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New for 2008 - An interview with Kevin O'Hagan
You would think that after more than 30 years involved in training and instructing Martial Arts that veteran reality combat instructor Kevin O' Hagan would be thinking about easing up a bit or indeed considering retirement. But as his forty seventh birthday speeds nearer, he is still pushing boundaries and very much active in working towards new goals. As a long time friend and student of Kevin's, I caught up with him recently to have a chat about what he has been doing. Q. Hi Kev. We are holding this interview at a new training venue. Can you tell me how this came about? K. Yes. I moved to the U.D.F Martial Arts Academy, at Brislington in Bristol for a number of reasons. Firstly my previous training premises were getting too small to accommodate the number of students that I was taking in to train in MMA. I needed more space, mat room and better facilities. Chris Beaumont, owner and chief instructor of the U.D.F Academy, contacted me about the possibility of moving and through a series of talks, I'm now here. The academy's facilities are much better and the guys that run it are great. Chris has a vision for the future although at present it is in its embryonic stages. But it's exciting and I would like to be part of it. So as they say, watch this space... Q. How are the classes going at U.D.F? K. Better than I could have hoped for. I have a good bunch training here and this year many of them will be stepping into the amateur MMA Circuit plus fighters such as Ross Mould and Matt Stone are pushing on in the pro-cage arena.
Q. I heard that last year, your two sons Tom and Jake had their first amateur fights K. Yes they did. They fought in ML Sports and the Welsh Grapple and Strike. I was more nervous watching them both fight than when I was actually fighting myself. I experienced many strange emotions. They both put in good solid performances and I was proud of them both. They had a few tough fights against more experienced opponents but they held their own. If they want to pursue this avenue for the future, then I will support them. They both have a great thirst for training and are both talented lads.
Q. I understand your fighter Ross Mould also scored an impressive KO in a semi pro fight at the Grapple and Strike Cage event in Wales recently? K. He certainly did. He has been working on a move to come out at the bell, fake a shoot for the legs and then pop up instead for an overhand right to the head. He did just that and scored a 5 second KO. It was a beautiful shot and Ross was over the moon. In fact he didn't stop talking about it for weeks! It is nice to see guys having success but it is a long tough road for them and also for me. I have discovered many talented fighters over the years but it is getting them to stick at it and show dedication that is the hardest part.
Q. Are you still writing these days? K. Not as much as I would like. It's finding time at present. After my last book, ' In the face of violence ,' I took a break. This was a landmark book for me. I wanted to write a comprehensive self protection guide to the psychological as well as physical aspects of personal protection. It took a lot of work but I felt I achieved it and that ' In the face of violence' is my best book to date. I recently wrote a manual, 'Are you looking at me?' This manual shows you how to verbally diffuse potentially violent situations and conflict. Its knowledge, I have personally amassed over the years and I think its vital information to have in today's highly stressed and pressured environment. I have also written 'Surviving edged weapon attacks.' This is another manual spurned from the increasing knife culture on our streets in the past few years. Both these manuals along with others can be purchases directly through me. Just go to my website: kevinohagan.com. I have also started writing for Combat Magazine again, which is great. I enjoy writing articles when time allows.
Q. The website is new, isn't it? K. Yes it is. It replaces my old one. Tom, my oldest son, who is studying Graphic Design at University, designed the site and got it up and running. Ross Mould also provided some useful tips and help. We hope to keep it regularly updated with interesting stuff.
Q. You have also done some new DVD's, haven't you? K. Last year, New Approach Publishing, a new company who deal with reality combat based DVD's, asked me if I would like to film some stuff for them. Ian Goehler, head of NAP spoke with me about some ideas. They wanted to mainly target an audience of the 'average man in the street' and not just Martial Artists. We filmed some top quality stuff. It was first class production and editing.
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