Straschnitzki’s fight inspires UFC rivals during visit to Calgary
Headliners for July card say their clash is trivial in comparison, writes Danny Austin
When Ryan Straschnitzki gets settled in Philadelphia, Eddie Alvarez wants to make sure he gets a real, authentic Philly cheesesteak.
No messing around with what tourists eat, they’re going to go for the sort of sandwich that only Philly natives know about.
In town this week to promote his headlining fight against Dustin Poirier July 28 at the UFC’s first show in Calgary since 2012, Alvarez and his opponent both stopped by the Foothills Medical Centre to meet Straschnitzki, the Humboldt Broncos star who was recovering from the April bus crash that paralyzed him from the chest down.
Only 12 hours later, Straschnitzki was being transferred to Philadelphia for further treatment at the Shriners Hospital for Children.
When Alvarez heard the 19-year-old was going to be coming to his hometown, the two athletes immediately started making plans.
“There’s no better place to fight and be in a fight than Philly,” Alvarez said. “Ryan’s gonna fight his fight in Philadelphia and that makes me happy. He’s going to have my cellphone number and, first things first, I’m gonna take him out and get him a Philly cheesesteak, one of the finest.
“Then, we’ll have some sitdowns, we’ll have some talks while he’s there. I’ll show him the ropes while he’s in Philly.”
Poirier and Alvarez were in Calgary to help promote tickets going on sale for the UFC on FOX show in July and stopped by Foothills after a busy day of media obligations.
WWE legend Bret Hart was there, too, and the fighters stayed and chatted with Straschnitzki for the better part of an hour.
The Airdrie native has always been a fight fan, but by the end of their time together it seemed the meeting had meant as much, if not more, to the two fighters as it had to Straschnitzki.
“He’s an incredible young man,” said Poirier, who exchanged numbers and socialmedia information with Straschnitzki. “It was an honour to meet him. He told me his expected time (in Philadelphia) was six to eight weeks and he’s going to try to push it and make some big improvements so he can come back down (to Calgary in time for the fight night).
“He’s the real fighter. I don’t have to (fight).”
Throughout Wednesday’s busy schedule in Calgary, there was often tension whenever Poirier
A lot of the things we complain about in life are very trivial and kind of nonsense and stupid. Ryan’s an inspiration, a beacon of hope.
and Alvarez were in the same physical space.
The visit with Straschnitzki was a notable exception.
The young man has been exceeding expectations in physiotherapy and is hopeful that the specialized spinal treatment he receives at the Shriners Hospital will help even more.
That he’s fought through so much while still managing to keep a smile on his face was enough to leave two of the most accomplished professional fighters on the planet in awe of his toughness.
“A lot of the things we complain about in life are very trivial and kind of nonsense and stupid. Ryan’s an inspiration, a beacon of hope,” Alvarez said. “For him to be able to smile, to be able to tell people his story and instil hope in others, it’s incredible.
“It needs to be told, it needs to be shared. In a place where we are, where there’s a lot of negative stuff being said and things like that, we need someone to instil hope, to go to people who are hopeless and in a bad place and an angry place and instil hope, and Ryan’s that person to doit.”
For Straschnitzki’s part, meeting the UFC fighters reinforced that the sporting community is in his corner. There’s a Philly cheesesteak with Alvarez in his future and a direct line to Poirier if he ever feels like chatting.
“It really surprised me that they wanted to come visit me,” Straschnitzki said. “I always watched UFC fights growing up. Lots of athletes have reached out from Paralympics to actual NHL players and UFC fighters. They all have that same mentality, that we’re all here together and there’s more to life than just the game you play.”