One-on-One with Jackson MMA's "Hurricane" Heather Clark

By Elton Hobson
If you talked to Jackson MMA's Heather "Hurricane" Clark without knowing her day job, you'd be forgiven for not jumping right to "professional fighter". If there is a mold for fighter personalities, particularly in women's MMA, then Clark certainly doesn't fit it.
"I'm actually really creative person." Clark explains "I love photography, I love art. I love any kind of outlet for creativity and self-expression. That's probably my biggest passion overall".
Meet Heather Clark, professional fighter training out of the most prestigious fight camp in the world. She's not exactly what one might expect, but Clark has been shattering those kind of stereotypes all her life. And in a few weeks time, shell look to open some eyes, as
well.
On Saturday, January 7th, Ms. Clark will enter the cage for the 3rd time as a professional when she takes on April Coutino on a featured bout of Evolution Combat Sports Championship's "Friday Night Fights". It is the culmination of a long and strange road for Clark, but over the course of many life changes the 30 year old's motivating drive is perhaps the one constant.


"I like things that challenge me. My whole life, what's driven me are things that challenge my mind, my body, my spirit. MMA is one of those things that challenges all three of those things at once. More then anything else I've done, fighting and being a fighter pushes you and changes you in every way possible."
No one who competes in MMA does so because their high school guidance counselor told them to. No fighter trains mind, body and soul to their full extent because they saw a cool booth at a jobs fair. No one gets into fighting professionally because they're looking for easy money. Its far more complicated then that. The unique journey of a professional fighter often mirrors the fighters own unique journey through life.
Clark was first introduced to martial arts through her father, a student of noted Ukidokan Karate practitioner Benny "The Jet" UrquidezThrough this early immersion, Clark soon developed a passion for the martial arts that never abated.
"I've just always been a fan of martial arts. I loved watching boxing, kickboxing, and the early MMA [fights]. I loved watching anything like that."
She pauses for a moment as if considering something, then laughs.
"I guess its all sports really, sports in general. I grew up wanting to do it all, wanting to try...whatever."
That passion for new challenges has been a constant driving force in Clark's life. In college, she played Hockey at the division 1 level.
Then she played professionally abroad, in hockey-centric nations like Canada. The full-contact nature of the sport might intimidate some female athletes - or any athletes, for that matter. For Clark, it was a selling point.
"I started playing [Hockey] on an all boys team, because they didn't have any girls teams in L.A back then. I loved the pressure; I had to get better or I was going to get beat up!" Clark laughs as she recalls her days on the ice.
"Playing hockey with the boys definitely toughened me up and prepared me for MMA. I was getting slammed into the boards by 220 lb men night after night, so when its a 125 lb girl that steps into the cage against me I'm not really intimidated, you know?"
It was during her Hockey days that Clark stumbled upon what would be her second career. Dabbling in some boxing classes in between games, she was persuaded to take an amateur boxing match - and won. Subsequent trips to a kickboxing gym which also dabbled in MMA led Clark to start considering the sport as a career.
"I decided that if I wanted to get serious and pursue MMA as a career, I was going to give it everything I had. And that meant finding the best gym in the world to train."
That gym is Jackson's MMA, one of the most lauded MMA fight camps in the game today. Under the tutelage of striking coach Mike Winkeljohn, grappling coach Mike Van Arsdale, and head coach Greg Jackson, a veritable "who's who?" of the fight game ply their trade on a daily basis. Names like Georges St. Pierre, Rashad Evans, Jon Jones are just some of the luminaries you might find at Jackson's on any given day. It's a true shark tank - and for Heather Clark, it's perfect.
"They don't treat [women] any differently down here. There's no seperate change room, or seperate coaches or anything like that. Everybody who's here is a fighter, and if you can't hack it, you leave. But at the same time, there's no extra pressure because you're a woman. The coaches are all great; we have a great group of girl fighters here, and we all work together. It's a real family kind of atmosphere."
Everywhere she goes, Clark carries that title of "Jackson's MMA" fighter with her. She'll take it with her when she takes on April Coutino on January 7th. In spite of the challenge in front of her, as has often been the case in Clark's life, it pales to the challenge behind her, to the places she's come from.
"I want to represent myself and my gym well in everything I do. Against April, I know I'm in for a tough fight. She's a tough girl who's very well rounded. I know she's dangerous. But I also know I can win this fight. It's not something I worry about. I'm coming to win on January 7th and I want to put on a great show for the fans as well."

UFC 117: Anderson Silva, Chael Sonnen, and the Miracle in Oakland

By Elton Hobson

As I watched the weigh-ins for tonight’s UFC 117 from Oakland, something occurred to me. It happened right as champion and challenger squared off for the “face to face” photo op, and Anderson Silva turned away from Chael Sonnen in distain (pictured above, in reverse, from earlier press conference) while the crowd roared. Watching this scene, I began to get the feeling that I was watching something that was impossible.

