While on the lam Browning apparently found a place with internet access, writing on Facebook, “Wow what a helluva weekend. Some (expletive) named Sie Menzies and about 10 of his friends started a fight with me. I guess just to test a ‘UFC fighter guy’ at this (expletive) little bar in Karon Thailand. Had a beer bottle and glass mug shattered on my head, then to make everything better, stabbed severely by some crazy Thai (expletive).”

In standard Browning fashion, the controversial competitor also claimed he got the better of the men, adding, “On a positive note, I managed to break a few orbital bones, at least a couple jaws, and some unconscious bodies laying on the ground before I blacked out from loss of blood and apparently had to be resuscitated in the ambulance. So, how was your weekend?”

The situation echos a previous situation where Browning was released from the UFC after taking pills in an alleged suicide attempt and attacking several nurses at a Las Vegas hospital while under their care. He has gone just 1-4 in fights since the release but clearly has bigger issues to worry about at the moment rather than when his next victory might come.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

The controversial former TUF 8 cast member recently spoke with rawvegas.tv to share his feelings on his current situation:

The problem is that when I make a mistake, I make a really bad mistake. It’s not a DUI. It’s not like getting pulled over or something. When I make a mistake I lose control and make a really bad mistake, and that’s definitely what I’m apologizing for.

I just want to take this opportunity to apologize to anyone that was involved in that incident the other night. I truly am very, very sorry.

Pretty much my whole life I’ve been chased by demons, and I’ve had a lot of problems. I mean, it’s pretty obvious. I’m going to continue on working on the problems I have and stuff, but again, I just want to apologize to everyone that was involved. It was a horrible thing that happened.

At this point I’m not just concerned with making myself a better fighter. I mean, it’s obvious that I have a lot more issues than that, so I’m also trying to prove myself as a person. If I have to get help, then I’m going to do that. I’m going to do whatever I have to do to better myself as a person.

Shawn Tompkins took me in and really helped me out a lot, and I even feel like I let him down, but he’s still sticking with me, so it’s awesome. I’m going to prove myself, and I promise you I will get better.

I must admit, I was somewhat thrown off when I reached Browning’s voicemail message just prior to our conversation which let me know that he was most likely to busy to answer his phone because he was doing something absolutely terrible with my mother and that he could care less about what I was calling him about. I left my voice message and waited, not knowing what to expect from the one known as “The Lunatik”. Just thirty seconds later, Junie was calling me back, and much to the contrast of what I had encountered on his voicemail, Browning was sincerely apologetic for not being near his phone the moment that I had called.

The contrast of what I had encountered is probably very similar to those that have seen his numerous debacles during The Ultimate Fighter and then had the pleasure of meeting him in person. Unlike the over the top wildman personality depicted by Junie during the taping of television show, Browning is one of the most down to earth, personable guys you will ever talk to and keeps things surprisingly low key around his stomping grounds of Las Vegas.

Browning will forever be one of those guys that you either love, hate, or love to hate. As the saying goes, good press, bad press, it’s all press. The spotlight is unlikely to stop shining on the outspoken twenty three year old anytime soon.

The next stop in Browning’s quest to show the world that he is in the UFC to stay pits him against the rangy and always dangerous Cole Miller. The 6′ 1″ lightweight’s last outing saw Miller finish off jiu-jitsu black belt, Jorge Gurgel, by triangle choke and his experience in the octagon presents all sorts of problems for an up and coming fighter.

Browning confirmed in an exclusive interview with FiveOuncesOfPain.com that he hopes that Miller is as tough everyone says he is. He wants to have the opportunity to convince his doubters he is one of the lightweight divisions brightest rising stars.

Cory Brady of FiveOuncesOfPain.com: How do you feel you match up with Cole Miller?

Junie Browning: I think we match up really good actually. I think that this is a really good match up for me. The thing that kills me the most is really good wrestlers. I feel like Cole won’t be able to take the fight to the ground and I’ll have the ability to dictate where the fight goes.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: So you’re not going to be that worried about keeping the fight standing necessarily?

Junie Browning: Not really. I think his submission win over Jorge Jurgel was more just a mistake on Gurgel’s part. I don’t think it had anything to do with Cole Miller having slick jiu-jitsu. It wasn’t really like he was really technical in setting him up with it, it was more than Gurgel slipped and just got caught. Anyone else he’s fought, he hasn’t really shown me anything spectacular on the ground.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Now you’ve already said that you think your wrestling is going to be one of your advantages over Miller. What other advantages do you feel you may have going into this one?

