M1FC Coach, Stephen Walton, Interviewed for Blitz Magazine
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FIVE MINUTES WITH STEPHEN WALTON MARTIAL MINDS The Super Coach Stephen Walton reached the peak of the British muay Thai scene and thrived in MMA, battling UFC fighters Michael Bisping and Dylan Andrews and training alongside the likes of Forrest Griffin, Stephan Bonnar and Matt Serra. Now the owner of M1FC Gym in Perth, Walton spoke to Blitz on life in Australia, teaching self-defence and helping his daughter prepare for the 2016 Paralympic Games. INTERVIEW BY STEVEN TALEVSKI tephen, tell us about is about, and that’s what any aspect and they can get the What were the most high- how you got your start sport it about. Obviously you training and fitness to a high profiled bouts you fought in? S in martial arts? have to learn as you go along. level, but mentally some And what were your most I started when I was about I think the main thing about people aren’t able to go in and memorable fights? eight years old. I was really competing is the mental compete for whatever reason. I got a lot of gold medals into martial art movies and I aspect, because I think a lot I think that comes down to when I was younger in asked my mum to take me to a of people can do the fitness mental preparation. taekwondo and then I got taekwondo class. She took me along and I was hooked from the first day. From there, I kept training through all the belts and got to Black-belt. I then decided to move over to boxing and muay Thai, which I trained and then started competing in. I progressed to do jiu-jitsu and grappling and then MMA. I 114922975-CREDIT-.psd competed in different sports on different levels. You reached the top of the British muay Thai scene — what were the road bumps you faced in achieving that and how did you deal with it? It was just like anything when you start competing a lot at a high level, it takes over your life to some extent. Everything is focused on, from training to eating and cutting weight. To change my sort of perspective of competition, I became a bit more serious about it. Obviously, you get things like injuries along the way that will put you out for a little bit and you have to try to keep training, but you need to work around them, so they are a road bump. Then you come along and have a few good fights and you may get beaten and you can’t take that too much to heart. You have to see what you’ve done right in that fight and what you’ve done wrong. You have to come back Walton is a former World Muay Thai Kings Cup contestant stronger; that’s what fighting 22 • www.blitzmag.net 022-025_5 Minutes.indd 22 4/03/2016 10:59 am a silver medal in the British over a lot. So you are able to Walton at his recent 100 round sparring fundraiser championship before I moved pick up other martial arts a over to muay Thai and MMA. lot easier. In muay Thai I fought the Teaching different groups is Greek champion, which was very different and you have to a memorable and tough fight. prepare yourself a lot because Plus qualifying for the Muay teaching a security firm on Thai Kings Cup, fighting three defensive control restraint opponents in one day and techniques is a lot different to getting the wins, was tough. teaching women self-defence In MMA back in the UK in courses. I did the biggest self- the amateur circuit I fought defence course in Perth with people like Michael Bisping. Hit 92.9. We had 450 women When I went professional, I there, so to teach that on a ended up fighting for the British stage is totally different to what MMA title and then Dylan I teach in a group of 10 and a Andrews in Australia, who group of police officers. They was in the UFC, which was a all have different goals in what memorable fight. I also fought they want to do and different an opponent from the Holland procedures of what they can do MMA team and had my nose in their job role or what they can You’ve trained with several I’ve trained guys from AFL fractured from a knee in the do as defence on the street. UFC and MMA stars including teams and high-level rugby and first round, but I went on to You’ve also trained in Forrest Griffin, Stephen motocross, so any sport you stop my opponent and take the Thailand. Who did you Bonnar and Matt Serra. What can think of. Everyone wants win. Every fight is memorable train with and what sort of were the major differences to do the cross training boxing, for different reasons. knowledge did you take from in training with these top- muay Thai or even the jiu-jitsu. While still living in the home of muay Thai? level athletes compared to We’ve had the Freemantle England, you also helped out I’ve trained in Thailand a few others competing in MMA? Dockers training at the M1FC with the British Police Forces. times and have trained with Did they do something gym before. We taught them What was your role? different people. I’ve trained better than ordinary fighters wrestling and boxing a few regularly do? years ago. There have been a I think it’s more of the lot of teams at different levels. “You have to prepare yourself a lot because intricacies of what they do. I think martial arts are so teaching a security firm on defensive control If you train with any top level beneficial for various different grappler or striker, they are reasons. You have the fitness restraint techniques is a lot different to basically just breaking things aspect, so getting fit while teaching women self-defence courses.” down and doing these little you are training. You have the small movements, so you de-stress aspect, so depending know the technique, but they whatever walks of life you’re I was in the police force with Stephen Fox, who is a do those small movements in, you all have stress and to myself. I did some seminars very high-level Thai boxer. I’ve that make it so much more be able to come in and offload for the instructors, so you also trained with Kru Yod at effective. It’s like an ‘aha’ that by hitting bags or doing would have the defence tactic Tiger Muay Thai, who is very moment; you go “oh, okay, I’ve partner work, it’s a very good instructors in the police and I good to train with; he was a never done that before, I’ve de-stress mechanism. It’s good would teach them seminars in trainer to Georges St. Pierre never seen that before” and for mental focus because it is a control, grappling and restraint. and a lot of other UFC guys. you start to use it more and really tough sport as well. It has I continued that in Australia, I trained with a lot of the top realise how easy it is and how tough training so you can push where I am teaching quite a bit MMA talent over there. more efficient it is. It’s all the yourself to a high level and you of police at the moment along I think when you go to small intricacies I enjoy when I have to push through. It also has with security forms. Thailand, you go to certain train with the top-level guys and a discipline factor, so you have How does training in places and they train you hard obviously they’ve been in there kids and even adults being able martial arts and working in and you’re not really learning and it’s working for them. to work their way up through defence forces co-align? a lot. You’re training hard and You’re now coaching the rankings and to discipline All martial arts have very just hitting on the pad, but martial arts and have trained themselves to push through similar principles, regardless if you find the right coaches athletes in more traditional really hard training. There are of the techniques and the way over there, they will teach you sports. Who have you trained so many benefits to it and they train. Obviously, because some good skills and even if and what are the sorts of even though it is an individual I’ve done a lot of different it’s something not new, it’s a things they take from martial sport when you compete, it’s martial arts and have competed different way of doing it, so you arts that they may not get very social because you have at different levels and things can bring it back to the club and in training for their more a team behind you so that’s a like that, you are able to cross train with that new knowledge. mainstream team sports? benefit too. www.blitzmag.net • 23 022-025_5 Minutes.indd 23 4/03/2016 10:59 am FIVE MINUTES WITH STEPHEN WALTON Join the Mach1 team & discover your potential You’re also a qualified they put it together is really Classes include... krav maga instructor. What effective and fascinating. The MARTIAL MINDS interested you in that martial way they’ve systemised the ❱❱ MMA ❱❱ Muay Thai art and how does it differ way, you’re basically attacking compared to the other arts on the defence and your ❱❱ BJJ ❱❱ Boxing you’ve mastered? moving is all to do with self- Krav maga is using other defence.