“Fast” Eddie Constantine 1/2/79 – 1/25/10

It was one year ago today our dear friend “Fast” Eddie Constantine left us. Eddie was one of the original members of the Pro MMA Now staff (Pro MMA – promma.info back then).

Most people in the MMA community knew Eddie for his interviews and “The INFO” radio show, which he named by the way as a way to accentuate our unique URL address. But before he started doing either of those, he did a series of videos called “Lessons in Humility” where he would roll with accomplished grapplers.

I spent all last evening watching those videos and listening to a few of “The INFO” shows and I found a few I wanted to share today. Also, some of Eddie’s friends have sent in some things we will be sharing.

Each day this week we will be remembering our friend Eddie by posting his work and hearing from his friends. He was an inspiration to us all. We love you brother. Always will.

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Eddie himself explains his idea for Lessons in Humility:

About 10 years and 30 pounds ago, I was quite active in the BJJ and MMA worlds. Having begun my Jiu-Jitsu training at the Ralph Gracie academy in 1996, I have had the opportunity to see the evolution of the sport of MMA first hand. Having spent time on the mats with the likes of BJ Penn, Dave Camarillo, Cameron Earle, Renzo and Ralph Gracie, Nick Diaz, Tim McKenzie, and a host of others it got me thinking. What would it be like to roll with these guys now? God, I must have been hit in the head more times than I thought. As such, Lessons in Humility was born.

Most all of Eddie’s “Lessons in Humility” show him getting worked over by black belts and badasses on the mat. However, I found one, a nine second clip of Eddie throwing down an armbar that I wanted to post first. – This is “Fast” Eddie taking on one of Luke Stewart’s students at Fight and Fitness in San Francisco (July 2008).

The next video is Eddie grappling with another one of Luke’s students at Fight and Fitness (July 2008).

This is Eddie talking about his workout and training at VIP MMA to help him lose weight for his “MMA’s Biggest Loser Contest” against MMA Junkie’s John Morgan (Oct. 2009).

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This is one of my favorite episodes of “The INFO” [LISTEN HERE] because I steal Eddie’s opening line. He always opened the show with “What it is, what it is” and he busts my balls for doing it first. It was the 14th show. The date was March 10, 2009 and the description reads: “The PRO MMA staff discussed UFC 96, DREAM, the UFC Heavyweight Division, Yves Lavgine, WAMMA’s official women’s rankings, and a recent Gladiator Challenge show.”

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This message is from Eddie’s friend Chris Leo of Projekt Label.

After a year, I still really haven’t come to grips with the void that not having Eddie around has left. I have many mixed emotions and thoughts. Being “a guy”, and having the mentality of a 12 year old, I’ve been able to kind to put things into absolutes:

Eddie: I love you and hate you.

I love you because of who you were. You were always honest, displayed the highest integrity and your word was your bond. Your friends were your family and I valued every minute we spent together. I also still laugh my balls off every time I think of you imitating a Brazilian accent, talking to baby talk to Toughy like he was actually your son, and being respectful and nice to literally EVERYONE you met, even though sometimes I know you would have rather punched yourself in the junk, rather than entertain some of the personalities we came across in our journeys, covering MMA events.

I hate you for two reasons: 1) You introduced me to Acai. Screw you Eddie Constantine. Because of you, Acai is like my crack now. I can’t get enough of it, and in between actually having it, I dream about it (in a Brazilian accent of course). 2) I hate you for leaving us so early. It’s not fair that you aren’t with us anymore. I really feel like there was so much more that you were meant to do on this planet. I can only hope that you are at peace and making life just that much better for whoever you encounter in heaven, my friend.

I will never forget you.

Chris

This message is from Brian “Goze” Garcia of MMA Junkie Radio and Gozejitsu.com

“There isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t think of Eddie Constantine. His phone number is still in my cell phone, his e-mail is still in my address book, and his magnet still clings to my refrigerator door. Eddie always made everyone around him feel special, his love for our sport was only surpassed by his love for his friends. I will never forget him.”

This message is from Phil Lanides of Fight of Your Life Communications

“Eddie was one of the nicest guys I’ve encountered in MMA. Early on in my career in this sport, he took a liking to me. We’d talk pretty regularly about the sport, and I always enjoyed his point of view. I’ll always be grateful to Eddie for taking the time with me. He’s still missed to this day.”

This message is from ProMMAnow.com’s Brian Furby, host of The Cageside Beat radio show.

When I first joined Pro MMA Now (then ProMMA.info), Eddie was the second person I talked to after Pro MMA founder Jack Bratcher. As Eddie was the host of the first radio show of Pro MMA (The Info) and was actively involved in Cage Divas, I wasn’t sure how I, as the new guy, would be received coming in with my own radio show. I didn’t want to step on any toes having just joined a new site and wasn’t sure how Eddie would take me being on the scene. However, about a week after I started, I got a call from Eddie and about a minute in, I was at ease. Even though this was the first time we’d spoken, he talked to me like we’d been working together for years. We had some great discussions about MMA, and about how our shows could work together for the good of the site, and about increasing the production value of The Cageside Beat. Over the next few months, we had some great talks about MMA on the east vs west coasts, our love for the sport, and interviews we were working on.

Eddie worked hard with Matt de la Rosa to really usher in the new generation of video interviews in MMA. He was never hesitant to offer his opinion, and always willing to help anybody in need. Eddie hooked me up with Projekt Label founder Chris Leo and vouched for my skills as an agent even when I was just starting out. In the days following Eddie’s death, seeing the outpouring of emotion and hearing the many stories that people had to tell about Eddie’s generosity truly made me realize what we’d lost. A colleague, a true ambassador for the sport we love, a friend, and part of our family. I miss hearing the familiar “This is Fast Eddie Constantine” at the beginning of his interviews, I miss his passion for the sport, and I’m sorry he hasn’t been with us as ProMMA turned into Pro MMA Now and hit goals Eddie worked hard to help us achieve. If anything could make this situation any easier, it’s knowing that even in death, Eddie is always in our corner, watching over us and smiling.. R.I.P. Fast Eddie.

NOTE: We will be remembering  “Fast” Eddie Constantine all week at the site here by posting various memories and letters from friends. If you would like to contribute a message, a photo of Eddie, of you and Eddie, or anything else, please send it to [email protected] and we will include it.

See Wednesday’s (Jan. 26) memories

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