In a display of independent-minded spirit and business ambition, mixed martial arts veteran Matt Hughes is venturing forth by himself and planning to form his very own fight team. The former UFC welterweight champion previously trained with the Miletich Fighting Systems group, before making the decision to create his own team. The group's roster will include Jacob Hey, an MMA tyro yet also a Greco-Roman wrestling expert; The Ultimate Fighter 5 veteran Corey Hill; and the contemporary Icon middleweight champion, Robert "Ruthless" Lawler. In addition to his training plans with these new people, Hughes is also getting ready to open his own gym in Granite City, Illinois.
The place will be named Hughes Intensive Training (H.I.T.), and occupies an area of 13,500 square feet. H.I.T. is intended to be a base for novices to learn the foundations of combat and gradually work their way up the ladder, along with longtime fighters who want to continue honing their skills at a new training center. Eventually, he plans to pick out the best of the best among the fighters who choose to grow stronger there, and recruit them into the gym's own official fight squad. The squad will be named Team Hughes, appropriately enough.
The training center is projected for a January opening to the public, and it will be managed by Hughes along with a staff of other MMA colleagues. Among these are Lawler, Marc Fiore, and Hughes' own experienced boxing coach Matt Pena. H.I.T. is undergoing renovation in the interim so its owner can begin preparing in October for UFC 79. Hughes is set to go up against currently reigning UFC welterweight champion Matt Serra on December 29. The funding for the center comes from Jeff Cooper, an attorney based in St. Louis as well as a sports entrepreneur. Cooper approached Hughes with the concept of sponsoring and helping train fellow fighters.
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