Its hard to believe that last week has come and gone! Filled from the word go with intense training! Its always fun to feel your body break down and want to give out when you increase the intensity. I was sort of bummed that I didn’t get to watch the UFC fights live.

Building from last week I wanted to give the readers some additional insight into my back ground in MMA. Since starting my quest to understand Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ), I’ve been very fortunate to have great practioners to learn from. I’ll never forget my first days when I would leave BJJ and wonder how I just got owned by this little 168 lb computer guy name Chris David. Since that time I have also been lucky enough to learn from Henrique “Caique” Elias. He awarded me my purple belt last summer at a seminar at Des Moines Jiu-Jitsu. Honestly I feel pretty lucky to be able to learn from people like Caique. By chance you might say I was introduced to Ricky Lundell now of Salt Lake City. He was wrestling at ISU and also training for the BJJ world tournament. After rolling with him the 1st question I had was, “do you do private lessons????” I would have to say I owe a lot of where my BJJ game is today, to Ricky. In a short year he changed the way I think on the ground.

About this time in my training camp I really start to think about my gameplan for a fight. The way in which I intend to fight will specifically change the drills I do leading up to fight day. I break down the film available and then discuss the needed plan of attack with my individual coaches. Collectively the game plan is set and off we go with hard work!

How many of you out there ate too much “great food” yesterday at a superbowl party?? I also had little will power, and everything and I mean everything got sampled… Some foods I would even say I abused! LOL, I have to say my stomach didn’t feel to great today, but by noon I was back to calorie negative and looking everywhere for food! I can’t say that I diet ever with the exception of fight week. I guess a long time ago I just made the decision to eat healthy with a few minor exception. I have a soft spot in my heart for Oreos and Ice cream! Sometimes when you are negative 1000 calories, the doctor orders a row of oreos! The week before fight day though I do the math on how many calories I get per day. All this talk about food has me hungry.. Time to get some calories! Talk to you all next week…

Kevin “The Fire” Burns

Getting to Know Maurice Speirs

At MCC 25: “Inferno”, Maurice Spiers will make his debut for the promotion as he takes on fan favorite, Ian “Not So Nice” Tice.  We recently caught up to Maurice to get to know a little about him.
 
MCC:  Welcome to Midwest Cage Championship.  Can you tell the fans a little about yourself:
MS:  I am 23 years old, 6′2″ tall and I fight in the welterweight division.  I am originally from Centerville, Iowa,  and I live in Knoxville presently.  I train with a good group of guys at a few gyms such as Rocko’s Mat Club, Centerville Bad Boy’s, Knoxville Boxing Club and Tallman’s Judo Academy.
 
MCC:  So, it looks like you are putting a lot into your training and working to become very well rounded.
MS:  Absolutely.  I feel I have a very good striking and jiu jitsu game, and I am always looking to improve and get better every day.  Fighters always need to get more well rounded if they want to progress in the sport.
 
MCC:  What is your MMA record and what have you accomplished so far in your career?
MS:  My professional record is 3-2.  My greatest accomplishment so far is a recent victory over UFC veteran, Jesse Sanders.  Being a part of MCC is pretty cool too.  It’s a great place to call home as I look to make the most of my MMA career.

MCC:  Have you always been involved in martial arts?  What brought you into the sport of MMA”
MS:  No.  I played high school and college football as well as basketball.  I did not get turned onto MMA until 2005.  I was looking for a sport that could harness my competitive nature.  I thought MMA would be something I could excel at with hard work and dedication.
 
MCC: Do you have any heroes in the sport?  Outside the sport?
MS:  Tito Ortiz.  I admire how hard he works.  I hope to continue my progress and pick of some of his ground skills.  Outside the sport, my parents are my heroes.  I admire their work ethic.  They showed me what hard work does for your family and the things you get in life you should cherish.
 
MCC:  Do you train and fight full time?  What do you do in your spare time?
MS:  I do train and fight full time.  I am also a member of the Army National Guard, a faithful boyfriend, and a good father to my son and step son.  I guess you could say I have no spare time!

MCC:  You’re fighting a very well rounded fighter, Ian Tice, at MCC 25.  What do you know about him and how are you training for the upcoming fight?
MS:  I know that he is tough.  I know that he is a good wrestler, and I think that we will have an interesting fight.  I am training hard right now.  I’m working everything because that is what has gotten me to this point. I think our fight will be a war because we will both fight our hearts out for the fans, friends, family, and everyone who will be watching this at home.
 
MCC: What are your plans for 2010?
MS:  This fight is what’s most important right now.  After this I am looking forward to working my way up the ladder on the way to the MCC Welterweight Title.
 
