MMA Junkie recently caught with K-1 kickboxer Tyrone Spong and some surprising news came out of it: the kickboxing champion is considering a run in MMA.
Per MMA Junkie:
If (when) he does, Spong has one promise: You will be entertained.
“The American fans have shown me a lot of love and a lot of respect,” Spong recently told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). “They motivate me. It’s guys like that help you keep pushing to get better. If I do come here to the U.S. to do MMA, I will entertain you. That’s a promise.”
Long a staple of the kickboxing scene, MMA fans recently took notice of the knockout artist after he defeated Ray Sefo in a K-1 bout this past October and then took a much-larger Alistair Overeem to a hard-fought decision in a December 2010 K-1 World Grand Prix quarterfinal contest.
Spong was then linked to former UFC champ Rashad Evans, who worked with the striking expert in preparation for a UFC 133 bout with Tito Ortiz. Spong said he took the time working with “The Blackzilians” to pick up a few groundfighting techniques in preparation for a potential move to MMA.
Spong hasn’t made a firm commitment to switch over, but he said those around him are encouraging him to consider the shift.
“Everybody is very enthusiastic about it, so I’m just taking it one step at a time,” Spong said. “I’ve had some big organizations offer me some stuff, but I don’t know where my head is right now. I’m just orientating myself and taking it one step at time.”
It’s not the first time Spong has considered a move away from his core discipline. A few years back, Spong said he was offered a contract to box. But even then, he was toying with the idea of MMA. He ultimately elected to remain a kickboxer, but he said the confidence shown in him by some of boxing’s elite proved to him that the sky was the limit when it came to his future.
“The first time I thought about trying MMA was about five years ago,” Spong said. “I came into the States and trained with Floyd Mayweather Sr. for almost three months in Las Vegas. Before I was there, I was in Miami and trained with the Gracies. They told me I should start thinking about MMA because I was picking up the ground game very quickly. At the same time, when I was working in Vegas, Floyd Sr. and Bob Arum wanted to offer me a three-year contract for boxing, only. At that moment, realized I know how to adjust.
“When I train, I pick up things very fast. I can do anything in fighting, in this game. It’s just about how you adjust and how you utilize your abilities. At a certain level, it just comes down to how talented you are. I think I’m very talented, and I want to prove it.”
Of course, Spong wouldn’t be the first high-level striker to transition to MMA, and many have them have struggle to pick up both the submission techniques necessary to survive on the ground and the wrestling prowess necessary to keep the action on the feet.
Spong said he knows the transition won’t be easy, but he also feels he possesses the necessary athletic ability and work ethic to take on an entirely new set of skills.
“I believe in myself, and I believe I can do everything,” Spong said. “I’m blessed with some God-given abilities, and I think I have a good chance to be very successful in MMA. One big advantage I believe I have is my ability to adjust. I don’t think other strikers who have tried MMA necessarily had that same ability. I think that will make the difference.
“You’ve got to adjust because it’s another game. If you know the rules of the game, if you know how to play the game, then it’s an easy game. Try to know the game and understand and adjust. You can’t stand the same in a kickboxing fight or a boxing fight. It’s an entirely different stance because you have to defend the takedown. I think I can make those adjustments.”
Spong said he doesn’t have any targeted date for his potential MMA debut. Instead, he’s going to wrap up a few commitments in the kickboxing world and then evaluate his opportunities. He knows nothing will come easy, but then again, that’s just the way he likes it.
“I like a challenge,” Spong said. “Throughout my whole career, I have always searched for new challenges. That’s why I moved up in weight, too. I started out as a welterweight. I was very small. I became champion. When I was champion of a weight division and couldn’t find a challenger, I moved up. Now I’m world champion in six different weightclasses.
“I’m a nine-time world champion. The only thing missing for me was the K-1 heavyweight grand prix world title. I was very close last year. I fought a hell of a fight with Alistair Overeem. He beat me by decision.
“I’m looking forward to trying MMA. It is a challenge, for sure. It’s MMA. It’s not my thing. But I think I can master it and do it well.”
In the meantime, Spong will split his time between his residence in Holland and in Florida with “The Blackzilians” of Imperial Athletics. But when he finally decided the time is right, Spon said he won’t be happy until he’s wearing MMA gold around his waist.
“Everything I do, I do it to be the best at it,” Spong said. “If I compete, I don’t think – I know for sure – that I will get a title for sure. Otherwise, it doesn’t make sense for me to compete in a sport. Why should I compete in a sport if I don’t want to be a champion? I want to be the best at it.
“If I do try MMA, I know I will get a title.”
