Johnny Toetags
10-29-2005, 04:06 PM
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y28/BKDOTCOM/jeff.jpg
JEFF "THE INFERNO" JOSLIN
What makes a fighter? Is it skill? Heart? Guts? Or is beleif in yourself and your abilities? Maybe it's the people you surround yourself with - the people you train with day in and day out to make yourself better that what you are. Maybe it's family. Those people that're there to pick you up off the canvas after the fight and take you home. The people who support you and keep your fires burning. Either way, Jeff Joslin is a fighter. A born fighter, really. And his fire's not about to burn out, hell - the Inferno's just getting started.
Jeff Joslin is coming off two hard consecutive decision losses, very controversial ones at that. What does Jeff do? Hang 'em up, concentrate on his school, tournaments and family? No. Jeff does all those things already, but hanging up the gloves out of frustration? That's not an option. Read on...
--
BloodyKnux.Com- It's been pretty well documented whenever you seem to cross the border to fight in Quebec, the hometown judges have been less than kind to you. Most in the MMA community feel your record should be at 6-0 instead of 4-2. Why do you think that is? Is it a case of hometown favouritism or perhaps the judging system or even the judges themselves that were at fault? And, if anything, what do you feel should be done to make sure obvious mistakes such as these aren't multiplied?
Jeff Joslin- Well, first of all I appreciate all of the great support I have received from the mma fans in Canada throughout my career so far and I love fighting within my home Country. As for the two fights that I lost by decision I am very confused on what the judges based their decisions on. Of course hometown favouritism can and always will play a small role in decisions I am sure, but I believe the main issue that should be questioned is the MMA knowledge of the QAC judges themselves. Are they familiar with all the aspects of mixed martial arts? I do not believe so. If the judges were indeed knowledgeable, I believe I would have won both decisions.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y28/BKDOTCOM/jeff3.jpg
BK- Would you ever fight in TKO or other Quebec events again, considering your past experiences? And if so, would you fight any differently?
JJ- I would love to fight both of those organizations. I had my first fight in TKO and always looked forward to fighting in Quebec, working hard to climb the ranks of the organization. Unfortunately both of them use the Quebec Athletic Commission to sanction their events. This means, the same judging at both events. I agreed to fight once again in Quebec participating in Freedom Fight 2005, never thinking I would be the victim of another highly controversial decision. It?s really frustrating to fight a tough guy in the ring and then feel like you are fighting against the referee and the judges at the exact same time. In pursuit of fairness, we now await a decision on our call for a no-contest in the bout with Jon Fitch due to several major rules infractions but are told that if we do not like what happened, don?t come back to Quebec. This makes it difficult for me to accept fights within Quebec. If I was to ever to fight again in Quebec, I would not fight differently, in both of my decision losses I gave everything I had in the ring and did what had to be done to win each fight.
BK- I agree totally - both of those fights were great! It's a shame they were sullied by the wrong calls at the bell. Both the fighters who hold questionable decision "wins" over you have since made their UFC debuts, what are you thoughts on that?
JJ- I think that is a good thing! Congratulations to both of them on making it to the UFC and on their success. I use this as a gauge as to where I stand as a fighter. I continue to train hard each and every day to fight my way to the UFC. I had hoped to represent Canada for this seasons ?Ultimate Fighter? Reality show at welterweight but it didn?t come together.
BK- Considering how Season 2 is going, you would have made a great addition! In your last fight Jon Fitch called what seemed to be an apparent "time-out", which was confusingly awarded to him. What was said in the ring to warrant such a stoppage and why wasn't the fight called a verbal submission or even a TKO?
JJ-That was probably the oddest moment in my MMA career. I hit him with a combination of punches starting with an uppercut to the mouth and he backed up to the ropes dropping down for a takedown. After defending his takedown, he backed into the corner, held his lip and motioned to the referee. I believed at this point that the fight was over. Stepping back I am waiting for the referee to wave his hands over the opponent?s head to stop the fight and instead he allows Jon Fitch to have a one minute and twenty second break after calling his own time out. All referees should know the straightforward and simple rule that a fighter can not stop his own fight without it being ruled a TKO.
BK-Speaking of Fitch, is there any interest in a rematch with him to settle the score? He seems to still believe he won that fight...
