Fighters have ultimate fan

A-Tech student a benefactor of UFC owners

Stephen Quinn isn't like most freshmen in high school, but it's not because he was born with a rare birth defect, arthrogrytosis, which has left him unable to walk and without the use of his four limbs.

It's because Stephen, who has undergone 30 leg surgeries in 10 years, is friends with several fighters in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and often flies to events on private jets with UFC owners Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta, who also own Station Casinos.

An avid sports fan who studies law at Advanced Technologies Academy, Stephen hopes to one day work as a sports agent, a la "Jerry Maguire," or earn an executive position in professional sports.

"I foresee Stephen even owning his own team one day. Stephen's going places, there's no doubt in my mind," said Vicki Quinn, Stephen's mother. "I've always told him, he may never be able to play the game, but he will be able to represent the players in the game, and to me, that's as good as playing it. Since the time he was old enough to realize he couldn't play sports, he's always spectated it."

At a local sporting event a few years back, Stephen struck up a conversation with Lorenzo Fertitta, a former classmate of his mother's, and a friendship was born.

"He's so social, and once you start talking to him, you become engrossed with him," Vicki Quinn said. "He's not disabled in his own eyes."

Once Fertitta noticed Stephen's passion for sports and the UFC, he had UFC fighter Tito Ortiz talk to the youth on his cell phone and invited Stephen to the next event.

"They invited me to a fight and it was awesome," Stephen said. "(I like) how it's 100 percent real, and the fighters dedicate their lives to the sport. They work out six hours a day. Boxers just have to train for one thing, but these guys have to train in everything -- wrestling, boxing, Muay Thai (kickboxing). A lot of people think it's like the WWE, but it's not. It's real."

Sounding like he already works for the UFC, Stephen is quick to point out there's a higher injury rate in football than there is in the UFC -- and also that the next event, slated for April 2, is available on pay-per-view.

Stephen, who has traveled to events in Louisiana and Connecticut and is slated to travel to Japan this year, will certainly be on hand in Las Vegas, with his full-access credential.

"He travels with (the Fertittas). They take him everywhere," Vicki Quinn said. "Stephen is the luckiest disabled person in this whole town because of people like Lorenzo Fertitta. It's very rare when you see someone in his position make this a constant thing. He includes Stephen in everything. Wherever Lorenzo is, Stephen is.

"Money can't change everything, but it certainly can make someone's life fuller and that's what they've done for Stephen. These fighters have allowed him to set goals for himself he probably didn't see before. They've given him a true reason to be the best he can be."

Stephen's closest fighter friend is Carlos Newton, a former welterweight UFC champ who is also enrolled in medical school.

"Most of the fighters are educated, for something to fall back on," Stephen said.

Newton, who became friends with the family after having dinner at their home, has inspired Stephen to strive for more.

"He travels with Stephen and visits with us and stays with us," Vicki Quinn said. "He's become an extension of our family. When he's not working out, he's studying. He's an inspiration to Steve."

Another of Stephen's favorite mixed martial artists is former heavyweight world champion Tim Sylvia, who recently spoke at an assembly at A-Tech, in part, about the perils of drug use.

Sylvia, 6-8, 280 and 19-0 in the UFC, tested positive for steroids last fall and was suspended for four months, fined $7,500 and forced to relinquish his belt. He'll fight for it again April 2.

Vicki Quinn said her son was sad when he heard about the suspension, but he has since forgiven him.

"He made a bad choice, but I think it will make him work a little harder," Stephen said. "Everyone makes mistakes."

Sylvia said he's learned from his mistake and tried to leave the students at A-Tech with a positive message.

"(My message was) basically whatever you set you mind to, it's going to happen," said Sylvia, who was 5-9 and 200 pounds at age 15. "Ten years ago, I was short and fat. Who would've thought I'd become the heavyweight champion of the world.

"(The suspension) was tough, real tough. I learned to never again do what I did. I didn't do it to help my fighting, it was just to look better. I've been fighting for years without it."

If Sylvia needs any added boost in his return to UFC, he'll need look no further than ringside, where Stephen will be watching.

"It's really cool seeing Stephen at the shows. I like seeing him there," Sylvia said. "People see him and think he's different, but there's nothing different about Stephen. He's the same as all of us. He talks to me about UFC and he thinks about the same things as I do."

Vicki Quinn said her son's connection to the UFC helps smooth out his sometimes rocky road in life.

"Every time there's a chance for him to feel sorry for himself, especially as a teenager, there's another UFC event to look forward to," she said. "Every time I think we hit a really big bump, and he'll be sad, a UFC event is coming up and that gives him something to look forward to."


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