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Shane Carwin is one of the toughest (and biggest) heavyweight fighters currently competing in the UFC. At UFC 111 on March 27th, the undefeated Carwin will get his shot at the interim heavyweight title, but it won't be easy. Carwin's opponent is seasoned veteran, and the very verbal, former heavyweight champion, Frank Mir.
Both fighters have a common goal in wanting to get into the Octagon with current champion Brock Lesnar, but Carwin is not looking past Mir and is ready to give him the fight of his life.
shane carwin on mma and fighting
AskMen (AM): What made you want to get into mixed martial arts (MMA)?
Shane Carwin (SC): I'm just very competitive in nature and it follows along one of the sports I was very successful in, wrestling, which is also one of the major disciplines in MMA. So, it was kind of just a follow-up to my wrestling.
AM: Has anyone been an influence on you in terms of getting into MMA?
SC: I don't think there is anyone that really pushed me into MMA, but in terms of someone leading me down the right path I'd have to say Nate Marquardt.
AM: Do you still manage to balance your engineering job with MMA?
SC: You bet -- it's not very hard to fit into my schedule. I find it as a way to clear my mind and do everyday things like sit down and converse with friends of mine and the people not involved in the world of MMA.
AM: There was a point in your Gonzaga fight where he almost ended the fight - what was going through your head at that moment?
SC: I actually felt more relaxed after I got hit; I felt more composed and better. Different people react to adversity in different ways and it made me better and more focused afterward.
AM: As an undefeated fighter, does that add pressure on you to win going into a fight?
SC: It doesn't add pressure; I don't really look at it that way. When we step into that Octagon we both might as well have records of 0-0 -- it just doesn't matter at that point.
AM: What about your upcoming interim title fight, does that add pressure?
SC: That's not a lot of pressure either because Brock Lesnar is coming back in July or something and he's the real champ. The belt was never taken away from him and the belt will really only be fought for when someone faces Lesnar in July.
AM: In other words, you don't really see your upcoming fight against Frank Mir as a title fight?
SC: Not with the champion, Brock Lesnar, being back and training to get back into the Octagon.
AM: What do you think of the new and improved Frank Mir?
SC: As far as Frank putting on the size and the muscle, I guess we'll see if it helps him or not. I've just put in a lot of training and a lot of technique in all areas of the game to make myself better for this fight. I know Frank's game, and we worked on a few of those things, but most of the focus is on me and making me better.
AM: What areas do you think you have advantages over Frank Mir?
SC: I think my wrestling is better; stand-up can go either way with my power and his technique. Obviously he's got an advantage in BJJ, but I guess we'll find out in mental toughness -- we're both tough in that area. Although, I would be surprised if this fight goes the distance with my tough fighting style.
shane carwin's training and tips
AM: Can you describe what you do in one full week of training?
SC: It's a busy week. My workout mainly consists of alternating days. Tuesdays and Thursdays will be sparring and light grappling in the morning, and then I go to work after that. After work I go to wrestling practice and then home with the family. Monday, Wednesday, Friday is straight conditioning around lunch time, I normally work before and after that. Then I drive down to the gym to do boxing and jujitsu, or sometimes wrestling.
AM: How long do you normally train in a day?
SC: I normally train about four to five hours a day.
AM: Do you have any tips for our readers on how to maximize their training?
SC: Depends on the type of training they want to do. To get in shape, the most important thing is to put all your focus into your training when you go in there with anything that you do. If you're going to be there and you're going to train then you have to put 100% into it. If you go in there with an attitude of not really wanting to train, that's the wrong attitude and you will have a difficult time getting anything done, which will just turn into wasted effort and a waste of time.
AM: What advice would you have for someone that wants to get into competitive MMA?
SC: Start learning the different disciplines, get into BJJ, do some BJJ tournaments, get into boxing and do some amateur boxing, try wrestling out and do some open tournaments in that, try some amateur kickboxing out also. Try multiple disciplines and see what you excel at and what you're comfortable with.
