BAYTOWN, TX, January 17, 2012 – Legacy middleweight title contender Robert Yamashita is a consummate martial artist. Dating back to his childhood days, the Elite MMA Baytown assistant instructor has spent many a day in the dojo honing his mental and physical aptitude in order to get better at his craft.

“I have been in martial arts almost my whole life my adopted dad, Joseph Cantu,” he says about those early days. “He was my karate instructor and awarded me my black belt when I was 13. From there I just looked to make my karate as good as possible. When I was around 20, he started telling me about BJJ and how he was getting into it and how good it was so I started training and I haven’t stopped since. Frost (Murphy) and Jordan (Rivas) came to Baytown and took over the school I was instructing at and my life changed for the best after that.

Nowadays, Robert not only practices karate and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, but instructs in both arts as well. From perfecting his technique standing up to continuing to define on the ground as one of the state’s Elite BJJ brown belts, he continues to train with the same childhood vigor that was instilled in him early on, still wanting to be as good as he can possibly be.

Robert Yamashita wants to be a complete martial artist.

With respect to that goal, he will be facing his toughest challenge yet in MMA competition this Saturday in the seventh rendition of the Legacy Amateur Series when he takes on Kaileb Cummins for the Legacy amateur middleweight title in the main event of the evening.

We recently spoke to him to get more on his background within martial arts and what this title fight means to him.

Interview – Robert Yamashita

First of all man congrats on your upcoming title fight. How does it feel to get back into the cage this weekend?

It feels good being back in the cage. I didn’t know when it was going to happen again but it finally came to fruition.

Looking back, how did you get involved with martial arts originally?

I have been in martial arts almost my whole life my adopted dad, Joseph Cantu. He was my karate instructor and awarded me my black belt when I was 13 and from there I just looked to make my karate as good as possible. When I was around 20, he started telling me about BJJ and how he was getting into it and how good it was so I started training and I haven’t stopped since. Frost (Murphy) and Jordan (Rivas) came to Baytown and took over the school I was instructing at and my life changed for the best after that. 

What has training done for your life?

Training is both a curse and a blessing… What I mean is that I couldn’t imagine my life without training and doing what I do but I have to know how to shut it off when I get home and I’m with my family. It’s funny because my wife and kids train and people are always like they must be so good because they get privates at home and I tell them that we don’t talk about the sport so they miss it enough to want to get back on the mats. <laughs>

So what is life like outside of the gym? How do you balance it all?

Family is huge for me. The only way I was going to do MMA again was if it didn’t put a strain on my family or the students and it hasn’t. I come from training and my wife either says rough day by the look on my face or what happened to your face..<laughs>..After that, that is about the extent of us talking about training..I don’t want to put stress on my wife and I like to clear my mind of training. Out of sight out of mind you know.

You’ve been very active in sport jiu-jitsu. What made you decide to fight MMA again and how do you compare the two?

I love sport BJJ. The natural progression I feel for someone who competes so much and wants to push to yourself is to test yourself in MMA. So it was a natural progression in competition. Jiu-Jitsu and MMA are always going to be intertwined in my game and the way that we teach at Elite. I always tell the students when you are doing this you have to imagine someone is trying to hit you and when we are in MMA it’s perfect because these guys are trying to hit me so it works.

How does it feel to be fighting for a title on Friday?

It feels good to be fighting in general and I think it is cool I was given the shot for the title. Someone must have thought hey these two guys will be a good fight so let’s put it together. Thanks to Legacy for giving me the opportunity.

What do you know about your opponent? Any thoughts on him going in?

I have seen some of Kaileb’s fights and I talked to Mike about his fight and from what I have seen and heard the guy is tough but anyone who steps up and puts it all out on the line is awesome in my eyes. Not everyone has what it takes to put yourself in front of everyone and he does. It will be a good fight.

With so many of your teammates on the card, does it preparing any easier?

Yes I think so. We have such a good, well-rounded team that makes it easier for us to prepare for anybody. We got boxers, kickboxers, wrestlers, and BJJ guys. And on top of that I train with some of the best coaches and teammates anyone could ask for.

Do you have any predictions?

No predictions. It’s going to be a fight and I’m prepared to go wherever the fight goes. I’m game and I’m ready to fight.

Anyone you want to acknowledge before you step into the cage for the Legacy Amateur Middleweight Title?

Man thanks to my wife, Marisol and my family for supporting me. Thanks to my coaches for pushing me and thanks to my team mates for breaking me down and making me see the break through moments I needed to see in order to elevate myself and my game. Thanks to Mike Calimbas for the opportunity with the interview and check out my sponsors Predator Gis and St. Michael emergency room. Elite MMA All Day!

 LIKE TXMMA on Facebook for more in-depth news and coverage of the MMA & grappling scene along with fan contests to win great prizes courtesy of TXMMA.com and much more. Also feel free to check us out on Twitter and Google+ for even more in the world combat sports!