David Snipes Interviews Texas MMA Heavyweight Skyler Duncan
 Skyler Duncan |
SKYLER DUNCAN
Nickname: Top Dawg |
Q: So tell our audience- just exactly who is Skyler Duncan?
I am a father of 2 sons Skylen and Rylx and married to my awesome wife Crystal. I have always loved fighting, I mean who didn’t in high school come on. It just continued on. It’s just so much fun.
Q: Does your wife worry about you fighting?
At first yes. She had never seen me fight until here recently. And being in my corner on my last fight she see’s that the fighters aren’t mass murder’s she has relaxed. Plus winning 6 in a row helps to.
Q: The Lunsford fight? Does this mean she’s banned from cageside now? (You don’t have to answer that) I guess it was better for her to see you lose and not be badly hurt, If there is a silver lining in anything.
Well she’s not banned for now. No she is great, after the fight I went and got in the Hot tub and she came in a told how proud she was. Even though I lost, she made it feel like I didn’t. Which is just what you need when you’re down.
Q: Did you play any sports or anything in High School?
I played football. I was MLB and boy was it fun. I have always enjoyed contact sports. Nothing better than MMA.
Q: Are you a full time fighter or do you have a normal job also?
I do have a full time job. Me and my wife run a family business on her side of the family. Its called Party Plus Warehouse and we do just about everything for just about any occasion. Sometimes it gets really hard to train as much as I would like, because of all the hours we put in. But its money that we count on, the fight money is just a extra bonus.
Q: How long have you been training in MMA?
I joined the Army after 9/11 and went to various hand to hand combat classes and starting kickboxing. When I got out of the Army I continued to train. Then I started hearing about MMA and said ‘What the hell, lets give it a try.’ Went 6-0 as an amateur and I’m ready to rock as a Pro. So I’ve been training for about 3 years for MMA outside of the Army. I lost my debut and never want to have that feeling again.
Q: Do you see yourself as a kick boxer?
No way. I did kickboxing just learn something new. I never thought I would actually be using it to be a Pro fighter. But I really love Vale Tudo. It’s just something people don’t see everyday.
Q Unless you are Brazilian, you might not be that familiar with VT, would you explain that?
Vale Tudo literally means anything goes and that is what they do down there. no rules, no gloves, just two men battling it out like true gladiators back in the day. It’s one of my dreams to compete in a true Vale Tudo Tourney some day, although I better hurry, they won’t be around much longer.
Q: With VT incorporating so many styles what does your normal training schedule consist of?
Well cardio of course we do about an hour and a half, no stops, no breaks. Every day we work on something different than the day before. Stand up, punching techniques and range, ground game shoot – everything under the sun. We don’t stay just to one discipline on the ground. We have seven different instructors that come in once a week to work with me on the ground. It’s more than I need but I lost my last fight on the ground, so I don’t want to let that happen this time.
Q: Is there a different mindset between a pro and an amateur fight? Or is it still just some dude 25 feet away from you trying to kill you?
To me its all the same. Just a few differences. Money of course is always a good incentive to win. All the lights and smoke are a change for me, when I was an amateur your music started to play and you walked out. That was it. It’s a little more show for the fans than amateur fights. But in the end, you’re right, just another guy standing in my way of a win.
Q: what made you decide to go pro?
Well, all the phone calls played a major role in that. I had just won my sixth fight in a row as an amateur and I was on my home and got two phone calls from fight promoters wanting me to get my pro license. So I checked on it and it was a little pricey at the time and I thought I’d just wait. The mail came a few days later with a check from a promotion company I had never heard of. The check was for made for well over what it cost me to get all my tests and paper work done. So I call this company and told them that I had some money left over, the lady said we sent that to you to help out with all costs, and she said just go buy some training gear with the rest. So I did. Sent in all my stuff to the Great State of Texas and they had my license in two weeks. I had wanted to go pro long before that, I thought that I had to have eight fights before I could. Later I found out you don’t.
Q: Would you mind going over exactly what it takes to go to pro?
It’s a total different mind set for me. Its not the AM’s where the guy you are fighting is some chump off the street, these guys are pros. That’s why they’re here, they’ve done something to make them want to go pro or someone has seen something in them and maybe suggested it. As far as the fans go, they’re pumped and are there for a great night of fighting and that’s what being a pro means to me. Because without our fans we have nothing. There are no fights without our fans. So thank you, thank you all. From all of us fighters.
Q: What’s it like to see a guy go limp in front of you? I’ve never fought, but like many MMA fans I played football, I’ve dropped a guy in a game but with the uniform, you don’t see the eyes and its not really the same.
Well it’s exciting and kinda of scary at the same time. The feeling is unexplainable when you hit ‘em and see their eyes. But afterwords I always go and check on the other fighter. We’re all here to get known and get in the big leagues. But I never like to see anyone get really hurt. It’s not good for them or their families. Thats what I think about. But I’m just a big softy.
