Steve Carl
Mixed Martial Artist
First WSOF Welterweight Champion
It was 2005 and I was in the Army, stationed in Ft. Hood Texas. My fellow soldiers and I would wrestle around with each other to see who was the toughest. I always came out on top and even though many of my fellow soldiers continually urged me to try MMA (mixed martial arts) out I didn't have much desire to try it. Being the runt and picked on basically my whole life, fighting or even the thought of it terrified me, and I had no confidence in myself or my abilities. It was only after an incident outside a night club where I witnessed one man being jumped by a group of men and I tried to intervene only to have the group attack me, did I want to give MMA a try. Even though I came out unharmed, the entire incident shook me to my core. It was only a mixture of youth, adrenaline, and a lot of fear allowed me to handle my own and not get severely hurt. After that incident, I knew I needed to do something, so I went to the Grapplers Lair in Temple, Texas, to try it out. I went to gain confidence in myself, and I had no ambition to fight whatsoever. I fell in love with discovering and developing new abilities about myself as well as the brotherhood we had while training. I was hooked and addicted within days.
After only two months of training, I had my first fight. It all came so fast! At this point I had no thoughts of becoming a "real" fighter. I was doing it for the life experience. So with the urging of my coach, John Moore, I fought as a professional instead of amateur even though I had no experience. The fights were held in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and I fought a muscle-bound guy by the name of Andrew Perkins at 185lbs. It was one of the most terrifying moments of my life! It was also the fastest fight of my career as I tackled him to the ground, mounted him, and punched him in the face as fast as I could until the ref stopped the fight. It was over in a little over 20 seconds. Little did I know but it was the start of my new career.
I've competed all over the United States including:
I've also competed overseas in:
I won my World Title in Miami Florida. It was all pretty surreal when I was handed the belt. A mixture of emotions and different thoughts were flooding my head. Most importantly though, I let out a breath of relief that it was over and I just tried to enjoy the moment as I came to grasp with what I had accomplished.
As my fights and name got bigger I competed less and less often. Last 4-5 years I've only competed about once a year.
To get rid of stress I train. Nothing is a better stress relief then physically breaking yourself down.
If you are interested in Mixed Martial Arts, the best advice I can give you is try it out. Immerse yourself in it, and whether you compete or not, you will learn more about yourself than you've ever known.
Mixed Martial Artist
First WSOF Welterweight Champion
It was 2005 and I was in the Army, stationed in Ft. Hood Texas. My fellow soldiers and I would wrestle around with each other to see who was the toughest. I always came out on top and even though many of my fellow soldiers continually urged me to try MMA (mixed martial arts) out I didn't have much desire to try it. Being the runt and picked on basically my whole life, fighting or even the thought of it terrified me, and I had no confidence in myself or my abilities. It was only after an incident outside a night club where I witnessed one man being jumped by a group of men and I tried to intervene only to have the group attack me, did I want to give MMA a try. Even though I came out unharmed, the entire incident shook me to my core. It was only a mixture of youth, adrenaline, and a lot of fear allowed me to handle my own and not get severely hurt. After that incident, I knew I needed to do something, so I went to the Grapplers Lair in Temple, Texas, to try it out. I went to gain confidence in myself, and I had no ambition to fight whatsoever. I fell in love with discovering and developing new abilities about myself as well as the brotherhood we had while training. I was hooked and addicted within days.
After only two months of training, I had my first fight. It all came so fast! At this point I had no thoughts of becoming a "real" fighter. I was doing it for the life experience. So with the urging of my coach, John Moore, I fought as a professional instead of amateur even though I had no experience. The fights were held in Fort Smith, Arkansas, and I fought a muscle-bound guy by the name of Andrew Perkins at 185lbs. It was one of the most terrifying moments of my life! It was also the fastest fight of my career as I tackled him to the ground, mounted him, and punched him in the face as fast as I could until the ref stopped the fight. It was over in a little over 20 seconds. Little did I know but it was the start of my new career.
I've competed all over the United States including:
- Fort smith Arkansas
- Austin, Houston, & Dallas Texas
- Des Moines & Cedar Rapids Iowa
- Madison, Wisconsin
- Kansas City, Missouri
- Miami, Florida
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Atlantic City, New Jersey
- Uncasville, Connecticut
I've also competed overseas in:
- Bourgas, Bulgaria
- Kharbarovsk Krai, Russia
- Grozny, Chechnya
- Rostov On-Don, Russia
I won my World Title in Miami Florida. It was all pretty surreal when I was handed the belt. A mixture of emotions and different thoughts were flooding my head. Most importantly though, I let out a breath of relief that it was over and I just tried to enjoy the moment as I came to grasp with what I had accomplished.
As my fights and name got bigger I competed less and less often. Last 4-5 years I've only competed about once a year.
To get rid of stress I train. Nothing is a better stress relief then physically breaking yourself down.
If you are interested in Mixed Martial Arts, the best advice I can give you is try it out. Immerse yourself in it, and whether you compete or not, you will learn more about yourself than you've ever known.