Author: Bryan Levick

UFC on Fox 10: Josh Thomson on the Past, the Present and the Future

Over the past eight or nine months, UFC lightweight and former Strikeforce lightweight champion Josh “The Punk” Thomson has experienced a lot of exciting moments and one major low point.
Returning to the Octagon in April and putting on a gr…

Over the past eight or nine months, UFC lightweight and former Strikeforce lightweight champion Josh “The Punk” Thomson has experienced a lot of exciting moments and one major low point.

Returning to the Octagon in April and putting on a great display in front of a new era of UFC fans, who may have never had the opportunity to see him perform, is something Thomson will always be grateful for.

As his fight against former UFC lightweight Benson Henderson approaches, Thomson’s mind and body have been put to the test. He was set to become the first title defense for Anthony Pettis in the UFC on Fox 10 card main event, but unfortunately Pettis was injured forcing, the UFC to look elsewhere for an opponent for Thomson.

After the ups and downs of having a title bout against one of the most exciting fighters in MMA today taken away, Thomson takes on an equally, yet very different opponent in Henderson. All of this has left Thomson tired and searching for something to get his head where it needs to be come January 25.

“It’s been a long camp for me, I was probably about four or five weeks into the Pettis camp and the fight fell through, so I took a week off,” Thomson told Bleacher Report. “At that point I had no fight, but when I was in Vegas for the GSP-Johny Hendricks fight, Joe (Silva) called my manager Bob Cook and we were able to get the Henderson fight inked up. I jumped into a 10-week camp from there, so it’s been close to about 15 weeks of training.”

“My body is a little tired and basically I’m ready to fight. When you have such a long camp, it kind of takes the excitement out of the fight. I need to get rejuvenated for this fight mentally, it’s been a long camp and I’ve been a bit mentally fatigued. The lack of excitement for Henderson is kind of disappearing on me.”

What will it take to get that excitement back? Going into a bout against a former UFC lightweight champion, a fighter has to be on top of his game in all aspects. Henderson was the UFC lightweight champion for a reason; he can hold his own against anyone.

“As you rest your mental state gets a lot better,” offered Thomson. “You’re tired all of the time, when it’s this long of a camp, you’re like man, when is it (the fight) going to get here? The week off before the fight is when fighters mentally prepare. You get a lot of food in you, start feeling rejuvenated and start feeling feisty again.”

“This week I’m kind of dialing back my training a little and focusing on the things I need to do specifically. That would include sparring and grappling for five rounds. Then we’ll go over some technique and do a hard 25 minutes of cardio. We’re getting back to the bare minimum of the essentials I need to mentally prepare.”

Thomson explained in great detail how excited he was to face Pettis for the UFC title. After years of traveling around the world and fighting top opponents in many different organizations, Thomson’s career had come full circle. Then the phone rang, and the air came right out of his sails.

“I was on cloud nine when I was given the title shot,” Thomson said. “Losing it was more mental, I was super excited and amped up for the actual fight. I was like it’s finally here and not to take anything from Henderson as I’m sure he can understand about the first time you get an opportunity to fight for the title, and then it gets taken away, you’re like damn.”

“Everything else seems kind of vanilla after that, it seems bland and plain. I’ve got to step up for this fight and mentally prepare because it’s a huge fight. It will kind of solidify my number one contender spot after this win. I need to get really mentally prepared for this fight and make sure my focus is on going out there and getting the win.”

We’ve seen too many fighters awarded a title opportunity only to have it taken back because of an injury or because the UFC deems someone to be a better opponent in the Octagon and outside of it as well.

A win over Henderson should keep him atop the lightweight rankings, but nothing in MMA is ever guaranteed. The big question is when will Pettis be ready and whether or not Thomson would take another fight as opposed to waiting.

“Even though I am looking forward to fighting for the title, if Pettis isn’t going to be ready, I will have to fight someone else in the process,” stated the San Jose native. “We don’t make money unless we fight and being that it’s close towards the end of my career, it’s about making money and putting on good fights. If I am the number one contender, I just want to fight the top guys.”

“If that means fighting Gilbert Melendez again, I’ll fight him. If that means fighting TJ Grant or Rafael Dos Anjos while I wait for Pettis then that’s who I will have to fight. If the opportunity to fight Pettis is there, then of course I want to fight him for the UFC title.”

Despite losing the title shot and the switch in opponents, Thomson still has a lot to look forward to. He’s facing a former champion in his first fight back since losing the title, and he knows Henderson will be hungry for a win.

He is also in the main event of a huge UFC card on national television in front of the great fans in Chicago. Thomson has been in main events before, but this is a whole new level compared to the past.

