Dorian Dixon- Coming with Intentions of a Memorable Performance

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Photo Credit Biz Media

Newly promoted BJJ Purple Belt Dorian Dixon shared some of his free time with me to talk about facing Jesse Long at ECS One cage on January 24th.

Normally the interview we put up out in a video format, but due to a rough connection this interview is in a written format.

MF:How are you feel?

DD: I feel ready. I been training very hard at my Kickboxing gym and Jiu Jitsu school. My weigh is where I need it to be. I feel prepared.

MF: How dose it help you coming in this fight that you’re coming off a quick win?

DD: I’m feeling confident. I’m expecting a huge challenge in facing Jesse Long. Someone who has a lot of wrestling experience from what I’ve found. I also know he has some very skilled training partners. I definitely looking forward to a challenge in this fight.

MF: Heading into the fight with Jesse, how dose the quick when help you in terms of momentum?

DD: It was more of a confidence boost. It showed me I need to trust more in my skills. In the past I’ve left anxiety and the stress, in terms of wanting to represent my schools well effect me. Like I mentioned to you in the last interview we did. This past summer my motivation changed as to why I fight. This last fight helped me to realize that I’m getting the right attitude, I know why I;m doing this, why I’m here. It’s for myself and to test my skill. So when I go in with that mentality, I understand that I have to trust myself and I got that from this last fight. Realizing that I have to trust the 15 years of experience I have in martial arts.

MF: Where do you go now with this found mentality, how dose it effect your training and you overall heading into ECS One?

DD: I’ve just in camp kept doing what I’ve always done a lot of heavy body conditioning, a lot of skill development. Nothing has changed. I always train as hard as I can and that continued.

MF: Breaking down this fight it has the eliminates of being the classic striker vs. grappler match-up. We know about your amateur Kickboxing background and as you said Jesse’s wrestling background, so how dose this fight play out?

DD: To be 100% honest I am a striker. I do come from a striking background. I was looking online at some of my fight profiles and it was pointed out to me that most of my fights that I’ve won by submission or decision from holding positions in grappling. So I don’t know that it’s necessarily going to be a straight striker vs. grappler. I do have a lot of skill on the ground, that I been working on for years. I’m just going to see how this fight plays out. Almost with every fight you go in with a certain amount of strategy, but the real strategy is developed in the first round. You figure out what your opponents weaknesses are. There’s only so much you can take from video and past experience.

MF: We know people grow and there game plans change, but with Jesse Long I can only speak on what we’ve seen and in his two most recent outing his wrestling/grappling has heavily come into play. I don’t believe your the fight that he comes out to work on his striking, so how aware are of the take knowing his background?

DD: The strategy is to keep the fight standing because that is where I’m strongest. But, I’m not going to be afraid to go to the ground. I am developing my skill and getting a lot stronger on the ground. I’m not intimated face him their, if that’s where the fight goes. But the fights going to go where it does. No real way for me to begin to deal how he’d going to fight until we’re in the cage. One more point I wanted to make is that in my last amateur match I fought a all-American collegian wrestler. We expected the fight to be a wrestling match, for him to want to take me down. He for some reason got it into his head that he wanted to kickbox. At least 3 quarters of the entire fight was on our feet. So like I said it’s impossible to know until I’m there.

MF: What was your initial reactions to getting on ECS One and the match-up with Jesse?

DD: I was just very happy to get another fight. I happen to know one of the people promoting the event. I’ve know her for several years, so it was very nice that I was picked to be on this inaugural card . It’s very exciting to be apart of something that will hopefully be a recurring event.

MF: What’s it been like for you to have had the opportunity to locally have fought for several different promotions?

DD: I do this for the sport. It’s nice to represent different groups, to have the opportunity to travel and face different types of opponents, meet different people, be in different atmospheres. But, I’m in this for the sport and the sport is the same regardless who’s gloves I’m wearing, what color the cage is, who happens to be televising it; the sport is the same.

MF: Vs. Jesse Long, what is something you must get done to get the victory?

DD: I have to not let my training slack this last week. I need to handle my last minute preparations, make sure I don’t get injured, make sure nothing stupid happens. There’s Murphy’s law to worry about, any thing can happen, will happen. Got to make sure I don’t put myself in a situation to sustain a last minute injury, and keep myself healthy for this final stretch.

MF: Got a message for the fans?

DD: Come out to see this fight. I intended to do something they’ve never seen before. I intend to bring some skills that aren’t common in MMA and am planning on putting on a memorable show.

MF: Who do you need to thank?

DD: Anthony Rosales with Rosales Karate and Kickboxing, William Carpenter with ABQ Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, The new facilities we’re using Conquest Martial Arts. Family and friends for helping and supporting me to do what I do and helping keep my motivation up. A big thanks to my Dad, especially this time for helping me sell so many tickets to the fight.

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