Jan-6-2009
John Hathaway: When the watcher becomes the watched
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UFC Poly Warmup Suit - Black/ Red
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By Elliot Worsell
Four years ago John Hathaway was watching something exciting on the ‘telly’. He was enthralled by it. Inspired by it. Attracted to it.
That ‘something’ was the Ultimate Fighting Championship. At 16 years of age Hathaway was an ardent fan. He’d tune in for every show beamed onto the television networks in his native England. At merely 21 years of age, Hathaway can now call himself a fighter in the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
The remarkable watching-to-watched, fan-to-fighter cycle will be completed on January 17 when Hathaway, a standout London Shootfighters welterweight, makes his UFC bow in Dublin, Ireland.
“It’s pretty weird,” admits Hathaway. “I used to watch the UFC on television a few years ago and now I’m about to fight in the biggest organisation in the world. The reason why I started mixed martial arts was because I loved the UFC so much.”
The whole ‘fan becomes fighter’ process can either go one of two ways. You can either successfully draw on your wealth of knowledge gained from hour upon hour of studying past UFC shows, or you can freeze up. Tense up. Sit with your hands taped in the changing room and quickly realise the living room’s a safer place. The 21-year-old Hathaway has no such trepidation.
“It’s the biggest stage in the world, so I’m very excited to be participating in it,” he adds. “Saying that, though, it’s still the same sport I’ve been doing for the past three-and-a-half years. That’s the way I feel about it at the moment. Obviously it can all change on the night but I’m just looking at it as the same thing I’ve always been doing.”
In theory, the logic works. It’s like pitching a baseball to your father as a kid. The motion is crudely developed from a young age and then perfected through adolescence and into adulthood. You then hopefully one day arrive in the Major Leagues and the concept remains the same. You’re still pitching. You’re still doing roughly the same thing you did with ‘pops’. Only now you’re in with the big sharks.
“To be honest, I didn’t really expect this opportunity for another year and a half,” admits Hathaway. “That’s when I wanted it to be. Given the opportunity to go in there earlier is great, though.”
The possibility of Hathaway getting tetchy or worried about the ‘step up’ is appeased by the fact that on January 17 he will be facing a man in Tom Egan who is every bit the rookie he is. If Hathaway feels pre-fight jitters, chances are so will Egan. If Hathaway suffers pre-fight self-doubt, Egan will be there with him.
Both Hathaway and Egan are UFC newcomers and both possess the desire to separate the wheat from the chaff from the get-go. The victor will move on and receive a little more attention, while the loser must rebuild and re-think.
“For this fight the level is only going to be a little bit above what I’ve been used to in the past,” explains Hathaway, 10-0 in his mixed martial arts career and a former Cage Rage standout.
“It’s nice to be fighting another newcomer. Fighting a fellow newcomer just gives me the chance to ease into things a bit better. It gives me a chance to experience the bigger show, the bigger venue and everything that goes with a UFC event.
“I’ve seen a bit of footage on him (Egan) and he looks like a really good fighter. He trains at the Pro Team Ireland gym, which is a great gym. Everything looks solid. His striking looks good, his hands look OK. I’ve seen him stop someone with an arm-bar. His wrestling and grappling seems decent, too.”
When listening to Hathaway speak about his January 17 opponent, it’s clear to see he’s done the necessary research. He knows what he’s up against. Sometimes the fear of the unknown is what takes its toll on UFC debutants more than anything else. Often the reality of a UFC debut is entirely different from the picture they envisaged in their head. Then comes the freeze.
While accepting he’s far from the finished article, Hathaway’s preparation for this opening UFC bout has centred on planning for what’s to come.
“I’m obviously nowhere near the top yet, but I feel I’m ready to compete against many of the fighters in the UFC,” says John. “I’m getting better every day and learning something new with every fight. I’ve sparred some good people over the years and know roughly where I’m at in terms of levels. I’m always sparring people above the level that I’m fighting at. That gives me the confidence going into something like the UFC. I know I can handle myself and I know I’m getting better all the time.”
Where Hathaway wins on debut opponent he loses on debut venue. No doubt a beautiful place for fighting, Dublin, Ireland also happens to be close to home for opponent Egan. Nevertheless, Brighton’s Hathaway isn’t fussed in the slightest.
“It doesn’t bother me too much where I’m fighting,” he says. “If the Irish fans are going to boo me they’re going to boo me. There’s nothing I can say or do to change that. So long as I put on a good show and do what I need to do, I’m sure it will play out fine.
“I’m really excited about the whole event with the UFC. It’s the big stage and I’ve dreamed of performing on it ever since I started watching it as a 16-year-old.”
It sounds clichéd, but in this case it’s true. Hathaway would never have been exposed to the beauty of mixed martial arts had it not been for the tube. Who says television can’t be educational?
“I really enjoyed watching the UFC fights on telly,” continues Hathaway. “It looked like something I’d enjoy doing so I went down to the local gym and gave it a go. I had no martial arts experience beforehand – I came from a rugby background. I was always pretty sporty and athletic because of the rugby. I started watching the UFC when I was 16 or 17 and had my first pro fight just before I turned 19.”
As well as trading scrums for Muay-Thai clinches, Hathaway has also been content to juggle his budding mixed martial arts career with a side order of personal training. It’s something he enjoys and something he assures will remain a part of his life despite the increased attention, pressure and pay checks of the UFC.
“I still do personal training on the side and I’ll definitely continue doing it,” he says. “My training will always come first, but I enjoy working with other people and doing that side of things, too.”
Ultimately, Hathaway’s loyalty to personal training may be judged by his success as a top-level mixed martial artist. With the sport in Great Britain currently bigger than ever and threatening to explode on the mainstream, Hathaway may one day have to deal with the pressures and expectancy that comes with it. It’s something any self-respecting UFC fan can see coming – Hathaway included.
“There seems to be a real positive feeling towards mixed martial arts right now in Britain and we’re now being seen as genuine athletes. There’s a lot of respect for MMA right now in Britain.
“(Michael) Bisping’s already a big star as far as I’m concerned. You always see him in loads of newspapers and magazines over here (the UK). He’s the most famous British fighter right now and he’s doing great things for the game. The more success he gets as a mixed martial artist the more attention our sport will get in the public eye.”
Hathaway - along with many other UK-based UFC fans - has watched Bisping’s cross-Atlantic progress with both interest and admiration. He’s imagined himself doing something similar. Could we be about to unearth the new Michael Bisping?
“Yes and no,” answers Hathaway. “I’ll be someone different to Michael Bisping. I’ll be myself. I’d love to help the popularity of British MMA, though.”
Familiar with the concept of watching the UFC, if John Hathaway lives up to his undoubted potential he may one day find himself the one being watched.
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