PVCC Puma Press: March 2006

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	Photo by Roman Khomautinnikov
	Wrestler Matthew Betzold lost his leg after beinb poisoned by candy laced with mushroom spores.
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“You fat b@#*@d,” Betzold finally says, laughing as Carl digs in.

When Carl has nearly finished his meal, Betzold glances at an untouched bowl of gravy. Betzold resumes laughing and says, “Chug it dude.”

Matthew Grispatrick Betzold, 23, is a native of Payson, AZ. He has a big family with eight siblings. Betzold, who loves sports and competition, trains at Bill Cameron’s Cannon Fighting Systems located at 15409 N. Cave Creek Road. A harrowing poisoning incident led to the amputation of his left leg; but despite this misfortune, Betzold has managed to dominate the grappling competition and win tournament after tournament, amassing a record of 47 wins with 19 losses, and a self-proclaimed moniker, “the one-legged wonder.”

Days before his 6th birthday, Betzold was poisoned by a lodger in his father’s house. He does not remember the particulars of his poisoning and subsequent hospitalization. All he remembers is the feeling of nausea, feverish hallucinations, and waking up from a coma.

Betzold’s father, Barry, is eager to discuss his son’s ordeal. He kneads his knuckles and clasps and unclasps his hands as he races through the narrative. The urgency and fervor in his voice make it seem like the incident occurred just yesterday.

Barry Betzold did custom painting jobs and, shortly before Christmas in 1989, looked for a worker to help ease the workload. He found a charismatic and a hard-working young man and opened his house to him. The lodger, he adds, had a steel plate in his head from a motorcycle accident. He suspects that a biker gang put a hit on him after a quarrel.

Barry nods his head in disgust and says, “This man wanted to destroy my family, and I let him in.” Unbeknown to the Betzold family at the time, the lodger had previously been diagnosed as a schizophrenic psychopath with a deep hatred of family life and structure.

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	Matt Betzold's leg had to be amputated to decisively rid his body of the poison
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Barry Betzold pensively recites the definition again, “…a schizophrenic psychopath with a deep hatred of family life and structure.” He also recalls the lodger praying to “the master” in a satanic ritual.

“Matt,” says Barry, “was the most lovable and easygoing kid. He did not deserve what was about to happen to him.”

Shortly before his 6th birthday, Matt was given candy laced with poisonous mushroom spores. This, according to his father, may have been the lodger’s intent all along. And judging by the numerous vials containing opiates and poisonous substances found later, this may not have been the man’s first attempt to kill someone.

As soon as Matt ingested the poison, the lodger was gone. He would not be found for two years and, unfortunately for the Betzold family, he would walk free for lack of verifiable proof.

It took three days for the poison to affect Matt. Terrified by their son’s delirium, Barry and Julia Betzold rushed him to the hospital. Attending physicians failed to properly diagnose Matt’s condition. During his son’s hospitalization, says Barry Betzold, when careful medical care should have been exercised, physicians omitted to take blood cultures and merely admitted Matt for general observation.

His father, concerned and desperate for an answer, consulted a medical book himself and managed to diagnose the illness: septicemia.

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	Photo by Roman Khomautinnikov
	Matt Betzold fights from the bottom, trying to secure a submission hold.
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Matt’s septicemia was a condition that, if untreated immediately and effectively, would be fatal. Barry had suggested the use of alternative medicinal methods including leeches to rid his son of blood pathogens. But the physicians did not act in time. Consequently Matt’s leg had to be amputated to decisively rid the body of poison.

“It was the hardest thing to do,” says Barry Betzold. “And even after that, Matt was still dying.”

Matt’s condition further deteriorated as he fell into a coma. Before long, his renal functions shut down. Blood dialyses had to be performed every day.

With the help of a new physician and a series of surgeries, Matt slowly and miraculously convalesced to health. He remembers waking up from the coma hysterical, unwilling to accept the loss of his leg.

Weeks of physical therapy ensued. Matt worked out every day and would not consent to defeat.

When school started, everyone, he says, was sympathetic and did not cause any problems. Then in third grade he started getting in fights and even had to switch schools in order to avoid further complications. All the early childhood wrangles toughened him and strengthened the competitive spirit that fuels him today.

Because Betzold had been fighting one obstacle or another since early childhood, it was natural for him to begin training to grapple. At the age of 16, he started learning Brazilian Jiu-jitsu and managed to secure himself a first-place medal as a white belt in his first competition. Winning gold would turn into a habitual practice. He soon won several first-place medals and belts in Desert Quest, a local grappling tournament, and a silver medal in the Pan-American tournament. (Matt says he doesn’t like the way bronze looks.)

Eventually, he began training at Bill Cameron’s school. Matt believes that what gives him the edge in competing is his will to win. “Some people don’t believe in me, but I can do things other people can’t,” he says.

A lot of competitors facing him are thrown off by the fact that he has only one leg. And a lot more underestimate him for the same reason.

Matt does not mind being underestimated. Instead, he feeds off it and loves to win. Furthermore, his style is unorthodox and therefore hard to prepare for. Unless the competitors grapple with a guy like him in practice, they will likely get smothered in competition

“There’s no feeling like winning,” says Matt. “It’s knowing that you pulled through, a feeling of success.”

In practice Matt might give up many positions just to try out different moves; when competing, however, he always has a game plan. He describes himself as an aggressive, bullying fighter. He likes to get into his opponents’ heads, thereby defeating them before the match even starts. He likes to “take the fight out of them and impose my will,” a phrase used interminably in Mixed Martial Arts.

Top-of-the-food-chain grapplers and MMA competitors including Marcelo Garcia, Eddie Bravo, Randy Couture, Georges St. Pierre, and many others inspire Betzold. He wishes to compete in MMA, but the Boxing Commission will not allow it. The Boxing Commission believes that Matt would be fighting with a disadvantage. One promoter, according to his father, went as far as saying that he is not trying to promote a circus. None of that phases Matt. He trains extensively and will not stop until he gets what he wants.

Off the mat, Matt loves spending time with his kids and girlfriend. He averts his gaze and looks through his hands when he talks about them. “They are beautiful, smart, imaginative, athletic kids. Everything you would want in kids,” he says.

His girlfriend, Carrie Padleford, admires the fact that he is a fighter.

“Also because I’m stud-ly,” adds Matt, laughing.

He wishes to be the best father he can be and continue competing.

“There is no defeat in him, says Barry Betzold. “He’s a hell of a grappler.”