JJ- I definitely would fight him again. My fight with Jon Fitch was probably my most enjoyable fight, head butt aside. It does feel a little weird to have to search out rematches with fighters you feel you beat decisively though. It?s like you have to win twice to win once if that makes sense.
BK- Does Canada have a trademark globally in Mixed Martial Arts? If the Canadian MMA Scene and the fighters it produces could be represented in a word, or a phrase, what would it be?
JJ- That is a tough question?I think maybe BloodyKnux.com should have a little contest to find a catch phrase for our fighters, what do you guys think? I would say this though, since we have limited places to fight within Canada our fighters often wait until they are well prepared before making their MMA debuts. This makes a fighters record deceiving and someone could be quite tough with only a few fights under their belt.
BK- You and your father have a long and storied history of karate training and background, how do you think that impacts your game? What aspects of that traditional training do you think gels well with contemporary MMA?
JJ- I feel very fortunate to have been involved and around the martial arts since childhood. I think training in any kind of martial art can be beneficial to a person hoping to fight in MMA. Competing in martial arts tournament helped me to deal with the pressure of the competition fight and taught me how to prepare for a fighting event. I also believe the work ethic, goal setting and physical attributes an athlete in the martial arts builds throughout their training can be applied with great effect to MMA training.
BK- Many of people disparage traditional martial arts when it comes to effective and applied uses in MMA, do you have any advice to people with backgrounds in traditional arts as it pertains to making the transition to MMA?
JJ- I think the transition from traditional martial arts to MMA is easier for some then others. I believe you have to leave your ego behind you as you have to become a student again to learn what is necessary to compete in MMA. I always enjoy being a student and learning new things so it was refreshing for me to become involved in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu eleven years ago, even if it meant sometimes getting choked, arm-locked and squished by people more experienced in the art. In short, I suggest learning what a boxer does, doing some kickboxing, grappling a lot with both submissions and takedowns and endure the beatings in the initial months of training in a new discipline because it will be worth it in the end if you want to fight MMA.
BK-Some of the critics of traditional martial arts have been silenced as of late by effective incorporation of some traditional tae kwon do and karate techniques, most notably by Canadian fighters such as David Loiseau, Georges St. Pierre, St?phane Potvin and of course yourself - do you think this is a trend that will be emulated more and more, with fighter incorporating old techniques into their modern styles?
JJ- I think that MMA fighting is always evolving so I believe we will constantly see some different techniques brought into the cage and ring as time goes by. I also think this is only possible because MMA fighters are becoming well rounded with submissions, wrestling and striking. It is often the case that a good striker can?t use many of their techniques because they are too worried about getting taken down to the ground. When you are confident in your wrestling and jiu-jitsu you are free to incorporate more techniques from your striking arsenal. Also, with MMA being a spectator sport, we are bound to throw in a fancy technique from time to time to add some extra excitement.
BK- As someone who works with children as a karate instructor, does you think that kids will start training modified (Californian Pankration rules MMA, maybe?) MMA from earlier ages? Do you think that adolescents should be learning grappling techniques? What age is acceptable to begin a modified MMA-style training program? And will the calibre of mixed martial arts be raised as people being to train to be fighters from a younger age?
JJ- The answer to these questions will be different from instructor to instructor. I personally do not believe that learning in a strictly MMA environment is the best way for children to learn. I learned to grapple by doing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I learned to box by boxing. From my experience those who only train MMA become tough and experienced but often lack the finer technical details found within the pure arts of boxing, kickboxing, wrestling and jiu-jitsu. I think adolescents should definitely be training in grappling, in fact I find many of my own students including my seven year old son Tayzen, enjoy the Brazilian jiu-jitsu tremendously. I believe it is best to let children work their ground work and striking separately and as they become older they will naturally gravitate towards blending the two into one. Exposing children to the heavier contact needed to train true mixed martial arts, may be, in my opinion too much for them to handle, therefore taking the enjoyment out of training. The kids have to have fun!
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y28/BKDOTCOM/jeff2.jpg
BK-You're also known for excellent ground technique and grappling ability, what advantages do you see in training with a jiu-jitsu gi? Is it better to forgo the gi altogether?