“I’m definitely looking forward to fighting in that arena,” said an excited Thomson. “You have to think about all the stars that have played there. It’s just crazy, Jonathan Toews plays there right now, and he’s one of the best hockey players to walk the face of the earth. All the history that Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen accomplished in that arena, it’s nuts when you think of all the history that’s been accomplished in that arena.”

“Of course I can’t wait to fight there in Chicago. Honestly, the most exciting thing is the main event status. I was watching the 49ers-Panthers game and to see my face up on the TV is kind of cool. Those are things you can look back on your career and think that you did something right. I’ve done something with my career. I’ve made it to the big time. It’s like a little icing on the cake, and it lets you know that all the things you did in life have really paid off.”

“I got my life on track, and I’m focused on the thing I want and that’s the UFC title. That’s the main thing that goes through my mind. There are billboards around the US and making the commercials for Fox. I would imagine 15-20 million people were watching that 49er game. To think that many people know who I am is pretty impressive.”

There is no doubt that Thomson’s popularity has soared since he came back to the UFC and knocked out Nate Diaz in the second round back in April on the UFC on Fox 7 card. A win over a high profile opponent on national TV will do that. Let’s not forget that Thomson is also one of the most active fighters on social media and takes time to interact with his fans any chance that he can get.

Some fighters enjoy the action in the cage, some enjoy training and bonding with their teammates and then some enjoy interacting with their fans. Thomson seems like the type of fighter who enjoys the whole package, but he also included another aspect of being a martial artist.

“There have been different phases throughout my career,” Thomson admitted. “In the beginning it was the fight and the excitement of walking in the arena knowing it was fight time. In the middle it was the traveling and having the opportunity to fight in all of the big organizations including Pride, Dream, Strikeforce and the UFC.”

“At that time I loved traveling and getting to see all of the beautiful places, that is something that I really enjoyed. Now, towards the end of my career it really is the fans. I look back and reflect on my career, on everything I’ve done, where I’ve been and where I’ve ended up. I had so much fun doing the Q&A for the UFC show in Sacramento.”

“It was amazing I got to meet all the kids and the fans. Before the Q&A, I walked up into the crowd and took pictures with everybody. Now that I’m getting older, I’m starting to appreciate all of the little things.”

Going from Strikeforce and having his fights televised on Showtime to the UFC and having his fights aired on FOX, Thomson hasn’t noticed a particular jump in the amount of fans that he has. There are other aspects from the fans that have caught his eye.

They seem to be more appreciative of who he is as a person and a fighter and respect what he brings to the Octagon. As his career continues and even after it ends, Thomson wants to be known for who he is as a competitor and who he is as a person.

“I have noticed that I’m getting a lot more support,” Thomson said. “Now that the UFC fans are becoming more familiar with me and they are able to recognize me as a top lightweight coming off of my last fight. The fans have let it be known that they like who I am and they like my style of fighting. My style of fighting changes from fight to fight.”

“A lot of the fans have sent me emails including one from a guy who is a huge Nate Diaz fan. He appreciated that fact that I handled myself with class and didn’t talk trash after I beat Nate. Those are things that I want, when people ask what I want to leave behind as my legacy, those are things that I want people to say about me. Even when I won I was classy and even after I lost to Gil Melendez both times I never had anything bad to say about the guy. That’s how I want to be remembered.”

While we’re on the subject of Melendez again, there is still some unfinished business between the two in some people’s eyes. Thomson won the first fight, but lost the subsequent two. The third fight was extremely close, and a lot of people felt Thomson won.

It has been almost two years since they last fought and neither fighter has changed much as far as their styles are concerned, but Thomson feels like he has grown up and has started using his head more.

“We’ve fought three times and a lot had changed from the first fight to the third fight,” the 35-year-old Thomson said. “Since the last time we fought I can’t say a whole lot has changed. I think I am fighting smarter and using my head more and you saw that in the Diaz fight. I didn’t fight a stupid fight, I fought a smart fight. I fought a smarter fight against Gil in the third fight as well, but I just came up short.”

“A lot of people had me winning that fight and I thought I did enough to win that fight, but the judges are the ones who count the most and they didn’t have me winning. That’s all that matters and it’s time to move on. If we end up fighting again it would be nice if it were a five round fight for the title. Right now we both have our hands full and I’m not going to look too far ahead to be honest.”

When he defeated Diaz, he became the only fighter to ever finish Diaz by KO/TKO. The rush of taking out one of the best fighters in the lightweight division must have felt unbelievable. That win also served as his first victory in the Octagon since he defeated Hermes Franca at UFC 46 in January of 2004. That is a span of over nine years and for Thomson the wait was worth it.

