Interview by Curt Heinrichs

CH 1) First things first, Tony. How did you get your start in MMA?

TC- Basically, I started wrestling when I was 4 and I wrestled all the way through high school. I played other sports like baseball, football, and things like that. When I was a freshman, I quit everything else to focus on wrestling. There’s no pro wrestling after high school and college. It was either switch to MMA or give up on my background.

CH 2) In your last few fights in the NAAFS, your fans have really gotten loud in support of you. Does that support encourage you to push the pace in the cage?

TC- Oh, definitely. It’s definitely very motivating for me out there. I’m from Toledo, and when I fought in Toledo, I was putting 200 to 300 people in the seats in smaller venues. When I was fighting out there, I was fighting in a total comfort zone. When I fight out here, there’s the same amount of noise at my back. It’s a big difference and it makes me feel like I’m doing something really big.

CH 3) Your last 2 fights with Rothacker and Compton have been absolute brawls. Is that what you look for in a fight, or is that more about how your opponents choose to face you?

TC- I just train exactly how I fight. Obviously with my wrestling background, I feel at home on the ground. I love to get a guy on the floor and ground and pound him. I feel really comfortable on the floor and 9 times out of 10, my fights will eventually go there. To be honest, I don’t think anybody out there can hang with my ground game. At the same time, I train my stand-up way more than I train my ground game. I grew up where there were times where we weren’t allowed to wrestle. Out in the streets, nobody wrestles in a fight, so you have to go out there and be ready for anything.

CH 4) You’re about to become a father again. Does that change how you approach training or do you completely separate those two parts of your life?

TC- This has been a different camp than I’m used to. As far as staying focused, that’s never a problem. I’m always focused and when it comes to “go time,” nothing can shake my focus. I’m not trying to get away from what else is going on in my life when I go to the gym. My wife is happy. I’m happy. It’s just easier to go into the gym and do what I have to do when everybody is happy about what’s going on in our lives. It just makes training all-around easier to be in there happy.

CH 5) After your fight with Paul Compton, you called out Frank Caraballo and you made it sound like there was a bit of a past between the two of you. What’s the story behind this rivalry?

TC- You know, it really didn’t start until I was online. Some words got said and I’m not the type to talk when I don’t think a fight’s going to happen. I know what I’m going for; I’m going for the belt. I am always aiming to get the belt around my waist. I’m trying to get to Bellator and I’m trying to get to the UFC. Anybody that’s in my way, I don’t mind talking shit to them to let them know they’re in my way. I’ve never talked shit and not backed it up, so some words were said. Things got off topic and brought up some other people and that’s when I stepped in. I let him know “yeah, you’ve got the belt, but this is my weight class.” Even though he’s got the belt, I want him to know that I’m coming for it.

CH 6) Do you have a prediction for the fight?

TC- I don’t know if I’d call it a prediction, but I’m definitely trying to end this fight. Nobody seems to like wrestlers. It’s just how that goes. At the same time, when it gets to the 3rd and 4th and 5th rounds, that gets to be my strength. I’m definitely trying to end the fight. Look for that highlight reel knockout.

CH- Is there anyone you’d like to thank leading up to this fight?

TC- I want to thank my gym, Victory/Instigator. Pat, AJ, Dustin, and all of those guys really make the difference in how I’m fighting now compared to how I was fighting 10 months ago. It’s made all the difference knowing that we’re in there trading punches every single day. When I walk out to the cage, I know damn well that the guy across from me is no better than the guys I train with every day. I obviously want to thank my sponsors and everyone that’s supported me

Interview by Curt Heinrichs

Curt Heinrichs 1) I’ve heard you did some wrestling in high school, but what made you want to make the jump to MMA?

