Ohio MMA Podcast

Amateur fighter Montanna Roberts joins the #OhioMMA Podcast. We discuss:-Facing Trevon Thomas at AFP 104 on Dec. 6 in Cleveland-Getting 21 second and 15 second KOs in last 2 fights - Which KO is his favorite-Facing Power Slap champion in last fight and a high level BJJ black belt in his first fight-Training at ADAMAS Jiu-Jitsu under BJJ world champ Dante Leon-His kickboxing background and how he g...

Undefeated pro fighter RJ Harris joins the #OhioMMA Podcast. We discuss; -Facing Alex Marro at LFA 223 on Nov. 21 in New York -Facing an opponent in Alex Marro who training partner Matt Adams faced -Signing a 3-fight deal with LFA and fighting for LFA vs. fighting locally -Cross-training with Austin Green after facing him in most recent fight -Getting 2 wins as a pro via submission after being kno...

Amateur fighter Damien Sanders joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss: -Facing Bryce Barnes at HRMMA 127 on Nov. 22 in Bowling Green, KY -Losing title fight in last outing via heel hook and he he plans to rebound -Getting start in MMA through wrestling - Mt. St. Joseph University -Training under Jeff Robison and Nik Hoobler at Club MMA since he was 11 - being a coach himself as well -Hav...

Amateur fighter Robi Cvitic joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss: -Facing Josuwa Caban for flyweight title at Bayfront Brawl 18 on Nov. 26 in Erie, PA -Getting a third title fight and facing opponent in his hometown -Moving up a weight class in last fight but coming up short for title against Brent Troyer -Training at Ares Combat with Dave Graf and training with another top flyweight i...

This week debuting pro fighter Zach Russ joins the #OhioMMA Podcast. We discuss: -Making his pro debut at Ohio Combat League 41 on Oct. 18 in Newport, KY -Making pro debut at just 19 years old -Having almost 30 combat sports fights and over 200 grappling matches -What it means to have a finisher’s mindset -Being a tall fighter at 6’7” and using his height to his advantage -Training at Club MMA w/...

Pro MMA fighter Brian Rogers joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss: -Competing in his first MMA fight in more than 8 years when he faces Dustin Pape in the main event at AFP 103-Going out on two straight wins 8 years ago-The motivation come back after 8 years off and being 41 years old-Building brands inside and outside of MMA-Focus on being exciting as a fighter - dating to his early p...

This week undefeated amateur MMA fighter Jahmon Spiller joins the #OhioMMA Podcast. We discuss:-Earning a first round rear naked choke submission over Brody Veyon at Ohio Combat League 39 to move to 2-0-Being an All-American wrestler at Thomas More University and his wrestling career-How he found MMA while wrestling-Training with Roger Bowling at Team Relentless -Team Relentless going 3-0 at OCL 3...

Pro MMA fighter Elijah Woodroof joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss-Making pro debut against Harrison Watkins at OCL 38 on May 17 in Newport, KY-Closing out amateur career winning HRMMA LW title in August-Facing toughest level of competition as an amateur, including now teammate Liam Hamill-Training at Team Hammer with Matt Hamill as well as with Sacan Martial Arts-How he got the nick...

Undefeated amateur fighter Jadon Brewer joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss:-Facing Jackson Lengthhorn at AFP 102 on May 17 in Toledo-Earning a 7-second knockout in MMA debut at AFP 101 in February-His Muay Thai experience prior to MMA-Earning purple belt under Rob Hileman - competing in grappling as well-Training at a gym in Leverage BJJ that is known for grappling-Baseball being his...

Amateur fighter Hunter Frazer joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss:-Earning a 64-second TKO win over Dillon Zartman at OCL 37 to move amateur MMA record to 2-1-Training with legendary coaches Roger Bowling (Team Relentless), Kru Neal Rowe (Sacan Martial Arts), and Rob Radford. Also Alex Burkett from Gorilla Mode AJJ-His unique backstory and how he was connected to his coach from an unl...

Veteran MMA fighter Joe "The Guardian" Garcia joins the #OhioMMA Podcast. We discuss:-What's different now from when he made his MMA debut all the way back in 2008-Returning to the cage in 2024 after 5 years off and earning his first pro win-What’s next and why this is his last year competing in MMA-Having 10 fighters from Garcia MMA compete at the debut event for Combate MVP-Going viral on social...

Undefeated amateur MMA fighter Ray Taylor joins the #OhioMMA Podcast. We discuss:-Returning to action against Robi Cvitic at Ohio Combat League 37 on April 19-Getting start in MMA by wrestling -Being a very tall flyweight-Showing off striking in first fight and then grappling in second fight-Training at VO2 Fitness and getting to fight in hometown-Facing opponents with much more experience and ste...

