want to, but I'm doing it." You know, like you got to walk into that field.

Like, it's such great things on the other side of that field. We have to do that. Like, when you scared of something, do it. That's the thing. And so, I was really scared to fight, but I'm so glad I did it. If I didn't do that, I'll be I would regret that for the probably the rest of my life.

Regis Prograis1:49:11

It would I would have been fight I would have still been fighting trying to do something. I was trying to do everything, you know.

Regis Prograis1:49:22

I'm glad I I'm glad I did it. And I I mean the thing is like I said, they play this narrative like, "Oh, he's big strong guy. He's supposed to stop you and all that stuff." I was coming up, he was coming down. He's younger. All this stuff. And man, I even writing I think I could have beat him. Like even right I saw open I saw I saw opportunity. I saw opening that I could have did something. I just didn't do it. I was like I was like

You know you you ever I forgot the movie. I forgot the movie. It's like a a a motorcycle movie or something like that. And it's with um Lawrence Fsburn and the dude and they riding these bikes and I guess it's like the dad versus son, the the big dog versus and they they they they driving these bikes and they racing.

Regis Prograis1:50:06

And it's the young guy versus the old guy. And they racing and the old guy know he can win but he let off on the throttle and he let him win.

That's kind of how I felt. I felt kind of like that. Like I saw it. I like I remember like jabbing them and they landed and I saw like all right, you know, cuz in southpaw you want to jab to your right. Yeah.

You always want you step you jab, you step to your right and I saw I could have did it and if I would have landed I probably I probably would have dropped him if I would land because he was off balance a little bit but I I saw it I like nah I ain't going to do it. I just saw I was like nah I ain't going to do it. I didn't I didn't

Regis Prograis1:50:54

It's like not that it's I felt like I didn't want to do it but like even like I said getting back to the locker room like I told my son like you said I was nervous the whole time but I'm doing it right. This teach you like bro you got and this is right before the camera's on me right this right before they well the camera about to come in this they like they like one minute to walk. So I'm telling him like, "Look, you see I'm nervous.

I don't want to fight. I'm scared. But when you got to do it." And I said, "Look, if you nervous, cuz this was 70,000 people right in a stadium." I said, "If you nervous, you lean on me. If I'm nervous, I'm going lean on you."

But I walk. But

Regis Prograis1:51:29

He just said, "All right." He's like, "All right, all right. All right."

But the thing is, we create these monsters in our head. That's right.

You know, we we create these big monsters in our head. I can I can still see it right now like how what I thought about um the crowd and stuff. I thought the because it's 70,000 that's the biggest that's a lot of people.

That's a lot of people. That's the biggest crowd 70 or 80,000 people on Netflix.

But when I walked out it wasn't that because the the 70 80,000 people they're not there.

Regis Prograis1:51:59

I'm looking up. They way up there and the lights are on. You can't even see them.

You can't even see, man. I didn't see nobody. That's the thing. It was just like it was just me and him almost. I didn't see nobody even thinking back right now. I didn't see nobody in the

I didn't see I really even didn't even see the crowd, you know, but I was nervous. I was more nervous about like the crowd Netflix that type then kind of been. I wasn't really nervous about that. Was I was nervous about how big the stage was and I didn't want to get embarrassed and stuff like that, you know. But I'm but for me like I'm so glad I did it. Like I said, I did not that fight was the one I struggled with the most out of my whole career.

Regis Prograis1:53:36

I be trying to fight. I'll be trying to If I didn't fight that fight, I'll be trying to do everything. I be trying to do MMA right now, better knuckle boxing. I'll be trying to do everything right now. But I'm And I'm still might do something, but just because I want to play around, not because it's serious or like just because I might just do it. But

Regis Prograis1:53:52

Right. I don't need to prove myself. That's right.

Right. I don't need to prove it. But yeah, I was that's what that's one thing I feel like man two things I realized about that fight was

You have to if you scared of something do it run towards it you know go towards that you know if you in a if you're in a tunnel and it's dark and you they they got the light that's the out go towards that darkness it might be the best thing towards the darkness I'm so glad that I went towards it

And the second thing is we create these monsters in our head and it's not there the monsters every what you imagine your head is way worse always way way worse than what's the actual reality we just create mind in our head you know that's what that's that that's something I did learn about it so for me I'm just like glad that

I'm so glad I got that through and like I'm that's why I feel so at peace right now like I'm so peaceful right now I'm out here in Vegas and I'm I'm like good my kids out here I'm good like you said I'm going through all kind of stuff personally but it don't even bother me like that stuff is like I'm feel like I feel

Regis Prograis1:55:05

Right. Right.

Regis Prograis1:55:24

Everybody, yeah, everybody surprised everybody like, man, like I got so much love. Like after knowing I retired and stuff like I got so much love. People was like, man, you're a warrior. People tell me don't don't quit. You should still fight.

