‘Warrior’ journey is starting to take shape
Former Deniliquin man and soon-to-be TV reality show star Dylan Hare recently had the opportunity to train under world renowned Mixed Martial Arts trainer John Kavanagh.
Kavanagh, who is the head coach of UFC lightweight champion Conor McGregor, trained Hare as part of his preparation for the international reality show ‘Wimp 2 Warrior’.
The ‘wimps’ are being trained by professional MMA fighters and coaches, and the show aims to transform 30 ‘regular people’ into amateur cage fighters within six months.
At the end of the camp, the top fighters step into the octagon and participate in a professional fight.
Sydney-based Hare visited his home town while on Easter break from the show, sharing his experience so far. When he returns he’ll be taking on more fight-like training.
‘‘I’m three months in now and everything is going awesome,’’ the 28 year-old said.
‘‘I’m training six days a week and I’ve gone from 86 kilograms to 73.
‘‘I’m aiming for a lightweight division fight so I’ll need to get down to 70kg.
‘‘The first three months has been more about fitness and learning the basics, but now the fight camps start.
‘‘The camps are specific to takedown defence and has more sparring involved. It’ll kick into another gear for the next three months and I’m looking forward to it.’’
During the visit from Kavanagh, Hare was able to hold McGregor’s UFC Lightweight Championship belt.
‘‘John said he asked Conor if he could borrow the belt for a school visit and basically took off with it,’ Hare said with a laugh.
‘‘He shared plenty of knowledge with us all, and to my surprise simplified everything.
‘‘He taught us that there’s no need to be fancy in the octagon and to sit back and bait opponents.
‘‘Before the show everyone was saying that MMA isn’t just a sport but it’s a lifestyle, and now I can see why.’’
Hare’s Wimp 2 Warrior journey will end in July where he will step into the octagon and fight.
So far the former local has achieved what he set out to do, to get himself ‘‘back on track’’ since the loss of close friend Clark Jones.
‘‘The journey has helped me get back to being the motivated person I was before Clark left us,’’ he said.
‘‘It’s been great for my mental strength so far and there’s still so much more to go.’’
The aspiring actor said one day he hopes to portray McGregor in a movie.
‘‘It should be impossible for me to play such a big role, but Conor was also told his dream would be impossible,’’ Hare said.
‘‘I’ve been told that when I grow my beard out that I look fairly similar to Conor so I have that going for me.
‘‘I also think my attitude towards life is similar to his - he’s a big believer in making anything happen.
‘‘I don’t think the training in MMA will necessarily help me get a role like that because Conor is such a unique fighter.’’