Junie Browning: I think my conditioning and my toughness are going to be big advantages for me. I’m not going to say that my striking is so much better than his because his reach is definitely going to be a factor. I feel like my conditioning is so good right now that I could just brawl with him for all three rounds.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What are some of the most noticeable improvements that you have seen in your game since coming to Xtreme Couture?

Junie Browning: Everything, to be honest. I’d say that what I have been working on more than anything is my wrestling, my conditioning and just trying to be more technical with my stand up. My stand up wasn’t as bad as I made it look on the show, the way I kept dropping my hands and getting sloppy, that isn’t how I normally fight. I think I was trying to be cocky for the show, dropping my hands and letting people hit me, stuff like that. I realize that this is and the skill level is going to be a lot higher than what was typically on the show so I’m not going to be screwing around and dropping my hands like I was.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: I heard that you never really had a formal striking coach before the filming of the show. Is that true?

Junie Browning: Well I had a boxing coach back home, but it was really traditional type boxing. A lot of the boxing stuff doesn’t really transition over to MMA very well by itself. What I learned back home was just straight boxing. In MMA I feel like you have to use your reach a lot more and it’s a lot harder to get off on the inside. Since I’ve been training with Shawn Tompkins and Xtreme Couture, my kicks and everything have gotten a lot better.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: So what would be the absolute perfect ending to this bout for you?

Junie Browning: I know this is kind of crazy to say because most people want to hurry up and get the fight finished but I either want to get knockout of the night, submission of the night or fight of the night. Preferably fight of the night so people can enjoy it and Cole will get some money out of it too. I heard that Cole is a really cool guy so I don’t want for it to be one of those super hyped up fights. If he’s really that good, it will be a good fight, he’ll get some money and I’ll get some money, that would be cool.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Is it important to you that you’re known as the kind of fighter that finishes his fights?

Junie Browning: Oh, of course. I’m in there to finish it. I mean, worse case scenario, I want fight of the night. I’d love to go in there and knock him out in thirty seconds, but winning is the most important thing to me. Especially at this point because I feel like I have a lot more to prove than a lot of the other fighters. I’m going to try to take him out as soon as possible.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: How are you liking living in Vegas?

Junie Browning: It’s awesome. I mean it’s a dream training scenario for me. My problem before has always been a lack of training partners and not getting the training that could take me to the level that I want to be, but out here you can go from gym to gym. I bounce around between two or three gyms every day out here.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: The gym scene is definitely a lot more active in Vegas but so is the night life. Are you able to avoid going out partying and all of that type of stuff?

Junie Browning: Yeah, I don’t ever really go out, especially when I have a fight coming up. I’m not going to lie, after this fight I’ll probably take a couple weeks off to relax and I’ll probably wake up in a gutter every day. I like to enjoy myself and I believe that one of the rewards of having to train hard all the time is being able to do that kind of stuff. I’m not the same person that I was on the show anymore. I have a fight coming up. I don’t go out and it’s not even hard for me. It’s not even something that I have to talk myself out of. I’m really focused on this fight right now.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: So do you believe in the whole no sex before a fight thing?

Junie Browning: Oh, hell no. That’s an old boxing myth. I have sex three or four times a day all the way up to the fight. It helps me train better.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Did you give your brother Robbie any advice before he entered the Ultimate Fighter house?

Junie Browning: I told him to be himself and have an outgoing personality, big time. I told him not to be the guy that nobody remembers next season. Just for him to go in there and train hard and do his thing. I don’t think anyone is going to be disappointed by that.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Would you say your brother is a lot like you in many ways?

Junie Browning: Oh yeah. He’s at the same point in his fighting career that I was right before the show. Just working all the time and trying to stay motivated to train. It’s not just us though, everybody in Kentucky where I’m from is wild like this. It’s a Kentucky thing.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: I have noticed that a bunch of the top ten lightweight rankings I’m seeing currently have Shinya Aoki as the top lightweight in the world. What are your thoughts on Aoki?

Junie Browning: I watch a lot of fights and people have their opinions. My opinion on Aoki is that I don’t believe that he could hang with most of the UFC lightweights today. I believe that the rules in Dream are so different with no elbows. He likes to play a lot of spider guard off of his back and rubber guard, stuff like that, and it’s hard to ground and pound someone in the guard that is latched onto you like that with no elbows. It allows for Aoki to use a lot more wrist control and stuff like that. In the UFC, if he tried to do a lot of that wrist control and stuff that he does off of his back, people would just come over the top with elbows to get the wrist release from him. Plus, I don’t believe that he could take down or pull guard on half of the guys in the UFC. I think a lot of the guys in the UFC would stuff his takedowns and just beat him up standing. Half of the guys in the UFC would just murder him standing. Plus, he could get stacked against the cage and that would hurt him, big time. The UFC is filled with a lot of great wrestlers and I think that would kill him. It’s hard to say, we’ll see if Aoki is ever brave enough to ever come over to the UFC, we’ll see.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: If you were alone in the woods and got into a fight with a grizzly bear that was identical to you in height, but heavier because it’s a bear, who walks away?