“It felt great, it felt good to be back in there and it felt like I never left,” The man they call the Punk said. “There’s been a void in my career since I left the UFC and I felt like my fight with Yves (Edwards at UFC 49) should’ve been for the title. I would’ve fought a different fight if it had been for the belt. I feel like I fought really arrogant and cocky in that fight.”

“I was trying to showboat too much and it cost me. I came back and took the fight with Nate and I made sure I didn’t fight that way. I played it over and over in my mind about fighting smart and being safe. I wanted to capitalize on the moments I was given and take advantage of them.”

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

MFC President Proves His Loyalty and Talks Bringing the MFC to the US

Every time we speak to Maximum Fighting Championship President Mark Pavelich, he leaves us with some great quotes, outlandish statements and a few daggers in the hearts of the other would-be promoters he believes are in the sport for the wrong reason.
…

Every time we speak to Maximum Fighting Championship President Mark Pavelich, he leaves us with some great quotes, outlandish statements and a few daggers in the hearts of the other would-be promoters he believes are in the sport for the wrong reason.

Many may find him brash and some have a hard time understanding his tactics; but regardless of how you may feel about Pavelich, the man is as passionate about the sport of mixed martial arts as anyone else. There’s a reason why his organization is still going strong after 14 years in the mixed martial arts business.

As quick as he is to support the fighters who do right by him, he is as quick to attack the fighters who disrespect him, his family and his organization. Many a fighter has found themselves in his crosshairs after missing weight or acting inappropriately. There are not many people that Pavelich trusts and that is why he has enlisted the help of several family members.

“The Maximum Fighting Championship is run by seven people and most of them have the same last name,” Pavelich told Alchemist Radio. “We are talked about in the same light as the UFC who are run by multi-millionaires, Bellator who are run by multi-gazillionaires and the WSOF who are run by; well we’re not really sure. It’s like being in an absolute war against people with tanks, guns and atomic bombs. The Pavelich family has slingshots and we’re still in the game.”

Pavelich is always very proud of the fighters he signs to compete in his organization and he does an incredible job of hyping up each and every fight on the card. On January 17, MFC 39 will feature a main event pitting their heavyweight champion Anthony Hamilton against TUF season 10 contestant Darrill Schoonover. Many fans will remember Schoonover solely due to the fact that Quinton “Rampage” Jackson saddled him with the nickname “Titties”, but don’t let Pavelich hear you call him that.

“My new nickname is the bully killer,” admitted Pavelich. “What I’ve done now is anyone who refers to Schoonover by that nickname; I will hang up the phone on them. People are stupid, I grew up in Detroit, Michigan and I grew up with bullies all day long. What bothers me most are people who point out the obvious. We’re making fun of someone who was overweight; I make fun of people who can defend themselves.”

“I know Quinton very well and I got along with him great when we were on Inside MMA together, but at the same time if he ever tried that s**t around me I would hit him over the head with a baseball bat. When Quinton did that on the show he was really trying to bully him and he knew Schoonover wasn’t in a position to do anything about it. In his last fight he put it on Paul Buentello, so it’s time to start putting it into perspective what level of fighter this guy is actually at. On top of it he has a massive chip on his shoulder.”

“These two are going to kill each other inside the ring on January 17th,” promised Pavelich. “If you watched Hamilton’s last fight you’ll know that Smealinho Rama is still looking for his head, he knocked it right it into the fourth row. By far the best knockout of 2013 and the funny thing is he looked like he was done for, I thought he was done. This will be his first title defense.”

Kurt Southern was able to extract some revenge on Jonatas Novaes at MFC 38 after their first bout at MFC 36 which ended in controversy. There was footage that showed Novaes grabbing Southern’s gloves before latching on a fight-ending submission.

Southern also earned a title shot at MFC 39 with the first-round knockout of Novaes, and will take on little known Team Quest lightweight Tom Gallicchio, who will be making his debut as a lightweight. These guys may have different personalities, but they have one thing in common: to hurt one another.

“These two will meet in the semi-main event and Southern will be looking to become one of the few Canadians to win a title in the MFC,” Pavelich said. “Gallicchio is from Team Quest and he’s never fought at 155 pounds. These two can pretend on Twitter that they like each other, but they don’t. When you’re fighting in front of this many people, you know they don’t like one another.”

“People say to me all the time that they’re not that familiar with Douglas Lima,” Pavelich stated. “’Mark, I’m not that familiar with Patrick Cote or Paul Daley.’ These are all guys who fought for the MFC in the past. I did a lot of research on Gallicchio and that’s why I put him in this position. If you think I’m crazy, this guy is nuts. On January 17th on AXS TV, you’re going to see why I signed him.”

