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| Photo by MMAJunkie.com |
Jared Hamman may be one of the toughest, and most
underrated, fighters on the entire UFC roster. He is known for being able to take a
punch and spring right back. Jared Hamman also has wins over both CB Dollaway and
Travis Wiuff.
Although he’s coming off a hard fought loss to rising star,
Costa Philippou, he looks to rebound from that loss with a win over Michael
Kuiper at UFC 150. He took time from training to do an interview with us on his
upcoming fight.
Championship Rounds: Michael Kuiper is a tough opponent with
very good judo. How do you envision the fight going?
Jared Hamman: Michael is definitely a tough opponent and I
see this as being a great fight for the fans. You can tell we both like to
fight and both like to bring it. I think my experience is going to play a part,
and I feel like I can capitalize on his weaknesses.
CR: What do you believe are his weaknesses?
JH: Hopefully I'll show you next Saturday!
CR: You looked great in your fight with CB Dollaway. Talk
about the fight. What was your game plan going in?
JH: My game plan was to keep distant, which obviously didn’t
work to well, C.B. closed it up and took me down and got me pretty good in that
first round. My conditioning however is something that I work very hard on and
I believe that made a big difference in that fight. I train to fight as hard as
I can for all three rounds, a full fifteen minutes, and I think I felt that
against Dolloway.
CR: What do you ultimately want to accomplish in the sport
of MMA?
JH: My goal has always been to take each fight as they come
and go as hard as I can for as long as I can. I would like to be ranked in the
top five, that would be great, but my main concern is attacking each fight like
its my last, and giving it all I got. I have always reiterated "you’re
never guaranteed your next heartbeat" and you never know when your last
fight will be, God may have other plans in store. I want to walk away from this
sport knowing I gave it everything I got, to be the best that I could be, with
all glory to Jesus. I would walk
away happy with that.
CR: Which of your accomplishments means the most and why?
JH: I think when I won the IFC cruiserweight belt in the IFC
tournament. I beat a really tough BJJ guy named Rogent Lorrett, an Abu Dhabi
qualifier, in the first fight and then TKO'd a UFC vet, Travis Wiuff in the
second. Cruiserweight was 230 lbs, and I was barely 220 I think, with my
clothes on. It was a great night, and such an awesome time with my team.
CR: What was your original martial art when you gained a
liking of MMA?
JH: Does getting beat up by your older brother while watching
"American Ninja" count?
CR: You are a very spiritual person. How do you believe this
affects your MMA career?
JH: I am a follower of Christ. This affects my whole life
let alone my MMA career. God has blessed me with skills in this sport, with
this platform in the UFC, for His glory and purposes. I have been able to use my position to help mentor younger
athletes and younger adults in general, whether it be speaking opportunities or
direct coaching. It's been a blast to help others through this sport and to
show people, not just tell, who Christ is. To Him be the glory!
CR: Where did you get your nickname, "The
Messenger"?
JH: I got that nickname from Vladimir Matyushenko, my good
friend and UFC light heavyweight.
We have had many a great conversations about God, Jesus, religion, and
stuff of that nature. He gave me the nickname after one of our many conversations.
Great interview with a great fighter! Thanks again to Jared
Hamman and make sure you follow him on Twitter @JaredHammanMMA and support him in
his fight with Michael Kuiper!
