As Roland Delorme made his way to the octagon, 15,000-plus fellow Winnipeggers began to chant ‘Rolly! Rolly! Rolly!’
“It’s a feeling you’ll never be able to replicate,” said Delorme in a recent chat with the Free Press.
“It’s a feeling of euphoria that you could chase your whole life and never get it again.”
It was June 15, 2013, and the Ultimate Fighting Championship was making its debut in the city with a pay-per-view, UFC 161, inside the downtown Winnipeg arena.
JOHN WOODS / THE CANADIAN PRESS FILES
Roland Delorme knees Edwin Figueroa in the head during a bantamweight bout during UFC 161 in Winnipeg on June 15, 2013.
Delorme, who was 28 at the time, competed on the company’s reality TV series called The Ultimate Fighter and made strong enough of an impression to earn a contract with Dana White’s promotion. Just over a year later, Delorme was asked to open the preliminary card — which aired live on Sportsnet — on his hometown card in a bantamweight bought with Edwin Figueroa out of Texas.
“Every walkout is always exciting for every fight. And every UFC walkout is always that much more exciting,” said Curtis Brigham, the owner of the Winnipeg Academy of Mixed Martial Arts, who was in Delorme’s corner that night and coached him for a decade.
“But there was no other walkout that compared to that one with a sold-out, hometown crowd screaming Rolly’s name.”
It was an experience that no MMA fighter from Winnipeg had experienced before, and one that may never happen again.
It was announced last week that UFC Fight Night will be held at the Canada Life Centre on April 18, but no local fighters are expected to be on the card. Brad Katona, a 34-year-old Winnipegger and two-time Ultimate Fighter winner, was released in June.
RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS
Roland Delorme (right), with Winnipeg Academy of Mixed Martial Arts owner, Curtis Brigham, who was his trainer.
“When I got to the UFC, my actual goal was to never be a champion. I trained with world champions before, I know what it takes to get there, and I knew that likely probably wasn’t going to happen,” said Delorme, now 42.
“But I was hoping to just be the first UFC fighter from Winnipeg to fight in Winnipeg and that’s something nobody can take away from me.”
Most fights underdelivered that night — including the main event that saw Rashad Evans beat Dan Henderson via decision after 15 forgettable minutes. Thankfully, Delorme did his part earlier in the evening to make sure everyone went home happy. His arm was raised after an entertaining three-round battle to improve his career record to an impressive 9-1.
Not bad for a guy who was making a living by running a Niakwa Pizza in Niverville a few years prior. He sold the business to fully pursue mixed martial arts, and that night solidified that it was a wise decision.
“I wouldn’t exactly recommend people do that. Don’t just sell your whole life and then just hope and pray. But I would never tell somebody not to chase a dream… You don’t want to be the guy sitting in the bar drinking a beer going ‘I coulda been a contender!’” said Delorme, doing his best Marlon Brando impersonation.
RUTH BONNEVILLE / FREE PRESS
Roland Delorme plans to be in attendance at UFC Fight Night at the Canada Life Centre on April 18.
But unless you’re a top star, it’s not easy to make a living off punches, kicks and chokeholds.
Delorme was paid $20,000 for that fight, and that number would’ve been slashed in half had he lost.
“It looks great because you’re on TV and they put you up in a nice hotel,” he said.
“But I paid for my training for three months, and I went out to Thailand to train for eight weeks before that fight and I paid for that. I had to pay my taxes, I had to pay my manager, so I’m really only getting half of that $20K. And I pay for my food and accomodations, so I’m basically breaking even.”
Delorme went on to have a three-fight losing streak before being released by the UFC in January 2015 and he retired soon after.
“I knew the writing was on the wall. And the fact I got that fight in Winnipeg and won, I was good with it,” said Delorme, who is one of four Manitobans to fight in the UFC with Joe Doerksen, Krzysztof Soszynski and Katona being the others.
“I did my dream. There’s nothing else for me that I can accomplish.”
“I did my dream. There’s nothing else for me that I can accomplish.”
He got back into the world of pizza for a few years before transitioning into the car business and starting Roland Delorme Automotive Solutions. He has two kids — Taliya, 15, and Taze, nine — and a partner named Melissa who has five kids.
“Our house feels like there’s a kid’s birthday party going on at all times,” said Delorme with a laugh.
Although it will be in a much different capacity this time, Delorme plans to be in attendance in April when Michael Malott (13-2-1) of Burlington, Ont., and Brazil’s Gilbert Burns (22-9-0) headline in a five-round welterweight bout. This will be the UFC’s third visit, and first since Dec. 17, 2017, for UFC on FOX 26.
“It’ll be weird going to a UFC event and not being on it,” he said.
“But my kids want to experience it, and it’ll be my first time going a UFC event with my kids and my wife, so I think the experience will be worth the money.”
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And for any up-and-comers around these parts that want to one day compete on that stage, Delorme has some free advice.
“My advice is easy, man. Hard work pays off, and hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard,” he said.
“I don’t believe in luck. I believe in putting yourself in a position to be lucky.”
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Taylor Allen
Reporter
Taylor Allen is a sports reporter for the Winnipeg Free Press. Taylor was the Vince Leah intern in the Free Press newsroom twice while earning his joint communications degree/diploma at the University of Winnipeg and Red River College Polytechnic. He signed on full-time in 2019 and mainly covers the Blue Bombers, curling, and basketball. Read more about Taylor.
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