After two years at Jackson’s MMA, UFC’s Brian Stann ready to show off a well rounded game in debut at 185

Brian Stann (8-3 MMA, 2-2 UFC) built his reputation as a big puncher with KO power early in his career by winning his first 6 fights by knockout, all coming in the first round, en route to becoming the WEC’s Light Heavyweight champion.

After the WEC’s Light Heavyweight division was rolled into the UFC, Stann has went 2-2, and after a loss to Phil Davis at UFC 109, Stann made the decision to drop to middleweight.

“For me, the move to 185 is to help me turn these fights into more of a fight,” Stann recently told ProMMAnow.com.

“What’s happening is, I keep getting these wrestlers, and these guys are going to take me down and hold me down, and do that for 15 minutes, which is boring and I don’t like that happening,” Stann said. “I want to be the bigger, stronger guy so that I can force the issue and make them fight me.”

After only a handful of days off following the loss to Davis, Stann was back to training, and is coming off the best camp of his career.

“I started training 4 days after my last fight, really focusing on my jiu jitsu and my wrestling,” Stann said. “I trained primarily with Roberto Travern on my jiu jitsu, and was coming out to New Mexico intermittently as well to work on my overall game.”

Next up for Stann is Mike Massenzio this Sunday, August 1 on the “UFC on Versus 2: Jones vs. Matyushenko” undercard.

Stann feels like he is more prepared to not only stop the take downs of Massenzio, but also to be more active from his back than he has ever been in his previous bouts.

“This will probably be the first fight that people will start seeing me throw submissions up and things like that from my back,” Stann said. “I will be very active.”

“That’s the biggest thing that Greg Jackson has worked with me during this camp, and that’s being very, very active from the guard.”

Although Stann is prepared to fight off his back and on the ground, it will be on the feet where Stann will be looking to impose his size and power as a new middleweight against Massenzio.

“I feel like I will be a stronger guy at this weight class, I don’t feel like I lost any power,” Stann said. “I feel like I’m more powerful at this weight because I get more velocity on my strikes, and as of a week ago I haven’t lost any strength, I feel great and this is a more natural weight class for me.”

Stann continued to talk to ProMManow.com about how important his two years at Team Jackson’s has been, the nipple tweak, Hire Heroes USA, and his prediction for the Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen fight:

ProMMAnow.com – Do you think that with your athletic background, playing college football, and everything, and now that you have had 2 years of world class training at Team Jackson’s, that you are ready to be a true force at 185?

Brian Stann – I do. The biggest thing for me, is that I’ve always been a good athlete, and it’s just getting my skills to match my athleticism at this point. It just takes training, and now having spent 2 years with Greg Jackson and actually having 2 years of actual training under my belt, I feel like I’m getting to that point now where I’m very well rounded and that I can fight just about anybody.

ProMMAnow.com – How has being in that environment with all of that world class talent everyday, helped your overall game?

Brian Stann – When I came to Greg I was very raw. I had just came over from the WEC to the UFC, and I really didn’t know much. He had to rebuild me from the ground up, him and coach Winklejohn. The great thing about this gym is that we have people from all over the world. That allows for the skills and knowledge sharing and such a breadth of knowledge there, that you can really improve quite quickly.

ProMMAnow.com – I have to ask… Will we see a nipple tweak?

Brian Stann – No. No I don’t nipple tweak at all… [laughs].

ProMMAnow.com – How did this training camp go?

Brian Stann – – It went great. I started training 4 days after my last fight, really focusing on my jiu jitsu and my wrestling. I trained primarily with Roberto Travern on my jiu jitsu, and was coming out to New Mexico intermittently as well to work on my overall game. I went up to Boston and worked with Peter Welch a little bit to work on my boxing, then came right back to New Mexico for about the last 7 or 8 weeks, and also did a little bit of time at Grudge in Denver as well. I’ve had all kinds of guys coming through for this training camp, and this has just been the best training camp that I’ve had yet.

ProMMAnow.com – Do you see all of that ground and wrestling training as the key to victory over Massenzio?

Brian Stann – Yeah he’s a grappler. He’s primarily a wrestler, and likes to get top control then win via an armlock, or ground and pound you for 3 straight rounds. The key to this fight, is my ability to defend the take down, and my abilitiy to get back up off of my back.

