Fighters flocking to Florence Fight Farm

SARDIS -- If you’re looking for a fight, head down U.S. 301 toward Turbeville, hang a right on Sardis Highway, make a left on a dirt road called Clyde McGee, round a curve and enter the nondescript building on the right.

The Florence Fight Farm is a place where you can kick some butt … or get yours kicked.

The past three years, a steady stream of fighters have been finding their way to the farm to train in mixed martial arts, or MMA.

“I watched (MMA) all the time on TV, and I thought it was cool,” said Steve Montgomery of Florence. “Most guys who watch this stuff think they can do it. I wanted to see if I was good enough.”

Montgomery, a 2009 West Florence grad and Florida Atlantic University student, has proven to be more than good enough.

Nicknamed “The Weasel,” Montgomery has become one of the Fight Farm’s top students. After six fights in three states, he’s 6-0. And none of his last five fights have made it past the opening round.

“The night of his prom, he had a fight — and he won,” Eric Lee, owner of the Fight Farm, said of Montgomery’s dedication to the sport. “The night of his graduation, he fought in Winston-Salem (N.C.) and he knocked a guy out.”

Though Montgomery says he’s Florence Fight Farm to the core, he also trains with American Top Team out of Boca Raton, Fla., which is the largest MMA training ground in the world.

At American Top Team, Montgomery joins MMA luminaries Thiago Silva, Kimbo Slice, Wilson Gouveia, Reynaldo Duarte, Hector Lombard and Thiago Alves.

“You don’t get to meet these guys the way you would expect to meet them,” Montgomery said. “You usually meet them when the coach says ’fight.’
“Naturally, you get starstruck at first, but once you get to know them, they’re just people like everyone else.”

The Mauler

Between a job and taking classes full-time at Francis Marion, Tim Marcum is another fighter who has put in a lot of time at the Fight Farm.

“I really don’t do much else,” Marcum said. “I might take a weekend night off and have some fun, but that’s rare.

“I try to stay grounded, and I don’t let it get to my head. I’m just like everyone else. I like to have fun, but when it’s time to go to work, it’s time to go to work.”

Known as “The Mauler,” Marcum holds the amateur welterweight championship in North Carolina’s Elite Cagefighting Championship, having defeated two previously unbeaten fighters along the way.

“Tim’s a good Christian guy who never says a curse word around us,” Lee said. “He’s a classy guy who just works, goes to school and trains.”

A three-year letterman in wrestling at Marion High, Marcum credits his prep background for his success.

“You wouldn’t believe how much (wrestling) has catapulted me,” said Marcum, who will make a guest appearance at ECC’s next fight night on Nov. 21. “I’ve been in (MMA) a year and I’ve beaten guys who have done this four or five years. Wrestling’s taken me a long way.”

Without the Fight Farm, Marcum says none of his success would have happened.

“Eric has become like an uncle to me. He’s taken all the stress away, so all I have to do is train and fight,” he said. “Plus, I have my teammates at the Farm.
“If it weren’t for them, I don’t know where I’d be.”

Marcum aspires to turn pro and join Montgomery in Florida, but says he has unfinished business before taking that step. Marcum has dropped to 155 pounds and is a contender for the amateur belt at that class as well.

“I want all the belts,” he said. “ECC has two belts, and I’m going to take them both. Then I’ll go pro.”

The ultimate rush

MMA fighters come from a variety of backgrounds, including boxing, wrestling, jujitsu, karate and other martial arts.

Those who train at Florence Fight Farm have one thing in common — a love of competition.

“We started in a little two-car garage,” Tony Nealey of Florence said. “I don’t aspire to be a fighter. I just want to get into shape.”

“It’s good exercise and a great way to stay in shape,” Florence’s D.J. Head said. “A buddy of mine talked me into coming out in the summer of 2007, and I’ve been coming ever since.”

Kinte Hicks is a former baseball standout at Wilson High School who earned a scholarship to play at Norfolk State. His playing career ended shortly after, though, because of an injury.

Hicks then enlisted in the Army where he took up boxing and eventually ended up at Florence Fight Farm after his military service ended.

“I came here to work on my boxing, but once I learned other (fighting styles), I got hooked on it,” he said. “I’m a competitor, and I now like MMA more than boxing.”

Coward’s Kris Curtis also served his country. The former Marine got his first exposure to MMA while stationed aboard Camp Pendleton.

“When I was stationed in California, I saw a few fights and I got hooked on it,” Curtis said. “It’s like the perfect play in football or other sports. It’s a major adrenaline rush.”

Effingham’s Jamie Godwin lists convenience as his No. 1 reason for training at Florence Fight Farm.

“It’s two minutes from my house,” he said. “I tried lifting weights with other people, but nobody wanted to stay involved.

“I ran into Eric and he told me about this place. I’ve been coming here ever since.”

One step away

MMA faces one more hurdle on its way to being sanctioned in South Carolina. The General Assembly in Columbia is scheduled to vote on the issue in early 2010.

Currently, only amateur MMA is allowed in the state. Under the system, only submission grappling is legal. Once MMA is sanctioned, however, punches and kicks will be allowed.

“That got me excited,” Montgomery said about the sport being sanctioned in the state. “I’d like to fight on the card at an event in Myrtle Beach in January. I would love nothing more than to come back to South Carolina and fight as a professional.”

Kids play?

Skeptics of MMA argue the sport is too violent for the masses, especially children. The members of Florence Fight Club have varied opinions.

“I’ve got four kids. We rent all of the UFC events, and all of the other families in our neighborhood come to my house and watch them,” Nealey said. “I’ve brought my son to several live events.”

“It’s all about discipline. You don’t go around fighting people (outside the ring) because you do this,” Curtis said. “In the Marines, they make you a corporal or a sergeant because you’ve earned the respect and you’re ready to lead. The same thing works here.“

Head agrees.

“This is a sport of respect,” he said. “You might see a bunch of trash-talking, but there is the utmost respect for your fellow man, and a lot of kids need respect for their fellow person.

“If you have an opportunity, come out and sit in on one of our classes, then form an opinion.“

Lee feels that children under age 15 aren’t ready for the rigors of MMA.

“To me, this isn’t a kids’ sport. When they get older and more experienced, then they should get involved if they want to,” he said. “I don’t teach kids under 15 because I don’t know if they can mentally handle it.

“Let them take Tae Kwon Do. Let them take karate first, because they all instill discipline.”

Lee added the submission holds in MMA shouldn’t be tried at home.

“Nobody should do this without a supervisor. This is dangerous stuff,” he said. “That’s why the tap-out exists in our sport, to prevent injuries.”

Here to stay?

Critics also call MMA a niche sport, a fad that will fade with time. Members of the Farm beg to differ.

“It’s got all kinds of different fighting styles rolled into one,” Godwin said. “As long as there are guys trying to prove themselves, this sport’s gonna last.“

“If you go back to the days of cavemen, they knew how to fight before they knew how to talk, whether it be for food or survival,” Montgomery said. “People are always interested in fighting, no matter what.

“Until humans lose the desire or will to fight, MMA will always be around.”