Grabbing inspiration from an industry that’s fueled by smack talk and pre-fight hype, Stephan Bonnar’s Trash Talkin’ Kids has arrived with a new line of MMA T-shirts that mix comedy, creativity and some of the craziest looking UFC character tees around. By going against the grain in an industry that’s become flooded over the years with skulls, daggers and demons, Trash Talkin’ Kids has flipped things upside down with a lighthearted twist to the Mixed Martial Arts T-shirt scene. With the original six styles out right now and the next wave of tees in the works, we caught up with “The American Psycho” himself to get the inside scoop on his latest venture in the MMA clothing world.
What’s the scoop on Trash Talkin’ Kids and where did the idea come from?
Koschek vs Daley. Kos was visibly talking trash during the fight (later I heard about Daley’s mom) and got to Daley, thus the suckerpunch. Me and Scully were stricken with laughter at how big of a trash talkin’ kid Kos is at heart. Then we thought it’d be funny to make a funny cartoon version of him on a shirt called “Josh Kosh Mgosh” and title the line “TrashTalkin’Kids.” The original plan was to make them for the fighters that talked trash. Then we found out GSP would be coaching TUF with Kos, and wished we could do a shirt for GSP, but he didn’t talk any trash.
Then a lightbulb went off in my head and I realized…”FUCK IT!!! We’ll do the shirt anyway, name it “Gentleman Georges” and have him pushing his beaten up opponent into the hospital in a wheel chair. Then “Satori” occured….or instant awakening. We can do these shirts for all the fighters…even Dana White.
How’s the reaction been thus far from the fighters?
Brock and GSP loved theirs…which made me very happy. The other fighters like em too.
Do the fighters have any input on their tees?
You bet. Let me know your ideas!! So far, we’ve had suggestions that we are gonna go with from guys like Forrest, Clay Guida, and Melvin Guillard. I hope to God Melvin’s gets approved…its a little racey.
What’s the craziest character name idea you’ve come up with so far?
I really love “Brocked & Loaded”, and “Raising Cain”…but my favorite is “The Master Bader.”
The original 6 tees have been a hit with fight fans. Who can we expect to see in the next series?
Oh boy. Cain, Forrest, Clay, Diego, Melvin, Rampage and Dana.
What’s your take on the MMA clothing scene at this point?
I felt like MMA clothing could use something comical that grown-ups and kids could get a kick out of. Everything has been so dark…ya know, skulls, wings, demons.
In your opinion, which UFC fighter has the sharpest trash talking skills?
Boy…that’s a toss up between Rashad & Rampage.
Your next opponent is Karlos Vemoa at UFC on Versus 5. If you had to turn him into a Trash Talkin Kids tee, what would you call it?
You can’t force these….they gotta come to you. Something good will probably come.
For a closer look at the first series of tees including signature styles for Stephan Bonnar, Brock Lesnar, Georges St-Pierre and more, check out the Trash Talkin Kids T-shirts feature.
When you going to have more shirts on your site? I love the one’s that are there.. and I want all of em.. but you’ve mentioned some funny ones.. like Curious Forrest.. that would be awesome! Not that American Whacko isn’t, i just wanna buy more than 1.