Mark Kerr on Fighting, Addiction, Redemption & The Smashing Machine
Mark Bell's Power Project
Power Project Studios
4.7 • 1.7K Ratings
🗓️ 20 April 2026
⏱️ 128 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Mark Kerr sits down with Mark Bell for a raw conversation about fighting at the highest level, the mindset it took to become one of the most feared men in MMA, and the personal battles that nearly broke him.In this episode, Mark Kerr talks about his rise through wrestling and early mixed martial arts, the brutal reality of no-time-limit fights, what made Pride and Japan so different, and how he approached training like a true professional. He also opens up about addiction, sobriety, rebuilding the relationship with his son, and why redemption and resilience have become such a huge part of his story.They also get into The Smashing Machine, Kerr’s legacy in combat sports, the Hall of Fame moment that caught him off guard, and what it was like seeing his life brought to the screen.If you want a conversation about toughness, suffering, growth, and what it really means to fight both in and out of the ring, this one delivers.Special perks for our listeners below!🥩 HIGH QUALITY PROTEIN! 🍖 ➢ https://goodlifeproteins.com/ Code POWER to save 20% off site wide, or code POWERPROJECT to save an additional 5% off your Build a Box Subscription!🩸 Get your BLOODWORK/TRT/PEPTIDES! 🩸 ➢ https://marekhealth.com and use code "POWERPROJECT" for 10% off Self-Service Labs and Guided Optimization®.🧠 Methylene Blue: Better Focus, Sleep and Mood 🧠 Use Code POWER10 for 10% off!➢https://troscriptions.com?utm_source=affiliate&ut-m_medium=podcast&ut-m_campaign=MarkBel-I_podcastBest 5 Finger Barefoot Shoes! 👟 ➢ https://Peluva.com/PowerProject Code POWERPROJECT15 to save 15% off Peluva Shoes!Self Explanatory 🍆 ➢ Enlarging Pumps (This really works): https://bit.ly/powerproject1Pumps explained: https://youtu.be/qPG9JXjlhpM?si=JZN09-FakTjoJuaW🚨 The Best Red Light Therapy Devices and Blue Blocking Glasses On The Market! 😎➢https://emr-tek.com/Use code: POWERPROJECT to save 20% off your order!👟 BEST LOOKING AND FUNCTIONING BAREFOOT SHOES 🦶➢https://vivobarefoot.com/powerproject🥶 The Best Cold Plunge Money Can Buy 🥶 ➢ https://thecoldplunge.com/ Code POWERPROJECT to save $150!!➢ https://withinyoubrand.com/ Code POWERPROJECT to save 15% off supplements!
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I could tell my son, I go, you didn't sign a contract that says life will be easy. |
| 0:03.4 | You sign the other contract that says life's going to be really hard. It's going to hand you a bunch of it at times you don't want to do. But you know what? You're going to suck it up and you're going to do it. That duality is my strength because I could harness stuff from that emotional part of me. People watch me beat the f*** out of somebody and then |
| 0:21.9 | watch me in a totally different format and go, is that the same dude? What this is and what you |
| 0:28.4 | are outside the ring are completely two different things. You can be this inside the ring, |
| 0:32.9 | but when it's over, it's over, you leave it there. Every single thing I did had to have intention. |
| 0:39.4 | And that intention when it's all focused and driven in one direction is powerful. |
| 0:45.9 | You seem like a nice guy coming here with a smile and everything, but your nickname is the smashing machine. |
| 0:53.1 | Right. |
| 0:53.8 | What's the deal with this nickname? |
| 0:55.4 | Oh, gosh, man. |
| 0:56.8 | So the machine, I tell you, McKenna DeVator, the Portuguese, they said it's the, you're |
| 1:02.1 | the machine that smashes. |
| 1:04.5 | And when the reporter looked at it, when the, so when the reporter looked at it, when |
| 1:08.2 | you looked at my fight, third fight that night against Fabio Giselle, it was, it was a beating. |
| 1:16.9 | You know, like, like sometimes it's even hard for me to watch it |
| 1:19.8 | because it's one where I'm like, oh, God, like, I know that hurt. |
| 1:25.0 | And he just, the dude wouldn't give up and you know this like when you're when |
| 1:30.6 | you're when you're competing and grappling and doing jiu jitzy of like trying to take somebody's |
| 1:34.8 | will yeah it's sometimes somebody just doesn't fuck him want to give it to you but fighting and |
| 1:39.8 | competing in jiu jitzy or like different things different thing yeah same objective though |
| 1:44.4 | i'm trying to take your well right just at a different a different mechanism right different mechanism |
| 1:49.3 | right but but that intensity of what you're trying to do because when you're competing against me |
... |
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