“I wish Southern would talk a little more because he’s an awesome guy. At the same time he possesses some form of evilness in his DNA. He doesn’t want to point spar his opponents, he wants to wreck them. When you fall down to the ground he wants to punch your face through the mat. I love that type of fighter.”

Anthony Birchak is the MFC bantamweight champion and seems to have all the tools to become a real superstar in mixed martial arts. We spoke with him before he defeated Tito Jones at MFC 38 for the title and he possesses all the characteristics to lead the MFC into the future, inside and outside of the ring.

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Birchak is the franchise,” admitted Pavelich. “I’ve never said that in 14 years about any of my fighters. He’s been promoting MFC 39 more than any other fighter on the show and he’s not even fighting. That tells you right there what type of company guy he is. To say I am a fan of his is an absolute understatement. I like everything he does; he goes out of his way to promote the MFC. He’s a first class human being, he is awesome. You can see him defending his title at MFC 40 on May 9th.”

With fighters like Southern, Hamilton, Birchak and Sam Alvey representing the MFC, the future is very bright for Mark Pavelich’s promotion. He has a solid relationship with AXS TV and the organization is beloved by the Canadian fans. He’s got some ideas in mind that will help build an even brighter future.

“I am starting to smell us getting into the United States in 2014,” admitted Pavelich. “We are working on some casino deals as we speak. I’m so excited because I’ve been holding my breath for 14 years. It’s a small miracle when you see what we do as a family. If you compare the budget we work with against some of these other shows, yet we’re still on the same playing field, it’s amazing. It comes down to great TV deals, great sponsors, great fighters and of course great fans.”

To listen to the full interview on Alchemist Radio click here.

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

Titan FC’s New Chief Jeff Aronson Discusses the Promotion’s True Goals

Jeff Aronson is a 41-year-old self-described serial entrepreneur and avid mixed martial arts fan. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu purple belt, he simply can’t get enough of the sport.
His intense love of MMA, combined with his business acumen, drove him to…

Jeff Aronson is a 41-year-old self-described serial entrepreneur and avid mixed martial arts fan. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu purple belt, he simply can’t get enough of the sport.

His intense love of MMA, combined with his business acumen, drove him to create Alchemist Management in 2010.

Along with CEO MC Hammer, president Lex McMahon and vice president Nima Safapour, Aronson has helped launch the careers of Rory MacDonald, Liz Carmouche, Stefan Struve, Brendan Schaub and many other top fighters.

That same passion and love have now pushed him in another direction in MMA. He has stepped down as chairman of Alchemist Management in order to create Titan FC, LLC, a Florida-based company, which he hopes will provide fighters with a new platform to advance the world of mixed martial arts.

The reasoning behind the new venture is similar to why he started Alchemist: He wants to give fighters an opportunity to showcase their skills against high-level competition and allow their talents to be seen by fans all across the world.

“I had signed and managed a bunch of young fighters in Florida, and I was having a hard time getting them fights,” Aronson told Bleacher Report. “The guys Alchemist was signing were top of the food chain and no one wanted to fight them.”

“I had spoken to a bunch of the top management companies in the MMA space and they were all running into the same situation with their clients. I realized there was an epidemic for high quality talent to find real fights. As a result, the decision to start Titan FC was made to see if I could bring this young talent to a higher level.”

Aronson learned throughout his time in the business world, as well as in mixed martial arts, that it’s never safe to jump into something without doing your due diligence first. He decided to turn toward Titan Entertainment, LLC, a Kansas-based company, which had already been established in the promotion of MMA fights. 

He decided that if he was going to do a new project, he was going to go full steam ahead or not at all. That is why the deal with Titan made so much sense; it had a great reputation and the right personnel already in place.

“I had heard that there might be an opportunity to do something with Titan Entertainment, which has been owned and operated by Joe Kelly,” said Aronson. “So I reached out to Joe, and after a couple of months of negotiations, we were able to do a deal together. Joe Kelly is someone who has run shows for Bellator, M-1 and various other organizations. It made total sense for me to keep someone like Joe on board.

“Titan FC was also able to retain Joe Wooster as the matchmaker; he has experience working for a bunch of organizations as well. I never realized how many things go into putting on a show. You have the lighting, production ticket sales, the list goes on and on and Kelly is totally comfortable handling all of that.”