ProMMAnow.com – Where you can do damage on your feet…

Brian Stann – Yes, exactly. But, this will probably be the first fight that people will start seeing me throw submissions up and things like that from my back. I will be very active. That’s the biggest thing that Greg has worked with me during this camp, and that’s being very, very active from the guard.

ProMMAnow.com – What do you do to wind down from a very intense training camp the week leading up to a fight?

Brian Stann – I tell you, the biggest thing is just rest. You are not going to get into any better shape, and despite what some fighters think, you are not really going to get in any worse shape. Now it’s time to rebuild all the tissue, let your body heal, let your mind heal, and be relaxed, so come Sunday I’m just extremely excited to fight. I’m not worn down, I’m not saying ‘I can’t wait until it’s over’, I’m really focused on being excited to fight, and that’s what I’ll be on Sunday.

ProMMAnow.com – When do you start to amp back up for the fight, does that happen at the weigh-ins? During the walk out?

Brian Stann – I think the weigh-ins is when it happens. The UFC is the highest level of the sport. It is just an event, it really is. It is the reason that people save up for years just to go to one live event. It’s an event, and the UFC does such a good job of putting the show on. I think that once the weigh-ins happen, every fighter gets that little feeling of nostalgia, that the last 8 or 9 weeks have led up to this night, and it’s just a joy. The weigh-in dinner is really great, and the night before the fight it’s hard to sleep, and then the day of, you just try to stay as relaxed as you can until fight time.

ProMMAnow.com – Do you have any pre-fight rituals?

Brian Stann – No. I try to have the least amount of stuff in my head as possible. So many fighters are superstitious, and I’m kind of the opposite. I don’t like to over think it, it’s just a fist fight, no matter what. He could know my game plan, and I could know his, he could watch tape, and I could not watch tape. None of that crap matters. We are going to have a fist fight, and then, we are going to see where the cards fall afterwards.

ProMMAnow.com – Talk about Hire Heroes USA for a minute.

Brian Stann – It was something I got involved in before I got out of the Marine Corps. About a year and a half ago, I was asked to run the organization as the Executive Director, and I said ‘absolutely, yes.'” That is my 9 to 5, that’s my everyday job. I have an amazing team that I’ve put together, and they do a great job every single day, but unfortunately, our unemployment rate is over 20%. More than twice the average, which is just unacceptable. We really focus on not just finding them a job, but finding them the right job, and helping them write an effective resume, how to interview correctly, and how to strategically plan for what kind of job they need, cost of living that it’s going to require, etc.

ProMMAnow.com – That’s a great thing to be involved in. Do you think that the Marine Corps has changed their transition programs that much in recent years to help veterans that are getting out?

Brian Stann – No. You know, the transition assistance is controlled from Washington, and it’s controlled through the Secretary of Defense’s office at the Pentagon, and unfortunately there hasn’t been a change. I have been trying to change that as well, and meet with the higher ups in the Pentagon, I had a few meetings there trying to do so. I have worked closely with the Marine Corps in that, Hire Heroes USA have been to almost all of the bases nationwide. We have one more left to hit, and that is Marine base Hawaii, to run our transition assistance courses that we run for the Marine Corps wounded warrior barracks. We have already been to Lejeune, Pendleton, 29 palms, and San Diego.

ProMMAnow.com – Do you feel that MMA, with all of the camps, teammates, gyms, etc., is the closest thing to the feeling that you have from being a Marine?

Brian Stann – You are not going to get that feeling anywhere. I’ve played football, I went to the Naval Academy, I was in the Marine Corps and now I’m a fighter, and nothing is quite like being a Marine. But, I will say this, having trained and done this sport long enough, being a part of Team Jackson, and because of Coach Jackson and Coach Winklejohn, and because of guys like Joey Villasenor and Keith Jardine, they are very loyal and it is like a brotherhood. That team brings me as close as I can get to being a Marine, and being a part of something like the Marine Corps, but you can’t mimic the Marine Corps, there is nothing like it.

ProMMAnow.com – Ooh Rah! So I have to ask a prediction…. Anderson Silva or Chael Sonnen?

Brian Stann – I think Chael is going to take him down and beat him up. Chael is a buddy of mine so I have to pick Chael. I’m going to pick Chael by TKO. I’m sure my prediction may be a low, low percentage prediction, but Chael is a buddy of mine and I’m going for him in that fight and I want to see him win gold.