AM: Is there anything that you would like to say in closing?
SC: I just want to say thank you to all the fans and special thanks to the troops fighting all over the world.
Both fighters have a common goal in wanting to get into the Octagon with current champion Brock Lesnar, but Carwin is not looking past Mir and is ready to give him the fight of his life.
shane carwin on mma and fighting
AskMen (AM): What made you want to get into mixed martial arts (MMA)?
Shane Carwin (SC): I'm just very competitive in nature and it follows along one of the sports I was very successful in, wrestling, which is also one of the major disciplines in MMA. So, it was kind of just a follow-up to my wrestling.
AM: Has anyone been an influence on you in terms of getting into MMA?
SC: I don't think there is anyone that really pushed me into MMA, but in terms of someone leading me down the right path I'd have to say Nate Marquardt.
AM: Do you still manage to balance your engineering job with MMA?
SC: You bet -- it's not very hard to fit into my schedule. I find it as a way to clear my mind and do everyday things like sit down and converse with friends of mine and the people not involved in the world of MMA.
AM: There was a point in your Gonzaga fight where he almost ended the fight - what was going through your head at that moment?
SC: I actually felt more relaxed after I got hit; I felt more composed and better. Different people react to adversity in different ways and it made me better and more focused afterward.
AM: As an undefeated fighter, does that add pressure on you to win going into a fight?
SC: It doesn't add pressure; I don't really look at it that way. When we step into that Octagon we both might as well have records of 0-0 -- it just doesn't matter at that point.
AM: What about your upcoming interim title fight, does that add pressure?
SC: That's not a lot of pressure either because Brock Lesnar is coming back in July or something and he's the real champ. The belt was never taken away from him and the belt will really only be fought for when someone faces Lesnar in July.
AM: In other words, you don't really see your upcoming fight against Frank Mir as a title fight?
SC: Not with the champion, Brock Lesnar, being back and training to get back into the Octagon.
AM: What do you think of the new and improved Frank Mir?
SC: As far as Frank putting on the size and the muscle, I guess we'll see if it helps him or not. I've just put in a lot of training and a lot of technique in all areas of the game to make myself better for this fight. I know Frank's game, and we worked on a few of those things, but most of the focus is on me and making me better.
AM: What areas do you think you have advantages over Frank Mir?
SC: I think my wrestling is better; stand-up can go either way with my power and his technique. Obviously he's got an advantage in BJJ, but I guess we'll find out in mental toughness -- we're both tough in that area. Although, I would be surprised if this fight goes the distance with my tough fighting style.
shane carwin's training and tips
AM: Can you describe what you do in one full week of training?
SC: It's a busy week. My workout mainly consists of alternating days. Tuesdays and Thursdays will be sparring and light grappling in the morning, and then I go to work after that. After work I go to wrestling practice and then home with the family. Monday, Wednesday, Friday is straight conditioning around lunch time, I normally work before and after that. Then I drive down to the gym to do boxing and jujitsu, or sometimes wrestling.
AM: How long do you normally train in a day?
SC: I normally train about four to five hours a day.
AM: Do you have any tips for our readers on how to maximize their training?
SC: Depends on the type of training they want to do. To get in shape, the most important thing is to put all your focus into your training when you go in there with anything that you do. If you're going to be there and you're going to train then you have to put 100% into it. If you go in there with an attitude of not really wanting to train, that's the wrong attitude and you will have a difficult time getting anything done, which will just turn into wasted effort and a waste of time.
AM: What advice would you have for someone that wants to get into competitive MMA?
SC: Start learning the different disciplines, get into BJJ, do some BJJ tournaments, get into boxing and do some amateur boxing, try wrestling out and do some open tournaments in that, try some amateur kickboxing out also. Try multiple disciplines and see what you excel at and what you're comfortable with.
AM: Is there anything that you would like to say in closing?
SC: I just want to say thank you to all the fans and special thanks to the troops fighting all over the world.
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