Channing Tatum has revealed his long-standing love for MMA and praised former UFC star Cung Le for his video game–like fighting style.
The Hollywood actor first met Le while filming Fighting in 2009 and said they stayed close friends afterwards. “Cung’s hilarious. I love him,” Tatum told Ariel Helwani. “He had a great time on the movie, and we just stayed buddies.”
Tatum said his passion for the sport began in high school. “We used to pass around tapes of the early UFC days. The tape would go around the whole school,” he recalled.
Reflecting on Le’s MMA career, Tatum said: “Cung was such an exciting fighter. He was pulling moves that you only do in video games. Even in Strikeforce, he was doing things you literally thought only existed in Tekken.”
Le went 7–1 in Strikeforce and 2–2 in the UFC, earning a reputation for highlight-reel knockouts. His flashy style even led to him playing Tekken’s iconic martial artist Marshall Law in the 2010 live-action film.
