Cian O'Hagan interview {Aug 2026}

news_summary

Cian is an amateur mma fighter representing Sanda MMA under the watchful eye of Darren Sonik, he makes his amateur debut this weekend at DecGar fight show We speak about the fight, why he got into mma plus more

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It's my absolute pleasure to have Kino Hagen here who's going to be fighting this weekend on the deck fight night. He comes from uh team stand uh who recently at obviously if you've seen Destiny, you've got Jed and there's a host of others. Um h he's going to be making his amateur debut this weekend. So thank you very much for joining me. How are you? I would say as well after the weekend seeing what the lads have done, you're absolutely buzzing and that is making you more excited to get in there this weekend yourself. Is it? Thank you for your time today, by the way. >> 100%. Yeah, it's it make me make me want to land a head kick. That's what it's making me want to do. Yeah. But yeah. No. Yeah. Feeling good, man. Feeling great. Better than >> And like that. Were you actually at the show of Vertus with the lads? And what was if you were >> what what what was the atmosphere like when that head kick landed? cuz my god for a big man that was a like if that I can only imagine that that's like a tree stump hitting you in the side of the the neck >> getting a smack of a baseball bat but yeah not sounded like being in the 02 arena or something man just place rubbed then man didn't sound like there was there was probably 100 people there didn't sound like at least a thousand people place blew up when that when that head kick landed >> perfect perfect and then now obviously this weekend it's your turn how does it feel now are you more excited going into this weekend because of obviously just off the back of a of a really good fight night 14. >> Well, of course, three fights, three wins. So, I can't come back a week later and and and come with an ali going to have to get another win. Another win for San M. >> No, 100% 100%. And obviously, you're facing someone who's quite close to you in terms of geography as well. Do you how well do you know your opponent? Uh, have you do you look into your opponent much or do you just kind of want to put your own kind of style as an amateur fighter and not worry about them and just kind of do your own thing? >> Just doing me own thing, man. Look, I know I know what I'm capable of, you get me? Look, I watch, don't get me wrong, I've watched them fight, you get me, but be a bit silly not to watch and fight, but I wouldn't, it's not like I'll make a game plan around like, you get me? I know I just stick to my game, you get me? I know. I know what I can. Yeah, cuz like that as well because I think especially as an amateur, a lot of people get caught in and trying to trying to stop that other fighter whereas I think you should just impose yourself as a fighter and kind of make your own style. Like you said, you know what you can do. You want to show everyone what you can do and um you're going to go out there on Saturday and do it. And in terms of weight cuts, obviously it's fight week. Talk us through what a fight week looks like to you. Obviously today's Tuesday, so for anyone who sees this, it's probably going to be Wednesday by the time it comes out. Um, but what does your fight because obviously you kind of stopped the hard kind of sparring and stuff a week before. What does this fight week? Talk us through from a Monday to the fight day what fight week looks like for you. >> Kind of chilling for the week. You mean just getting everything precise, everything right? Like no, no, nothing hard on the body. Just kind of relaxing like obviously still training every day but just taper it down a lot. You hear me? >> Yeah. more technical stuff as opposed to hard spar and just kind of finish off a final few details, I would presume. >> That's it. >> Yeah. And and and what's it like cuz how hard is it cuz obviously when you're in when you're in camp, obviously you're going 100 miles an hour and then all of a sudden you have to stop >> and kind of chill out. How hard is it to go from 100 to zero and kind of taper it down or do you enjoy the little break before the fight? Yeah, see it is it is hard for me. It's hard for me during even during the camp. I'll overt train. I kind of overt train the whole time you hear me which is which isn't a good thing either. You hear me? But it was it is pretty hard for me. Darren Sonic had to kind of tell me listen cut out the weights, cut out the cardio for the weekend. You hear me? But I'm I'm chilling now though. Yeah. >> You know, and talk to us about Darren because Darren's someone who's uh would be I'd be very close to when I first came into doing this uh doing the MMA stuff. Obviously, you know, he ran Cage Legacy with with Deck. Kim and De together on Cage Lexi and the two of them were very very good to me in bringing me into it. Talk to us about Darren Sonic and your relationship with him and what he's he's like to you as a as a coach. >> Darren Dar's more like a father figure to me. I know Darren since some nine eight nine years of age. I know Darren a long time. Darren's there's no one like Darren. Darren's a many%. It's a one of a kind Darren. Best coach you could get as well. Man can man knows everything and it can get you into that killer instinct as well before that fight. You hear him telling you go in there and get that killer instinct. You're getting into that killer instinct. Do you hear me? Darren's Darren's a legend. >> Yeah. Know, obviously we've seen that over the weekend as well. But obviously to get to to get to to your amateur debut, obviously you've had some nervous fights, but before even all that, you had to start. What made you start MMA and why? Yeah. So, why did you start MMA and when did you start MMA? >> Well, no. I used like I done boxing when I was younger, like me, but maybe started boxing probably four or five or something. You hear me? around eight or nine I kind of see McGregor kind of maybe even before McGregor a little bit I got in there started