Earl “Trouble” Small: “I’m going to be in his face, ready to fight!”
Full video interview with Earl Small above.
This Friday, February 3, middleweight prospect and 302 BJJ instructor, Earl Small makes the walk to the cage for the seventh time in his professional mixed martial arts career. With added incentive heading into this bout, Small vies for the Art of War middleweight world title against a more experienced, Gregg “The Greatest” Ellis.
Starting Brazilian Jiu Jitsu at a young age, “Trouble” made the transition into MMA “when it wasn’t popular,” he says. These days, “everyone sees martial arts in general and they see the alpha male guy. I wasn’t built up on that era and I was not raised like that,” he says.
“Trouble” comes from a long lineage of instruction that demands respect from its practitioners and instructors at Balance Studios. Winning NAGA and Grapplers Quest Jiu Jitsu titles at a young age, “Trouble” had the guidance of the Migliarese brothers amongst many other fantastic coaches to show him the ropes as he progressed through the ranks to go from winning Jiu Jitsu matches to professional mixed martial arts contests.
With his sights set on bigger opportunities, Small hopes his stint in the thriving regional promotion, Art of War will be his final stop before heading to the big show (UFC). With two of his close friends and training partners (Andre Petroski and Joe “BodyBagz” Pyfer) following a similar path and capturing the AOW middleweight title before venturing into their prospective UFC career, “Trouble” hopes to follow suit with a few of his successful peers.
However, the 302 BJJ representative must make it through Gregg Ellis first.
“How I think about it is I look at my opponent and I’m like ok this is the level he’s at and we signed a contract 4 weeks ago. What kind of training is he going to do in 4 weeks to do what I’ve done forever?” Small rhetorically asks.
“I’m ready for a war of attrition,” Small concedes. I’ve picked up a lot of new things from my striking coach,” he emphasizes. “I’m going to be in his face ready to fight!”
Tune in above as MyMMANews stops in to 302 BJJ for this exclusive in-person interview with AOW middleweight contender, Earl “Trouble” Small. He discusses following a similar path as his peers to get to the UFC. He discusses how he feels about Ellis as a formidable opponent and much more!
