Kids mixing it up
Viera High sop****re wrestler trains for MMA career
BY BRIAN McCALLUM • FLORIDA TODAY • November 28, 2008
Dex Hicks arrived at the gym later than the rest of his group. He had a weigh-in for his Viera High wrestling team on this afternoon, and training for mixed martial arts had to wait. Hicks, 15, is a sop****re 140-pounder in his first year of wrestling, but his martial arts training is already deep in his psyche.
Eventually he wants it deep in his pocketbook.
"I want to go pro, definitely want to go pro," Hicks said. "That's why I'm glad I started at such a young age. Legally, I have to be 18 to fight, but as soon as I turn 18 . . ."
Hicks trains at Spartan MMA under James Wynn, himself a mixed martial arts professional who is realizing his dream of teaching others. Wynn hopes and believes that, as the sport of MMA continues to grow, it will attract younger students.
Others in Brevard County have had professional bouts -- Danny Bab**** of Palm Bay recently won the middleweight championship of the Real Fighting Championships in Tampa -- but MMA's newness means its fighters have come from other beginnings. This young Viera student could be the first example of someone local entering the sport at a young age and growing into the pro ranks.
The rest of Hicks' training group, by the way, is his mom and, usually, his younger brother. Martial arts is a family affair.
Sabrina Hicks competed in jiu jitsu in Colorado years ago, and Dex took up that sport at age 10. Mom had been influenced by her own father's pursuit of karate, and she is now thrilled to see her own sons in the gym.
"I like it," she said. "It's better than sitting at home playing video games or being out on the streets."
Certified athletic trainer Kris Klein said he has no extra health or safety concerns for martial arts training, compared to any other sport, when there is professional supervision and proper equipment.
"I don't see any problem with that as long as it's not a backyard brawl," he said. "You're not going to keep wrestling types out of it. It's sport, and they're doing some kind of activity."
Dex's aggression is exorcised in the gym rather than at home with his brother. Sabrina doesn't see any problems and doesn't think MMA training encourages it.
"I can see how some parents can think they'll be aggressive, but I think it's more about discipline. It keeps them out of trouble."
In reality, most of Wynn's students, including two or three others of high school age, are training simply to develop self-defense skills. Spectators looking for strikes to the face and the bloody results would be disappointed with a typical session. Any sparring includes headgear, and most of what goes on resembles a standard martial arts classe in substance.
"Everything here is gentle," Dex said. "Nobody ever gets hurt unless it's a little bruise or something."
Holds are released with the slightest tap, and most of the activity is repetition, just as would be seen at any athletic practice.
"It's probably the safest way to learn self-defense, and it's the most practical way," Wynn said. "There's training in ground work, there's standing, as opposed to karate, and others where they just focus on one style of martial arts."
Wynn compared it to the training he experienced in the Marines.
"We just didn't call it MMA," he said.
MMA matches are a hot topic among Dex's teammates after headline bouts, but he can count on one hand the number of fellow students who know he trains in the sport. One coach contacted by FLORIDA TODAY was open to high school wrestlers with a martial arts sidelight.
"I'd encourage it, anything you can learn," coach Billy Bechtol of Eau Gallie wrestling said. "More martial arts helps."
Eau Gallie doesn't have any current wrestlers pursuing the sport, according to Bechtol, but he does know former Commodores wrestler Randall Webb is fighting in the Orlando area.
That's how Bab**** progressed. He wrestled at Palm Bay and found MMA as an outlet for his abilities, long after graduation.
Wynn said that's where the attraction lies for wrestlers of any age.
"Back in the day, there was nothing for the wrestler to do (after school)," he said. "There is no collegiate wrestling in the state of Florida. Now, the wrestler can have a goal. They can take their wrestling and put it into mixed martial arts."
Perhaps the most high-profile wrestler-turned MMA champ is Brock Lesnar. The 2000 NCAA wrestling national champion, while at the University of Minnesota, just won the UFC Heavyweight Championship by beating Randy Couture on Nov. 15.
Eventually, those like Dex can take their MMA and use it as a background for wrestling. And beyond.
For now, he is one of a few his age at the gym.
"Maybe (others) don't like it, but I don't know why you wouldn't. It's everything you could want," he said. "I love the sport. I want to make this my life."