Gerard Ryan interview

Ringkasan

Gerard Ryan is an amateur fighter who currently holds the iur bantamweight championship and is looking to get the featherweight title this weekend in a cracker of a fight, he's had a fantastic year looking sensational in his past few performances.

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[Music] so I'm here with Mr J Ryan who's going to be fighting again we've seen him a lot this year and it's good to see him in the cage it's going to be good to see him again because obviously he had a fight that fell through it's fight week how you feeling another title fight another big fight against a really good guy thank you very much for your time especially so close to the fight how are you feeling feel good feel great um it's been it's been a long camp but uh we're we're here for fight week only a couple of days out now so wasn't and perfect obviously it's the it's the day of weighing so um you don't you don't cut a huge amount of we anyway so do you feel like what's your feelings on the day of weighing because you've done it a lot with IM Ms and stuff like that um do you feel stronger not having to to cut down I know you fight a Fed weight day before as well but do you feel stronger when you don't have to cut the weight um that's it's all the one to me I like day before I fight in Fed so or day before I B same same day we in as F away gr it's not don't have to I've only a couple of kilos to cut as all yeah no I was confused there because obviously you gonna fight Michael for for the other one but um B too fun making but uh we get we get there yeah and that's just part of the process as that goes on that get easier and easier and um with the fight coming up you're fighting Jake obious he's a really good opponent um all you've done is fight the best of the best if people look at your topology it's just like it's it's like that you're one of the best and you've just fought nothing but the top guys how' you rate Jake and and and what were what are you expecting from him um I Jake is ranked very high like I think he ranked number three on top all and he's he's great like loads of IMF experience I think he has a silver medal at one of the imfs like Jake is a it's a great fight like I me and Jake have talked about back and forth a bit and we've tried to put this fight together for a while um we were supposed to fight the Nationals I was injured and it got canceled so that didn't happen but we're here now and it's just it's it's an a fight I'm looking forward to like I it's a it's a good scalp to have if I if I can win the fight like when I win that fight and uh that's that's all I'm looking for I don't care about the belt now it's just it's just a a nice scalp to have yeah like that it's all experienced different types of styles different types of B like that you fought different from Strikers to wrestlers to Jiu-Jitsu and and like that it's all experience but um we obviously I was talking to Johnny dougen last night obviously he's one of your one of your opponents and and he was actually quite complimentary he says he get on now and you talk and he's fighting for his first title um and you said you and Jake there were were trying to put this fight together would it be natural that a lot Fighters would talk and try and put fights together or is that just maybe your mentality and and Jake's mentality um look I've I've never had beef with anyone it's just I suppose it's my mentality I've become friends with like a few people that I I have fought with um like the likes of Johnny like I I kind of train with Johnny a little bit now um I go down to M cark a little bit and bloody Dale Turan um we [ __ ] talked I was only talking to him there a half an hour ago like we we talk a good bit as well like and we fought twice like I have no animosity against any L I fought I've I've talked to people I talked to Kieran Brady every now and again when I bump into them or whatever I CH was like so I've nothing against anyone like it's I we go in there we set in the cage and that's it like it's just we're all chasing the same dreams at the end of the day yeah and then obviously when you're fighting each other whether you win or lose you're helping each other get better uh improve your game and find where you might be lacking where you're good at and stuff like that but if you try to say to someone outside of fighting that people that fight each other get on so well they think it's bizarre but that's what I love about this sport though the the respect Factor yeah it it's it's nice look some people obviously have have disagreements in in and out of the cage but I just it's not worth the energy for me anyway um I'm not I'm never going to do it unless you're going to make it personal so and again Jak Jake's lovely we've talked a few times we've you know he's he's a nice kid too like but when we're in the cage it's all business like yeah and it has been the past couple of fights you you've looked fantastic I must saying and all those those years of training and everything you can really see it it kind of it's It's flipped around and it's gone your favor and you're kind of one of the performers this year that's kind of one of the I don't want to say most improved because EUR was good but you've really kind of come to the the Forefront and you're you're up in in all these title fights but um does with the show this weekend obviously in Cork how good does it feel to have another show in the Republic again because obviously K legacy's gone and I know there is a lot of shows but there's not many in the Republic how does it feel to have one that's not as far to travel as usual that's it's lovely I'm normally I have to go up north to fight I haven't fought in the Republic in a year and a half or more it's been more nearly so it's nice cark is a little long with an hour drive for me it's it's Grand I can just rock on nice and nice and late don't have to get up early to be in a mad rush to get anywhere like normally up to norri is like a little over three hours so like know it's just it's a pain it's a little bit of a pain but yeah it's just it's lovely to have something more local like it's just more convenient like the convenience is lovely like you know I can imagine because obviously when you're traveling up in the morning you're preparing for a fight uh you're preparing to to fight later on that day and and obviously to drive I think with those things not that it would affect you massively but you know you want more the comfort and closer to home um but the likes of the traveling is that something you get used to over time and you're able