JJ- Thank you for the compliment. I think the gi is a very important tool in training a person to become a skilled grappler. A skilled grappler can then fine tune their strategy and techniques to tailor their game for MMA or submission wrestling as I believe there is a slight difference. The gi is great for developing one?s defense on the ground. If an opponent can not sweep, choke, armlock or leg lock you when you have the gi on, it will be even more difficult for him to do the same when you remove the gi.
BK- Speaking of Grappling, can you tell us a little bit about Joslin's 2005 Canadian Open Tournaments? Anything new happening this year?
JJ- Yes the Joslin?s Canadian Open Grappling Championships will be held on Sunday, November 13, 2005 in Hamilton, Ontario. Due to the growth of our tournament over the last few years we will be adding an additional mat this year, bringing our total up to 7 mats of fights. We have also added some extra youth divisions and will be once again awarding all winners with customized Canadian open championship belts! Thanks to all those who support the event and I look forward to seeing you soon.
BK-Thanks very much for your time Jeff, apparently, you're quite the freestyler. Mind dropping us a rhyme?
Ummm, This is a little embarrassing but I guess I?ll bite the hook?*clears throat*
When I jump in tha ring, best to keep a close eye,
Don? blink for a second, as my punches will fly,
Kick ?n sprawl, choke. I do whatever it takes.
Fakes, make opponent?s work, until their will breaks,
Hopin, that this time he won?t get a time out,
So I can slip inside his jab, and knock the mother _ _ _ _ _ _ out!.
Now I have to go look deep in the closet for my old kangol hat and L.A raiders jacket, gotta go?
Thanks to everyone at BloodyKnux.com for your support and to all the fight fans for sending in all the great questions. I have a new website being constructed at www.jeffjoslin.ca which will have all updates on upcoming fights, seminars and other stuff. I am also available for MMA, submission wrestling and jiu-jitsu seminars along with private lessons and can be reached at jeff_joslin@hotmail.com. Thanks again.
--
Many thanks to Jeff Joslin for accepting the interview, he's a true class act.
The 2005 Joslin?s Canadian Open Grappling Championships is once again being held in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada at Sherwood High School on Sunday November 13th, 2005.
Last years event drew over 400 competitors from across Canada and the United States.
For rules, divisions, and additional information please check out their website at www.joslinskarate.com.
JEFF "THE INFERNO" JOSLIN
What makes a fighter? Is it skill? Heart? Guts? Or is beleif in yourself and your abilities? Maybe it's the people you surround yourself with - the people you train with day in and day out to make yourself better that what you are. Maybe it's family. Those people that're there to pick you up off the canvas after the fight and take you home. The people who support you and keep your fires burning. Either way, Jeff Joslin is a fighter. A born fighter, really. And his fire's not about to burn out, hell - the Inferno's just getting started.
Jeff Joslin is coming off two hard consecutive decision losses, very controversial ones at that. What does Jeff do? Hang 'em up, concentrate on his school, tournaments and family? No. Jeff does all those things already, but hanging up the gloves out of frustration? That's not an option. Read on...
--
BloodyKnux.Com- It's been pretty well documented whenever you seem to cross the border to fight in Quebec, the hometown judges have been less than kind to you. Most in the MMA community feel your record should be at 6-0 instead of 4-2. Why do you think that is? Is it a case of hometown favouritism or perhaps the judging system or even the judges themselves that were at fault? And, if anything, what do you feel should be done to make sure obvious mistakes such as these aren't multiplied?
Jeff Joslin- Well, first of all I appreciate all of the great support I have received from the mma fans in Canada throughout my career so far and I love fighting within my home Country. As for the two fights that I lost by decision I am very confused on what the judges based their decisions on. Of course hometown favouritism can and always will play a small role in decisions I am sure, but I believe the main issue that should be questioned is the MMA knowledge of the QAC judges themselves. Are they familiar with all the aspects of mixed martial arts? I do not believe so. If the judges were indeed knowledgeable, I believe I would have won both decisions.
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y28/BKDOTCOM/jeff3.jpg
BK- Would you ever fight in TKO or other Quebec events again, considering your past experiences? And if so, would you fight any differently?
