Maged Hammo defends his featherweight belt against John Nguyen at Unified MMA 52 on September 8th.
This top-of-the-marquee 145 title clash goes down at the BMO Centre in Calgary, Alberta, and broadcasts on UFC Fight Pass.
Hammo once again appeared on Bowks Talking Bouts to discuss the compounding confidence that comes from multiple title defenses at featherweight in Canada’s top MMA show today, the machinations of this matchup, and so much more. Excerpts from our chat are below.
Maged Hammo
I feel like there would be a certain amount of confidence imparted by continuing to log successful title defenses one after the other.
Heading into the third title defense here, is it a great deal different mindset-wise than maybe what it was like when you were pursuing the vacant 145-pound belt for Unified MMA initially?
“There is yes. So the first time I started fighting for the title belt, I didn’t have the confidence or the mindset to be the champ that I am now. I think I’ve developed a sense of mental game that a lot of people can’t really reach. It’s like a level. I’ve leveled up mentally in a different way that not many athletes these days have reached that yet. I feel like I’ve come to the level with the best fighters you can name in Canada. The more I do it the more levels I go up but I think it’s a mental game that I’ve leveled up so much. That’s making me feel so good in these fights.”
Unified MMA 52
Nguyen’s pro record belies his overall experience with a bit over 20 MMA fights across amateur as well.
Do you think your localized edge in professional experience will be a discernible advantage in this one?
“I knew one day I’d have to fight him… couple more fights before fighting someone my level. But I guess he’s got some good hookups (laughs)… I fight the feeling that most people do. I don’t know if he knows my fights. I’m just kind of like all over the place. So you can’t really read what I’m gonna do. So we’ll see how he does with my style of fighting I guess.”
Dylan Bowker
I've been enamored with combat sports for as long as I can remember. I've hosted MMA talk shows Lights Out and Pure Fight Radio with featured guests like Jens Pulver, Roy Nelson, Miesha Tate, Mark Coleman, and more. I've been an MMA broadcaster for XFFC as well as BTC and have done play by play commentary on live pay per view on GFL as well as FITE TV. I've provided written, audio, and video content covering some of the biggest MMA promotions like Rumble in the Cage, Unified MMA, and King of the Cage. I've worked as a sports entertainment personality for over five years and given play-by-play or featured promotions of KSW, ONE Championship, TKO, and Invicta FC. My work can be found in the USA Today Sports affiliate MMA Torch, Cageside Press, MMA Sucka, and Liberty Multimedia.