to just deal with it with the with the amount of times you fought ah yeah just like look I'm not going to make any excuses over oh I lost the fight because I had to travel sit in the car for three and a half hours like I think when I fought on ver this before it was like nearly four and a half hour Journey like just up there just like it was brutal but like didn't lose I didn't lose the fight because I I was a four and a half hour Journey like but um it's again yeah you after a while it's just it's whatever you just relax as much as you can in the car and just chill out it's fine it's not the end of the world either yeah no and like that this show is quite good I've been to the the two previous ones I think Barry's done a fantastic job how have you dealing with them because they're quite easy to deal with they they're doing great stuff they're flying people in even for amateur Fighters as well and and stuff like that what what's your dealings with him been like so far because I think Barry's a good guy and he's doing a really good job on the show yeah I actually I met Barry at the last show and I did say it to him I was like myself and Jake for um want to fight in the next show and he's like yeah yeah I want to put good fights together so we kind of at the last show this fight was kind of put together and it eventually came together I know um my teammate was supposed to fight Jake because I couldn't because of the shields fight but um Rory had to pull out for other reasons and I stepped back in for the fight so it just it happens by uh by chance but we got it done eventually yeah no and it's been a good year for you how how would you look how would you describe the year that you've had this year yourself when you reflect back on on everything not looking forward obviously to this fight but everything that's kind of gone on this year how would you uh describe the year and what's it it meant to you because it's been a great year I mean it's just amazing I suppose um all all the the the other tough two years prior to that kind of this kind of makes up for it and just uh I suppose just that bit of bit more confidence I have after is like I'm really starting to put things together and things are just coming together much better in the fight and it's it's really starting to show now and I just that uh my style is very dominant in how I'm fighting like now and it's just I'm we're getting there yeah no like that you're you're very like with the Dale fight especially I I really notice you stick to the game plan you're smart and you're you're really frustrating it looks like the fight against I I wouldn't like to fight against you to be I wouldn't like to fight against anyone because I I I'd lose but I gonna ask you question if you don't mind answer on it because obviously he started off on a bad patch um in your career um mentally if if you don't want to answer this this is completely fine um how hard is that mentally to go to loss after loss after loss but then like how is it to to keep going what kind of a mindset do people have because you're not the only one and there might be people that are coming through that might feel like this is the only time it's happened is to them so what kind of got you through and kept you going um I suppose between my coaches and teammates and my brother um really like look there was some tough times there and I was considering like it's just not for me and maybe packing it in and I still wanted a train but fighting maybe wasn't wasn't an option there after one of my losses and I just took it hard at the time and look so you just need the right people around you to to just keep you going and get you back into that right head space because it does get tough and it is it is disheartening I think I was I was one and six at one stage and it's just like what's the point You' be thinking like what's the point like it's just not For Me Maybe maybe the the MMA is not for me or whatever and but um I suppose just one or two wins and you're you're you're back on top again like you know that's all it took and just a little bit of momentum and it's it's like it never happened I don't have the prettiest records but I mean I feel like I'm doing the right things near the end of my amateur career now and it's like the record just doesn't matter anymore to me yeah I like that and and I didn't want to bring that up I didn't want to make you uncomfortable we can cut this out if don't want it in um but I think it' be important for people to hear cuz it it just shows trust the process and it will happen and once like you said you get the one or two wins the momentum swings back your way and and it just shows you talked about the record not being pretty once you go pro the only person that's going to know your answer to record is you you know the sort of a way exactly those people you fought are tests and lessons that you will I think that will make you a better Pro than if you had had easier fights know the sort of way I think this will be best to make in our VI but um It's Been a Good Year you've done fantastic like I've said we're not going to look past Jake but you've been quite active this year you've had a good year what's your what's your plans for next year do you have any plans or you just going to focus on on on the upcoming fight and get your Christmas then worry about it I I I still want that Shields fight I I just I like the the challenge of moving up that we class and I between the few people now have been putting a bit of pressure Onto Me Maybe Maybe time to to make that switch but I'd still like maybe one or two amateur fights next year anyway and and then we'll we'll evaluate this situation depending on how they go but yeah between coaches and teammates and whatever just we're we're nearly there but I I I just want a couple more fights we're we're getting close to those Pro that Pro ranking yeah because you can see visibly how how good you are and how good you have been and like I said very do dominant very small very frustrating fight against him and once you have that game plan in your head you can see you don't deviate away from it and you've got a good team with you H in your corner talk to us about the gym what's it like in the gym now what's the talent coming through and because especially I think the younger kind of talent coming through now it the levels are so high like talk to us about that you see those levels and go Jesus Christ like the levels are just getting higher and higher younger and younger as the years go on yeah oh man we've Kevin walson already a straw at like and he just strangles me like you know and