10 Questions With Dave Jansen (8/24/2009)

[DarrickPatrick]

10 Questions With Dave Jansen (by Darrick Patrick)

Dave "The Fugitive" Jansen is a professional mixed martial artist who has competed in organizations such as M-1 Challenge, World Cagefighting Alliance, District Combat Promotions, SportFight, Elite Warriors Championship, and Banner Promotions. At the time of this interview, his next scheduled match is against Richard Crunkilton in World Extreme Cagefighting at WEC 43: Cerrone vs. Henderson on October 10th, 2009.

Darrick: How did you end up competing professionally in mixed martial arts?

Dave: My mom enrolled me into a tumbling class when I was five years old. The class was taught by Mr. Harris, a science teacher and wrestling coach at Damascus Middle School. The wrestling mats were laid out in his science classroom once a week and he geared the lessons to mold future wrestlers out of these gangly, uncoordinated toddlers. I went on to wrestle competitively every year until my sophomore year in college in 2000. At that point, I was burnt out on wrestling and dropped out of college. I began working a series of construction and service industry jobs for the next five years. At one of my cooking jobs, I met Chris Wilson back in his amateur fighting days. He convinced me to not let my wrestling background go to waste and to give mixed martial arts a shot. I joined a local MMA gym called Team Quest in Gresham, Oregon where Chris was training and instructing. That was around May of 2006. I fought my first amateur MMA fight in November 2006 and have steadily been taking fights ever since.

Darrick: Who are a few of the people in the sport that you highly respect?

Dave: I really respect both Ryan Schultz and Ian Loveland. They saw potential in me early on after I joined Team Quest and I started regularly attending their classes. They've both been instrumental in helping me develop my fighting style and they continue to push me to my limits in the practice room. I also have a lot of respect for Robert Follis, my primary trainer and corner man at Team Quest. Robert has provided me with so much insight into what makes successful people tick, and ultimately, he's helped me become a better person.

Darrick: Any words of advice for other individuals looking to compete in MMA?

Dave: Join a reputable MMA gym where there are at least a couple professional fighters at hand, surround yourself with people who are more skilled than you, be coachable, and remember that cardio is the best gift that you can give to yourself. Develop a cardio plan, constantly add to it, and keep at it. Also, don't rush into taking fights right out of the gate. I recommend that most people train with full contact sparring several times a week for about a year before entering a MMA event.

Darrick: Your next scheduled fight is against Richard Crunkilton on October 10th. What are your thoughts about this upcoming match?

Dave: I think our styles match up well. We both have excellent takedowns and submissions. I think the deciding factors in the fight will be who's in better shape and who is able to work their stand-up game more efficiently.

Darrick: What brings you the most fulfillment out of martial arts?

Dave: I'd say it's the sense of accomplishment I get out of every run, every practice, every lifting session, and every competition. It's the high that comes with feeling alive to the fullest. Total elation. I also feel this sense of community in MMA. I'm part of something big. We used to call it the Brotherhood of Wrestling back when I wrestled in high school. Now I feel like I'm also a member of the Brotherhood of MMA.

Darrick: Who are some of the people that greatly influenced you while growing up?

Dave: Besides my mom and siblings, I was basically raised by my wrestling coaches. I was the youngest of five kids growing up in a single parent home, so I had quite a few wrestling coaches who were essentially father figures to me. Some of my coaches were my friend's dads. Here is a list of the most influential ranging from the earliest to most recent: Mr. Harris, Lamar Hyatt, the Schmitt brothers, Marc Sprague, Roger Sayles, Bruce Robnett, and Dave Abraham.

Darrick: Outside of MMA, what are your other interests?

Dave: I spend a lot of time reading, mostly fantasy and science fiction. I'm a bit of a gamer as well, currently hard at work completing the Fallout 3 downloadable expansions. I watch a fair amount of television through www.surfthechannel.com. These days I'm catching up on season two of Battlestar Galactica. I do a lot of thrift store shopping. Good food is always on my mind. I also have a girlfriend that I find quite interesting.

Darrick: What is your oldest memory?

Dave: I must have been three or four years old. The Jansen clan was on the back porch with our new mutt puppy, trying to decide on what to name her. I had a handful of potato chip crumbs that I threw in front of the puppy's feet and sure enough she started eating them. I said, "She loves chips, maybe we should call her Chips." My family went along with it, but my brother claims that he named her after the TV show with Ponch and John. I'm not buying it.

Darrick: Tell us something about you that most people don't know.

Dave: I recently discovered that I have this one mutant eyelash that grows three times the length of the other ones, and it's albino. I've trimmed it back twice in the last couple of months and it just keeps coming back. Maybe this happens to everyone when they turn thirty.

Darrick: What comic book character do you relate to most?

Dave: Wow, this is a toughie. I guess Fone Bone from Jeff Smith's epic Bone series. He doesn't have any superpowers and neither do I. He's on an epic quest and so am I. Every now and then, I have a run-in with a Rat Thing that I need to put in it's place. Part of me wants to say Wolverine for this question, but my cuts take weeks to heal.

FOR OTHER EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS BY DARRICK PATRICK:

http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=4974388&blogID=343519835

You can also check out Dave Jansen in the following places:

Official Dave Jansen MySpace Profile:

http://www.myspace.com/davegravedanger

Official Dave Jansen Twitter Site:

http://twitter.com/thefugitivepdx

Dave Jansen on Fight Finder:

http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/dave-jansen-25414

Dave Jansen Photo Gallery at Sherdog.com:

http://www.sherdog.com/pictures/gallery/fighter/25414