John Makdessi Has Hired A Mental Coach For UFC 154
Posted by Joseph Lee on 11.15.2012
To break him of his street fighting mentality...
John Makdessi (9-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) told MMA Junkie that he has hired a coach to work on his "mental conditioning" for his fight with Sam Stout (19-7-1 MMA, 7-6 UFC) at UFC 154. He hired Brian Cain, who has worked with teammate and welterweight champion Georges St-Pierre. UFC 154 takes place Saturday at Bell Centre in Montreal.
On fighting early in his life: "I had some problems growing up in the streets in high school. I had to fight to prove myself. I was the outcast. Always, someone would challenge me. So I have that little bit of craziness in me that, sometimes, I can easily lose my emotions."
On how thinking like a street fighter hurt him against Anthony Njokuani at UFC 145: "My mindset was wrong. Instead of fighting him, I was thinking, 'Gimme the best you can so I can get the shot.'"
On not being the favorite against Stout: "I love being the underdog. Every fight for me, I always look like I'm the underdog. At the end of the day, I'm fighting guys with a lot of experience. Every fight is a tough fight, and I hope to God he's ready, because I've never trained so hard for a fight in my life."
