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Matt Wiman
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Below is an interview I conducted with a young up and comer in the 155lbs Division and his name is Matt Wiman. This man is obviously extremely dedicated to the sport of Mixed Martial Arts and his love for it is immense. Matt Wiman is currently fighting with a record of 6-1 in mixed martial arts.
Ok first off Matt I just want to say on behalf of doghouseboxing.com that we are very happy and appreciative of you giving us this interview. You are a young up and comer at 155lbs and I read a lot about you on MMA.TV.
So Matt basically what I want first is for you to give all our Doghouse readers a little bit about yourself. Like what got you into the sport of Mixed Martial Arts, what is your background and how you started training with the Lion's Den.
Matt Wiman: I grew up boxing and wrestling with friends in the neighborhood watched. We weren't trained, we just messed around for fun. I saw UFC on TV and it looked like a lot of fun so I looked into it and saw that Mikey Burnett had a school 20 minutes from my house. So I started training there with Mikey and his guys. I really had no background at all at the time. I learned a ton from Mikey. He was very nice and humble and very willing to help me as much as he could. The rest of the guys were very helpful also. They beat me up but they taught me. I think that’s the best way to learn. To lose and then have someone tell you what you did wrong so you don't make the same mistake twice.
Who are the fighters you most look up to in this sport and why?
Matt Wiman: Vanderlei Silva.
That guy is a madman. I really like his aggressive style. I try to fight in a similar way...ya know, constantly attacking and moving forward.
I really like Kevin Randleman also. He's such an amazing athlete and so much natural ability. His personality and character crack me up also.
Another guy I've really become a fan of as of late is Jake Shields. He is someone I admire and someone I would love to go train with. He's fought some of the best in the world and is very skilled. I watched his Abu Dhabi matches and was really impressed. He's also a good person. I hope to go out to train with him sometime soon.
When your fighting and your looking across at your opponent what are the first thoughts that run through your head? Are you nervous or are you just focused on what you have to do?
Matt Wiman: I'm usually thinking that I don't wanna be here. Seriously, what am I doing here? I really can't wait til its over. I literally want to kill the person I'm fighting because he's making me fight in front of people and I wanna take out my anger and frustration on him. I"m extremely focused, but definitely more nervous than you can even imagine.
Give us an idea in detail about your training regimen. I know to be a good overall mixed martial artist you have to be well developed in many different areas as well as being in great shape. So what do you do to well round your overall skill and fitness?
Matt Wiman: It of course depends on I'm getting ready for a fight or not. But typically, I grapple on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday 2 times a day for about a total of 4 hours or so. I run everyday, usually alternating days between jogging and doing spring intervals. Sometimes I do kickboxing and jiu jitsu on separate days, but sometimes I end up doing them both on the same day. We do a lot of work with medicine balls doing plyometrics and functional training. A lot of the training we do is to get my cardio as strong as possible. Lots of sparring. At least 3 times a week. I do grappling with strikes on the ground with 50% power. Its important to get hit because you need to be prepared, but its more important to not get injured. Having good trainers who push me hard and motivate me makes all the difference in the world. Guys like Beau Taylor, Blake Hayes and Thomas Longacre (and many others) really get me ready and boost my confidence.
Out of all of the fighters you could fight in your weightclass no matter what organization they fight in who would you most like to fight right now and why?
Matt Wiman: Rich Clementi.
I think it would be a very tough fight. Rich has fought in the UFC and had a very successful career. I think that he's a very skilled and talented fighter. He's definintely one one of the best out there and I want to fight the best to test myself.
How tough was your decision loss to Roger Huerta in FFC and what have you learned from that experience?
Matt Wiman: It was very tough. I was upset because the fight was so back and forth. I was disappointed that I didn't finish him off when I had his back. I had the dominant position but couldn't secure the choke. And I also came very close to finishing him with an armbar. To come so close and not get the win is very frustrating. So I worked a lot on finishing my submissions. The Huerta fight made me really focus more on my wrestling and striking also. So, there were lots of good things that came from the fight. I feel like I showed everyone that I can hang with some of the best fighters in the world and it gave me a ton of confidence that I could fight hard for 15 minutes against a great opponent. Fighting for the FFC, which is a great promotion, in front of a great crowd in Las Vegas was a great opportunity. One that I will never forget.
Where do you see yourself in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts 5 years from now? At the big stage in Pride or UFC or elsewhere?
Matt Wiman: Definitely in one of the two. I'd also like to stay busy fighting in other shows all over the country because I love MMA and I want to fine tune my game and get more experience. I'll fight for FFC as long as they'll have me on their shows.
Through the success of Pride and the UFC in recent years with the UFC finally going mainstream with the UFC's Ultimate Fighter and Pride going mainstream with their PPV's and their deal with Fox why do you think it has taken so long for Mixed Martial Arts to finally get the attention as a combat sport that is deserves?
Matt Wiman: A lot of people really don't understand how the sport really works. The days of bar broom brawlers is gone. The sport is fairly new still, so a lot of people aren't clear on what its all about. We dedicate our way of life to fight. We're world class athletes with serious dedication. There's nothing else like it. The only way to know what its like is to get in the ring or cage and give it a go.
Do you enjoy boxing and follow the sport? If so who are some of your favorite fighters and why do youenjoy watching them so much?
Matt Wiman: I don't really follow boxing, but I do enjoy watching it. I go to local fights here in Oklahoma all the time. One fighter who I've seen and was really impressed with was Manny Pacquaio. That guy is amazing. His hand speed, foot work...he's just fun to watch. I try to imitate some of his stuff in training. I'd love to get the opportunity to train with him someday.
Thank you Matt for answering all of our questions and all of us at Doghouseboxing.com appreciate you giving us this time and answering our questions. We look forward to seeing a young future star like yourself progress in this great sport.
Matt Wiman: Thanks. I'd love to just thank my fans, friends and trainers. They've all been enormously supportive and I owe all the success to them. 2006 will be a great year for not only myself, but the Tulsa Top Team in general.
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© Copyright / All Rights reserved: DHB 1998-2006
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INTERVIEW By HeavyweightsDead (January 6, 2006)