Alchemist Management has grown into one of the leading management groups in mixed martial arts.  Whether you speak to the fighters, other managers or officials from various promotions, they will say the same thing: When dealing with Alchemist, you know you are going to deal with honest and straightforward people. The principles that Aronson helped to instill in Alchemist lent a hand when he decided to begin this new venture with Titan FC.

 “I’ve been able to call on people in the industry that I have a relationship with and get their fighters in Titan FC,” offered Aronson. “When the Titan FC roster is announced, you’ll see a collaboration of a lot of management companies.

“They know that their guys are going to be in real, dynamic fights and, as a fan, that’s what I want to see. It doesn’t matter to me if it’s veterans from other promotions or young guys coming up, it’s all the same.

“I want to see quality guys fighting quality opponents. I have also decided to give every single fighter an opt-out clause in the event Zuffa signs them. Everyone has been incredibly receptive to it, and we’ve had a lot of monster signings that will be announced within the next week or two.”

The biggest decision was to look for a broadcast partner. Titan FC wanted to create a brand new identity as well as work with a partner that can be seen in more homes and has the wherewithal to promote the organization to a much wider audience.

“I think there are only a few major networks that you can put a promotion on,” Aronson stated. “CBS Sports Network falls into that category. They’ve been an excellent partner thus far and we will be doing a tremendous amount of cross promotion with them. They’ll be doing a lot of advertising for Titan on their network.”

Many other promotions have chosen to partner up with AXS TV, and they have all had success, but Aronson wanted Titan FC to stand on its own. CBS Sports Network afforded Titan FC that opportunity.

“AXS TV has a lot of good shows on it, but to me it gets a little confusing. When you have a bunch of different promotions on one network, it’s hard to have your own identity. Getting on a bigger stage and establishing our own identity was something that was extremely important to Titan FC. I have some very strong network connections, and thankfully we were able to make that happen.”

Aronson is committed to putting 100 percent of his focus on the day-to-day operations of Titan FC. As he explained earlier, there are a lot of things that go into producing a show that fans don’t get to see or hear about.

He will still own a stake in Alchemist, but when he says he is not involved with the company, he means it.

“I’m not at Alchemist anymore, and it’s not something where I’m looking to load the cards up with Alchemist fighters and have them face inferior fighters so they can use them as stepping stones. I’m in this to provide a platform for all fighters and put them on the right stage. I want to watch them perform to the best of their abilities.

“I want nothing more than for them to get into the big show. No one is ever going to be able to compete with Zuffa directly, and I have no aspirations to do so. I have massive respect for the organization and the people who run it.”

Once the negotiations with Titan Entertainment reached a serious point, Aronson had to sit down with his partners at Alchemist and inform them of his decision. It wasn’t easy walking away from something he helped nurture from a new entity to one of the best management companies in the sport, but he was greeted with a lot of enthusiasm.

“Everybody was extremely supportive, and they were of the same mindset that this was something where we would have to have a division of church and state,” said Aronson. “If I was going to start Titan, then I was going to have to really step down from Alchemist. It wasn’t going to be a publicity stunt where we told people I was stepping down, but in reality I wasn’t.

“I’m no longer involved in the day-to-day operations of Alchemist. I am now dealing with Alchemist managers the same way I am dealing with any other manager. I’m trying to get as many guys on the card as I can and place them in tough fights.”

Titan FC 27 will air on the CBS Sports Network on February 27 from Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kan. Aronson is calling on The Ultimate Fighter Season 16 finalist and Alchemist client Mike Ricci to headline the card. He has also added a nice mixture of established veterans and up-and-coming fighters who will bring the type of excitement he and Titan are looking for.

“Jorge Gurgel is tough as nails, he’s someone who will go in there, bang with you and put on an incredible performance,” said Aronson. “On top of that, he’s one of the most talented BJJ black belts in the country. He’s in there with Ricci, and I think that fight is going to be an absolute barn-burner. I don’t think it’s a cakewalk for either fighter.”

“Another Alchemist client who is on the card is Kurt Holobaugh, and he’ll face Eric Marriott, who is a tough dude. He’s got a great record, he’s a Bellator veteran and he’s no joke. Titan has signed some incredible bouts that haven’t been announced yet. From a fan’s perspective. This is going to be a card that I’m going to want to watch.”

With all the success Aronson has enjoyed as an entrepreneur and in his other projects, getting involved in MMA goes far beyond adding to his net worth. When he first started Alchemist, his mission was to help clients increase their visibility, which in turn would help their bottom line. Starting Titan FC goes far beyond making money for Aronson.

“This whole endeavor is not solely on money,” Aronson admitted. “At this stage of my life, money is not the driving force. I am looking to create opportunities for all of the young men or women and help them further their careers. I want to provide entertaining shows and allow these fighters to do what they have been doing for years.

