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Queens native Julio Arce (17-5, 10 finishes), who co-owns Tiger Schulmann’s Martial Arts in Bayside, Queens, is set to step into the octagon for the first time this year on April 9 on the UFC 273 preliminary card as he welcomes Brazil’s Daniel Santos (10-1, seven finishes) to the UFC. Ahead of his bantamweight bout in Jacksonville, Arce sat down via Zoom for the Post Fight Interview with Scott Fontana.
Q: How long have you lived in New York?
A: I was actually born in Florida, and then I went to live in Colombia for a couple of years, and I came here [at age 8 or 9] and I’ve been living in New York ever since.
Q: Where did you move to in the city?
A: I used to live on Myrtle Avenue. I stayed in the Queens area most of the time. Well, now I live in Flushing, Main Street, Queens. In Bayside, pretty much.
Q: You’ve referred to yourself as a “pudgy fat kid” before you found martial arts. What’s the story behind the start of your weight loss and MMA journey?
A: When I used to live in Colombia when I was little, I actually was really thin. I came to New York and, you know, you start eating. You’re thinking that you’re never gonna gain weight. Next thing you know, I had rolls. I just got very overweight. I was having a hard time trying to find an activity, something that suited me, something that I would hold myself accountable for. My older sister Cathy, brought me to Tiger Schulmann’s. From there, I just started, and ever since then I fell in love with it because of what it did for me. I just kept losing weight, and here I am today.
Q: You own a gym now. What was it like trying to run a martial arts gym in the city through the pandemic?
A: We just kept going. We adjusted. We adapted to what we had to do. So when the whole thing first started, we ended up trying a couple of things. We did workouts on Twitch. We did ‘em on Zoom, any way that we can stay in contact and keep it going. And then, we opened up the school. We had our mats kind of taped off, so everyone had their own individual space, and we just kept it going. We kept the show going.
Q: You’ll face Santos making his UFC debut, which was delayed, but he hasn’t fought in almost 2 ½ years. How do you prepare for a developing fighter with so little recent tape?
A: In today’s world, there’s video everywhere. So, we study all the tapes. He was actually supposed to fight a while back in the UFC, but his fight got canceled.
Q: What do you know about him as a fighter?
A: He comes from [UFC lightweight champion] Charles Oliveira’s camp. And I know they’re very straightforward. … He has a solid game. He’s more of a standup fighter. He throws a lot of spinning techniques and he likes to sneak ‘em in.
Q: You’d been out for about 1 ½ years too before beating Andre Ewell last July and falling to Song Yadong in November. How did you deal with the layoff?
A: I got my elbows fixed. I couldn’t extend my arms fully, so I got that taken care of, that surgery on both elbows. Then, [I] just healed up and then got right back into it.
Q: What were the particular injuries?
A: I just had a lot of bone fragments and cartilage buildup. … So they had to cut open and take all that junk out.
Q: You’re back at bantamweight now after arriving in the UFC as a featherweight. Did you expect 135 was in your future even before the change?
A: Yes and no. I transitioned to featherweight when I was still in the regional circuit. I was holding my own at featherweight. And then when I got into UFC, I’m facing people who are dropping from much heavier weight, and you can clearly see the size difference between me and them. And I’m like, I gotta get back to [1]35. I had a nutritionist, Eric Pena, who does everything for me; makes the weight cut easy.
Q: How many fights do you have left on your UFC contract?
A: I am on my first fight of my new [four-fight] contract.
Q: What does it mean for you as a New Yorker to have fought twice at the Garden?
A: That’s a major point in [my] life because you get the fight at the mecca, where it all went down, and I got to be part of that history.
Q: Growing up, did you go to any games there?
A: I did go to a couple Knicks game. I did go see the Harlem Globetrotters. That was fun. … I did the New York City Golden Gloves, and I got to fight there at the Garden.
Q: What was Golden Gloves like there?
A: It was my first time doing a boxing tournament. I won. I won the Golden Gloves. [I’m] a 2011 Golden Gloves champion.
Q: Do you recall your first experience watching MMA?
A: Oh, my God, yeah! It was when Matt Hughes fought Carlos Newton. Carlos Newton has him a triangle, and Matt Hughes just pick him up and frickin’ slammed him down and knocked him out with a slam. And Matt, he was was out already also. And like I watched them like, Holy s–t, that was f–king awesome!
Q: Typical walkaround weight between fights?
A: I stay in the 150s. I don’t like to drop a lot of weight, so 158, 159 [pounds], around there. That’s my walkaround weight, but then once I’m training, I’m walking around [at] like 154.
Q: Typical weight on fight night?
A: At least 148, 150.
Q: Who in MMA do you most admire?
A: Max Holloway. That dude is a frickin’ beast: the badass.
Q: Is there a great MMA movie?
A: “Here Comes the Boom.” That was a great movie.
Q: Favorite movie?
A: I became I was huge fan of “The Matrix” movies, the “John Wick” movies. It’s like Keanu Reeves movies are freaking dope. And the “Fast and the Furious,” except now it got to the point where they just went out of control.
Q: Favorite song?
A: Right now, I wouldn’t say it’s pop, but also EDM music. You’ve got Showtek.
Q: Favorite video game?
A: Right now, I’m playing a game called “Elden Ring,” which is hard as f–k, which is amazing though. It’s frickin’ great. It’s so addicting. Still goddamn hard. Sometimes, I just want to rage quit and throw this controller at the TV. But, I’m like, it’s just a game.
Q: What’s a perfect day for you that doesn’t involve fighting?
A: My perfect days to wake up, go have some food, and just teach in my school. I love the fact that my days are busy. … Probably sleeping in a little more, going to get some Korean barbecue.
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