U Weekly. Serving The Ohio State University in Columbus Ohio

MMA gym producing world-class talent

By David McKinney

The first person that I meet when entering Buckeye MMA is owner and head coach Josh Williams, a 6-foot-4-inch, 250-pound mountain of a man who - judging from the bulge protruding above his waist - is clearly past his days as a competitive fighter ("If I can't be a world-class fighter, then I want to produce one," he said to me later).

The Buckeye Mixed Martial Arts gym, which sits in a multipurpose building on the north side at Wetmore and Indianola near Morse, is a place for wannabe fighters of all sorts.

Whether a former standout high school wrestler, a middle-aged man looking to bring back some of his youth, or a non-athlete just looking to stay in shape, the modern-day MMA gym is a diverse place featuring members from just about every aspect of life.

Buckeye MMA started before there was even a private gym to go to, years ago when the sport of mixed martial arts was in its "Dark Ages" and banned in nearly every state. Three mutual friends with very different backgrounds started it all off, and the gym today is home to more than 70 members, including a roster of over a dozen pro fighters.

Despite the multitude of talent, "everybody at our gym is pretty humble," one Buckeye MMA fighter said. "Anybody that would like to is more than welcome to come train with us, just be expected to work."

The New Era of the Sport
Mixed martial arts formally started in 1993, when Brazilian businessman Rorian Gracie decided to bring his family's unknown martial art - Gracie Jiu-Jitsu - to America in order to help sell instructional videos to fans seeking a new way to compete that didn't include the stagnant karate genre.

Gracie decided to create a one-night tournament that would settle the debate about which martial art was the best, and he tabbed his younger brother Royce to be the face of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Back in those days the sport was in its truest form - a contest with masters of their art form looking to test themselves in no-holds-barred combat.

"We really didn't have any rules, and the sport was so unorganized. It has grown so much since then," Williams said.

But today, the sport has developed into a modern-day phenomenon that forces fighters to train in every aspect of combat sports from wrestling to jiu-jitsu to boxing.

Buckeye MMA is the epitome of what the budding young sport has grown into. There are no martial arts black belts at the gym, although Williams does hold a brown belt in his beloved Korean art of judo.

The trainers are all true mixed martial artists, and they all seek to find ways not only to excel in a particular style, but also to become a true student of this new sport.

None of the fighters in the gym have a goal of becoming a black belt in jiu-jitsu, rather the goal of many is to become a better mixed martial artist, colored belts be damned.

Developing a Star
Perhaps the biggest name on the Buckeye MMA roster is Jason "The Juggernaut" Riley, a 6-foot-6-inch, 250-pound heavyweight who has already faced the likes of former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia.

Riley, 29, lost that fight to Sylvia, but he proved that he belongs on the big stage and that he just may be the world class athlete that Williams dreams of producing.

"You're going to see him in the UFC, probably in 2010," Williams said.

Riley already opened the eyes of UFC talent scouts when he tried out for the most recent season of their "Ultimate Fighter" reality series, making it to the final cut only to be excluded because of an injury that he suffered doing his favorite thing: fighting.

The always-confident Riley has a message for anybody willing to take him lightly.

"I don't think there are too many guys who can fight with me as a pro," Riley said.

Riley is set to fight in the UMMAXX promotion for the organization's heavyweight title, and a victory could be his ticket to the big time, as UFC and Strikeforce scouts will certainly be watching.

Friends until the End
Perhaps the strongest part of Buckeye MMA is the friendship between the three head trainers that run the gym.

Josh Williams, wrestling and grappling specialist Fred Parrish, and striking specialist Roc Castricone have all competed professionally in mixed martial arts, but they are all three currently focused on making Buckeye MMA the best that it can be.

All three mentioned a desire to produce a world-class fighter, and their dream is getting closer to reality with the rise of Riley into the upper echelon of the MMA heavyweight division.

But the true goal of the three men who met in college as members of the Ohio State judo club is to make each and every member of their gym a better fighter.

The members of Buckeye MMA are known to be one of the hardest-working gyms in the state, and their hard work is finally starting to pay off with tremendous growth and acknowledgement in the sport.

"Those guys at Buckeye MMA are really starting to turn some heads. They're what this sport is all about," said UFC Hall of Famer and former Ohio State wrestler Mark Coleman, a Columbus native.

The members of Buckeye MMA know that they are on the verge of breaking out, but they're still not in a rush to make it to the big time.

"I know it'll happen, I'll probably be in the UFC before too long," Riley said.

And then all the hard work will have paid off.

For more information on Buckeye MMA, visit BuckeyeMMA.com.

Originally Published: January 13, 2010

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