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'There is a large element of fear involved...' - James Haskell on his switch from rugby to MMA

By Liam Heagney
James Haskell is all set to give MMA a real go after retiring from rugby (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

James Haskell has insisted his dalliance with professional MMA fighting isn’t a publicity stunt.

The former England and Lions back row retired from rugby at the end of the last season, but it hasn’t taken the 34-year-old long to re-emerge as a very different kind of sportsman as he has announced a deal that will see him make his cage fighting debut under the Bellator banner.

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“I’m not messing around with this,” he insisted at his media conference unveiling this week. “With a lot of people it has been overwhelmingly support, but some think it is a bit like that scene in Rocky III where he is wearing golden gloves in training and it’s all showbiz and he gets absolutely filled in by Clubber Lang.

“That is not what I’m about. I’m dedicating my life to this. I want to make sure I’m in the best possible shape whatever happens at the end if it. I’m going to put as much dedication into this as I did to rugby.

I’m deadly serious about it… I don’t want this to be the case where I get into the cage and it looks like I have never taken a punch before and it looks like I’m just here for fun. I’m not about that.”

 

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Beneath Haskell’s chutzpah, however, is an element of genuine fear that it might all go horribly wrong. “I have gone out of one sport that has been very attritional, very tough, and I’m going into something that is very unknown.

“Personally, there is a large element of fear involved. Anyone who says they are not scared of this sort of thing is either lying or coming out with pretence. For me I want to test myself.

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“Mike Tyson said it, everyone has got a plan until you get hit in the face. For me it is a test, it’s a journey. I have missed the strictness and discipline (of being a professional sportsman). I now know where I have to be and I’m going back to having a really professional dedication.”

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Bull Shark 3 hours ago
Jake White: Are modern rugby players actually better?

Of the rugby I’ve born witness to in my lifetime - 1990 to date - I recognize great players throughout those years. But I have no doubt the game and the players are on average better today. So I doubt going back further is going to prove me wrong. The technical components of the game, set pieces, scrums, kicks, kicks at goal. And in general tactics employed are far more efficient, accurate and polished. Professional athletes that have invested countless hours on being accurate. There is one nation though that may be fairly competitive in any era - and that for me is the all blacks. And New Zealand players in general. NZ produces startling athletes who have fantastic ball skills. And then the odd phenomenon like Brooke. Lomu. Mcaw. Carter. Better than comparing players and teams across eras - I’ve often had this thought - that it would be very interesting to have a version of the game that is closer to its original form. What would the game look like today if the rules were rolled back. Not rules that promote safety obviously - but rules like: - a try being worth 1 point and conversion 2 points. Hence the term “try”. Earning a try at goals. Would we see more attacking play? - no lifting in the lineouts. - rucks and break down laws in general. They looked like wrestling matches in bygone eras. I wonder what a game applying 1995 rules would look like with modern players. It may be a daft exercise, but it would make for an interesting spectacle celebrating “purer” forms of the game that roll back the rules dramatically by a few versions. Would we come to learn that some of the rules/combinations of the rules we see today have actually made the game less attractive? I’d love to see an exhibition match like that.

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