Exclusive Interview with the Evolve Fight Team's Jake Butler
We recently sat down with Evolve Fight Team member Jake Butler to discuss his background, transition to MMA, and upcoming ONE FC debut. Jake will be fighting at ONE FC: Return of Warriors on February 2nd in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Check out the entire Evolve MMA exclusive interview below.
Let’s start off with a brief bio of Jake Butler. Who are you?
I am from a small beach town in New Jersey called Point
Pleasant Beach. It is now known as
the “Jersey Shore”, but I promise it’s really nothing like the show. I have 2 brothers, one older and one
younger. We all grew up wrestling
from an early age. It is amazing
our house is still standing after all the wrestling matches that have broken
out from the staircase to the Sunday dinner table and just about every other
corner of the house. I was
fortunate enough to excel at wrestling in high school and I was able to continue
my wrestling career at Princeton University. I graduated with a degree in economics, the dismal
science. After graduation I moved
to New York City and regretfully worked in finance. After NYC I came to Asia, and happily ended up at Evolve
MMA. Outside of mixed martial
arts, I love surfing. I have been
surfing as long as I have been wrestling and been on surf trips all throughout
Central America (Costa Rica, Panama, Nicaragua, El Salvador) and Indonesia
(Bali, Lombok, Java).
Tell us a little about your wrestling background, when did
you start, why, etc.
I can’t even remember my exact age when I started wrestling,
but it was young, maybe 8 years old.
I had an older brother who got involved, and I naturally followed. Where I come from wrestling is a huge
sport, and so just about every kid gives it a try at some point. By the time I was 12 years old I was
completely hooked. It was all I
wanted to do. I was lucky to have
some great coaches and with their guidance had a pretty good High School and
University wrestling career.
What are the biggest lessons you learned from wrestling?
Wrestling taught me the value of hard work, discipline, team
work, integrity, and most importantly how to set a goal and dedicate myself to
achieving it. There are lots of up
and downs in wrestling. There is
no better feeling than winning, and none worse than losing. You learn how to deal with failure, and
come back stronger. I believe this
applies for all martial arts.
How have you found the transition from wrestling to MMA?
It is definitely challenging. Wrestling serves as a solid base from which to transition,
but I have to work hard to develop my Muay Thai, BJJ, and boxing. Then I have to figure out how to put it
all together for MMA. Some things
transition across disciplines very well, others not at all. Luckily, I am at Evolve MMA, which I
believe is the best possible place for me to make the transition. I get to work daily with World
Champions in Muay Thai, BJJ, and boxing.
For MMA I get to work with Heath Sims, who was an Olympic wrestler and he
has fought, trained with, and coached some of the best mixed martial artists in
the world. I still have to put in
the time and hard work, but at Evolve MMA they make sure I am moving in the
right direction.
So what brought you from the Jersey Shore to Evolve MMA in
Singapore?
I was working in Asia, and naturally had heard all about
Evolve MMA and the Evolve Fight Team. I reached out to Kru Chatri, explained
my situation and background. After quite a few conversations, he invited
me to come to Singapore and try out for the team. I spent a few days
training with the team, which was extremely difficult at the time!
Everyone on the team is in fighting shape year round. I spoke a lot with
Chatri and the rest of the Evolve team, and was ultimately offered a spot on
the team. I accepted immediately, and here I am.
On February 2nd you will make your MMA debut at
ONE FC: Return of Warriors, how is your preparation thus far?
Everything is going great! My training camp has been perfectly organized, and I am
feeling the best I ever have. It
is intense and there are days when it is a struggle to get through, but that is
how it should be. My coaches and
training partners on the Evolve Fight Team have put a lot of time in to helping
me prepare, and I am very grateful to them. I have also had UFC fighter Tom Lawlor here working with
me. Training with Tom has been a
great experience, and I have learned a lot. I can’t wait for February 2nd!
What does your weekly training schedule look like?
Long and grueling!
I train twice a day 6 days a week at the Evolve Fighter’s Program. The mornings are usually focused on
MMA. We do some grappling, BJJ,
wrestling, and straight MMA. The
afternoons are more focused on striking.
I do a lot of Muay Thai. On
top of that, I mix in some stength and conditioning workouts 2-3 days a
week. Sunday is my much needed
rest day.
What do you think of your opponent, Antoni Romulo, a
wrestling champion from Indonesia?
I don’t know much about him, other than he is a tough
wrestler. My focus is 100% on
doing what I do best, and imposing my game plan on him. As a wrestler, I expect him to be tough
and in great shape. I am prepared
for a tough fight.
Any predictions on how the fight will go?
You never know what will happen in MMA. I am prepared for everything.
Any last words?
Yes, thank you to everyone at Evolve MMA! Coaches, teammates, staff, and
students! I am honored to be representing
you at ONE FC: Return of Warriors.
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| Jake defends an elbow from UFC fighter Tom Lawlor. |
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| Jake and Tom Lawlor training at the Evolve Fighter's Program. |
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| Jake working technique with UFC fighter Tom Lawlor. Evolve Mixed Martial Arts® is Asia's premier brand of MMA academies. With World Champions in Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Mixed Martial Arts, Boxing, Wrestling, and No Gi Grappling, Evolve MMA is the top martial arts training organization in Asia. It ranks among the best martial arts academies in the world. |
