Zach Lari in 2007 (Photo courtesy of funews.net)

Zach "Scrappy-Doo" Lari (5-2), fighting out of Trever Prangley's A.K.A. in Couer d'Alene, returns to the cage this Sat June 18th when he battles Damen Wood (2-0) in a pro 135 lb matchup in the main event of the Spokane Showdown. Lari spoke with NWFS about the fight, his training under Trevor Prangley, and more...

NW Fightscene: How is everything?
Zach Lari: It's going good. Training really hard. Really excited for the opportunity to be fighting on Spokane Showdown's first pro event, against a formidable opponent in Team Quest's Damen Wood. Look forward to Saturday.

NWFS: You haven't fought in a while. How long has it been?
Lari: I haven't fought since the Arena Rumble which is coming up on almost two years ago now. Prior to the Arena Rumble, I had an eye orbital fracture. So I had surgery and had some titanium plates put on it. And I actually had those plates in my face when I fought at the Arena Rumble. Right after, I had those plates removed and took a little bit of time off training. So just getting back into the saddle and training hard. Excited about the opportunity to showcase my skills once again here at home here in Spokane.

NWFS: You're training with Trevor Prangley. Where exactly are you training and who else are you training under?
Lari: Trevor Prangley has opened up his own gym, American Kickboxing Academy. We're in downtown Coeur d'Alene. Trevor just opened up this gym to try to bring a positive place into the community that people can come to get help reaching personal goals in health, fitness, and self defense. Its not just a place that top fighters in the NW are going to train, but its a safe comfortable environment for the whole family to train and have fun, and be able to reach their goals. So we've got Brent Reeves. He's the Muay Thai coach here. We've got Del Ingram, who's the jiu-jitsu instructor. And Dale's basically going to be belted under Dave Camarillo, as are all of our jiu-jitsu guys, under Camarillo Jiu-jitsu... Guerilla Jiu-jitsu. So that's exciting. And then we've got Trevor.

NWFS: This fight is at 135 lbs. Are you training with guys your own size or with guys who are a little bit bigger?
Lari: I do a little bit of both. We've got a couple of good amateurs guys that are up and coming. One of them being Jordan Cook, he's on a little bit of a tear. He's like 12-1 amateur, soon to be going pro. He's actually fighting the same day as I am over in Yakima. We got Arley George in there still. He's a pro just like myself and he's at a little bit of a higher weight class than me. Other then that, I train with the heavier guys Will Noland, Travis Bush. Travis has a fight next Friday in Seattle with Strikeforce (6/24), his first fight with them under a four fight contract.

NWFS: What do you know about your opponent Damen Wood?
Lari: You know, I don't know a whole lot about him. He's one of [Matt] Lindland's guys so I don't expect him to be a slouch. Those guys [at Team Quest] don't have guys that aren't well equipped and versed in the game. So I expect him to be a wrestler, probably throw heavy hands. I've looked at a little bit of his stuff online. He doesn't really have any videos posted or anything. Most of his wins are against guys with losing records. And his losses are against guys who really don't have much of a record. But that's neither here nor there. You never know. Styles make fights, and we'll just have to see once we get into the cage. I'm not so worried about what he's got in his game and what he's going to do. I impose my will when I fight. So what they've got in their gameplan, and what they've trained for really has nothing to do with what I'm going to do once the cage doors shut.

NWFS: You're going to have the hometown advantage, fighting in front of family and friends. What does that mean to you?
Lari: You now, that means a lot to me. Some guys think of it as a disadvantage, to have everybody there. But I really draw a lot from the crowd. I'm a crowd-pleasing type fighter. I fight for the competition and for the love of the fact that the crowd really gets into it. To have people there who know me, who know my background and who are behind me and supportive, it brings a lot with me into the cage. I'm not just representing myself and my gym, but I'm representing my friends and my family that have been there to support me throughout my career. So it means a lot to me.

NWFS: Are you working a day job besides the fighting?
Lari: I actually work full time. I sell cars for George Gee, believe it or not. So fighter by night, car salesman by day. It brings up a lot of topics of conversation when people come into my office and see pictures of me with championship belts and black eyes. (laughs)

NWFS: Who would you like to thank?
Lari: I've got a couple sponsors that have really helped me out along the way. Blue Chip Chiropractic in Hayden Idaho. The guy out there, Doctor Rich May, is an absolute miracle worker. He really has taken great care of me and made sure I'm in tip-top shape for this fight. And sponsors who have me out with some cash flow and my ability to take some time off of work to train: Coeur D'Alene Auto Care, Black Sheep Sporting Goods, Pyramid Skate Shop. And of course my guys back at AKA. 

NWFS: Is the gym online yet?
Lari: I'm not sure that they have the website going yet, but you guys can definitely come check us out in downtown Coeur D'Alene. Right next to The Breakfast Nook, in between 3rd and 4th street. Its going to be the place that the top elite fighters in the NW are going to be training at. We're going to have guys in and out of our gym that are on a very top level. We've got Dave Camarillo coming up July 9th to do a Brazilian Jiu-jitsu seminar. And in and out of the gym we're going to have Cain Valesquez, Josh Thompson, Jon Fitch, & Bob Cook. Those guys are going to make their presence known in our gym. And its really going to have a solid effect on our fighters in this area. So if you guys want to train with top level competition, AKA's where its at.

NW Fightscene thanks Zach for for making the time for this interview. He fights Damen Wood in the main event of the Spokane Showdown on June 18th, at the historic Masonic Center Auditorium located at 1107 W Main in Spokane. The show's 3 other pro fights are: Ryan Mulvihill vs Joey Becker at 145 lbs, Angel Diaz vs Carlos Rodriguez 155, and Christian Ortiz vs Josh Rettinghouse at 135. Guest appearances from UFC veteran fighters Mario Miranda & Trevor Prangley, plus 8 additional amateur bouts. Learn more about the event HERE.

Zach trains out of Trevor Prangley's A.K.A. at 1701 N 4th St in Coeur d'Alene.