Junie Browning: I’ll poke him in his [expletive] eyeballs. I’d bite his [expletive] nose. I was watching Manswers or some show like that the other night and they were talking about what you should do if you’re attacked by a grizzly bear and they said to either bite him on the nose or poke him in his eyes. I doubt I would be walking away from that one but I guarantee you that he’ll know that he was in a fight before he rips my head off.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Would you stand and trade with the bear, take the action to the canvas or just go with the flow?

Junie Browning: I would pull a Machida and just stick and move. I would just avoid the fight completely, as much as possible. Lyoto’s going to hate me after that comment.(laughing)

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Alright man, Fight Club question, if you could fight anyone on earth, whether living or dead, who would it be?

Junie Browning: I’d have to say Floyd Mayweather. I would love to ground and pound him. I love him as a boxer but I would just really love to fight him. I’m not dumb, I wouldn’t even attempt to stand with him. I just want to show him how much more difficult it is to avoid a takedown than what he thinks.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What is your absolute favorite hobby outside of beating the crap out of people?

Junie Browning: Hanging out with my girlfriend, that’s just about it. Have sex a lot. Especially when you have a fight coming up, you train so much, just have sex and train. Maybe try to play some video games or watch a movie in between, something like that.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Is there anyone you would like to thank?

Junie Browning: I want to thank TapouT and Denaro Sports Marketing.

Robert Browning, the younger brother of the infamous UFC lightweight and season 8 contestant Junie Browning, is reportedly one of the 16 American fighters who will be competing for a spot on the next installment of The Ultimate Fighter.

This year’s show will have season three winner and British middleweight Michael Bisping as one coach and former PRIDE welterweight and middleweight champion Dan Henderson as the other.

Following the same format that was introduced with season seven, 32 fighters will be brought in to compete for an opportunity to be one of 16 fighters who will be featured on the show. There will be eight lightweights and eight welterweights on this year’s show.

The show which began production earlier this month will debut on Spike TV on April 1st after UFC Fight Night 18.

Robert Browning, who sports a 1-0 professional record along with an amateur record of 4-2, has fought for organizations in Kentucky including the American Fight League, where he is their amateur featherweight champion.

His older brother somehow survived many attempts at getting himself thrown off the show which included throwing glasses at fellow cast members and threatening many other fighters as well. Junie who was an emotional wreck and had a severe problem with alcohol was confronted on more than one occasion by UFC President Dana White. He lost to eventual champion Efrain Escudero in the semi-finals.

Insiders have said that Browning seems to have cleaned up his act and is now training in Las Vegas with Xtreme Couture. He showed the skills that some had raved about during a second round submission victory over David Kaplan on the live finale. After the fight, Browning apologized and promised to keep working hard and stay out of trouble. He will meet Cole Miller at UFC Fight Night 18 on April 1.

Escudero defeated a game Phillipe Nover at lightweight via unanimous decision in the night’s main event. Escudero looked crisp during the fight and utilized his best weapon, his wrestling, to nullify Phillipe Nover’s standup game. Every time Nover would come in to throw a right hand, Escudero would duck under and take him to the ground and control him from there. Nover was game, though, and did not quit looking for submissions from the bottom and even seemed to have Escudero in some trouble with an omoplata attempt late in the third round. The Mexican born fighter survived, however, and went on to take the decision from the fighter that many considered the favorite going into the bout.

Ryan Bader was able to secure a TKO victory over his opponent, Vinny Magalhaes, in the first round. Going into the fight many believed the only way that Bader had a chance to win was to keep the fight standing and that’s exactly what he did. The fight didn’t even have a chance to hit the ground as Bader threw a strong right hand that grazed the jiu jitsu ace’s temple, sending him to the canvas. From there Bader jumped in with solid hammer fists that forced the referee to step in and stop the fight.

In other action on the card, Anthony Johnson was able to finally set the record straight in convincing fashion with his head kick knockout over Kevin Burns in the third round. After the way the first contest ended between these two competitors, Johnson wanted to make sure he put an exclamation point at the end of this fight and that’s exactly what he did. For the first two rounds it was a good battle with Johnson landing some nice strikes as well as taking Burns to the ground. Burns was no slouch off his back, however, looking for submissions the entire time and landing some decent strikes of his own. At the beginning of round three, Johnson threw a head kick that landed right on Burns’ chin and sent the Iowa fighter crashing to the mat in a heap. Johnson exacted his revenge and looks to be on the up and up at 170 lbs.

