(Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA): Today’s MMA camps are constantly evolving. Long gone are the days of a fight camp only teaching one discipline, or even just two.
Nowadays, competitors must be cross-training in all disciplines, from striking, to wrestling, to grappling… not to mention the emphasis that must be placed on cardio conditioning.
As such, many competitors are now training with camps outside their home base, and bringing in specialists for specific upcoming fights. And as a result, it is difficult for a gym to get all its pro fighters together at the same time.
Yet, when the stars align and it happens, the benefits for all those involved are tremendous.
“I love having all my guys in the gym at the same time,” says Duke Roufus, Roufusport’s legendary head trainer. “Something magical happens when they’re all in there together, helping one another…improvement is just a foregone conclusion. It’s just an amazing event to witness.”
Roufusport, one of the top fight teams/gyms in America, is fortunate to have a very strong stable of fighters in-house, and right now they’re all training together in Milwaukee in preparation for upcoming fights.
Competitors such as UFC stars Alan “The Talent” Belcher, Ben Rothwell, Anthony “Showtime” Pettis, Erik “New Breed” Koch, “Danny Boy” Downes, Bellator Welterweight Champion Ben “Funky” Askren, and up-and-comers Sergio “The Phenom” Pettis, Zach “Thunderwood” Underwood, Chico “King” Camus, Rick “Gladiator” Glenn, and Nick “Afrozilla” Gaston, are getting their time in at the gym, and it’s paying dividends for all. Always looking for ways to improve upon an already successful formula, Roufusport has added a new Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Head Coach in Black Belt Joao Zeferino. He is a 2008 BJJ World Champion, and also will be competing in the cage soon.
“Training at Roufusport, and especially with all the guys there, is like being a Spartan,” explains UFC featherweight Erik Koch. “Everyone does this for a living, and we are all warriors. We feed off each other, and, in my opinion, train harder than anyone else.”
“It’s amazing!” exclaims UFC 155-pounder “Danny Boy” Downes. “MMA may be an individual sport, but you need a solid team behind you to get better. Everyone is stepping it up and getting to the next level.”
“It’s great having all that talent training together. Each guy adds a different attribute to the team, and we all have that one part of our fight game that is our strong point,” states Sergio Pettis, younger brother of Anthony Pettis, who will make his pro MMA debut September 10th in Canada. “Having all these guys on our team, we are all working on helping each other’s weaknesses. Like Ben Askren helping the team with his wrestling, and in return, we are helping him with his standup. Roufusport is now becoming a gym filled with complete fighters…not just a gym filled with standup fighters.”
Some of the fights coming up for Roufusport fighters include:
· Sept. 10th – Sergio Pettis, CFC (Canada)
· Sept. 17th – Erik Koch and Alan Belcher, UFC
· Sept. 17th – Nick Gaston, King of the Cage
· Sept. 24th – Ben Rothwell, UFC
· Oct. 8th – Anthony Pettis, UFC
· Oct. 8th – Ben Askren, Bellator
· Oct. 15th – Chico Camus, Chicago Cagefighting
· Oct. 29th – Danny Downes, UFC
· Nov. 18th – Joao Zeferino, Sergio Pettis, Chico Camus, Zach Underwood, Rick Glenn, Israel Abiles, Isreal Lozano, Brandon Pratt, NAFC (Milwaukee)
For more information on Roufusport, please visit http://roufusport.com/.
About Roufusport
Roufusport is run by famed kickboxer and MMA trainer Duke Roufus and his business partner Scott Joffe. It is a world class brand that includes a state-of-the-art training facility, fight team, and MMA promotion, the North American Fighting Championship.
Roufus is one of the most recognizable MMA and striking coaches in North America, and is considered to be one of the top trainers of Muay Thai kickboxing outside of Thailand. Roufus also runs the Roufusport Fight Club team, which includes UFC® stars Alan Belcher, Anthony Pettis (of the famous “Showtime Kick” off the cage), Ben Rothwell, Erik Koch, and “Danny Boy” Downes.
Former students include former UFC® Lightweight Champion Jens Pulver, The Ultimate Fighter® season one star Stephan Bonnar, and UFC® veterans Pat Barry, Matt Mitrione and Jesse Lennox.