“They train two or three times a day, six days a week. With that type of training and dedication, they should have the opportunity to test themselves against the best competition and see if they are good enough to compete with the top fighters in the world.”

When you combine the hottest growing sport in the world with one of the largest television networks, it shouldn’t prove difficult to find sponsors. In this day and age where everyone can DVR their favorite television shows, live sporting events still draw high ratings. Aronson has promised not to interfere with his fighter’s opportunities to find sponsors, as long as they are not offensive or vulgar.

“We’re actually going to contract with some major sponsors in the coming week,” admitted Aronson. “It’s very exciting; we are working with like minded people. They want to be involved in this industry and with a brand that is going to do right by all of their fighters. We’re all in this for a common goal.

”As far as I’m concerned, fighters will have free rein on who they can get to sponsor them. Obviously there can’t be any porn or anything associated with an illegal entity. There are a bunch of different categories that need to be weeded out. If these guys have people behind them who want to sponsor them and want to see them succeed, who am I to tell them they can’t help them?”

Titan FC has eight events scheduled for 2014, with the first one taking place at The Memorial Hall in Kansas City, Kan., which is where the promotion has held the majority of its previous shows. Titan FC officials have plans in place to take the promotion from a regional one and bring it onto the national stage.

“We’re planning on going everywhere from Florida, Louisiana, Oklahoma and we’re actually talking about California,” Aronson said. “We plan on targeting venues all over the country. We’re looking at arenas that can hold up to 10,000 fans. We are also in conversations with a lot of Indian reservations right now.”

There are numerous goals already in place for the first year of Titan FC under Aronson’s guidance. The majority of those goals remain consistent with the mantra he has been talking about all along. Stage the fights that fans want to see and offer unique opportunities to the fighters who haven’t been able to find lasting success up until now.

“We’re looking to become a major player in MMA by helping to cultivate all the young talent and giving the veterans a place to improve themselves so they can get back into the big show. There’s enough talent out there to help a promotion to continuously build stars. We want to see these guys get into the big show as fast as possible.”

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

MFC Heavyweight Champion Anthony Hamilton Ready to Defend His Title at MFC 39

Anthony Hamilton was considered an underdog heading into his MFC heavyweight title bout at MFC 38 against Smealinho Rama last October.
Outspoken MFC President Mark Pavelich had been singing the praises of his opponent, Smealinho Rama for the …

Anthony Hamilton was considered an underdog heading into his MFC heavyweight title bout at MFC 38 against Smealinho Rama last October.

Outspoken MFC President Mark Pavelich had been singing the praises of his opponent, Smealinho Rama for the longest time.

When the fight started, it looked as though Pavelich would be proven correct as Hamilton found himself in some trouble in parts of the first round, but he survived and came out for the second round re-energized and confident.

What happened next quickly caught the attention of Pavelich, the fans in attendance and those watching the fight at home.

Twelve seconds after the bell for the second round sounded, Hamilton landed a vicious head kick that knocked Rama out cold. Minutes later he was announced as the new MFC heavyweight champion and was wearing the MFC belt around his waist. Pavelich recently said Rama was still looking for his head somewhere in the fourth row.

The importance of what he had just accomplished took a while to soak in, but once it did, he knew that being a champion in the MFC carried a lot of responsibility. True to form, Hamilton was more than happy to carry the load on his massive shoulders.

“It’s an honor, especially in an organization like the MFC as well as a dream come true,” Hamilton told Alchemist Radio. “I think this is what every fighter works for, to be a champion, especially a world champion. It’s amazing and the experience since then has really been a blessing.”

“When I was first coming up, I had heard about the MFC and then I met Roger Hollet while training at Jackson’s. He was a former MFC light heavyweight champion and I thought that was amazing. Now I’m here and I became champion a few months ago. After I won, I was overcome by my emotions because of all the hard work and sacrifice it took to get to that point.”

 

Hamilton has been working towards the goal of becoming a world champion since he was in high school.

The Jackson’s MMA-trained heavyweight played football, basketball, wrestling and track until he graduated. Once he started college, he chose to concentrate on football and wrestling, which allowed him to spend more time on each sport.

He was left to look for other avenues to stay competitive once college ended because there weren’t many opportunities available for him to continue to wrestle. That was actually a blessing in disguise as it led him to where he is today.

“We didn’t really have much more of outlet to keep wrestling other than the Olympic team,” explained Hamilton. “I started training Jiu-Jitsu and I saw The Ultimate Fighter on TV. I thought that was a perfect opportunity for me to keep competing. I started training some boxing and kickboxing and it kind of took off from there.”