Wilson Gouveia, who was unable to make the 185 lbs. weight limit yesterday, made quick work of Jason MacDonald, winning via submission in the first round. Gouveia hit MacDonald with a left hand that put MacDonald down early and never let up from there, pouncing on him and landing a barrage of elbows that split MacDonald’s face open. Gouveia continued to rain down blows and forced MacDonald to eventually tap due to strikes. Gouveia said afterward that making weight will never be a problem again and that he absolutely intends on staying at middleweight.

In the night’s opening fight, Junie Browning made an impressive showing, submitting Dave Kaplan in the second round with an armbar. Browning looked like a much improved fighter than what was shown on the television show, working in crisp striking and footwork along with takedowns, guard passes, and an overall well-rounded game. Browning’s conditioning was not a factor either as he dominated Kaplan in every aspect of the fight. Browning apologized to Frank Mir after the fight, saying he was sorry that he gave Mir trouble on the show.

Full results from the event are below:

MAIN CARD:

• Junie Browning def. David Kaplan via submission 1:32, Round 2.

• Wilson Gouveia def. Jason MacDonald via TKO 2:18, Round 1.

• Anthony Johnson def. Kevin Burns via knockout 0:28, Round 3.

• Ryan Bader def. Vinny Magalhaes via KO 2:18, Round 1.

• Efrain Escudero def. Phillipe Nover via unanimous decision.

• Roli Delgado def. John Polakowski via submission 2:18, Round 2.

PRELIMINARY CARD:

• Shane Nelson def. George Roop via split decision.

• Tom Lawlor def. Kyle Kingsbury via unanimous decision

• Eliot Marshall def. Jules Bruchez via submission 1:27, Round 1.

• Krzysztof Soszynski def. Shane Primm via submission 3:27, Round 2.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com had the chance to speak with Browning following his semifinal elimination loss to house rival Escudero and get his thoughts on going after Shane Primm; the fight with Escudero; Frank Mir as a coach; the bouts between the finalists; and more.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Do you feel like you were looking for a way out of the house when you got into it with Shane Primm or was it more that you just got angry and reacted?

Junie Browning: I was more or less just pissed off but the simple fact that I didn’t want to fight helped me not think of the consequences. I was at a point where I didn’t really care. It wouldn’t have bothered me if they kicked me off because I knew I was out of shape and shouldn’t have been fighting.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: So what are your thoughts looking back on your fight with Efrain?

Junie Browning: It was horrible. I looked like [expletive]. I fought horribly. I felt like the longer I was on the show the worse I was getting.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Why did you feel like you were getting worse as the show went on?

Junie Browning: People don’t want to train and wack cardio. People say “Well you can do your own cardio” but I don’t think that’s possible. I feel like you can only push yourself so far without someone being there to push you cardio wise. There was nobody there to do that for us. After my second fight I hurt my foot and I couldn’t train for like a week and a half, two weeks but they didn’t show that on there.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: So you were left trying to play catch up with your training?

Junie Browning: Yeah, big time.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Were you surprised with Efrain’s willingness to stand and trade with you?

Junie Browning: No, I think he knew I was out of shape and he was going to try to push the cardio. It was his best chance to try to show that he had some stand up. It was smart of him. He knew i was out of shape. I couldn’t push the pace or anything. I was watching the show and you could even hear his corner saying “Oh he’s tired, he’s tired” and he would get even more psyched the more tired I got. He knows if I was 100% that he wouldn’t be able to do any of that stuff?

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Do you feel like you were really caught in that D’arce choke or that it was more from fatigue?

Junie Browning: I was really caught but I should never let it get to that point. I was so out of shape. The submissions that I would normally just fight out of or muscle out of, at that point I was so tired I think I would have gotten caught in just about anything. I was so tired that I don’t think I had the intestinal fortitude to fight or anything. I just wasn’t making anything happen on the bottom. I was just laying there being lazy in my guard. I wasn’t trying to get my guard back as much as I should have. You should never go into a fight out of shape and I knew it was going to be like that too. I feel like if I couldn’t beat him in the first round then I couldn’t beat him at all.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Is that why you went for that takedown for so long in the first?

Junie Browning: In my mind I felt like I had to take him down. I felt like if I didn’t take him down that he would end up on top and either get a submission or I would just gas out. The takedown made me even more tired. I felt like I could take him down but I started getting lazy with the takedown. When I went for singles I just sat there instead of attacking the other leg.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Are you going to be interested in a rematch with Efrain at some point?