Um, everybody was like kind of proud of me and stuff like that. Even everybody was like so proud and stuff like they thought I was going to get knocked out and all type of stuff. And I just like

I felt good. Like I felt just real good about that. Like even the drive back to the um to the room, my mom, all my friends, we in the we in the um mans and just talking just felt like a a weight lifted off, you know.

Regis Prograis1:56:01

Right,

Regis Prograis1:57:29

Right now. So, um like right now, just being out here like like I was saying earlier, I wanted to get in some business stuff. Um I want to do like the recovery business, the recovery center thing I was talking about. Of course, like you know, I'm going to do a I got a podcast already coming out. have a book already. Working on part two. Um, most likely doing some movie stuff. Probably work on a cartoon. I've been

Regis Prograis1:57:53

I forgot about that.

Regis Prograis1:57:55

I forgot about I do have a car service. I forgot all about I have one. I have a car service in Vegas. Black truck service in Vegas. And um, actually a big celebrity just was in I won't say the name, but a big celebrity was just in uh

A few days ago. Real big real real big celebrity was in my truck um a few days ago. So we have that. I have it in um Houston too. I do um luxury car rentals out there. Do real estate.

Regis Prograis1:58:21

Exotic rental cars. What kind of car?

Uh well the we have that. So I'm with a I'm partner with a um a company everything Lamborghinis. Uh Black Label.

Regis Prograis1:58:38

Project. So we have exotics. anything you want. Literally, I don't even name all the cars. Anything you want, we have that. And I have here I have um black truck service also in Las Vegas. So, that's some things I'm doing. I be I forget about that stuff. Yeah, I am doing that type of stuff, too. Um

Regis Prograis1:58:56

Yeah, I be having so much stuff going. I'll be forgetting about that stuff. So, yeah. But right now, like like I just want to like keep training like you say, I'm a little bigger, lifting weights and stuff like that and like be with my kids right now in Vegas. They probably going back in about 3 weeks. So just, you know, just trying to spin my

Regis Prograis1:59:12

My kids here for the summer. My kids are here for the summer. You

Regis Prograis1:59:14

I got them all.

Regis Prograis1:59:16

Three.

Regis Prograis1:59:17

Three kids. Yeah. I got my my my son is in jiu-jitsu and my daughter my middle daughter is in gymnastics.

Regis Prograis1:59:24

12 9 and five.

Regis Prograis1:59:27

Yeah. Right.

Regis Prograis1:59:35

Really?

Yeah. I got her.

That's crazy. I remember she was a little baby, a little girl. Damn, for real.

Regis Prograis1:59:44

I remember. Yeah.

Regis Prograis1:59:45

Yeah, like a like a Yeah, a werewolf in a

Regis Prograis2:00:10

Basically like the boogeyman.

Regis Prograis2:01:02

A little too. A little rug. Yeah. He loved it, man. It's I I love that because, you know, one when he go when he gets older, he going to just really appreciate that.

Regis Prograis2:01:11

Man. It's crazy. Like Like that's one of my most proudest things cuz my son is like

Like look up to me like crazy. Like he be posting stuff online. I don't be seeing it, but people be sending me like he be like, "Oh, I want to make my dad proud." And stuff like that. posting stuff post cuz I got a bunch of pictures with with me and him in a you know in a in a in a in a locker room together dress room you know like him just with me and you know even from like little to big now he just be with me so like that's cool he actually might want to fight one day maybe

Regis Prograis2:02:49

Right, right, right. Yeah.

Regis Prograis2:02:53

Yeah. Well, that's and that's why I never wanted to name my son after me. I don't want him to I don't want him to be like you don't got to be like me. I'm me and you be you. And that's it. You know, you do something else, you might be better than me, you know. So, you might do something, you know, even you don't have to be an athlete. You don't have to do that stuff. I He still don't want to fight a little bit now.

So, maybe he might want to do it, but you don't have to.

Regis Prograis2:03:17

I think he might want to do MMA.

Regis Prograis2:03:19

Yeah, I know. Cuz he's starting to kick me. He's starting to test me a little bit.

Not test me. He's starting to want to play with me stuff. He want to come behind me, grab my neck. I got keep my Every time he around, I got to keep my chin down. He want to like try to choke me. I got to protect my neck. Yeah, exactly. He want to do that all the time. And he start to kick me and stuff. I'm like, "Come on, bro.

All right, let's do it."

Regis Prograis2:03:41

Yeah.

Regis Prograis2:04:09

It looks like

That's what Yeah, that's what they'll make your hands real. You

Still got the tire heavy bag. I still got Yeah, I still got all that stuff. I still hit it. I still

Regis Prograis2:04:29

Yeah,