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Andre WinnerTRAINING: My days of training vary, but I train twice a day. I now do my grappling/sparring sessions around late morning /mid day and my striking session / strength and conditioning session in the evenings.
When and why did you start training for fighting? Since the age of 11 I have been involved in sports. When I was 14, my older brother’s friends made me go to the gym with them to push a few weights. I really liked boxing but ended up joining a karate club when I was 16. From there on I got really deep into training but never did anything with it. I had seen Vitor Belfort (he was a monster) when he was 19 in the UFC and always wondered how I had would face up with those guys if we were similar ages. I went to Leicester Shootfighters to hold some pads for a friend as he was holding a self defence session there. That’s where I met my coach Nathan Leverton. At that session I saw Dan Hardy and Paul Daley; I found out that we were similar ages and that they were doing well on the UK MMA scene -I thought if they can do it, so can I. What ranks and titles have you held? I held the FX3 lightweight belt Do you have any heroes? I have many heroes, probably too many, but my 5 favorites are Mike Tyson, BJ Penn, Anderson Silva, Roy Jones Jr. and Bruce Lee. What does it mean for you to fight in the UFC? It means everything to me to fight in the UFC; it’s a dream come true. This is what I love doing, but it is also my livelihood. If I was not fighting, God knows what I would be doing because there are not that many jobs out there that motivate me. Did you go to college and if so what degree did you earn? No I didn’t go to university; it was not something that I took a big interest in. I was not sure what course I wanted to do and I didn’t want to get into debt; I also had a belief that I was not meant to be just the average person. What was your job before you started fighting? I worked as a doorman at nightclubs. Specific accomplishments in pro competition? I won the FX3 lightweight belt. Favorite grappling technique: Either working for takedowns from the clinch, or the triangle. Favorite Striking technique: Straight right hand.
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