Undefeated amateur MMA fighter Keegan Mahafkey joins the #OhioMMA Podcast. We discuss:-Challenging Elijah Davis for Made Men Promotions bantamweight title at Live MMA at Penguin City 8 on April 19-First main event fight-Winning first 3 fights via 3 different methods-Getting started in MMA, coming from a wrestling background-Training at Ohio BJJ under Andrew Murray and George Talaganis-First baby d...

Sinisa Jovic joins the Ohio MMA Podcast this week. We discuss:-Returning to action against Jackson Dougherty at Caged Thunder 31 on April 12-Winning the 2024 Ohio MMA Amateur KO of the Year-Returning from a loss to Ashton Eyler at BCM 20 in Feb-Training martial arts since 7 in karate, boxing, and sambo-Wing the US national kickboxing championship and getting to represent USA in Abu Dhabi in Novemb...

Veteran fighter Antonio Castillo Jr. joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss: -Fighting in co-main event at Caged Thunder 29 -motivation to face Dusty Shaffer -What it's like being so closely connected to the Ohio MMA scene -Running his own Mayanz Fight Team and being invitation only -What motivates him to keep going at 37 years old -Remembering memorable fights with Frank Caraballo and K...

Unbeaten amateur fighter Jared Campbell joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss: -Fighting Dec. 14 against Chris Dailey at Made Men Live MMA at Penguin City 7 -Wrestling background - state champ in Ohio and NCAA All-American -Wrestling at Notre Dame College -Being a wrestling coach now -Being from the small town of Congress, Ohio -How he got into MMA and winning first fight via bulldog ch...

Undefeated amateur MMA fighter Connor Cleveland joins the #ohiomma Podcast this week. We discuss: -Fighting against Jeremiah Slagle at Live MMA at Morgantown Nov. 9 -Fighting out of state in WV for the first time -Training at Gracie Orwell under Cody Lewis and Brad Bukovics -Having a lot of amateurs with similar experience on his team -How he got into MMA -Getting a submission over a fighter from...

Undefeated amateur fighter Alekzander Hazelwood joins the #OhiioMMA Podcast this week. On this episode we discuss: -Fighting against Jade Batross at OCL 32 - taking a big step up in competition -Training at Ronin Training Center under Josh Williams and Ryan Benedetto, training with Ethan Shirk, Asher Frederick, and Mark Antonelli -Getting started in MMA through wrestling and competing in BJJ as a...

This week undefeated amateur fighter Gavin Baisden joins the #OhioMMA Podcast. We discuss: -3-0 fighter was supposed to fight at BCM October 18 -How he got started in MMA -Getting to make MMA debut in New Jersey -Finishing first 3 fights via first round submission -Competing in grappling events as well as MMA -Training every day with Matt Brown at Immortal Martial Arts -Teammates mentioning him as...

This week undefeated amateur fighter Brayden Benson joins the #OhioMMA Podcast. On this episode we discuss: -Wing middleweight title with first round TKO over Nate Doss at ECC Cage Wars 10 -Starting wrestling with an eye to eventually compete in MMA -Training with a UFC fighter in Dylan Budka every day -Branching out to fight in other promotions and other states -Grandfather as influence in life -...

Undefeated amateur MMA fighter AJ Jones joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss: -Fighting October 5 against Jeremy Riley at Caged Thunder NexGen 3 -Background in wrestling and kickboxing and transitioning to MMA -Winning first 3 MMA bouts via TKO - 2 via leg kicks -Fighting at both light heavyweight and heavyweight in MMA -Training at Ronin Training Center and training closely with Melvi...

Undefeated pro fighter Josh Perreira joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss: -Fighting for his first pro title against another unbeaten fighter in Gage Mitchell at SICP 6 -Facing opponent who is #1 in Indiana while he is #1 in Ohio and Kentucky -Opponent who has a lot of grappling and kickboxing experience -Two fights in LFA but now fighting for another smaller regional promotion -Long t...

Undefeated pro fighter Josiah Harrell joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. We discuss: -Fighting Oct 18 at LFA 194 against Uelliton Silva -Returning to MMA after recovery from surgery for moyamoya -The quick turnaround of just 16 months since last fight -Reaching out to Vince Murdock who had same surgery -Training at both Grove City BJJ and Immortal Martial Arts -Matt Brown transitioning from tra...

Pro fighter Myles Robinson joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week. On this episode, we discuss: -Fighting at Chosen Few FC 25 on Oct 5 in Wisconsin against Garrett Carlson -Training at both Immortal and Strongstyle-Training with Matt Brown and his role as a coach now that he’s retired -Training at West Side Barbell and incorporating powerlifting into his training -The mental side of coming off of a...

Longtime pro fighter Jeremy Pender joins the #OhioMMA Podcast this week to discuss his upcoming main event bout against Mark Coates at Empire Fight Series 3. Pender also discusses his long career and thinking about retiring, his layoff of over two years since his last fight, and coaching the next group of stars out of Vision MMA