Jason Witt hoping for Contender Series spot with win for KCFA
The last time we spoke with Jason Witt he told us that he was trying to finish his LFA 50 fight against Ashkan Morvari, as quickly as he could, because he had a bachelor party to get to. While he did get the the win, he didn’t get to leave the event as early as he would have liked to as he didn’t put his opponent away until the third and final round …. but he the important part was that he did make it to the party on time.
“I did make it. It was a crazy trip,” Witt said. “I was fortunate enough to go two-and-a-half round and then finish him in the third. I had dinner with my family and friends and then it was probably 10 or 11 o’clock when I drove from Minnesota back to Kansas City, dropped Grant Dawson off. We got home at like 4, 5, or 6 in the morning. I took an hour nap and then drove down to Table Rock Lake and then partied to about 1 o’clock in the morning the next night. We had one hour of sleep between a fight and a bachelor party so it was a pretty crazy weekend.”
Now with the celebrations behind him, “The Vanilla Gorilla” Witt returns to action back home with Kansas City Fighting Alliance on July 27. The 32-year old professional mixed martial artist won and defended the promotion’s welterweight title several years ago.
“I’m fighting for KCFA. I won the belt three or four years ago, something like that. I defended two times I believe,” Witt said. “It’s a local show run by UFC fighter James Krause and Joe Wooster , who are my head coach and manager. It’s a good show to fight on, build your record on, and get fights when you need them. I got married this year and had a couple vacations so it’s been really hard for me to find a fight. With our partnership with Iridium (Sports Agency), we’ve really been looking to get on the Contender Series or get a UFC fight on short notice or whatever I can take. I feel I’m ready for that next step but my coaches are like ‘hey, we can you a fight on this, but if something comes up, we can always transfer over to that.’ I need to get a fight in, and I win. That’s just something I feel is necessary to do. My timeline for this year was a little screwed up.”
When it comes to his opponent, Cliff Wright (11-11), he’s just another opponent as far as Witt is concerned.
“I really don’t know a lot about him. We watched a couple videos on him, just did a little research. I had Krause look into him. He’s an old school vet. I know he’s durable. I know he is going to be well-rounded. He’s been around the game for a while. He’s fought quite a few people, quite a few times. I haven’t looked into him much. I really just depend on my coaches to provide me with a game plan and I go from there.”
While this may be a title defense for Witt, whereas his last couple fights have not been, the training and preparation he puts in has not changed in the slightest.
“Not at all. I’m in the gym twice a day everyday, just trying to improve whatever I’m doing. Whoever steps in the cage with me is just gonna get the result of that, no matter who they are,” Witt said.
Witt’s immediate goal is to win the fight later this month, but long term he is seeking to earn a spot and opportunity on Dana White’s Contender Series.
“There has not been any discussion yet for the Contender Series. We’re hoping for that. I’m staying ready. There are always injuries. There are reasons why people can’t fight. I feel I would be one of the first people on the list that people are looking at. I’m looking at staying as ready as possible for the Contender Series, the UFC, KCFA, whatever. I’m prepared for whatever comes along. I’m gonna take that opportunity and run with it,” he said.
When asked if he has a road map or a plan to achieve his goals, Witt said he lets others worry about those things for him.
“Yes and no. I’ve kind of left my decision making up to Joe Wooster because that’s his job. My plan is just to take any fight I can get, or anything they give to me, dominant that person and get my paycheck doubled. That’s what I’m looking for,” Witt said. “Obviously wins are going to be the most important thing. I plan on winning every fight that I’m going into now. That’s the game plan. My goal is to get in the UFC this year. That is where my mentality is at, that is where my game plan is going.”
Every time we have spoken to Witt before a fight he was about to embark on one of life’s celebrations. When we first interviewed him, he had just gotten engaged. Then he had gotten married, and then he was getting ready for a friend’s bachelor party. So, we thought it was only fitting to ask if any other big news might be coming in the near future. Is a Jason Witt Jr., on the way?
“I get that question asked that question a lot,” Witt said. “There is not. I told my wife before we got married, I said, ‘Look, once we get married and have kids that’s it. There’s never gonna be a part where we go back and don’t have kids so I want at least a year to be married.’ I want to be able to remember what it is like to be married without kids. I want to travel, I want to buy stuff that you can’t afford when you have kids. Just stupid stuff, like if I want a jet ski or something dumb, I’m gonna buy a jet ski. It’s hard to rationalize that with kids. I was like ‘I want one year of marriage without kids. Once we get to our one year of marriage, April 13, we can talk about having kids.’ So, I’ve got one year.”
Get tickets to the event and watch Jason Witt fight at www.CageTix.com/KCFA.
