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DEAN AMASINGER
UCMMA Amasinger vs. Maguire
© Marc Wickert Special thanks to: Izzy Carnwath of www.halo-pr.com Wad Alameddine of www.fight-management.com
On February 4, UK MMA sensation Dean “Renegade” Amasinger (7-2-0) squares off against John Maguire of the Tsunami Gym for the UCMMA Welterweight Championship. Amasinger has been fighting most of his life, having taken up kickboxing at age four at his uncle’s gym in the Windsor area of England. In 2009, Dean earned international attention when he defeated fellow Brit, Alex Reid, at The Ultimate Fighter (TUF): UK vs. USA. And in retrospect, Dean says his time on TUF was an amazing experience. “Looking back at it, I only have fond memories, but when I was going through it I definitely found it tough being away from my family and fiancée and to be without music, books or TV was difficult,” says Amasinger. “I had a lot of fun there and only recently I watched some of the DVD back with Dave Faulkner and Ross Pearson and we laughed so much at what we got up to. “The main thing though was how good the training was. It's rare to have so many good guys to train with on a daily basis that are all around the same weight. Mike (Bisping) and his coaching team were brilliant and I definitely came away from the show a better fighter.”
Dean, can you tell readers a bit more about your experience with head coaches Michael Bisping and Dan Henderson, please? “Like I said, Mike was a great coach and he really impressed me when we sparred and rolled together. His skill level is really high and we all took a bit of a beasting from him. I think Mike gets a lot of stick sometimes but after you train with him you'll only have good things to say about him. “He was also really hands-on and got involved with every training session; he didn't just sit on the sidelines and bark orders. “Because of the format of the show we didn't really have any interaction with Dan and his coaching team. When he was around he seemed like a cool guy and pretty switched on.” How did you first meet up with Paul Daley and Dan Hardy? “I moved to Nottingham to go to University. I had already trained in martial arts and combat sports most of my life. After an injury stopped me playing rugby, I returned to training martial arts to get back into shape. I met a guy at the gym called Paul Davis, who at the time was coaching Paul and Dan, and he invited me to come down and train, and the rest is history.” What is it about Team Rough House fighters that makes you all so tough? “It’s just the way we train; if you weren't tough you wouldn't make it past one training session. The weak ones get weeded out! We're all like brothers and we'd do anything for each other, but when we train, we train hard and there's like a sibling rivalry that pushes us to keep improving. No one wants to be outdone by anyone else and that healthy competitiveness in the gym is why we do well.” The majority of Team Rough House athletes are either welterweights or lightweights. Does that come in handy for choosing sparring partners? “Of course! When I do my final sparring sessions before a fight, which is normally five x 5 minute rounds, I have two of the top 10 welterweights in the world in Dan and Paul, and Jimmy Wallhead, who I assure you will be top 10 by the end of the year, Nick Osipczak and either Andre Winner or Ross Pearson to throw in for speed. Trust me it’s not fun, but it brings out the best in me.” Would any of the Team Rough House members compete against each other? “No.” Who do you train with in Holland? “I train at Mike's Gym. It's an amazing gym with fighters like Melvin Manhoef, Badr Hari and Joeri Mess, and in my experience it's the best place to go in Holland.” Do you mainly train in Holland for kickboxing? “Yes, it’s mostly stand-up but Remco Pardo, who is an old-school UFC vet and BJJ and Judo black belt, is at the gym and I'll often do privates with him.”
I believe you used to compete in powerlifting. Do you incorporate powerlifting in your schedule? “To a certain extent… Ollie Richardson of www.fighterstrength.com looks after my strength and conditioning, and he has been working all attributes that will help me for MMA. Some of that involves powerlifting but I'd say it’s a small part of my routine.” Are you happy to have dropped down from middleweight to welterweight? Would you compete at middleweight again if the right fight came along? “Definitely. I walk around at +90 Kg, so I could hold my own at middleweight, but I'm not that tall so it wouldn't be a good idea to be fighting someone I'm giving up loads of reach to.” Did your victory over Jamaine Facey earn you the shot at the UCMMA title against John Maguire? “Yes, it was a hard earned fight but it was worth it.” Who have you been training with for this match on February 4? “All of the Rough House lads as usual, but I also brought in some southpaw fighters to mimic John’s stance. I have been training with Victor Estima on my BJJ and he is on a different level and has brought on my ground game leaps and bounds.” Do you expect this to be a ground war? “We're both well-rounded so this will be a proper MMA fight.” What will John Maguire’s strengths be? “John is well-rounded, so he's competent everywhere, but not dangerous anywhere.” What will your strengths be? “I've been improving every part of my game and I'm more powerful, faster and fitter than I've ever been before, so I'm dangerous everywhere.”
Dean Amasinger’s sponsors? “A big thank you to all my sponsors: Dean, is there anything you’d like to add? “Hit me up on facebook and twitter: www.facebook.com/dean.amasinger Live the dream!”
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