Miguel Bernard is one of the last minute replacements who stepped up at short notice to fill the places left by the withdrawal of Karlos Vemola and Neil Grove. He is a spanish native and a Muay Thai fighter with a 15-4-1 record. Currently training out of the House of Pain gym in Bournemouth under the tutelage of Andy Lawrence, Miguel has a big learning curve to get up to speed with the MMA game. But with his Muay Thai pedigree he will certainly pose an interesting problem for the rest of the fighters in the tournament.

With very little known about Miguel, we decided to track him down for an interview so UKMMA fans can get to know a little more about this fearless fighter who in 2 days time will be taking part in one of the most anticipated MMA events to take place in the UK:

• Hi Miguel, thanks for taking the time to talk to us and giving the UK fans the opportunity to get to know a little more about you. Not many people in the MMA fraternity will have heard of you, all we know is you are a Muay Thai fighter…so can tell us a bit more about your Martial Arts background and how you came to be entered into the tournament? ..

Ok, here goes…I’m Miguel Bernad, 26 year old Spanish native. At 7 years old my dad put me in Muay Thai classes so I would not be out on the street getting in fights all the time..That proved to kill two birds with one stone, I was not out on the street no more but spent most of my time in the gym training, and street fights were now called ‘competition’…I loved it. I started to compete in semi contact, full contact and kickboxing at the age of 12, and moved on to Muay Thai at 16…Continued with just Muay Thai till 21 and then added bodybuilding to the mix. Competed in several bodybuilding competitions and learned that the improvement in strength greatly contributed to my fighting skills and the self discipline that competitive bodybuilding requires also lifted my fight training to a whole new level.

I got involved in this tournament by a stroke of luck.I teach Muay Thai classes at the House of Pain gym in Bournemouth. The owner of House of Pain, Andy Lawrence, approached me a little over a week ago and told me that two fighters had pulled out of the upcoming MMA tournament, if I would be interested to fill one of the spots. Me??…fighting MMA in the UK??…in 9 days???…Kidding me??.. Hell yeah!…So I agreed immediately, and the next minute I was on the list to fight. That’s when the realisasion creeped up that I was about to enter the ring with highly experienced MMA fighters and that I had 9 days to prepare for it. That’s where we are now…in preparation…a lot!..

• Have you ever competed in MMA before?

No..never..Always wanted to though, therefore I’m so excited about this opportunity. I follow it religiously on television and sometimes while watching I found my mind wondering off thinking what it would be like if that was me in that ring. Hard to grasp that it will actually happen this saturday..I’m looking forward to it, to say the least…

• Coming from a muay-thai background as you do, I imagine the wrestling /ground game is a little more alien to you. What training have you been doing to sharpen up these areas of your game. Who have you been working/training with?

When MMA veteran Andy Lawrence approached me for this fight,he immediately added that he would train with me everyday till showday to shave off the rough edges and polish where needed. If it wasn’t for his dedication, expertise and believe in me as a fighter I don’t think I would have had the guts to jump off the deep end like this. We have been training like maniacs for the past 9 days and when tournament day rolls around I will be ready!…

• What is your typical training regime? Taking a fight at such short notice puts you at a disadvantage compared to those you have been in camp for 6 to 8 weeks…are you prepared for the possibility of taking three 15 minute fights in one night?

As ready as I ever will be…It’s hard to say, I’ve never fought one 15 minute MMA fight, let alone 3. All I know is that I’m in good physical shape, have been consistantly training for many, many years, strong as an ox and sheer determination gets you a long way my grandma used to say…Pray to God she is right!

• I understand that you are fairly light for a heavyweight. Does the size of the opponents in this tournament bother you? People like James Thompson and Rob Broughton will outweigh you by quite a lot I would imagine?

Not really..This opportunity was warped into my lap out of nowhere, I never dreamed of measuring myself in weight nor in skill with the likes of James and Rob, fighters that have my utmost respect…I find it an experience in itself to be at the same tournament with them. I don’t waste my time on contemplating the possible outcome of my fights on Saturday. I’ll go into the ring with the pledge that I will give it my all and some and see where that takes me. As they say…something comes down to nothing but a chance. My chance is here…and I’ll grab it with both hands.

• Is there anyone in the tournament you would like to fight more than any others, someone whose style you think fits yours better?

Not really. I try not to zone in too much on the other fighters at this moment because I would drive myself crazy. Regardless of who I’m up against on saturday, I need to deliver..stand my ground to the best of my abilities, that’s all I’m focused on right now.

• So i assume you have no comment on any fighters you would like to avoid then?

Erm..All of them???…I’m kidding Seriously, this is such a new experience to me that it’s hard to say who I would like to fight against or who I would like to avoid. In principle I would like to say I don’t want to avoid anybody..it’s all part of a new journey and will add to my experience as a fighter and as a human being.

• Are you nervous to be taking part in such a huge event in UKMMA?

..Nah..piece of cake..;) haha….Of course I’m very nervous, but I seem to do well under pressure, it helps me focus..at the same time I’m very excited as well that I’m going to be a part of this awesome tournament, regardless of what the outcome may be.

• Win or lose, this tournament is going to bring you to the attention of UK MMA fans, will you pursue MMA now or continue to fight Muay Thai?

I would love to pursue MMA, I would never held possible that an opportunity like this would appear right in front of me…so first and foremost I’m excited to find out where the road may lead. I’m game for everything and anything that comes my way.

• Looking ahead, what are your long term goals for your fight career?

To be honest, I haven’t even thought that far. As you know I’m a Spanish native, and have been living in the UK for a little over 2 years. In Spain having a fighting “career” is next to impossible, a “career” there means teaching Muay Thai classes and that is what I’ve done for many years. With great joy I have to add. Fighting is my passion…it’s my hobby, it’s what I know and what I’ve done for most part of my life..Just the thought that this could be the dawning of what could grow out to a career in fighting makes my toes wiggle with anticipation.

• Finally Miguel are there any shout outs you’d like to give to anyone?

First and foremost to Andy Lawrence from House of Pain for creating this opportunity, his belief in my ability to do well and dedication to me as a fighter and MMA as a whole, without him all this would not have happened. To all the people in my surrounding who have been extremely supportive with me. To Sol Gilbert for organizing a tournament of this calibre and to all of you here at UKMMANews. Everything is really really appreciated.

• Miguel thanks once again for talking to us and all the best for the tournament. It’s great that you have stepped up and I hope everyone gets behind you in this event! Good luck.