JJ- I would love to fight both of those organizations. I had my first fight in TKO and always looked forward to fighting in Quebec, working hard to climb the ranks of the organization. Unfortunately both of them use the Quebec Athletic Commission to sanction their events. This means, the same judging at both events. I agreed to fight once again in Quebec participating in Freedom Fight 2005, never thinking I would be the victim of another highly controversial decision. It?s really frustrating to fight a tough guy in the ring and then feel like you are fighting against the referee and the judges at the exact same time. In pursuit of fairness, we now await a decision on our call for a no-contest in the bout with Jon Fitch due to several major rules infractions but are told that if we do not like what happened, don?t come back to Quebec. This makes it difficult for me to accept fights within Quebec. If I was to ever to fight again in Quebec, I would not fight differently, in both of my decision losses I gave everything I had in the ring and did what had to be done to win each fight.
BK- I agree totally - both of those fights were great! It's a shame they were sullied by the wrong calls at the bell. Both the fighters who hold questionable decision "wins" over you have since made their UFC debuts, what are you thoughts on that?
JJ- I think that is a good thing! Congratulations to both of them on making it to the UFC and on their success. I use this as a gauge as to where I stand as a fighter. I continue to train hard each and every day to fight my way to the UFC. I had hoped to represent Canada for this seasons ?Ultimate Fighter? Reality show at welterweight but it didn?t come together.
BK- Considering how Season 2 is going, you would have made a great addition! In your last fight Jon Fitch called what seemed to be an apparent "time-out", which was confusingly awarded to him. What was said in the ring to warrant such a stoppage and why wasn't the fight called a verbal submission or even a TKO?
JJ-That was probably the oddest moment in my MMA career. I hit him with a combination of punches starting with an uppercut to the mouth and he backed up to the ropes dropping down for a takedown. After defending his takedown, he backed into the corner, held his lip and motioned to the referee. I believed at this point that the fight was over. Stepping back I am waiting for the referee to wave his hands over the opponent?s head to stop the fight and instead he allows Jon Fitch to have a one minute and twenty second break after calling his own time out. All referees should know the straightforward and simple rule that a fighter can not stop his own fight without it being ruled a TKO.
BK-Speaking of Fitch, is there any interest in a rematch with him to settle the score? He seems to still believe he won that fight...
JJ- I definitely would fight him again. My fight with Jon Fitch was probably my most enjoyable fight, head butt aside. It does feel a little weird to have to search out rematches with fighters you feel you beat decisively though. It?s like you have to win twice to win once if that makes sense.
BK- Does Canada have a trademark globally in Mixed Martial Arts? If the Canadian MMA Scene and the fighters it produces could be represented in a word, or a phrase, what would it be?
JJ- That is a tough question?I think maybe BloodyKnux.com should have a little contest to find a catch phrase for our fighters, what do you guys think? I would say this though, since we have limited places to fight within Canada our fighters often wait until they are well prepared before making their MMA debuts. This makes a fighters record deceiving and someone could be quite tough with only a few fights under their belt.
BK- You and your father have a long and storied history of karate training and background, how do you think that impacts your game? What aspects of that traditional training do you think gels well with contemporary MMA?
JJ- I feel very fortunate to have been involved and around the martial arts since childhood. I think training in any kind of martial art can be beneficial to a person hoping to fight in MMA. Competing in martial arts tournament helped me to deal with the pressure of the competition fight and taught me how to prepare for a fighting event. I also believe the work ethic, goal setting and physical attributes an athlete in the martial arts builds throughout their training can be applied with great effect to MMA training.
BK- Many of people disparage traditional martial arts when it comes to effective and applied uses in MMA, do you have any advice to people with backgrounds in traditional arts as it pertains to making the transition to MMA?
JJ- I think the transition from traditional martial arts to MMA is easier for some then others. I believe you have to leave your ego behind you as you have to become a student again to learn what is necessary to compete in MMA. I always enjoy being a student and learning new things so it was refreshing for me to become involved in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu eleven years ago, even if it meant sometimes getting choked, arm-locked and squished by people more experienced in the art. In short, I suggest learning what a boxer does, doing some kickboxing, grappling a lot with both submissions and takedowns and endure the beatings in the initial months of training in a new discipline because it will be worth it in the end if you want to fight MMA.
BK-Some of the critics of traditional martial arts have been silenced as of late by effective incorporation of some traditional tae kwon do and karate techniques, most notably by Canadian fighters such as David Loiseau, Georges St. Pierre, St?phane Potvin and of course yourself - do you think this is a trend that will be emulated more and more, with fighter incorporating old techniques into their modern styles?
