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After UFC stint, Pat Barry returns to his first love -- kickboxing

And yet Barry acknowledges that despite getting KO'd in three of his last four UFC bouts, he is sad to no longer be fighting in MMA. "It was exciting -- the

Jeff Wagenheim

After UFC stint, Pat Barry returns to his first love -- kickboxing
After UFC stint, Pat Barry returns to his first love -- kickboxing /
Pat Barry is retuning to kickboxing after a semi-successful stint on the UFC circuit.
Pat Barry is retuning to kickboxing after a semi-successful stint on the UFC circuit :: Gregory Payan/AP

And yet Barry acknowledges that despite getting KO'd in three of his last four UFC bouts, he is sad to no longer be fighting in MMA. "It was exciting -- the fights, the crowds, everything," he said. "I do plan on staying involved in other ways." Such as training with and cornering his girlfriend, Rose Namajunas, a recent UFC signee who'll compete on Season 20 of The Ultimate Fighter, which will introduce a women's 115-pound division. "But kickboxing is my first love and it's still my passion," said Barry. "For years, there was no outlet for doing this in way that you could be an adult and make a living. But now, with Glory, this is my moment. I can finally get back to doing something that I never wanted to stop doing."

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Jeff Wagenheim
JEFF WAGENHEIM

Paradoxically, Jeff Wagenheim considers himself a pacifist (except when driving in traffic) but nonetheless writes about mixed martial arts, the world's most combative sport (other than driving in traffic). As a veteran of three decades in magazines and newspapers, he's a bit grayer than most who attend UFC fights, even along press row. (A fan watching an MMA media panel show recently referred to him as "that crazy hippie uncle," to which Jeff responds, "Groovy, man!") Wagenheim also has tackled pro football for SI.com, and writes about sports and the arts for The Boston Globe. When he's not on the road chasing the UFC, Jeff spends Sunday afternoons spinning Sleepy LaBeef and Boozoo Chavis records for a popular (but not pop) radio show in western Massachusetts.

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