In episode 14 I chat with Mark Ormrod. Mark was the UK's first triple amputee, as a direct result of an idea explosion in Afghanistan on operation Herrick. Mark is now an ambassador for the Royal Marines Association, REORG BJJ, an author and the star of his own documentary available on Netflix. Mark has paved the way and led by example and shown us all what is possible to achieve, despite the loss of both legs and his right arm. Mark is a BJJ blue belt and trains at the Royal Marines BJJ charity gym in Plymouth. Enjoy. 

In episode 12, I talk with Gracie Barra’s (Sutton Coldfield) head coach Tom Bracher. Tom is a former IBJJF European Champion, a 3x IBJJF World Championship Medallist and a 4x British Champion. We discuss the difficulties and challenges in running a new school during the COVID-19 outbreak, his inspirations for starting BJJ and how his recovery and rehabilitation is coming on since his recent knee injury in the European championships.

In today’s episode I chat with Colin Byrne (MCGREGOR FAST), Connor McGregor’s S&C coach, close confidant and stable mate. Colin is one of the three main directors behind McGregor Fast, including Dr Julian Dalby and Connor McGregor himself. Where to start with Colin. Well, the standard story of growing up in Dublin in the 70s/80s/90s prior to the Celtic Tiger or the countries absorption into the Euro was one of getting a trade and a steady number. Colin could have been a painter and joined other family members in the Guild of Tanners and stayed in his lane. Fierce ambition to go against the grain and a chance meeting, when he took up cycling with his current long-term friend and mentor Dr Julian Dalby resulted in a different path which has led Colin to where he is now. As one of the main intricate members of a tight knit team behind the main man in MMA. Enjoy! 

In this episode I talk with Geoff about his transitioning from sweeping the factory floors to becoming one of the most prolific doorman, martial artist, pioneer of 'The Fence' technique, the fear pyramis, author of over 50 books, screen writer and BAFTA award winner to mention but a few of his achievements. As a native to Coventry, Geoff defied the odds against him and overcame debilitating bouts of depression, fear, juvenile grooming and sexual abuse at the hands of his the then mentor and martial arts instructor to become the man he is today. Enjoy!

In this episode I speak with someone from the grappling/MMA community that needs no introduction. Braulio Estima has won it all in BJJ. We talk about his early transition from Judo to BJJ, his move to the UK, training with George St.Pierre and his best friend Roger Gracie. We also talk about his remarkable recovery from a traumatic neck injury from which he not only recovered but went on to beat his toughest foe JACARE at ADCC. Enjoy

In episode 9, I went to see an old friend and the first person to ever teach me some fundamentals of grappling. This was of course, in exchange for some much-needed physio and rehab on his knee after an ACL reconstruction operation. Matty Evans is a seasoned grappler, Greco Roman wrestler, boxer Judoka, Karate Black belt and chief instructor of The Real Self Defence system. Matty hails from the Geoff Thompson era and was one of Geoff’s prodigies. In this episode we discuss his recent trauma and recovery from a motorbike accident. The self defence system of ‘The Fence’. Mental health, training. Bereavement and much more. If you would like to find out more about Matty or book onto one of his courses, please see the attached link: http://www.mattyevans.co.uk

In this episode I visit Gracie Barra Halesowen to chat with head coach professor Stuart Gwilt. We talked about BJJ in Birmingham and the West Midlands in the early days with Braulio Estima. Stuart discusses the process of setting up his current BJJ school and the stresses and responsibilities that come with running a BJJ school. We also talked about Stuart’s recovery from spinal surgery and how he still manages to stay on the mat, inspiring the next generation.

In this podcast I pay a visit to Neil Adams M.B.E. Britain’s first world Judo champion, two time Olympic silver medallist, 5 time gold medallist European champion and multiple British champion. After a bit of one to one coaching where Neil instructed me on the finer details of body positioning and technique to complete a throw on his own designed training aid and resistance bands, we discussed as much as I could cram in within the hour time slot, form his start in Judo, the Olympics, retirement, moving into commentating, the death of his brother, hip and knee joint replacement surgery, rehabilitation, training methods, alcohol abuse, mental health issues and saving grace, the marriage to his wife Niki and the importance of family. I have never met someone with such a welcoming presence and can totally understand the nickname, ‘Happo Bigin’ bestowed to him by the Japanese judoka community. Enjoy

In episode 7, I visit Red Corner boxing gym in Coventry to talk with one of the resident coaches Anthony Somers, or Tony to his friends. Tony, an ex-fireman turned councillor is however, far from your standard boxing coach. An avid martial artist, an accomplished author, qualified counsellor in psychotherapy, NLP instructor, hypnotherapist and co-owner of the Real Combat System, Tony is a highly sought after coach who provides clients and professional fighters with the highest level of counselling and mental preparation prior to competing. In the episode we discuss fear, mental health, fight or flight, motivation and goals. Tony is currently running the ‘Worrier to Warrior’ course in conjunction with running a clinical counselling service in Leamington Spa on a weekly basis. Tony is taking bookings so if you want to talk to someone professionally, then I recommend you get in touch https://anthonysomers.com/

In episode 8, I visit Ippon MMA & BJJ gym in Bournemouth to talk with head coach: JEFF LAWSON. Quick search on YouTube for “Judo destroys BJJ” and if you’ve never come across Jeff before, you will once you watch the video of him executing a perfect throw, through to arm bar finish at Polaris 4. Contrary to belief Jeff is not just a black belt in Judo, he is in fact a retired MMA fighter and also a black belt in BJJ via the legendary Yuki Nakai’s lineage. 
We discuss BJJ, Judo, MMA, the pressures of running a gym, mental health and just about everything else. If you are in the Bournemouth area and want to train Muay Thai, BJJ, Judo, MMA, No Gi Grappling then please get in touch with Jeff at the gym: https://www.ipponfitness.com/