Q: What goes through your mind in the last ten seconds before the ref starts the fight?
Not a thing. Just staring at the other guy. Trying to get in his head before it even starts. That’s it. Not much, but it works for me.
Q: How much advance notice do you get for a fight?
Normally about 2 months notice. And we’ll train just like normal until we’re thirty days out. Then it’s all on me. No breaks, no days off. Everyone at our Dojo does everything they can to help whoever is fighting be ready. We do the Vale Tudo circle. That is where I’m in the middle and start sparring against one person, then two minutes later a fresh person from the circle comes in and so on. You don’t know where they’re coming from so you have to be ready for anything. Each guy at the Dojo has their strong suits, and when we do the circle, they show it off. Normally the circle lasts about 15 to 20 minutes, sometimes longer, just depends on who all is there at that time.
Q: Since the TUF10 show, with so many fights coming down to cardio – did your training change?
Our cardio has always been our core for training. No gas in the tank you can’t win the fight. Our cardio has changed a little, but not because of the show, we just had to make it harder. If you can stand after our cardio, then you need to do it again.
Q: How do you train cardio in MMA?
Crazy stuff. We do a little of everything push-ups, jumping jacks, squats, run, body carries, medicine balls, kettle bells, punching techniques, bear crawls, and more. The thing is like push-ups, we do eight different kinds, so we work every muscle we can. Its just an hour-and-a-half of what I would describe to another military person as basic training PT. Its rough, but it’s just so much damn fun.
Q: As a heavyweight, what were your thoughts on the TUF show overall?
I was pulling for Darrell Schoonover. He’s a Texas boy and I always go for a Texan. He just hit a rough patch, we all do it. It’s just how you pull yourself out of it, it’ss how you come back. A champion is made by how they handle their defeats, not by how long they can sit on top of the cage after a win.
Q: Where is your next fight and do you know who you’re facing? (http://sharkfights.com/events.html)
My next fight is for Shark Fight Promotions. They were voted best Pro Promotion Company in Texas. I’ll be fighting a man named John King in my hometown of Lubbock, Texas. So Train, train, train and we’ll get a win.
Q: Do you know anything about King?
I know nothing about him. I’ve tried to do some homework but I was unable to find anything about him. That just makes it more fun for me. It’ll be a total surprise for him and me.
Q: Is that difficult for you? I know playing football you have hours of tape to watch, you have practice vs the scheme , etc. How hard is it to go against a guy when all you know is his style: Brazilian Jiu Jitsu/ Taekwondo?
For me it’s all the same. It could say he’s a boxer, wrestler, whatever. I train as hard as I can to do the best I can. What he does will only make me adjust myself for him in the ring. I’d like to see some video of him just to see how he moves and how he keeps his hands. Other than that, no worries.
Q: Is there any additional pressure put on you fighting in your hometown?
A ton. Fighting other places you know no one and no one will probably see you outside of the ring. Fighting at home makes it a little rougher. I see most of the people on a daily basis, work , neighbors, fight team, friends and family. Most of my family hasn’t seen me fight, because normally, my fights are pretty far away. Not this one. It’s time for a big win in front of Lubbock, Texas, but most important are my two sons, who think daddy is the Hulk. That puts more pressure on me than anything.
Q: Have your sons watched you fight before?
No they haven’t. Not that I haven’t let them, but like I said my fights are usually far away so we didn’t want to have to keep them the car for ten hours of driving. They’ve seen me spar at our Dojo and they just love it. So hopefully, that will stick with them and they’ll have a great time. They might as well see some of the moves they’re learning in action. They’re my future Cage Fighters.
Q Finally, is there anything you want your fans to know about you?
Well I ‘ve pretty much laid it all out there, but I do want my fans to know; When you come see me fight, I’ll always give everything I have in the cage. Even if that means I have to be carried out, at least my fans know it was all for them.
Dustin Phillips vs Douglas Evans at Shark Fights 9 for the Featherweight Championship Title
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March 16 , 2010 Will there be a new reigning king in the Shark Fight featherweight division? Fans will soon find out. Texas based mixed martial arts fight promotion company, Shark Fight Promotions, recently announced that current Shark Fight Featherweight Champion, Douglas Evans, will face “Team Tompkins” fighter... ….(Read More—>) . |
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January 27, 2010 . . .In 2009 popular Texas fight promoter Shark Fight Promotions and ESPN 1440 radio secured their place in MMA history by airing the first live MMA broadcast in . |
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January 15, 2010 . . .Popular mixed martial arts fight promotion company, Shark . |
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January 9, 2010 . . .Popular mixed martial arts fight promotion company, Shark . |
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November 18, 2009 . . .Over |
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Way to go Skyler. Love your fights man. Everyone goes thru rough patches and I know you will get back to how you used to be. Congratulations man.
Great Article. I have seen this guy fight and he is one to keep an eye on. Check him out on our debut cover in May 10
Texas Top Fighter Magazine