Junie Browning: I would fight him tomorrow. I would rematch him in the gym. It would be a first rounder for sure. I know for sure. It was a horrible fight for me. I don’t normally fight like that. I normally push the pace and fight hard. I was concentrating on not getting tired and that’s never a good way to fight. You shouldn’t be worrying about your cardio. I don’t make excuses up, I fought horrible and that’s just part of the game. I should have been prepared. I’d be prepared to fight him tomorrow now.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Do you feel like you were let down by some of the guys for not training with you enough?

Junie Browning: Not really Shane Nelson but the rest of the lightweights, yeah. I felt really disappointed and that they were lazy but I’ll pay them back for that next Saturday.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Do you feel like Frank Mir gave you the training you expected?

Junie Browning: Not at all. I didn’t necessarily expect him to be training one-on-one that much because I know he has stuff to do but I expected him to at least bring people in. He brought in Joe Stevenson once and that was awesome training but that was once. I should have been getting that kind of training every day.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: How do you feel about Frank Mir’s decision to stop shouting out advice towards the end of the fight?

Junie Browning: The funny thing is, he gives up on me like he was disappointed but he was never there to train with me to begin with. How am I going to listen to my corner when he was never there for me to begin with?

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What about when he said he liked everyone on his team except for you?

Junie Browning: I saw that coming. I figured that. he doesn’t say anything all season and then as soon as I lose and make him look bad then he doesn’t like me.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: So who do you see coming out on top between Mir and Nogueira?

Junie Browning: If Mir treats his training the way he did on the show then I definitely see Nogueira winning. If Mir actually trains I think he’s a little more athletic so he could do good so I don’t know how I see that one going. From what I saw from Frank on the show I could see Nogueira winning just based on conditioning and heart. I don’t know if that’s necessarily how he is now but based on how he trained on the show I couldn’t see him beating too many people right now. I don’t see that Brock Lesnar fight going the same if he continues to train like he did on the show.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: How about Ryan Bader and Vinny Magalhaes?

Junie Browning: I see Vinny winning by submission. Bader pretty much does the same thing to everybody. Unless Bader can beat Vinny standing. It’s hard to take Vinny down and hold him. His jiu-jitsu is on a whole other level. I see him train every day. The first time at practice with Xtreme Couture he put Forrest Griffin in a flying armbar like three times. His jiu-jitsu is really sick. There’s no way Bader is just going to be able to hook him down like he did Elliot. Vinny’s submissions are just way too good. Even if Vinny doesn’t submit him there’s no way that Bader will be able to just lay on him.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What about Phillipe Nover and Efrain Escudero?

Junie Browning: I’d say Phillipe if it stays standing but if Efrain takes him down I could see Efrain winning a decision. The whole determining factor on that fight will be takedowns.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: So were you ever serious about retiring or were you just frustrated and venting at the time?

Junie Browning: I was just pissed. They do that confessional immediately after the fight so after I went home I had time to think about it and realized that it wasn’t my 100%. I can’t quit. Especially when I know that I didn’t give it my all. I never want to leave the sport knowing that I didn’t do my best. I’ll never quit.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Do you feel like you were accurately depicted on the show or do you think the editing made you seem a little more hostile than you really are?

Junie Browning: No, I’m pretty much crazy. It doesn’t matter. I’m good now and I’m not getting into any trouble. Not everybody can be the good guy.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: So if you had the chance to do it all over again, would you?

Junie Browning: Yeah, I would just do things differently. I would have been more prepared and tried to get on the other team.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: What does the future hold for you?

Junie Browning: People will see next Saturday.

FiveOuncesOfPain.com: Anyone you would like to thank?

Junie Browning: TapouT and Denaro Sports Marketing.

i have one fight left on my contract i want to stay with the ufc but i am going to go were the money is right now Brock is making more m0ney then me that has to change i have a better name then him and i am a better fighter then him, in case u didn’t know my manager runs m1 so i have a pretty good in so we will see what happens in the next few months.

If this is for real, this will be another serious blow to the UFC heavyweight division, obviously. This seems like just another indicator of how Zuffa is really running the UFC. It’ll be interesting to see how Zuffa handles this situation, be it giving Sylvia more money or letting him leave for M-1, and if it will effect other fighters perception of the UFC and how Zuffa is handling their fighters.

For UFC 81, Sylvia earned $100,000 for his losing effort against Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, plus an addition $60,000 for “fight of the night” honors. Brock Lesnar on the other hand, earned $250,000 for his loss against former UFC heavyweight champ Frank Mir, and had he won he would have earned an additional $200,000.