Manny Bermudez : Journey to Pro Ranks At Cage Titans XXIV
Manny Bermudez : Journey to Pro Ranks At Cage Titans XXIV
Day in and day out there are thousands of athletes striving to be the best in their respective divisions of mixed martial arts, yet what good is doing something if you are not enjoying it also?
Scoping out the landscape around the New England fight scene there is no hiding the passion for this sport which also includes one standout competitor.
With a dominating presence in the light and featherweight amateur ranks, Manny Bermudez is taking no short cuts in his rise to the top. Skills combined with an impressive winning streak and love of competition, its spells out the makings of a future star. Taking the next step in his fight career Bermudez will be making the transition to pro division where he hopes to continue his winning ways.
We here at MYMMANEWS.com got the opportunity to touch base with Bermudez as he reflects on his successful amateur career and outlook heading into his first professional fight.
MMA is a very challenging sport especially at the amateur stage in one’s career. Talk to us about your interest and why are you so dedicated to it?
Manny Bermudez: “It’s something I’ve done for a while now. I loved doing it when I started training it in kid’s class years ago, and I think its addicting learning new things and seeing them work against good people. Lately it’s the challenge of training with great wrestlers, strikers, and ground guys and trying to be just as good as they are that keeps me wanting to train.”
You have an amateur fight record of 7-1. Looking back at your amateur career what would you say was your favorite moment?
Manny Bermudez: “It’s difficult to pick a favorite moment for me, the experience as a whole has been awesome. I’ve met a lot of close friends and great people just through being in the sport. If I had to pick one moment, I’d say it would be my first fight where a huge group of my friends and family came to watch. Or maybe getting food after making a weight cut!”
What was the biggest lesson you learned as an amateur that will aid in your push going into your first pro fight?
Manny Bermudez: “The biggest lessons I learned as an amateur would have to be just keeping a clear head and just having the experience to work from situations that would normally freak people out. Having so many amateur fights really helps with improving in training too.”
Talk to us a bit about your upcoming pro debut
Manny Bermudez: “My pro debut is down in Plymouth Memorial Hall for Cage Titans FC on June 20th. I will be fighting against Manny Torres, who’s had quite a few professional fights already. He’s a brawler, from what I know and probably a bit bigger than me, so it’s interesting to see how those things will affect the fight.”
What advantage to have that will carry you to victory over your opponent?
Manny Bermudez: “I’ve trained hard for the last couple of years, very consistently. I think that makes a huge difference in just about every situation. I’m comfortable wherever, and I’m really excited just to be able to fight again.
Is it a different set of nerves going into your first pro fight as oppose to your eight amateur fights?
Manny Bermudez: “Not really. I think that all those amateur fights are very similar to pro, the only big differences being knees and elbows, round times, and level of competition. Other than that, amateur and pro fights really don’t seem all that different from each other. The amateur fights I took got me really comfortable competing.”
Who are some of the people you are working with preparing you for this fight?
Manny Bermudez: “I’m always working with the guys at South Shore Sport fighting in Norwell, MA. There’s a lot of people there that will be fighting that night at Cage Titans, like my teammates Bobby Gasdia, Joe Giannetti, and Zach Disabantino (sorry if I spelled your name wrong Zach). Its great having this many people to get ready with. SSSF has a ton of tough, skilled sparring partners and trainers that always make sure I’m good to fight. I haven’t had a lot of time to train outside of there, but I usually also try to stop by Rugged Rx in Hanover. Scott Lockhart runs a great strength and conditioning program.”
Are you doing any other things outside of your MMA training to help work on areas in your game?
Manny Bermudez: “I just recently competed in a NAGA grappling tournament about a month ago, did a pretty heavy weight division for me, and I felt better than ever doing it. Outside of that, I’m always watching other sports that help me pick up things that will help me get better. (Anyone who’s my Facebook friend gets blown up with boxing and wrestling highlight videos). I’ve been lifting pretty heavily for this fight too, since it’s a weight class higher than the one I usually fight at.”
Finally looking toward the future how will Manny Bermudez fit into the MMA world?
Manny Bermudez: “Hopefully, in the next couple of years, I want to be able to take as many fights as I can, against the best guys I can fight. I’d love it if I could make this a career at some point in my life, so fingers crossed.”
Manny Bermudez Special Thanks: “To my coaches, Bill Mahoney and Scott Lockhart from South Shore Sportfighting and Rugged RX, teammates at SSSF, Cage Titans FC, family, Chipotle, friends, all the usuals!”
