Dunedin got its first taste of an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) star when Brian Ebersole held a seminar at Team Hammerhead's training base at the Olympic Fight Centre in Mosgiel on Sunday.
The 31-year-old American took an enthusiastic group of about 30 people through a three-hour seminar in which he shared the skills that got him to the pinnacle of the sport.
With his firm hands, a solid but lean physique, swollen ears and a decent-sized head on his 182cm frame, Ebersole looks every bit a fighter.
He began his professional career in 2000. After fighting in numerous disciplines and events worldwide, he got his opportunity to fight in the UFC last year, which he won after taking the fight on short notice.
"It was in Sydney, and I was in Sydney. Someone got injured, so it was kind of lucky and a bit like the stars were totally aligned for me," Ebersole said.
He then racked up another three wins before losing in July, after accepting his second fight in the space of a month. It was his first loss in any mixed martial arts event since 2008.
Ebersole has a record of 67 professional fights, with 50 wins, one draw and one no-contest.
He has never been knocked out, and shows this statistic off to his opponents by shaving an arrow into his chest which points to his chin.
"I hope my opponents get a laugh out of it and see it as a challenge," Ebersole said.
The UFC was the best promotion he had fought in because everything was "up front" in terms of knowing when you would fight and what you would get paid.
"If you have signed a four-fight deal, you would fight your first three fights and they won't let you fight your fourth one without trying to re-sign you.
"If you don't want to re-sign before that fourth fight, it means you are going to be a free agent, and they probably won't let you do that, so they would push your last fight until the contract was close to running out." Fights were usually spaced three to four months apart.
He declined to say how much he earned except to say when he retired he planned to have "a nice little nest egg".
Rather than get hyped up before his fights, Ebersole said he feels so calm he is almost asleep, and it isn't until the first touch that the adrenaline kicks in.
Born in La Porte, Indiana, Ebersole grew up in Bradley, Illinois, where his grandfather started a wrestling club.
When he was about 5, Ebersole got involved in the sport.
Fifteen years later, he had amassed more than 500 competitive wrestling matches, and had a partial scholarship at Eastern Illinois University.
He went to his first unofficial mixed martial arts class when he was 15, as a way to continue with his wrestling in the off-season. From there, friends' garages, back yards and eventually gyms became the norm.
If he was not a fighter, he would probably be a high school teacher and wrestling coach, he said.
When it comes to training, Ebersole is a bit of a nomad. He trains in Sydney, Phuket and California.
A friendly and articulate man, he is acutely aware of the need to have all his faculties in place when he retires.
"I want to be able to talk and walk and be healthy when I am older. That is why the self-defence aspect is such a big thing to me."
His inspirations were his family and friends, and the great Mahatma Gandhi.
"That guy made a huge impact on a lot of people and showed some strength that a fair few of us would not be able to replicate."
One piece of advice he gave to young fighters was not to take every fight offered, but instead to train and improve.
"I see young guys lose a fight and then think they can get better by getting another fight and that does nothing to improve their skill, so they remain that same fighter."
Ebersole estimated he had held up to 100 seminars worldwide and said he would love the opportunity to come back to Dunedin next year.
