Break on the Bayou

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Do a Google search on heavyweight Ron Sparks, and you are just as likely to find information on the opponents he has not fought as the ones he has. While the list might not include the most accomplished mixed martial artists to ever set foot in a cage, it is certainly noteworthy: Bobby Lashley, Tim Sylvia, Bob Sapp, Ray Mercer and Gary Goodridge have all been previously mentioned as potential foes for the Louisville, Ky., native.

However, none of those bouts actually happened. The reasons behind why they failed to materialize range from the laughable to the perplexing. Mercer, the 1988 Olympic boxing gold medalist, arrived at weigh-ins for their proposed King of the Cage showdown in 2010 grossly out of shape.

“The doctors went up to him and said, ‘There’s no way I’m letting you fight this guy.’” Sparks tells Sherdog.com. “They retired him right then. He weighed in probably about 300 pounds.”

Sylvia, the two-time former UFC heavyweight champion, did not give much of any explanation as to why he pulled out of a fight with the 6-foot-5, 255-pound Sparks.

“They set everything up, and, next thing you know, Tim wouldn’t fight. They wouldn’t give us a reason first,” he says. “[Then] they said it was too risky for a no-namer to beat him, and I guess I was a no-namer. I don’t know 100 percent what it was really, but that’s what I got out of it.”

Even so, the one that leaves the massive former K-1 competitor shaking his head the most was a proposed showdown with Bobby Lashley. The former World Wrestling Entertainment superstar trained with Sparks at Louisville MMA prior to beating Sapp in 2009. In 2010, Strikeforce came to Sparks with an offer to take on Lashley at Strikeforce “Los Angeles.” Given where he was in his career, Sparks could not say no.

“It kind of ruined our friendship,” he says. ‘I said, ‘No hard feelings man. I won’t get offers like this every day.’ So, I took the fight.”

Two weeks out from their scheduled meeting, Lashley withdrew because of a bone bruise. Sparks was incredulous.

“I mean, that’s ridiculous,” he says. “No broken bones or nothing. No offense, [but] Bob knows. It’s just plain and simple; he knew. He don’t like getting hit. I’d have liked to have that win. It definitely would have been nice.”

Past disappointments give Sparks all the more reason to be fired up about getting a chance to make a name for himself in the upcoming Bellator Fighting Championships Season 5 heavyweight tournament, where will take on Oklahoma’s Mark Holata in the first round at Bellator 52 on Saturday at the L’Auberge du Lac Casino and Resort in Lake Charles, La. Three other bouts round out the bracket: Thiago Santos vs. Blagoi Ivanov, Neil Grove vs. Mike Hayes and Abe Wagner vs. Eric Prindle. The winner of the tournament receives $100,000 and a shot at reigning heavyweight champion Cole Konrad.

“I know I’m not the baddest thing out there, and I’m definitely not the weakest, but give me a break,” Sparks says, pointing to his string of bad luck with fights. “Finally, Bellator is the one doing it after all these damn big names I was gonna fight [pulled out].”

The 36-year-old Bruce Lee enthusiast has made a strong impression in his first two bouts with the promotion, finishing Gregory Maynard and Vince Lucero inside of a round. That has been the norm so far for the unbeaten Sparks, nicknamed “The Monster.” Of his seven professional MMA bouts, only one has lasted past the initial frame -- a 2009 decision over 75-fight veteran Johnathan Ivey. It is a decent run for a guy who owned a masonry business by day and served as a 320-pound sparring partner for a group of local boxers in his down time.

“A bunch of guys in Kentucky fought [Eric] ‘Butterbean’ [Esch], so they would always call me in,” Sparks says. “I was a big old boy back then.”

Eventually, Sparks met Jason Weihe, his current trainer at Louisville MMA. Weihe thought Sparks could do more with his ability.

“He pretty much told me that I’m throwing away all this talent,” Sparks says. “[He said], ‘Why don’t you get in there, make some money and have some fun.’ And I did. Here I am now enjoying myself -- 7-0.”

Sparks is at the age where many athletes are on their way out of the fight game. Pointing to five-time UFC champion and hall of famer Randy Couture’s example, he hopes to continue fighting well into his 40s.

“I like to see a guy who’s a little bit older still doing his thing, going out there and still beating the young guys,” he says.

As he peers into his future, Sparks has another big name he would like to see across the cage one day: former Strikeforce heavyweight champion and 2010 K-1 World Grand Prix winner Alistair Overeem.

“I’d like to fight somebody of that caliber,” he says. “He hits like a mule. I’d like to see that, me and him go in there and slug it out, see which one falls.”

If it does not happen, Sparks will take it in stride. Fighting for Bellator has finally given him a national stage through which he can put on a show.

“I want guys to be like, ‘Man that guy, no matter what, win or lose, that guy’s a badass,’” he says. “I could care less about anything but for people to respect me at the end of the day and say, ‘That guy’s a fighter.’”