Or more accurately, that what I was watching was nothing less then a PR miracle. And all thanks to one man - or is he more myth and superstition then man? Yes, folks, the Superman is real, and he’s a Republican.

Let’s flashback a couple of months to this past April, when this match-up was first announced. Silva was coming off the absolute disaster that was UFC 112, and his “fight” with Demian Maia. Man, it sucked to be Anderson Silva back then. After three straight stinkers, broken up only by his rapid destruction of fan favourite Forrest Griffin, fans had finally, terminally given up on the sport’s pound for pound king and possibly greatest ever fighter.

It’s no exaggeration to say that at the time, “The Spider” was the most hated man in the sport. There were many, many people in those days who vowed never to order an Anderson Silva headlined card again. Dana White was near desperate in his concessions and apologies, vowing to “make this one up” to the fans. His super fight with GSP was put in permanent limbo, and there was serious talk of his being suspended or even cut from the company.

And Chael Sonnen? Well he was coming off a win over top ranked Nate Marquardt, and enjoying his first blip of casual fan attention.

Sure, he earned a lot of fans with his gritty performance in that fight, and his entertaining comments to Joe Rogan afterwards. But prior to that, Sonnen had being flying under the radar at 185 lbs, the dark horse contender in the middleweight division. Worse, he had acquired a reputation as a “boring” fighter, a Greco-Roman wrestling decision machine whose unspectacular, plodding style seemed destined to make him the Jon Fitch of the 185’ers.

When this fight was announced, no one jumped out of their chairs in excitement. The Decision Machine vs. The Dancing Queen? I think I’ll pass, thanks. Fans yawned. Media yawned. Dana wept.

Chael Sonnen ( R ) cracked his knuckles in excitement. In the history of the UFC, there are few fighters who have so dramatically and decisively risen to seize a moment as Sonnen has done. The former Republican State Senate hopeful and Real Estate agent (what a perfect combo for fight selling, by the way) got to work, and he has painted his Sistine Chapel.

His months long campaign of side-splitting trash talk, bald-faced lies, and borderline psychotic rants against Silva isn’t just funny. It isn’t just irritating. It’s not just eloquent, or embarrassingly stupid, or perfectly timed, or way over the top. It’s all those things, and possibly even more.

In my opinion, it’s nothing short of brilliant, a marketing coup like nothing we’ve seen before in MMA.

When people say Sonnen has created lots of hype for his UFC 117 title shot, they really fail to capture the whole picture. Just creating “hype” is easy. Tito Ortiz has already created hype for his next, Rolling Stones-esque “comeback fight” by making fun of Matt Hamill’s deafness. Put a camera in Nick Diaz’s face, and you’ll get a stoned, F-word filled rant that would out crazy anything Sonnen has said. And don’t get Brock Lesnar started on Bud Light.

No, what Sonnen has done is far more impressive. When Sonnen took to the scale yesterday, he was booed heavily. When Silva appeared, the crowd actually cheered a little bit. When Silva turned away from Chael, that noise grew to a roar. The tension, the excitement, and the energy in that room was palpable, even through my tiny laptop screen.

It was a scene that only months ago would have been a laughable fantasy. But there it was. The most hated man in the sport is, once again, a good guy.

Chael Sonnen didn’t just successfully sell this fight. He sold this fight with himself as the “heel” (bad guy in wrestling lingo), a far better narrative as far as the UFC is concerned. Anderson Silva is the top fighter in the game today. Him being hated and despised and booed is a situation the UFC (and let’s be honest, the sport itself) could really do without.

So Sonnen went beyond the pale. Like the aforementioned Nick Diaz, the Oregon native wasn’t afraid to say and do whatever he felt like. Unlike Diaz, his madness had a method. Say what you will about him, but Sonnen is certainly clever and witty, even if in an overt, blunt way, and he has a great sense of timing. In short, he can sling BS with the best of ‘em.

And sling he did. For months and months and months. It worked cause it was funny, or cause he could deliver it with a straight face. It worked because it irritated you, and eventually you wanted him to shut up. It worked because his sense of timing was incredible, moving from one outrageous claim or story to the next with perfect fluidity.

Nothing was safe. Nothing was taboo. Race, religion, ethnicity, nationality - even Lance Armstrong's testicular cancer.

In the process, Sonnen has sold us a golden proposition. After all this talk, after all these outlandish claims and boorish insults and outright lies, we want to see somebody, anybody, shut his mouth. We want to see him eat a big slice of humble pie - preferably while lying starry eyed on top of the “Amp Energy” logo.

And who better to deliver that then the sport’s undisputed KO king? So congratulations, Mr. Sonnen. You’ve earned your big payday, and your hefty increase in fan recognition. You may have made your whole career with the lead up to this fight alone. For what it’s worth, I really do hope you find a way to take Anderson down and hold him there for all 25 minutes.

Or that you like eating your meals through a straw. Cause you’ve clearly made Anderson Silva angry. You wouldn’t like him when he’s angry.