Dylan James Bowker

Matt Krayco on Unified MMA 41 and being on UFC Fight Pass

Matt Krayco collides with Cole Campbell at Unified MMA 41 on September 24th. This goes down at River Cree Resort and Casino in Edmonton, Alberta, and broadcasts on UFC Fight Pass.
I spoke with Krayco ahead of this fight. We touched on: -The work he's getting in after recently having competed
-The feelings associated with returning to MMA after not being able to compete for around three years
-Dynamic MMA in Calgary, Alberta being a massive part of the journey
-Teaching people technique and how that bolsters his individual understanding as a competitor
-Breaking his hand when fighting Michael Hill and opting to use elbows thereafter ala Faber vs Brown
-Breaking his hand halfway through the Hill bout
-Getting a buzzer-beater, first-round stoppage in his last bout under the BTC banner
-If this Cole Campbell bout can allow Krayco to showcase never before seen skills in the cage

Shane Campbell discusses Michael Hill title fight at Unified MMA 41

Shane Campbell tests skills against Michael Hill for the super lightweight championship at Unified MMA 41 on September 24th. This goes down at River Cree Resort and Casino in Edmonton, Alberta, and broadcasts on UFC Fight Pass.
I spoke with the former UFC veteran ahead of this title defense. We touched on multiple topics like: -How Campbell is feeling with this return
-If frustrations set in during this period of competitive dormancy
-Taking arguably the toughest available test in regional Canadian MMA in Michael Hill
-Wanting to get back into the Tapology rankings
-Working with guys like Jake Shields, Francis Ngannou, and Kevin Lee just out in Las Vegas
-Working with Robin Black on breakdown videos for fighting technique
-Campbell's recuperation routine after all of his hard training
-Wanting to get into coaching when his competitive career wraps up
-Being back in Canada for a bit and training at the legendary Toshido MMA
-Tanner Boser, KB Bhullar, and Graham Park working at Shaved Bears MMA alongside Campbell
-Having enjoyment minded, friendly rapport among the elite level martial artists you work with
-Focusing on another UFC run but also being open t other combat disciplines aside from MMA

Buchecha discusses MMA debut at ONE: Revolution

Buchecha tests skills against Anderson Braddock Silva on Friday, September 24th. This heavyweight collision goes down at Singapore Indoor Stadium as part of ONE: Revolution.
I spoke with Marcus Buchecha Almeida ahead of his mixed martial arts debut here. We touched: -The opponent switch from Thomas Narmo and the timeline on that
-The eagerness to finally make this MMA debut after a myriad of roadblocks
-Past work, at Evolve as well as AKA, and American Top Team being the current base of operations
-UFC vet and current PFL finalist Shoeface being a main training partner
-Shoeface being roommates with Buchecha and what they get up to outside of MMA
-The facets of his lauded jiu-jitsu game that he has had to alter for MMA competition
-Thoughts on ONE: Revolution opponent Anderson Braddock Silva
-Gordon Ryan's inclusion in ONE Championship and if he would want to face Ryan under MMA rules
-Losing his first eight BJJ tournaments, all in the first round, and posting that on social media to inspire young jiu-jitsu players
-The excitement associated with the learning curve of learning striking for this MMA crossover
-Meeting Mike Tyson and the backstory on that interaction

James Yang on making MMA debut at ONE: Revolution

James Yang tests skills against Roel Rosauro at ONE: Revolution on Friday, September 24th. This contest transpires at Singapore Indoor Stadium
I spoke with Yang ahead of not only his ONE Championship debut but also his pro-MMA debut. We touched on: -The training ahead of his professional MMA debut
-The timeline first getting in work at the vaunted AMC Pankration gym
-What first sparked the intrigue in martial arts
-The amateur MMA experience and the importance of that learning curve for the pro transition
-Amateur belts at 150 as well as 145 lbs and if his ONE Championship future is at Featherweight
-The lineage of Matt Hume and Demetrious Mighty Mouse Johnson interweaving with James Yang
-Kicking off the lead card of ONE: Revolution
-Where Yang's level of composure and comfortability comes from
-Thoughts on his opponent and if there's a level of tape study being done
-The importance of making his pro-MMA debut with a show as big as ONE Championship

