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Shane Carwin has posted a fascinating blog recalling what he was thinking when skin was hanging off of the side of his face as Junior Dos Santos was rearranging his nose at UFC 131. “All I needed was one clean shot.”

One of the great advantages of being a sports fan in the 21st century is the immediate feedback from athletes through social media and networks. Shane Carwin is a great example of this as he wasted no time giving fans an exclusive look inside the mind of a UFC fighter 24 hours after losing the biggest fight of his career.

Carwin wrote a lengthy blog documenting his thoughts before, during, and after his UFC 131 loss to Junior Dos Santos. I won’t copy and paste the entire thing out of respect for the blog, but there is one highlight in particular which gives you a fascinating look into his thought process in the midst of the worst beating of his career.

“After the second round I knew I was in trouble. My nose made it impossible to breathe, my eyes were full of blood and Junior was still coming at me. When the ref stopped the fight in the third, I thought it was over. When the doctor came in the octagon I knew it was going to be up to me to sell them on letting me continue. I knew I was in deep trouble but I also knew that all I needed was one clean shot. I wanted to keep myself in the fight. I wasn’t able to see but I said I could and we continued.”

All sarcasm aside, it is impossible not to have a new level of respect for Carwin after reading his blog. If UFC fighters aren’t the toughest athletes in sports, I don’t know who is. Here is a guy with skin hanging off of his face, unable to see oncoming strikes, and a crimson mask of blood continuing to look for that one knockout punch. I don’t think anyone would have questioned Carwin’s heart if he was unable to continue after the doctor entered the cage. Reading about his mindset at the time is truly something that deserves a lot of respect.

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I read rumblings on some boards and on Twitter from MMA fans that felt Carwin should consider retiring after the fight. What is left for Carwin at 35 years old after suffering two hellacious defeats in the UFC to top heavyweights? Well if you thought Carwin was going to retire, you have another thing coming.

“Being in wars like I was in last night are important test for your career and I am confident I belong in the cage with the best fighters in the world. I need to keep working hard on my technique and testing myself. There are no easy fights at this level, no gimmes. I have to get my nose fixed and once the swelling goes down I need to have my cheek looked at as it may be broken. I can’t wait to heal and get back into the gym and begin working on my game.”

I would encourage anyone who watched the fight Saturday night to give his blog a read. It says a lot about Carwin’s heart and character. Quite a comparison to Brock Lesnar who refused to talk about his loss to Cain Velasquez in a book about his life that fans paid $15-25 to read.

My only hope here is that this blog makes the rounds in the MMA community and the UFC audience so quick to criticize Carwin on Sunday morning has a chance to take a deeper look into the mind of this warrior. I wasn’t a big Shane Carwin fan on Saturday night. I am now.

Read the entire blog at shane-carwin.com.

UFC 131: dos Santos vs. Carwin DVD

Brock Lesnar’s autobiography – Death Clutch: My Story of Determination, Domination, and Survival

UFC: Ultimate Royce Gracie DVD

UFC 131 Official Program

Bad Boy Junior Dos Santos Walkout T-shirt – Black Sand

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