There are very few backgrounds better suited to elite MMA than the elite armed forces. Both require courage, discipline and all-around mental and physical strength in order to perform at the highest level, whether it be going to war in the cage or doing it for real.
One man that has experienced both of these intense scenarios is 23 year old BAMMA debutant Dale Hardiman. Dale served in the Royal Marines for five years, surviving two tours of duty in Afghanistan and Sierra Leone, as well as travelling the world on various other missions.
Dale had trained in various martial arts including boxing and muay Thai before joining the marines, where he learnt a myriad of new techniques from his colleagues.
“We had a lot of time on our hands when we were in camp and a lot of the lads I worked with were already into MMA, so I started training with them. I didn’t take it too seriously at the time, I just wanted to keep fit, but when I left the marines I needed something to keep me focused. I found Storm Gym, went down there and haven’t looked back since.”
Dale has spent his time at Storm productively, adding to his striking base with work on his Judo and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. However, he still feels his stand-up is his strongest area.
“I’m mainly a Thai boxer, plus my head coach is a former Thai boxing world champion. I train with a lot of high level kickboxers and Thai boxers. Muay Thai is definitely my strongest area, despite most of my wins coming by submission.”
Indeed, looking at Dale’s professional MMA record you would forgive anyone for thinking he was primarily a submission grappler. However, as Dale says, he likes to fight with his brain.
“A lot of the people I’ve fought are straight up strikers, so I thought why make things difficult for myself? I’m a striker myself, but why go three rounds in a stand-up war and take damage when I can take them down for a submission? I fight sensible.”
This is not to say Dale isn’t ready for a slugfest. His opponent, Scott Jansen, is also a Thai boxer, with five of his seven wins coming via KO or TKO, and is coming off an impressive victory at BAMMA 6.
“I don’t want to give away too much, so I’ll just see what happens in the fight. I’ve got a solid gameplan for whatever happens. Scott will have worked on the flaws in his game so I’m not expecting a pushover. I’m comfortable wherever we end up.”
Despite his submission-heavy record and Scott Jansen’s previous weaknesses to submissions, Dale is a striker at heart and would love a KO victory in Birmingham.
“Ideally I’d like the knockout and in MMA that could come at any time. Either you get caught or they get caught, it’s a dangerous game. I don’t want to be going to a decision at all, even though I am ready for three rounds. I like to go out there, get the job done and entertain the fans.”
Dale is also excited about competing for BAMMA in the biggest event he’s ever been a part of.
“It’s definitely the biggest fight of my career. I actually hold the IPA title, but this is easily the biggest event I’ve ever been on.”
He is also full of praise for his new employers.
“BAMMA’s only been around for a little while but they’ve already accomplished what many other MMA companies haven’t been able to do. They’re bringing up British fighters and pushing them into the international scene, but also bringing in international fighters to challenge them. They do a brilliant job putting British MMA on the map.”
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