Martin Nguyen on returning vs Kim Jae Woong at ONE: Revolution

 
Martin Nguyen tests skills against Kim Jae Woong at ONE: Revolution. The featherweight fight goes down at Singapore Indoor Stadium on Friday, September 24th.
I spoke with the former multi-division world champion ahead of this huge return. Nguyen touched on: -The recent work at Sanford MMA
-Main sparring partners for this one and the varied framework with that
-Where the familiarity with his opponent comes from
-The multitude of frustrating bout cancellations and the catharsis this bout could bring
-Having a bit of a hiatus now and the new skills he has accrued since
-Being the champion for years and Nguyen's surprise that his next fight would not be for the belt
-If there's a relief to be found in returning to the ONE Circle from a bit of a dormant period
-Being with ONE for close to seven years now and the mutual growth
-Being a father and husband predominantly and if his kids have trained in martial arts at all
-The former lightweight champion not looking to return back to that weight category
-Emerging victorious against Christian Lee previously and thoughts on Lee's title run
-Having contended for the ONE bantamweight belt and also not intending to return to 135 lbs
-Martin Nguyen having a high school javelin record that has remained for two decades

Gustavo Lopez on Heili Alateng fight and meeting Shaq

Gustavo Lopez takes on Heili Alateng in the preliminary portion of UFC Fight Night: Smith vs Spann. The bantamweight bout goes down on September 18th and emanates from the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada.
I spoke with Lopez ahead of this bout and he touched on multiple topics:
-Recent training efforts leading into this next Octagon foray
-The Cody Stamann training timeline
-The tons of fighters from the myriad of promotions he trains with at Xtreme Couture
-The mentorship from Miesha Tate over the years
-Generational martial arts teachings and creating a lineage of learning
-The seemingly perpetual positivity on his social media platforms
-The UFC PI for his growth
-Thoughts on Heili Alateng's big stylistic attributes heading into this one
-Meeting Shaq at the UFC PI and the backstory there

Alex Polizzi on Grant Neal bout and the pursuit of Arby‘s sponsorship

Alex Polizzi takes on Grant Neal in a light heavyweight preliminary bout. This transpires at Bellator 266 on September 18th. The pugilistic proceedings emanate from SAP Center in San Jose, California.
I spoke with Polizzi and he touched on several subjects such as:
-Being on another Bellator card with Chosen Few Gym teammate Mark Lemminger
-Getting back to the win column in his last bout at Bellator 260 and if that provided relief
-Focusing on his own endeavors and refining skills as opposed to unwavering tape study
-The Bellator MMA rankings and fighting the number seven contender in Grant Neal
-Fans in attendance versus fans not in attendance when competing
-The attention Polizzi got about our Arbys chat and if he hit up the Beloit Arby's in July
-A proud son of Beloit and if The Rock Bar and Grill is going to be doing a watch party for the fight

Chatri Sityodtong breaks ONE title fight news for remainder of 2021

ONE Championship figurehead Chatri Sityodtong came on Bowks Talking Bouts to cover a multitude of subjects. The ONE CEO/ progenitor of Evolve MMA touched on several topics such as:
-Fans voting on the ONE Atomweight Grand Prix semi-finals with those bouts revealed at ONE: Revolution
-BREAKING Janet Todd versus Anissa Meksen being the next ONE Atomweight Kickboxing championship affair
-Victoria Lee's progression in ONE Championship a year after signing the teenage phenom
-The burgeoning ONE Heavyweight division and if a Grand Prix is possible
-Amir Aliakbari being in a title eliminator and what's next for Kang Ji Won who stopped Aliakbari in the first round
-Buchecha's MMA debut against Anderson Braddock Silva and if Gordon Ryan is still targeting a mixed martial arts crossover
-Having some dialogue with Matt Hume and setting up a talk with Bibiano Fernandes about a return to ONE in December
-Possible collaborations with other promotions and a UFC versus ONE co-promotion
-The UFC connectivity from the Ben Askren and Demetrious Johnson trade
-The looming kickboxing grand prix at ONE: First Strike and how massive that event is
-Why AEW and ONE Championship didn't collaborate a great deal during ONE's April TNT run
-BREAKING Jackie Buntan's next bout being for the inaugural ONE Strawweight Muay Thai title