Jerrell Hodge- We had always talked about it when we were in school, like “what am I going to do when I get out of high school.” I was planning on going to college and wrestling, but I always watched MMA and always liked how guys mixed their styles. I loved wrestling, but I liked that mixed martial artists had some wrestling and they mixed in some strikes and some kicks. Mixed martial arts lets you do all of that and I think that’s what brought me to the sport after wrestling. Grappling, kicks, all of that opened up my game much wider than wrestling did.

CH 2) You said you watched MMA before you were a fighter. Is there any particular fighter that you model yourself after or any favorite fighter in general?

JH- My favorite UFC fighter is either Georges St-Pierre or Anderson Silva. I watched more of Rashad Evans growing up since he was on The Ultimate Fighter, so I’ve seen him really grow up as a fighter.

CH 3) In your last fight with Cody Garbrandt, you came in undefeated and had a real fire-fight with Cody. Were you planning on having an absolute slugfest with Cody?

JH- My background is wrestling, but I am more comfortable as a striker. I wanted him to stand up and strike with me. I’ve never seen him take the fight to the mat, not even with Tyler (Saltsman), so I knew he was going to want and stand with me. I wanted to just catch him off guard.

CH 4) With the huge knockout of Cody adding to your undefeated record, you looked really comfortable in the cage. How do you manage to look so comfortable in the cage after just 4 fights in your career?

JH- In my mindset, the only person that can beat me is me. The only thing that can defeat me is not making weight. I feel like if I make weight, there’s no way I’m going to lose. Anybody that steps into the cage against me is going to get the best that I can offer and they’d better be ready for a fight. You’re going to get 100% of me in there.

CH 5) Cody fights at Strong Style, one of the more popular gyms in the area, and he clearly had a large percentage of the crowd cheering for him. Now that you’re facing Tyler Saltsman, who’s tried to play a bit of a heel role in the NAAFS at certain times, do you see yourself starting to win over some fans each time out or do you think you’ll stick with the “bad guy” persona?

JH- Hopefully they’ll become Jerrell Hodge fans. The stuff that happened when I fought Cody, there was nothing personal to it. I read the interview that he did where he was going to treat me like a little kid. He said I’d never fought anyone like him before. He’s younger than me, so I thought that was a bit strange. I apologized for the way I acted in the cage, and like I said, there was more to it than that.

CH 6) You’ve got Tyler Saltsman at Fight Nite in the Flats VIII. What do you expect to see from him?

JH- I have watched a lot of his fight against Cody at last year’s Fight Nite in the Flats. I know he’s been working on his boxing a little bit and I know he’ll be ready to go. I’m not expecting him to come out the same exact way against me as he did against Cody. I’ve been training hard and I’ve been doing a lot of wrestling myself.

CH  Do you have  a prediction for how that fight will go down?

JH- Predictions aren’t really for me. I’ll promise everybody a good fight. The fans should come on out and enjoy the fights and get their money’s worth.

CH I mentioned Cody and Tyler, but the NAAFS also has guys like Isaiah Chapman and Mark Cherico who just turned pro. After this fight against Tyler, where do you think you will be in the NAAFS 135 lb division?

JH- After Tyler, there are some more good guys in the division. There’s a guy at Evolve, Ryan Arce, who’s a tough fighter. I know that there are some more great fighters in the amateurs that I’d like before I feel like I’m ready to turn pro. I’m just going to keep going in the division.  A guy like Isaiah fought everybody in the division and fought like 11 fights before he turned pro. I look up to him a little bit, so I’d like to do that before turning pro myself.

CH- Is there anybody you’d like to thank?

JH- I’d like to thank God for giving me this opportunity. I’d like to thank my parents and my girlfriend Alex for taking care of my little man when I’m at the gym training. I’d like to thank Powerhouse and Brickhouse. I’d like to thank Bulletproof, one of my sponsors for all of the support. I’d also like to thank all of the NAAFS fans.