JJ- I think that MMA fighting is always evolving so I believe we will constantly see some different techniques brought into the cage and ring as time goes by. I also think this is only possible because MMA fighters are becoming well rounded with submissions, wrestling and striking. It is often the case that a good striker can?t use many of their techniques because they are too worried about getting taken down to the ground. When you are confident in your wrestling and jiu-jitsu you are free to incorporate more techniques from your striking arsenal. Also, with MMA being a spectator sport, we are bound to throw in a fancy technique from time to time to add some extra excitement.
BK- As someone who works with children as a karate instructor, does you think that kids will start training modified (Californian Pankration rules MMA, maybe?) MMA from earlier ages? Do you think that adolescents should be learning grappling techniques? What age is acceptable to begin a modified MMA-style training program? And will the calibre of mixed martial arts be raised as people being to train to be fighters from a younger age?
JJ- The answer to these questions will be different from instructor to instructor. I personally do not believe that learning in a strictly MMA environment is the best way for children to learn. I learned to grapple by doing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I learned to box by boxing. From my experience those who only train MMA become tough and experienced but often lack the finer technical details found within the pure arts of boxing, kickboxing, wrestling and jiu-jitsu. I think adolescents should definitely be training in grappling, in fact I find many of my own students including my seven year old son Tayzen, enjoy the Brazilian jiu-jitsu tremendously. I believe it is best to let children work their ground work and striking separately and as they become older they will naturally gravitate towards blending the two into one. Exposing children to the heavier contact needed to train true mixed martial arts, may be, in my opinion too much for them to handle, therefore taking the enjoyment out of training. The kids have to have fun!
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y28/BKDOTCOM/jeff2.jpg
BK-You're also known for excellent ground technique and grappling ability, what advantages do you see in training with a jiu-jitsu gi? Is it better to forgo the gi altogether?
JJ- Thank you for the compliment. I think the gi is a very important tool in training a person to become a skilled grappler. A skilled grappler can then fine tune their strategy and techniques to tailor their game for MMA or submission wrestling as I believe there is a slight difference. The gi is great for developing one?s defense on the ground. If an opponent can not sweep, choke, armlock or leg lock you when you have the gi on, it will be even more difficult for him to do the same when you remove the gi.
BK- Speaking of Grappling, can you tell us a little bit about Joslin's 2005 Canadian Open Tournaments? Anything new happening this year?
JJ- Yes the Joslin?s Canadian Open Grappling Championships will be held on Sunday, November 13, 2005 in Hamilton, Ontario. Due to the growth of our tournament over the last few years we will be adding an additional mat this year, bringing our total up to 7 mats of fights. We have also added some extra youth divisions and will be once again awarding all winners with customized Canadian open championship belts! Thanks to all those who support the event and I look forward to seeing you soon.
BK-Thanks very much for your time Jeff, apparently, you're quite the freestyler. Mind dropping us a rhyme?
Ummm, This is a little embarrassing but I guess I?ll bite the hook?*clears throat*
When I jump in tha ring, best to keep a close eye,
Don? blink for a second, as my punches will fly,
Kick ?n sprawl, choke. I do whatever it takes.
Fakes, make opponent?s work, until their will breaks,
Hopin, that this time he won?t get a time out,
So I can slip inside his jab, and knock the mother _ _ _ _ _ _ out!.
Now I have to go look deep in the closet for my old kangol hat and L.A raiders jacket, gotta go?
Thanks to everyone at BloodyKnux.com for your support and to all the fight fans for sending in all the great questions. I have a new website being constructed at www.jeffjoslin.ca which will have all updates on upcoming fights, seminars and other stuff. I am also available for MMA, submission wrestling and jiu-jitsu seminars along with private lessons and can be reached at jeff_joslin@hotmail.com. Thanks again.
--
Many thanks to Jeff Joslin for accepting the interview, he's a true class act.
The 2005 Joslin?s Canadian Open Grappling Championships is once again being held in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada at Sherwood High School on Sunday November 13th, 2005.
Last years event drew over 400 competitors from across Canada and the United States.
For rules, divisions, and additional information please check out their website at www.joslinskarate.com.