he's not training half as long as me early you know there just there's a couple other Lads like just the once the level of the gym comes up just you they they just even they rise faster like it it's just it's hard to nearly keep up with them but um it's it's great to be around like yeah yeah it's good it's good like that that people can come up so quickly it helps them improve helps you improve and Kevin Walsh is one I've had my eye on for a while um he's someone who's very very good and he's going to be a problem in the future um but if like you said with this weekend what would it mean for you to lift another belt is it more about fighting Jake than LIF not and and not disrespecting the belt but is it more about fighting an opponent like Jake than the belt or would another belt just add to kind of the validation of of the reason to keep going look it's it's a bit of a like the the belt is uh nice to I suppose show uh the hard work that's that's the way I look at the belts it's like okay look nice they look fun cool whatever but it's like it's a it's a token of your hard work that's that's how I view it and the the fight I the fight I love I just I like the matchup I like the challenge um that's that's just what's really egging me on if there was no belt it wouldn't bother me whatsoever it's nice to have the belt I think it's it's an appreciation of both mine and Jake's work um I I guess because we're both top amateurs now at this stage you know in our way classes so it's nice that we we have been offer the belt but uh the fight are just the fight with Jake is what I'm looking forward to the most Yeah so basically the fight would have happened whether there was a belt on the line or not I would presume 100% yeah no it is a fantastic fight I can't wait to see uh how this fight TS this is kind of one of the ones that I'm really keeping my eye on because it like I said there two really good guys the two styles are interesting and and I just it's it's a fun fight that I don't know which way it's going to go it's whoever whoever takes the dominant positions and whoever sticks to the game plan but um would have you looked at obviously we've talked before but did CA he's uh like very tricky on the ground is is there stuff that you've looked at with him that you need to do against him and obviously don't give away what you're going to do or or what you're not going to do but um like do you like do you have a set game plan for him or are you just going to go and do you um we have a game plan we I I've kind of stopped um watching uh videos are my opponent's fights just because I feel like sometimes when you when you watch them yourself you can maybe I I personally have ran into this problem maybe sometimes you overestimate some things and then underestimate them in other areas so I just my coaches or especially my brother watches a lot of the fights for me and just mimics their movement and tells me like right they like to do this they like to do that so we're going to do this we're going to do that so um that's that's kind of how we go about it a little bit I suppose and we do have a game plan we'll stick to us for as long as we have to and we'll see after that if we have to adjust we can adjust I'm I'm trying not to be very as onedimensional I I am I know I'm grapple heavy I'm working on my striking don't think I'm not I'm I'm putting a lot of time into other areas too to to be well as well rounded as I can be yeah no because your grappling is so strong and so successful a lot of time we don't not not that say you're striking could be elite and we just don't know what it's like so it's kind of someone might think right if I go strike with him and then all of a sudden they get pinged once or twice so it's going to be exciting to see how it turns out but you talked about your brother there and the way he mimics uh the fighters movements and stuff and he looks into for you what's it like to have a family member and a brother especially to be able to kind of help each other improve help each other prepare what's it that kind of like to have another sibling in in MMA it's it's it's so nice to have because literally half the conversations we have is about fighting or what do you think of this fell oh I don't just comparing comparing notes I suppose nearly half the time we're talking and I suppose um he's he's very much on the Striking side so like we could be at home at times and he's just showing me like this move this way move that way or do this and then I'd be like right I'd show him something with the gratlin that I've kind of started picking up or whatever like we're very oppos in our Styles but then because of that we can both teach each other so much so it's it's it's so nice to have like it's great to have that way yeah no I actually like the way that your two uh contrast and your two different styles because like you said you can both really learn off each other and and when you're at home lot would you do any extra training together would or would it be just a lot of talking planning or or like that just little techniques and stuff H just mainly messing around but like again just we we do um whenever I'm at his or whatever vice versa or if he's at home um again just little he'd be like oh can I show you this or I'll be the same like can I show you that and it's just just a littleit a little back and forth like but like maybe just one little thing and they're like well we could be even on the bloody tiles in the kitchen there and we' be like we'd be just doing transitions like just to like oh I saw this or whatever and it's just it's just nice to have like again it's like we're never out of the gym mentally like it's it's just it's always we're always learning like even when we're at home it's just we could we're always thinking about it like just pure passion oh and I love that I love the passion and I love the the way that you spoke about uh your year and the upcoming fight as well I can't wait to see this fight like I said it's one of the ones I've picked out um I'm G to let you go though I want to thank you so much for your time because obviously it's so close to the fight is there anything you want to say before you go I just want to wish everyone else on the show best luck um obviously all the cor Lads I kind of train with them a little bit so I want I hope they all do well and uh thanks to all my teammates my coaches for uh helping me get ready for the for the fight perfect thank you so much for your time I really do appreciate it's a pleasure talk again it's gonna be a pleasure watching you fight again and I will see you very soon thanks Dev