Jan Finney Interview
Jan Finney discusses her upcoming fight with Cyborg Santos on June 26 at Strikeforce: Fedor vs Werdum
Jan Finney is name that many in the MMA would not recognize immediately. While she has faced many of the top female MMA fighters in the world including Miesha Tate, Erin Toughill, Shayna Baszler, and Julie Kedzie, she has not gotten the press that Cyborg, Gina Carano or even Erin Toughill have. Finney is scheduled to make her Strikeforce debut on June 26, 2010 on the Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Werdum fight card where she will face current Women’s Middleweight Champion Cristiane “Cyborg” Santos. ProFighting-fans.com Senior MMA Writer Nick Russell caught up with Finney to discuss her fight with Cyborg.
Nick - Thanks for taking some time for this interview Jan. To begin, can you talk a little about what first sparked your interest in MMA and when you began training MMA?
Jan - I started off doing Bo Jo and Karate-Do in 2003 when I was 23. I then took my first fight in MMA in 2004. How that all came about was the guy that was teaching me karate, he had another girl that was training for a fight and he needed training partners for her. I thought, well, I’ll train with her but I’m not going to fight. Six months later, and, I have my first fight. My first true MMA fight was in November 2004 in Hook-n-Shoot with Jeff Osborne, who has always been good to women in MMA. I definitely give him props.
Nick - What is an average week of training like for you, including any other types of training (cross training, weights, other martial arts, etc.)?
Jan - Well, for my fight camp, it’s really intense. I do about 2-3 hours a week on some kind of strength and conditioning and cardio work. I then work my ground and wrestling for an hour or two hours and finish with the stand-up, doing kickboxing and sparring. So, I mean, I would train on average of about 3-4 hours a day. I usually take off on Sunday, but if I’m feeling good, I may go in and just hit the pads. I take about half a day off on Wednesday.
Nick - Who have been your major influences up to this point in your career?
Jan - Definitely my head trainer Mike Patt, who has shaped me into the fighter that I am. He is also my boyfriend/trainer/manager, he does all those things. He has influenced me the most in training.
Nick - Jan, If you could, list me one short-term and one long-term goal in MMA?
Jan - Well, for short term, I want to get up to 10 (career) wins by the end of the year. A long term goal is to definitely have a title belt, whether it’s 145 or 135, or both.
Nick - The one consistent issue with women’s MMA is that there are maybe a dozen or so good solid fighters, but as a whole, it lacks depth. What is your opinion on that issue?
Jan - I think that there are a lot of new girls popping up everywhere. At 135 (lbs), it’s pretty full, and I think that the (1)25-ers are coming up, as well as the 145-lb’ers.
Nick - In your last fight, you had a tough split decision victory over (Adrienne) Jenkins, who had only been defeated twice in nineteen bouts at that point. Do you consider that to be your biggest career victory?
Jan - Yeah, I guess I would consider that to be my biggest one.
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Nick - You have extensive experience with Sho XC, Bodog Fight, and Hook-n-Shoot promotions. Do you believe that those experiences will help you when you step into the Strikeforce cage?
Jan - Yeah, I definitely think that all of my experiences will help me in my fight with her. It’s going to be a bigger venue, something like 10,000 people possibly, but, when I step into that ring, I’m going to forget about that. A lot of people keep asking me that, and you know what, I’m just going to stay focused.
Nick - Well Jan, you started your career with a (4-7) record, but now your 9-8 and it’s been over a year-and-a-half since your last loss against Erin Toughill. What lessons, if any, did you learn from your loss to Erin, and, do you think that those lessons have helped you become a better fighter today?
Jan - I took that fight on like 2½ - 3 weeks’ notice, so I wouldn’t say that I was in fight shape by any means, but I thought what do I have to lose. She was up there in the rankings and everything, and she still is, but I went ahead and took it.
Now, what did I learn from it? I learned that I sometimes sell myself short. I surprised myself and think that I did really well in that fight. I also learned that I can take people down. I usually like to stand and bang, but she had the reach on me, so, I would go in and take her down. Other than that, yeah, it was a good experience.
Nick - The reason that I ask that is that from watching some of your fights since that bout, it really looks like you have developed and become a better all around fighter.
Jan - Yeah, I definitely have improved on a lot of things. I’ve worked a lot more on my ground and keep working on my stand-up also. I have matured as a fighter, not in one specific area but by trying to work on everything together.
Nick - Now, specifically I’d like to talk about your upcoming fight. Cris will be coming in with 9 straight victories, 7 of which have been by (T)KO, including her 1st round TKO over Gina Carano to win the title and her 3rd round TKO over Marloes Coenen in her first defense. What did you see in those fights that will help you in your bout with her on June 26th?
Jan - Yeah, my trainers and I have been watching her fights and we’ve been working on things that we see she does good and also things that she kind of leaves herself open.
Nick - Describe the feelings or emotions that you think you will have when you are in the cage waiting for Cris to come meet you?
Jan - It will be like any other fight. It’s just going to be like any other opponent. I’m going to be ready to throw down. I’m not going to put her up on this pedestal, I mean yeah, she is the champion, but, she is like just any other person and I’m going to go at her like that.
Nick - Obviously, Cris is talented as a striker and as a ground specialist, but, what do you see as far as possible holes in her game, and how do you want to take advantage of them?
Jan - Well, she is super aggressive, she is strong, and all of that good stuff, but, I think that I might use that to her disadvantage. Like, I think she may think that she’s going to come out and knock this 135-er around. I don’t think she is going to be able to bully me, or anything. I’m just going to surprise her.
Nick - Do you think that the fact that she is used to fighting at another weight class will be a factor?
Jan - Actually, I do think that it might be a big factor. Yeah, she does train cardio really well, but I’ve heard rumors, and I don’t know how true they are, but that she walks around at 170. That may mean that she has to cut at least 12-15 lbs. of water weight.
It does play a role with your cardio. I mean, its one thing to go 3 - five minute rounds, but to go 5 - five minute rounds, it may play into being a factor and really help me out. For me, I haven’t really even started dieting, and, being within five pounds, I may not even have to cut.
Nick - There is a little less than a month to go before your fight. Where are you in your training right now?
Jan - We are at a real intense stage right now. I am very tired when I go home. We are putting everything together. Not really just striking or just ground, but putting it all together. We are just melting it and putting it all together is the biggest focus now.
Nick - Is there anything else that you would like our readers to know in order to get to know you a little better before June 26 th?
Jan - Well, if there is anybody out there who wants to sponsor me? You can hit me up on facebook and I'll direct you to my manager. I’d like to thank all of my trainers, Mike Patt, Oscar Kallet, John Stutzman, Eddie Cobach, and all my training partners at BCMA.
By Nick Russell
ProFighting-fans.com Senior MMA Staff Writer