Matt Hamill’s road to UFC 130 is inspirational, considering the fact that he is the only deaf pro fighter in MMA, and his uncle’s motivation to not let the disability come before anything else, including being the best he can be in whatever he chose to do.
That motivation has led him to the new main event of UFC 130, pitting him against the PRIDE legend, former UFC light heavyweight champion and MMA icon Quinton “Rampage” Jackson in a bout that became tomorrow night’s main event when injuries prevented the Frankie Edgar-Gray Maynard rematch from happening.
Hamill has said various things about Rampage during the build up to the fight, among which were the most notable items were that he was going to break Rampage’s will and that Rampage IS the same guy he’s always been. In other words, Hamill feels that Rampage has not evolved as a fighter throughout his career, and if he want to move up in the ranks, Hamill needs to expose that.
He needs to showcase his diverse striking, he needs to avoid that right hook, he needs to work outside the range of Rampage and not stand and trade inside the pocket until he knows he has Rampage in a position where all Rampage can do is eat his shots and respond to Joe Rogan by saying, “Hamill whooped my A–!”
As far as wrestling, he’ll need to make sure he’s prepared for the takedowns and slams of Rampage, and we know Rampage nearly pulled out the slam when Lyoto Machida had Rampage in an attempted Triangle Choke at UFC 123 just as well as we know Hamill brutalized Keith Jardine at around this time last year.
Defensive wrestling to set up offensive wrestling—that’s how Hamill needs to work with the Wrestling issue that Rampage could present, and he probably knows well that he might have to use his stand-up just to set up takedowns in this bout.
Again, though, he’s said that Rampage is the same Rampage he was when Rampage fought Jardine, he’s the same Rampage that ended Chuck Liddell’s last UFC light heavyweight title run and he’s the same guy that Wanderlei Silva defeated twice in PRIDE.
Hamill needs to show the world that Rampage has not changed at all tomorrow night if he really wants to prove himself as a legitimate threat at 205.
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