With a punch from Michael "The Machine" Phillips, blood poured from RC Hagans' broken nose into his black moustache.
Hagans didn't quit, though. It's not in his nature. He struggled on until the referee stopped the fight and the crowd at Sammy T's Music Hall in Huntsville rose to applaud both men.
For Opelika resident Hagans, 27, fighting isn't his true love; art is. However, the way Hagans works as a contemporary artist resembles a fighter more than a typical artist.
"I want to outwork everybody," Hagans said. "It's a competition thing. You see the work other street artists are doing, and you're like, 'I got to keep working.'"
That value of work ethic has been ingrained in Hagans since he was young. For this, Hagans credits two aspects of his life in particular: his father and wrestling.
Hagans said traveling with his father, a southern minister, to as many as eight services a week showed him the effort needed to succeed in life.
Wrestling, a sport Hagans began at age 8, taught him a similar lesson.
"Wrestling teaches you how to 100 percent devote yourself to something," Hagans said. "That's a big part of my work ethic."
As a restless 5-year-old in church, Hagans searched for a way to combat his desire to crawl under the pews, an action that resulted in a pinch from his mother. Then, one day, his friend showed him there were always pencils and envelopes at church, and if you unfolded the envelope, you had plenty of space to draw.
Drawing captivated Hagans, and the cheekiness of putting the envelopes back with drawings hidden inside for others to find amused him. However, it wasn't until high school that Hagans' passion for art blossomed. Under the guidance of Auburn High School art teacher, Joe Dyer, Hagans began to realize his passion for art while exploring every form of art he could.
"When I was at Auburn High School, the art budget went through the roof because [Dyer] would show me something, and I'd just work until there [were] no supplies left," Hagans said.
That desire to compulsively work remains with Hagans and motivates him to compete with the other artists.
"You look at the guys doing things on a worldwide scale and you're like, 'I need to put in some more hours today,'" Hagans said. "It's the ticking -clock mentality. You only have 80 years on this planet, so why not make the most radical thing you can every second of every day?"
Leather-work artist Michael Stricklin shares a studio with Hagans and witnesses his work ethic on a daily basis.
"He's an artist 100 percent of the time," Stricklin said. "He's the epitome of working hard and that's how you make things happen for yourself. You just keep doing it and don't quit and good things start to happen."
Hagans' goal is to leave a legacy people appreciate for years after he's gone. However, Hagans said he still has a lot work to do to get there.
"I don't think I have anything yet that's worth leaving behind, but I'm working my butt off," Hagans said. "I think eventually I'll step back and think, 'You know what, when I'm gone, this is going to be here,' and that's something I'm going to be proud for people to look at and say, 'That's RC Hagans.'"
Brad Guice, a family friend of the Hagans' and photographer in New York City, encouraged Hagans to commit to his passion for art.
"I saw that RC had that passion and I challenged him a few years ago to make it a career choice," Guice said. "He went away and did it on his own. He really just lives, breathes, sleeps and dreams art."
However, art didn't come easy to Hagans. He learned through hard work and believes anyone can do the same.
"Someone told me that if I want to be a good painter, I'd have to do 500 to 1,000 bad paintings first, and that's what stops most people from doing it," Hagans said. "Anyone can do what I do, you just have to put in the hours."
Hagans said he has failed many times on his path to being a successful artist, but that his failings have not discouraged him. Instead, he follows the mantra of Thomas Edison, who said, "I have not failed. I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work."
Hagans said he believes his hard work has only strengthened his passion for art and has allowed him to reach a level he wouldn't have achieved had he been a naturally-gifted artist.
"I feel like if you do something that you don't have to work for, it's a love you're willing to let go of and sweep under the carpet," Hagans said. "But if you have to labor for or fight for it every single day, then you'll make stuff that can be around forever."
Despite his interest in wrestling and mixed martial arts, Hagans is content with giving up fighting to focus on his art. However, every morning he is reminded of his encounter with "The Machine" as he looks in the mirror at his crooked nose, a permanent reminder that hard work and fighting will be what allows him to leave a lasting legacy.
RC Hagans' artwork can be seen on his website, www.rchagans.com.
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