MCC:  Thank you for your time and best of luck to you.  Is there anything else you’d like to add”
MS:  Thanks for having me in MCC.  It’s a great accomplishment, and it makes you feel like your making your way to be one of the best in the Midwest. I love it.

Last week I gave the readers of this blog some insight to how my life and MMA crossed paths. Since that time, the sport has not come without numerous physical and mental challenges. After recording my first pro victory in August of 2006 I was forced to take 16 weeks off as I healed a broken hand. Basically, the hardest lesson you can learn about properly seeking out the knowledge to correctly tape your hands! The next 2 years of my fighting career would be a living testament to it! I went on to break my hand in the exact same spot 2 more times. Funny enough both other times were in practice. The last time I actually broke it 2 weeks before my fight. I told myself less than 6 hours later….”You trained way to hard to pull out now!” From there I kept it very quiet among my teammates and went into my December 2007 fight with a broken hand. It wasn’t easy, but I did come through with a victory so I could keep my hopes of making it to the UFC alive.  I was blessed this time to find a specialist that could fix my hand for good! Next, I geared up for the biggest fight to date in my career against Bobby Volker. This fight proved to be the jolt my fighting career needed to get noticed by the UFC. Trust me I’ll never forget the day I got the call and realized I would be fighting in the UFC on 9 days notice in London! I looked at Chris David (my main B JJ trainer) while at the Des Moines Jiu-Jitsu Academy and said, “You want to go to London Monday?” and without blinking an eye we hopped on a plane to travel across the pond. As a 6:1 underdog going into my 1st UFC fight I came out victorious via triangle choke and was awarded the “Submission of the Night” bonus. It was an amazing entry without a question to today’s biggest MMA promotion.
 
Throughout all of this I have somehow been able to keep a work/home/life balance. I’m sure all of you reading this can relate to trying to figure out what this magical balance truly is. My equation has consisted of balancing full-time work in the finance industry, going to night school full-time, being a father, and aspiring to take my professional fighting career to the next level. The moving parts of each required me to become a master of time management. When and where do I need to be to get all of this stuff done?? I would ask myself that question almost weekly it seemed. All in all a typical day usually starts at 4:42am and ends around 9:00-9:30pm each night. I have to tell you it’s like a race all day from the sound of the bell its “go time”.  The activities vary from day to day, but throughout my training week I work Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu technique/sparring, Muay Thai technique/sparring, wrestling, strength and conditioning, cardio, massage, and sauna time. I look at my weeks really as training time available then divide it up into the appropriate categories depending on where I am in relation to a fight. Further out I spend more of my “total time” on technique getting better and as I approach a fight I beef up my cardio and application of the moves I have been learning for competition day. Having a schedule like this doesn’t come without a great support network of family and friends. My wife Cindy wasn’t a fan of the sport in the beginning, but since has become my largest supporter. Trust me to the wives and girl friends out there that deal with grown men cutting weight… YOU DESERVE A MEDAL! Part of what’s necessary though to complete what you set out to accomplish. This week in my current training things get stepped up a notch! I’m jacked to get after it!
 
Kevin Burns

Dreams, Goals, and Determination; Getting to Know Brett “The Natural Disaster” Stevens

By Randy Thomas

In the sport of mixed martial arts, setting goals are normal, daily activities for fighters. Some goals are small. Some goals are much larger. But, in 2008, following a near death experience, Brett Stevens set the most important goal; to become the best mixed martial artist he could aspire to be. And, he’s never looked back.

Stevens began his MMA career in 2004 after a friend convinced him to give it a try. The adrenaline rush he felt winning his first fight by knock out was all it took to get him hooked. A few fights and a couple of years later, Stevens made the trek from Eagle Grove, Iowa to San Diego, California to train under the guidance of kickboxing legend, Rob Kaman. Life was good. Until a routine motorcycle ride changed his life in an instant.

Two days later he awoke to his family looking down at him from his hospital bed. Hooked up to machines to keep him alive he questioned how he ended up there. For an athletic, tough guy, he suddenly felt helpless. He learned that he had been hit by a drunk driver while he was riding his motorcycle and he was in critical condition. He was in another type of fight- one in which he was fighting for his life. He was not going to lose.

He recalls that day. “It really turned my life around when I saw my everything flash before me. I knew I had to make a choice. I cut all of the nonsense out of my life, set my goals in what I want in life, and I have stuck to it. I’ve been training ever since my accident, and I have never been more determined. I feel there’s nothing or no one that can stop me, or push me off track.”

