Mike Richman has always been referred to by Marine 1st Sgt. Arturo Blanco as "Boot Camp," but the bantamweight contender, who will be facing Nam Phan on Friday in San Diego at Bellator 131, is not quite sure why.

But Blanco insist "Mike always had the goal to be a drill instructor [when he was in the U.S. Marine Corps]. He was a young, motivated guy who some people said was cocky. I could see why they would say that, but he was a good guy who was good at his job, really good, and he was energetic. He cared about being a great Marine."

According to his records, Richman joined the Marines after high school and had served four years, including three deployments to Iraq. The final two tours were served under Blanco, who promoted him to corporal and later sergeant.

Richman is expecting a total blowout fight against Phan. He said "I'm not saying it's going to be this long series, three fights, anything like that, but just a real battle like that fight was. It's going to be like that, like [Diego] Corrales-[Jose Luis] Castillo [in 2005], that kind of fight."

For Richamn, the presence of Blanco in the sidelines during his fight is very critical. They have been through a lot together and the bond between them is beyond compare.

Richman said of Blanco "He was such a great leader and he always looked out for his Marines. He was a hard-nosed guy who didn't take no [crap] and he'd put you in your place if you needed to be put in your place. But the thing that was great about him, he loved his Marines and he had their backs no matter what."

"He was a tough-love kind of a leader, but once you'd gotten to know him, you understood what he was all about. He was there for you whenever you needed him and he always looked out for his guys. Always."

It was the start of the war in Iraq when Richman decided to server. He knew of the difficulties that he will be facing but he never backed down. He said ""It was just something I felt inside of me that I had to do. All of my buddies wanted me to go to college. They were taking off to go to college and I actually filled out a thing at a community college to get all my classes."

He adds "But I'd always wanted to be in the Marine Corps. I actually wanted to join when I was a senior in high school, but my parents wouldn't sign when I was 17 to let me do it. I kind of went through the motions, I guess you'd say, of going to college. But as I thought about it, I wanted to serve my country. I wanted to travel. I wanted to do something different. Basically, I knew I wanted to be a Marine."