BEAUMONT, TX, September 12, 2011 – In our natural world, the wolverine is known as a carnivorous animal, with a reputation for ferocity and strength disproportionate for its size. As a killer and active hunter, it’s said that this animal has the ability kill prey many times its size and has no fear in doing so.
Likewise in the world of MMA, “The Wolverine,” Cody Williams was aptly nicknamed because of his own carnivorous nature and aggressive, fearless attitude in competition.
As one of the more anticipated debuts on the upcoming LFC 8 card, Williams will be making his initial appearance for the Legacy Fighting Championship this Friday against Nate Garza. He’ll do so coming off a 6-1 amateur career and a thrilling submission victory over Gerzan Chaw in his pro debut at IXFA in Winnie this past April – a performance that has resulted in many dubbing him a future star at bantamweight.
Coming into this week, the ATT Beaumont prospect is fully-engaged at the task at hand. He’s trainer harder than ever before, and even healing and recovering faster than ever before – just like namesake Wolverine. Outside the cage he’s focused too.Newly-engaged to his fiancée and with his young son cheering him on, this up-and-comer is not lacking in motivations to take his MMA career forward. All things considered, Cody Williams is definitely one to watch.
Get to know him a little before this Friday with TXMMA.com.
Cody, thanks for taking this interview before your promotional debut for Legacy next Friday at LFC8. How’s everything been going for you leading up to this fight?
Everything has been going really well in general. I just got back from a cruise where I proposed to my girlfriend, Catherine Taylor on a beach in Jamaica! It was also a great place to visit for vacation on top of the engagement. Other than that really, life has just consisted of training and getting better one day at a time as a fighter.
Congrats on the engagement to you and Catherine bro! Just so our fans can get to know you a little better, what else is life like for you outside the cage when you’re not training?
Outside the cage I work for the Mostyn Law Firm on the support staff. It’s a job I decided to take so I could train more. Before this, I was working for a contractor out at the refineries. I made the change to get out of the elements and have shorter work days so my body could naturally adapt to rigors of MMA. Basically so I could train harder and longer without external factors tiring me out …not to mention being able to heal and recover faster as well. That part of it has definitely been a plus. Also I’ve got my son Colton in my life. He’s 3-1/2 years old now and having him come into my life was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. That’s me in a nutshell. Like I said, I try to concentrate on family and training. Those are two most important things in my life.
I see you’ve had a pretty busy, and successful, amateur career out there in East Texas. What’s the fight scene like over in the Beaumont area?
Thick. I mean watching the amateur scene around this area grow with the sport and even down south in the valley has been a great thing. There are some really talented fighters that have what it takes to fight at the professional level but sometimes time, money, or both can be the issue. My last 3 fights in Texas as an amateur… all of my opponents have reached the pro level. With that said, it represents the talent and level of competition that this area has to offer. It’s going to continue to grow.
What about training? What’s your environment like and what’s driving you to excel at this sport?
I train at the only franchised American Top Team facility in the state. Mike Berryhill, Cliff Palermo, and Tyler Reese are my instructors… Actually everyone in the gym I see as a potential coach. If someone sees a hole in your game in our gym, instead of exploiting it we try to help that person correct their mistake and become a better martial artist. Mike and Cliff both come from a karate background and Tyler Reese is vicious on the ground as has sculpted my ground game to fit the type of fighter i am. We go visit and train in Coconut Creek, FL 2-3 times a year with the ATT HQ coaching staff along side of guys like Thiago Alves, Cole Miller, Brad Pickett, Mike Brown… I mean the list goes on and on. I really love coming back from those trips because it reenergizes your whole attitude. I fight because I love to do it. What drives me to excel is my inability to accept failure.
Everyone wants to get into the UFC but what are you near-term goals in MMA, say in the next year or so?
Just to transcend my ability level from fight to fight. As long as I keep fighting well and getting more knowledge I’ll just follow the course and when the time is right Mike will pick up the phone and call Master Ricardo Liborio, fly to Florida, train/evaluate and then they can contact whichever organization they feel will be a good fit for me at the time.
What are your greatest strengths as a fighter and where is there room to improve?
I feel like my biggest strength would be work ethic and devotion to the mental aspect of the sport. I’ve read books about mental preparation for athletes on elite levels and worked some of those methods into my prep game which helps me mentally be in the cage before I’m physically in the cage. In most ways, it’s about harnessing the adrenaline and making it for me and not against me. As far as what i need to work on we’ll leave that one for another time.
Talk about your last fight with Gerzan Chaw in Winnie. Did that fight go as expected and what did you take out of it? Any lessons or highlights?
Actually no, I mean winning the fight of course you train to win but I thought he would have tried more kick combinations and more takedown attempts but hey that’s why I train every aspect as hard as I do because well rounded fighters are the ones that stick around in the upper echelon of competition. I learned that hard work pays off in cardio I was in the best shape thus far for that fight and I look to be in even better shape for this one. A lot went into that camp I learned a lot about myself and how hard I could push my body seeing as how that was my first cut to the featherweight class of 135lbs.
Legacy FC 8 is almost upon us where you’ll be fighting Nate Garza. What do you think about him as an opponent?
He’s tough, durable, and never been KO’d (unless I missed something). He went the distance with Angel so that in itself says something about the guy’s toughness and cardio. I know enough about him to prepare accordingly but I don’t really want to say much about what I’ll be gearing up for and looking for.
Any idea on how you guys may match up as far as strengths and weaknesses? Do you feel an advantage anywhere or think about anything specific you have to worry about?
It’s a great match up for us both. He’s coming off two tough losses that I’m sure he learned from and I’m debuting for Legacy myself. We’re both not scared to get hit and can throw from the pocket if we so choose. I just need to execute my fight and make the least amount of mistakes possible.
What are you looking for in this fight?
I’d like for another Fight of the Night Performance.
If you had to give last words to Nate Garza before this fight, what would you tell him?
I’m not really a trash talker when it comes to my opponent. I haven’t been provoked by a trash talker either so I give respect where I get it. I know he’s training hard for this fight and I wish him luck on every fight… after this one.
What’s next for you after this fight? Will we see you back in Houston again?
Of course. Legacy is in talks now with Mike about a multi-fight contract so I will be back.
Any last words? Anybody you want to thank?
I’d like to thank all of my family, immediate and martial arts, for the support they’ve been giving me since my first amateur fight almost three years ago. Also, I’d like to thank all of my sponsors that have made contributions towards this fight for me. I will continue to represent American Top Team with the best performance and respect inside and outside of the cage. Thanks to my mom Debra, for staying tough and raising 5 kids as a single mom. With her back against the wall day to day she stuck through it and made things happen for our family. Somehow some way. If I missed any thank you sorry guys I’m in a hurry to go train and will pick you up next time. Check out my MMA page on Facebook – Cody Williams MMA and please watch the documentary series on my fight career entitled “The Merikan Way.”
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