Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 58 is my conversation with UFC fighter Gregor Gillespie, who is not just another wrestler turned MMA competitor. He is a two-time high school state wrestling champion, a four-time Division I All-American, and an NCAA national champion who brings the exact same intensity to fishing that he brings to the octagon. He goes by #bestfishermaninMMA, and he means it. We talk about the parallels between wrestling discipline and fishing obsession, how he uses time on the water to decompress between fights, and why he called out Chad Mendes for a fish-off instead of a fight.
▶ Watch on YouTube · 🎧 Listen now
Gregor Gillespie is a UFC fighter who came to MMA with an elite wrestling pedigree — a two-time high school state champion, four-time Division I All-American, and NCAA national champion. Outside the cage he is a serious angler who fishes upstate New York for bass and through the ice, and he is known by the hashtag #bestfishermaninMMA.
Gregor uses the hashtag #bestfishermaninMMA and is genuinely serious about his fishing. He is as obsessed with it as he is with fighting, and he famously used a post-fight moment to call out fellow UFC fighter and angler Chad Mendes for a fish-off rather than challenging another opponent in the octagon.
Gregor fishes in upstate New York, where he pursues both bass fishing and ice fishing. He fishes year-round and uses the time on the water to decompress from the intensity of UFC training camps and competition.
Gregor is a two-time high school state wrestling champion, a four-time Division I All-American, and an NCAA national champion. He transitioned from that elite wrestling career into mixed martial arts and now competes in the UFC, carrying the discipline and work ethic of wrestling into both fighting and fishing.
Gregor treats fishing as a mental tool, not just a hobby. The time on the water gives him the reset he needs between camps and helps balance the aggression required in the cage. He talks about decompression as part of performance rather than a distraction from it.
Tom Rowland Podcast Episode 58 with Gregor Gillespie is available on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, and iHeartRadio. The video version is embedded at the top of this page.
I have interviewed a lot of serious anglers, but Gregor brings something different. Here is a guy operating at the highest level of professional fighting who is just as fired up about getting on the water as he is about a title shot. That kind of balance is what makes a person interesting to me — elite at one thing, but still carrying that same drive into something completely different.
And the fact that he called out Chad Mendes for a fish-off instead of another fighter tells you exactly where his head is. Press play in the YouTube player at the top of this page to hear it.
What does it take to become an NCAA national champion, and how does that same mindset turn into fishing obsession? Gregor draws the parallels between two pursuits that look nothing alike on the surface — the focus, the patience, the willingness to grind at something long after it stops being fun. The connection he makes will change how you think about transferable skills. Listen to that section of the episode.
Most fighters use the post-fight mic to call out their next opponent. Gregor used his to challenge Chad Mendes to a fishing competition. It was not a joke — he is serious about his claim to being the best fisherman in MMA. What drove that unconventional callout, and what it says about what really matters to him, is one of the best stories in the conversation. Hear it on the episode.
Gregor does not fish casually. He pursues bass and ice fishing in upstate New York with the same intensity he brings to a camp. How someone training at the top of professional MMA finds time to stay on the water all year — and what draws him to ice fishing in particular — reveals a side of him most UFC fans never see. Press play to hear it.
Training for the UFC demands relentless preparation, and that kind of pressure needs an outlet. For Gregor, that outlet is fishing. He explains how the water resets him between camps and balances the aggression the cage requires — a take on mental recovery that applies far beyond fighting or fishing. Listen to how he frames it.
Listen to the full conversation: ▶ Watch on YouTube · 🎧 Listen now
What struck me about Gregor is how he uses fishing as a mental tool, not just a hobby. He understands that decompression is part of performance — that the time on the water is what lets him bring everything he has when it counts. The parallels he draws between wrestling discipline and fishing obsession are real, the same mindset pointed at different targets.
If you want to understand how someone balances intense competition with the need to recover, and how discipline moves across completely different pursuits, this conversation is worth your time. Press play and hear it.
The Tom Rowland Podcast brings you long-form conversations with the most accomplished anglers, hunters, conservationists, and outdoor professionals in the game. Listen to every full-length Tom Rowland Podcast interview.
Gregor Gillespie is a UFC fighter who brought an elite wrestling pedigree to mixed martial arts — a two-time high school state champion, four-time Division I All-American, and NCAA national champion. The discipline and work ethic that defined his wrestling career now drive both his fighting and his fishing. Known as #bestfishermaninMMA, Gregor fishes upstate New York for bass and through the ice, using time on the water to decompress from intense UFC training camps. He remains humble about his fighting credentials while confidently claiming his title as the best fisherman in the sport.
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