As the old saying goes, there is no rest for the weary, and that certainly rings true in Hamilton’s case.

Just three months after defeating Rama, the MFC has booked Hamilton in the main event of MFC 39 on January 17 where he will defend his title for the first time.

His opponent is Darrill Schoonover, a man who has finished 12 of his 13 victories.

Many fans will most likely remember Schoonover from his time as a contestant on season 10 of The Ultimate Fighter. Unfortunately they may remember him more for the nickname Quinton “Rampage” Jackson gave him than his skills as a fighter, but he can quickly change that on January 17.

“I’m honored to fight someone like Schoonover, he’s a tough guy,” Hamilton admitted. “He’s not a guy you can overlook by any means. He’s proven throughout his career how tough he is by fighting some of the toughest guys around. You can’t take anything away from him and it’s going to be a big fight for me. Right now I’m looking at it as another fight, I’ve been training really hard and I’m looking forward to showcasing my skills.”

This training camp has been especially beneficial according to Hamilton.

While he is afforded the opportunity to train with some of the world’s greatest fighters at Jackson’s, he credited one UFC heavyweight in particular for helping him prepare for Schoonover.

Travis Browne is coming off a first round knockout of Josh Barnett at UFC 168.

Hamilton was enlisted to help Browne train for his bout, and it has helped his overall game immensely. Watching Browne grow as a fighter has driven Hamilton to work harder to improve his skills and become a better fighter himself.

“I train with these guys all year round, but for this one in particular Browne was preparing for Barnett,” said Hamilton. “We put in a lot of work in together and it’s been an amazing experience. He’ll be coming up with me to Canada and will be in my corner. It’s awesome to have a guy like that as part of your camp and in your corner.”

“He’s going to be the champ one day and you can’t beat that. I saw an amazing Travis Browne last month when we were training together and I had no doubt in my mind that he would smash Barnett. I’m looking forward to what he does in 2014, and I have no doubt that he’s going to challenge Cain and take that title.”  

Although he may have started off as a wrestler, Hamilton has quickly grown and expanded his game with the help of his training partners at Jackson’s MMA.

He realizes what awaits him each and every day when he arrives at the gym to train, and he plans on taking full advantage of the bevy of talent he gets to work with.

“I grew up wrestling and still have more of a wrestling base, but I’ve really tried to diversify and be more like Travis Browne or Jon Jones,” Hamilton stated. “Those guys are amazing on their feet and I hope that I can be like that one day. I feel like I’m getting better every time I step into the ring and that’s a testament to training with these monsters year round.”

To listen to the full interview, you can also check us out on Stitcher and ITunes. Hamilton joins us around the 10 minute mark.

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Philippou, Gordon, Aguilar, Hamilton and Aronson on Alchemist Radio

Wednesday night on Alchemist Radio, Mitch Ciccarelli and I spoke to a great panel of guests who offered some great insight into their careers and, as usual, a ton of laughs!
Each and every Wednesday you can tune in at 7 p.m. EST for the best interviews…

Wednesday night on Alchemist Radio, Mitch Ciccarelli and I spoke to a great panel of guests who offered some great insight into their careers and, as usual, a ton of laughs!

Each and every Wednesday you can tune in at 7 p.m. EST for the best interviews with the biggest and brightest stars in mixed martial arts. Wednesday night was certainly no different.

Alchemist Radio is available on Blog Talk Radio, Stitcher Radio and iTunes.

We kicked things off with Maximum Fighting heavyweight champion Anthony Hamilton, who joined us at the 10-minute mark. The Jackson’s MMA product will defend his title against former TUF season 10 competitor Darrill Schoonover at MFC 39 on January 17.

Long Island native and Serra-Longo middleweight Eddie “Truck” Gordon joined us at the 35-minute mark to discuss his future in MMA. The former Ring of Combat champion is rumored to be one of the cast members of The Ultimate Fighter 19.

One half of the UFC Fight Night 35 main event, Costa Philippou was up next at the one-hour mark. Philippou faces former Strikeforce middleweight champion Luke Rockhold on January 15. Both men are coming off of loses and will no doubt be looking to make a statement and move up the UFC middleweight rankings.

World Series of Fighting strawweight Jessica Aguilar came on 90 minutes in. Aguilar will face Alida Gray for the inaugural World Series of Fighting strawweight title at WSOF 8 on January 18. Aguilar told us she has no regrets signing with the WSOF, despite the UFC beginning its own strawweight division and crowning the woman who wins The Ultimate Fighter 20 their strawweight champion.