like getting in there I just loved fighting as a kid you get me just always loved fighting so I was kind of me grandfather was like right you're going to fight all the time get you doing a bit of training and that so Darren took me in around eight or nine that was it yeah know that's good because that's so who was it someone said before where else could you have a scrap and not get arrested for on a Saturday night >> that's it yeah >> um And do you feel obviously like you said there since since eight or nine? So obviously when you were going in it wouldn't have been as as maybe kind of overwhelming because I know Joe when people go in as like like teenagers and stuff it can be a bit more nervy but going in at that age I I assume it was more of a fun thing to kind of oh I'm going to go do fighting. What was your kind of like going into the gym at that age? Like was it like more exciting then overwhelming? >> No I loved it. Now I've learned how to throw kicks at that age and how to choke people and all I know how to do is punch before that and not even really Darren showed me how to punch properly but of course love it all man throwing kicks and grappling with people. How could you not? >> No, that's good. That's good. Obviously you're not looking past your opponent this weekend. Uh do you have any more plans for the rest of the year? Do you have anything booked? Are you looking to get anything booked in or you still focusing on one fight at a time? I have a K1 fight in at the 12th of September and I I don't know. I think I'm I might be matched for October then. I think so. I'm not I'm not sure if I'm match October though. >> Okay. So, >> you're looking for busy. Yeah, because you've got I know you've actually got Rumble Fighting Championships. You're you're fighting on that, isn't it? >> Yes. >> And then >> October, we won't talk. We won't say it in just in case it isn't announced. I kind of know I I have a feeling what show it is anyways. But you're looking to stay active and and with the K1, are you looking to kind of kind of jewel both kind of use K1 to to have a bit of fun and and do your striking or is that the route you want to go or do you want to go the MA route and you're just kind of putting everything together with different disciplines kind of as you're coming up through the rankings? >> Just putting it all together, man. I mean, listen, when it comes down to it, I'm an MMA fighter, but I'm a martial artist at that. You mean like I had a fight in Thailand there not long ago in Muay Thai. So it's I'll mix it up with everything. You mean give me jiu-jitsu tournaments, I'll do jiu-jitsu tournaments. Give me bare knuckle, I'll do bare knuckle. You know what I mean? I'll just I'll fight. You hear me? >> I love it. A real proper fighting man. But talk to us about Thailand. Talk to us about that experience and having to fighting in in Thailand. >> Oh yeah. I went over I was I just was going over just to do a camp for like two weeks. Just not even a camp. I was out of shape everything. I was just go to Thailand, you me stayed in the gym and it was I was there three days and it was one of the coaches was supposed to actually fight a guy from America and he got fluid poisoning or some like that. So he pulled out the day of the fight and this is at 5:00 in the day keep in mind. Yeah. And I'm doing three classes this day and he's the same weight the guy as me. So they're like keen you fight saying no in Thailand of course I  fight. So I fought in Chiang Mai Stadium in the main event that day. Lost in the second round. He bought it. He kicked me in the nuts and I went down and ref stopped. I was doing good though. Anyway, >> wow. That's that's amaz and and I've heard I've heard of that as well that in Thailand like that you go there and I know and he went there just to train. He didn't even go there to fight and they were like you fight tonight. Do you want to fight? And he was like no no no no you fight to hell. >> Yeah. I was in the middle of stretching out, man. And they come over. He says, "Ke, how about you?" I said, "73." You fight today. Nobody was fighting. Of course. Well, your man had like 600 fights. He didn't tell me how to laugh at a fight. But I It's mad though. That's their way of life. When when when kids get to like 18, 19, they've had hundreds upon hundreds of fights, which is mad. But >> at that fight, there was like 12 year olds knocking each other. How cold. 12 year olds out cold. I mean, head kicking each other and all. It's great, though. It's great. >> It's good. See, a lot of people that I know that have gone to to Thailand love the the fighter lifestyle. Obviously, you were there for two weeks. Is there somewhere you'd like to go back for a longer period of time and kind of experience it a bit more and have that kind of lifestyle kind of for a few months or weeks or whatever it may be. >> I think I think I'll go for three three four months. I reckon I'll go next year anyway. Yeah. After Christmas, I'll go for three or four months. No, that that that sounds amazing. But anyways, um is there anything you want to say before you go? I want to wish you the best of skill this weekend. I'm really looking forward to your fight as well. I think it's a really good match up between two very good uh competitors and two very good gyms as well. Um >> I want to thank you so much for your time. Is there anything you want to say before you go or anyone you want to shout out? >> Not really. No, I want to just I want to give a big shout out to me friend there last month, Sean Gman. going to do this for you, bro. Love you, man. >> Sorry. Sorry for your loss, bro. And and obviously, we're all wishing we're all we're all wishing you the best. And obviously, this fight is going to be dedicated to him. But look, thank you very much. I really appreciate your time and I will I I don't know if I'll be there, but I will be watching this show if I don't know if there's paid for you or not, but I'll find a way to watch it. Thank you for your time and enjoy the rest of your day, bro. All right. All right. Thank you. >> Thank you. I give it up.