June 2

Official Fight Card

Updated: 5/18/2012

170 Title – Chris Lozano 14-4 (Evolve MMA) vs Kyle Baker 12-4 (MMA Institute)

145 Title– Antonio Castillo Jr 12-3 (Instigator Fight Team) vs Frank Caraballo 17-7 (Fearless Fight Team)

155 lbs – Dave Shepherd 9-3 (Team Takedown) vs Joe Heiland 13-2-1 (Strong Style Fight Team)

155 lbs – Khama Worthy 8-2 (PTT) vs George Comer 9-1 (Griffon Rawl)

115 lbs – Sarah McLeod 4-4-1 (Mid-America Martial Arts) vs Amber Ignotowski 5-0 (USA Martial Arts)

135 lbs – Tyler Saltsman 7-3 (Team Titan) vs Jerrell Hodge 4-0 (Brick House MMA)

170 lbs – Josh Krizan 4-1 (Wrestling Factory Cleveland) vs Josh Lasich 3-0 (Evolve MMA)

170 lbs – Gabe Garcia 3-0 (Fighters United) vs Emmanuel Kangah 2-1 (True Roots MMA)

265 lbs – James Rankin 4-2 vs Jeff Hughes 9-2 (Evolve MMA)

135 lbs – Shane Valko 4-0 (The Mat Factory) vs Ryan Arce 4-0 (Evolve MMA)

145 lbs – Dominic Mazzotta 4-1 (Ed Vincent MMA/Cho’s Taekwondo) vs Mike Velazquez 5-1 (USA Martial Arts)

185 lbs – John Antanitis 6-3 (Penn Hills MMA) vs Steve Burton 7-2 (Evolve MMA)

185 lbs – Phillip Taylor 0-0 (Team Goliath) vs JT Miller 1-0 (Strong Style Fight Team)

Nickname: The Alley Cat

Pro Record: 12 – 4

Title: Current NAAFS Pro Series Welterweight Champ

Team: MMA Institute

Next Fight: Naafs Fight Nite in the Flats VIII ~ June 2, 2012 ~ Jacob’s Pavilion

Interesting Fact: Nickname came from college wrestling teammates after a huge bar fight on night. Everyone thought he had been arrested when in fact he later was found in the alley behind the bar sleeping behind some trash cans and boxes…..and “The Alley Cat” was born!

Click Here for Full Stats!

140 lbs – Isaiah Chapman 14-1 (Rock Hard MMA) vs Joe Wagner 9-2 (Independent Crew) – Chapman by KO rd1

145 lbs – Kevin Rothacker 7-4 (Strong Style) vs Josh Baker 9-1 (Bullpen) – Baker by Unan Dec

145 lbs – Jeremy Czarnecki 6-3 (Murcielago MMA) vs Justin Steave 13-7 (H2O MMA/Fight Club Pittsburgh) – Czarnecki by Unan Dec

170 lbs – Ian Rammel 12-5 (Team Elite) vs Micah Bender 9-7 (Team Bundy) – Rammel by Kimura rd2

185 lbs – Adam Sepulveda 7-6 (SVT) vs Chris Goldbaugh 10-3 (Bullpen) – Goldbaugh by TKO rd1

170 lbs – Dequan Townsend 8-5 (Murcielago MMA) vs Jason Cardillo 8-0 (Fight Club Pittsburgh) – Cardillo by Unan Dec

145 lbs – Dante Adams 3-4 (Sud’n Impact) vs Mark Cherico 10-0 (Fight Club Pittsburgh) – Cherico by RNC rd1

135 lbs – Richard McDole 8-3 (Team Elite) vs Ronell Green 7-2 (Bullpen) – McDole by verbal submission due to injury

265 lbs – Adam Milstead 11-3 (Fight Club Pittsburgh) vs Nathan Bryant 8-8 (Ground Zero) – Milstead by TKO rd 2

Main Event: 185 TITLE – Hector Urbina 17-6-1 (Team Eltoro/Team Wolfpack) vs Travis Clark 12-1 (Evolve MMA/Wolfs Lair) – Urbina by Guillotine rd 1