Former Alchemist Management chairman Jeff Aronson recently stepped down from his role with the management firm in order to purchase Titan FC. Aronson told us their first card will be held on February 28 and feature a main event of Mike Ricci vs. Jorge Gurgel. He also promised the organization has signed a deal with a major television network, rumored to be CBS Sports. He joins us immediately after Aguilar.

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What Is the Best Course of Action for Dominick Cruz Upon His UFC Return?

Whether or not you’re a fan of Dominick Cruz is not the question here. After all that he has gone through, one has to feel for the former WEC and UFC bantamweight champion.
He had fought consistently and successfully throughout the first six years of h…

Whether or not you’re a fan of Dominick Cruz is not the question here. After all that he has gone through, one has to feel for the former WEC and UFC bantamweight champion.

He had fought consistently and successfully throughout the first six years of his career. Due to injuries, he has been relegated to the sidelines since defeating current UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson at UFC Live: Cruz vs. Johnson in October 2011.

For an athlete to be inactive for two-and-a-half years during the prime of his career is sad and raises a lot of questions about how he will perform when he does return to the Octagon.

Cruz initially injured his knee while training for his trilogy bout against Urijah Faber, which was scheduled to take place after the two men coached opposite each other on the first season of The Ultimate Fighter on the FX network. Toward the end of the show, the UFC announced that Cruz had been injured and was pulling out of the fight.

Renan Barao replaced him and defeated Faber at UFC 149 for the interim UFC Bantamweight Championship. In the meantime, Cruz underwent surgery to repair his ACL, which can keep an athlete out of action for up to a year.

The complex procedure involved removing a cadaver tendon from his Achilles and placing it into his injured knee. As Cruz explained on Alchemist Radio, the advantages were less cutting required to the body and less trauma.

The downside to the surgery was that the body can reject the cadaver tissue, and unfortunately for him, this occurred. A second surgery was performed in December 2012, and he was given an expected recovery time of six to nine months.

Anyone who knows Cruz will say that he is one of the most passionate, dedicated and hardworking mixed martial artists. During his downtime, he met with his doctors every eight weeks and kept to a strict schedule.

To keep himself busy, he cornered some of his Alliance MMA teammates and worked as an analyst on the UFC on Fox broadcasts. Little by little, his knee grew stronger, and he was getting closer to returning to the cage.

During his time away, Barao successfully defended the interim title against both Michael McDonald and Eddie Wineland.

Toward the end of 2013, Cruz was given the go-ahead to return to training full time. As a result, the UFC and Dana White, who had been staunch supporters, announced that he would face Barao in a title unification bout at UFC 169 on February 1. The pair was set to headline the UFC’s annual Super Bowl Weekend card, and the contest was highly anticipated.

Finally, Cruz had the opportunity to return and show he was healthy on the big stage.

Alas, it was not meant to be, as the hammer fell once again. This time, the 28-year-old Arizona native suffered a tear to his groin, which cost him the bout with Barao and his UFC bantamweight title. The UFC could no longer wait for the once-defeated Cruz to defend his title and instead crowned Barao as the undisputed champion.

At the time of the announcement, the UFC provided no timetable regarding Cruz’s return, but if he comes back in the summer, it will be almost three full years since he last fought.

Cruz has always relied on his speed and footwork to confuse his opponents. He doesn’t possess McDonald’s knockout power or Faber’s submission game. He has an uncanny ability to land and accumulate punches and kicks at a frenetic pace, while his opponents struggle to catch up with him.

Will he have the same speed when he returns? Psychologically, will he be able to get past all of the injuries he has had to deal with during these past two-and-a-half years?

“The Dominator” will return—there is no question about it. When, where and, most importantly, whom he fights are the biggest questions that fans, fellow fighters and pundits have.

Knowing the type of competitor he is, he will want to jump right back in with the sharks. He will request an immediate title shot, and who can blame him? He’s been at the top of the division for some time now, and if you combine that with his pride, there is no way he will look for a tune-up bout. 

Throwing him against Barao would have been a daunting task in February, but when you add on another six months or so, Cruz will be at an even bigger disadvantage. Being out of the cage and the minds of the UFC fans for so long could also hinder him upon his return.

Maybe the UFC should match him up with someone in the Top 10; a lot of talented 135-lb fighters can offer Cruz a tough test and allow him to get his feet wet.

Fighting is as much about an athlete’s mental state as it is his physical well-being. That’s why taking one fight before a title bout would be the smart thing for him to do.

Cruz will sit down with his coaches, speak to White and formulate a game plan that is best for his career. My only hope is that he stays injury free and can pick up where he left off.

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