On March 13, at MCC 25: “Inferno”, Stevens will challenge Middleweight Champion, Elvis “The King” Mutapcic for his coveted title. Although Stevens will be making his MCC debut, he brings with him an impressive 13-3 professional record which includes eight wins by knock out and another three by submission. Additionally, the 6′3″ middleweight recently won a gold medal in the ADCC Grappling Competition in Las Vegas, NV. Training full time at Minnesota Mixed Martial Arts with UFC veterans Jakob Volkmann, Nick Thomson, and former UFC Lightweight Champion, Sean Sherk, his confidence is high and his sights are set on the MCC strap.

When asked for his thoughts on his opponent, Stevens commented, “I know Elvis is one dimensional as a striker. He throws tough kicks, but he’s not the kick boxer that everyone thinks he is. I think he’ll get too excited trying to end this fight, which will be dangerous for him, and it’ll be a wrap with me taking his belt. He better be patient and take his time. On the flip side, I hope he wants to stand to put on a war, and the best fight for the fans. I see Elvis getting frustrated with my stand up, dropping his hands and getting knocked out. Either that, or I can see Elvis getting frustrated with my stand up, taking me down, and then getting tapped out.”

Very strong words for someone taking on such a dominant, aggressive fighter like Elvis Mutapcic.

“I have the ability to dictate the fight. I have no weaknesses. I’m planning for the toughest, strongest, best Elvis Mutapcic there is so I hope he is training hard, brings his A game, and lives up to all the hype, because I’m bringing everything I’ve got.”

His first goal of 2010: the MCC Middleweight title. To Stevens it’s more than just a belt. It’s a culmination of the last six years of his life. It’s everything he’s put into mixed martial arts. It’s the motivation of knowing so many other MCC champions have moved on to every fighters destination; the UFC. If there’s a will, there’s a way. And, Brett Stevens is going to find his way.

Like many of you reading this, I am a born and raised “Iowan” from a small town in western Iowa called, Glidden. My 29 year journey began in a small school where as in Cheers everyone knows your name.  Growing up in small town Iowa seemed boring at the time, but now looking back it was priceless. Living in a place where family values, work ethic, and motivation were a requirement helped fuel me in life. It’s also the place I met my future wife.  All of these core values got put to use during high school. I was fortunate enough to be able to compete in Football, Track, and Baseball. Leaving high school I pursued college football at the University of South Dakota. My stint there wasn’t long due to an unfortunate shoulder injury during my red shirt freshman year. I moved back to Iowa the spring of my freshman year and began attending Simpson College in pursuit of a computer science degree.
 
As 2000 quickly approached technology jobs seemed to be dropping by the second. I made the decision to leave college and enter the workforce with Wells Fargo. In 2003 I started Tae Kwon Do with my sister for fun and to stay in shape. I was curious if the things they had been teaching me really worked so I decided to enter an amateur Kick Boxing event held every Wednesday night at Toad Holler. My life would be changed forever after that night! No one wanted to kick box, but there was a spot at my weight in MMA. I didn’t even know what it was, but said sure whatever I came here to see if Tae Kwon Do was worth anything. Later that evening I would record my first Amateur MMA victory. I didn’t really think twice at that point about doing it again. I went back to work at Wells Fargo and pursued my career.  A year later my opponent requested a rematch. I accepted and truthfully got my a$$ kicked until I verbally tapped. I realized there was a lot more to the game of MMA and I was clueless to what “Jiu-Jitsu” was. I decided after that night I would quit Tae Kwon Do, and learn BJJ (Brazilian Jiu Jitsu). 
 
As I was learning BJJ I also decided I needed to go back to college to get my Business Degree. I started at William Penn in 2005 while working fulltime at Wells Fargo as a manager in their sales group. As I gained more knowledge about BJJ I began having interest again in striking, but I wanted to do something more useful. Muay Thai kick boxing seemed like a good choice and I was lucky enough to have a good friend willing to teach me. It didn’t take long for me to start getting the itch to fight! The hardest obstacle I needed to overcome was getting my wife on board with the idea. Finally one night over a bottle of wine she agreed and the next day I was on the phone trying to find a fight. When I told her, “Honey I was able to set up my 1st pro fight,” she was in disbelief. Since that 1st fight though, neither one of us have looked back.
 
Throughout my MMA career I have endured numerous injuries, but my goal has remained the same. I want to win a world title! That quest will continue March 13th at HY-VEE Hall in MCC 25 against Justin Demoney. I’m truly excited to have the opportunity to fight back in DSM, and trust me, you’ll all get to see fireworks in the cage!

Follow me over the next seven weeks leading up to my fight, as I share my past and present life in training, and outside of the gym.

- Kevin “The Fire” Burns