This Is Gonna Hurt: The Life of a Mixed Martial Arts Champion (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Marc Shapiro (Author)
Key Phrases: ultimate fighter, wrestling season, mixed martial arts, Tito Ortiz, Huntington Beach, Dana White (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Love him or hate him...Tito Ortiz is one of the most recognizable figures in mixed martial arts."-- The Tennessean --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description

He's the ultimate showman in the world's greatest spectator sport -- a controversial, charismatic figure who has dominated Ultimate Fighting for more than ten years as one of its most exciting and skillful stars.

But for Tito Ortiz, life very nearly took a different path. Growing up in Huntington Beach, California, Ortiz spent part of his childhood living in motels and in the backs of other people's houses, as his heroin-addicted parents were forced to leave one apartment after another. By the time he was in sixth grade, he had dabbled in almost every drug available, and his early youth involved time in juvenile detention centers, a string of petty crimes, and a stint in a local gang. Then, in high school, Tito discovered wrestling -- the perfect match for this tough, streetwise, ambitious kid.

Tito made his mixed martial arts debut at UFC 13 in 1997, winning his first fight in twenty-two seconds. In 2000, he was chosen as a light heavyweight contender in UFC 25 and took the belt, successfully defending it five times in the following three years.

Tito Ortiz pulls no punches as he recounts his journey from Huntington Beach Bad Boy to UFC superstardom -- his difficult upbringing, his first marriage and struggles with fidelity, his battles with the UFC, his career highs and lows, and his current happy relationship with former porn star Jenna Jameson. An inspirational story of beating the odds, and an incredible glimpse into just what it takes to win in the world's most brutal arena, This Is Gonna Hurt is raw, frank, funny, and as fearless as its subject.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Simon Spotlight Entertainment (May 6, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1416955410
• ISBN-13: 978-1416955412
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #112,670 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #20 in

  Books > Sports > Individual Sports > Mixed Martial Arts

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Reading this is gonna hurt, July 13, 2008

By	J. Bosiljevac (san fran, ca) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I shouldn't have expected much of a book written by a guy who's best known for smashing heads. Tito Ortiz was, for quite awhile, the light-heavyweight champion and poster boy for the UFC. I'm a big Tito Ortiz fan. He's brash, cocky, and hasn't been at the top of the heap for several years now, but I think he's a good guy at heart and he's done a lot of good things for the sport.

Unfortunately, I can't say many good things about this autobiography. Tito talks mostly about his troubled youth and how he got into the fight game. He details his early drug use, his romances (and his many infidelities), his feuds with other fighters and UFC president Dana White, and his charitable activities. I wish he'd given as much attention to his fights--the strategies, or breaking down how the fight went. Instead, he recaps most of his fights in a paragraph or two, giving the name and date of the event , a few sentences about how the fight unfolded, an excuse if he lost (nearly always an injury that kept him from training to his fullest potential), and what was on his t-shirt (he considers his t-shirts to be one of his trademarks--I never paid much attention to them myself). I wasn't expecting a book on fighting strategy, necessarily, but it would have been more interesting. What we get instead is a celebrity bio, with some entertaining takes on some other fighters and celebrities.

If there's any insight given in this book it comes early in some advice Tito got from fellow fighter Tank Abbott: "You talk the smack to make people either love you or hate you. Once they love you or hate you, then they'll talk about you. If they stop talking about you, then you've got problems." Above all else, Tito knows how to market himself.

Unfortunately, the rest of the book is fairly insufferable. The writing, even though Shapiro is credited, seems like it's straight dictate from Tito. We're treated to such gems as this recounting of a childhood fight: "There was this kid who was trying to bully me. I stood up and punched him real hard. He fell down, started crying, and ran away. He never bullied me again." There are strange, interview-style quotes from friends and family scattered throughout, all completely redundant with what comes before or after. The laughably sappy section about Tito falling for ex-pornstar Jenna Jameson is wisely at the end of the book. Otherwise, I may not have been able to finish. I give Tito props for overcoming a tough upbringing and rising to the top of his game, as well as for all he's done for the sport of mixed martial arts. But he should stick to fighting. Indeed, this is gonna hurt.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very suprised, May 11, 2008

By	Caelin Beaty (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Although I'm a big MMA fan, when I picked up this book I can't say I was a big Tito fan. I've read Chuck Liddell, Matt Hughes, Ken Shamrock, and Jens Pulver's books. I've read the autobiographies in the beginning of BJ Penn, Ken Shamrock (2nd book) and Randy Couture's books, not to mention various books on fighting like Sam Sheridan's "A Fighter's Heart". I have to say the only one I enjoyed as much as this was Jens Pulver's "Little Evil". Although there's plenty of fighting material to keep any MMA fan interested, what really stands out is Tito's honesty and willingness to write about his troubled childhood and the many mistakes he made on his way up though the world of fighting. This is the kind of painful and humble story that makes even the biggest hater not only have respect for the sport, but specifically for Tito. Along with fighter's stories, I've read many autobiographies from Augusten Burroughs to Drew Barrymore, and I have to say this ranks up there as the most endearing and entertaining of them all. I was already going to UFC 84 to see Ivan Salaverry fight (I belong to his gym), but now I'll be cheering for Tito as well, he's definitely won over a new fan.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Maybe the title is a warning to prospective readers?, June 11, 2008

By	Kevin Quinley "GeezerJock" (Fairfax, VA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Viva la Tito!!!

"This is Gonna Hurt" is an autobiography of the short life of one Tito Ortiz. Among the revelations and themes of this book:

* Tito clearly has a vendetta with Dana White, who he excoriates as a two-faced wannabe' - no news there. I doubt these two will be exchanging Christmas cards.
* He paints an unflattering picture of Chuck Liddell as a lackey of the UFC, a "company man." At one point, he describes Liddell as a trailer park kind of guy who walks around in flip-flops and T-shirts
* When he wasn't in the ring, Tito had a hard time (no pun intended) keeping it in his pants, as he was flagrantly unfaithful to his wife (Kristin) and the mother of his child
* Growing up was not exactly an Ozzie and Harriett environment for little Tito, who writes that he was doing drugs and downing beers by age five. The guy deserves credit for rising above his upbringing.
* He describes his courtship of porn star Jenna Jameson. Hey -- who says romance is dead?! This pairing must make it interesting when they have friends over for "home movie" night!

Overall, Tito comes off refreshingly candid. He lays it all out there and does not try to portray himself as any kind of saint. I must say that seeing him during his season on The Ultimate Fighter and later on Celebrity Apprentice, he came off as being very personable. His following in the UFC seemed disproportionate to his ring success. I'm hard-pressed to recall when he last beat a top-level MMA fighter - no disrespect to Forest Griffith, who is superb and who fought valiantly in their bout. Tito never beat Liddell. Never beat Couture. Losing an unanimous decision recently to Lyoto Machida, Tito seems to be in the twilight of his career, even as he jumps ship to some competing league to earn more dough.

To be an MMA champ nowadays, you need more than peroxided hair and a shtick. Tito has both, but no belt. His prime time has passed, so he better make $$$ off his autobiography while he can. (For those who can't catch his old bouts on UFC shows, you can always TiVo Tito...)

For MMA fans, the book will be mildly interesting. For Tito-philes, it will be fascinating. I feel somewhat charitable in rating it as three-stars. Your mileage (and enjoyment) may vary.