​Winning Streak: Eichelberger’s MMA Quest

Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is a full-contact combat sport combining techniques from combat sports and martial arts. The first documented use of the term mixed martial arts dates back to 1993, to the first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

Fargo native, Jos Eichelberger has a very important MMA match, Legacy 60, on October 7th in Hinckley, Minn. We talked to Jos and a few fans to tap into the excitement of the event.

For those somewhat new to the sport, like myself, here are some starting points. The UFC is the world’s largest MMA promoter. Traditionally, every event starts off with a preliminary card followed by a main card, with the last fight being known as the main event. Other MMA events usually follow this format.

Besides UFC, promotional companies for MMA include Bellator, World Series of Fighting, Invicta, and Legacy. Two notable web sites with rankings and other MMA information are Sherdog and Tapology.

MMA attracts a wide range of fans. Erik Block, Fargo native, recently delivered two UFC theme-based trivia nights at the Old Broadway this summer for Red River Trivia. Erik says: “I'm pretty sure I came out of the womb obsessed with martial arts. I grew up in the '80s and '90s watching Van Damme movies and reading Black Belt and obsessing over anything and everything martial arts-related.”

He remembers seeing the ad for the first match: “I would have been about 13 or 14 at the time. The ad advertised "KARATE VS. JUDO VS. SUMO VS. KICKBOXING VS. JIU-JITSU", etc. I was familiar with all of these different styles, and I could imagine nothing cooler than seeing representatives of these different styles squaring off against each other in mixed matches. I tore the ad out and hung it on the bedroom wall. It hung there for years.”

Erik says while it might “seem kind of strange that I'm a huge MMA nerd, it isn't really the violence that I'm drawn to. I don't really like to see fighters get hurt. I like to see fighters demonstrate their skills to the best of their ability and hug it out afterwards. It really is an awesome sport if you can get past the blood and appreciate the skills and heart and respect of the fighters.”

Jeanne Kempers, originally from Niles, Ohio and currently living in Fargo, has been an avid fan since 2000: “At every pay-per-view event, my house was packed with family and friends, cheering on our favorite fighters and yelling at the television.”

Jeanne describes the appeal: “I like the competition between the two men or women. Hand to hand combat has been around since the dawn of time and to see how each different school of training comes together and makes the competitors act and react to each hold or submission move... it's interesting to me. It's strategy as well as sheer strength.”

One local fighter who is gaining attention is Jos Eichelberger. Jos devotes a great deal of time to training and competing, in addition to working as a bartender at the Ramada Plaza and Suites in Fargo.

Jos began MMA after high school in order to stay in shape for another sport - hockey. He wanted something that was a good workout and was introduced to Chris Thiel, who was active in MMA. Chris and Jos are now best friends, and Jos says “that’s where it all started.”

Jos has quite a regional following. Jeanne Kempers says: “Who hasn't heard of Jos in the Fargo area? He's a very talented athlete with so much potential and he's been striving for his goals and smashing them! He's a hard-working and hard-training young man who, given the opportunity, will go places in the sport.”

Erik Block emphasizes Jos’s “five-fight win streak” and says, “If he's able to keep that going, especially against some of the higher-level competition that he'll be facing in these Legacy Fighting shows, the UFC could give him a shot.”

Jos has what he describes as his most important career bout to date scheduled for October 7 when he is on the main card at Legacy 60 at the Grand Casino Hinckley against opponent Dakota Cochrane.

High Plains Reader: Tell us about your early start with MMA.

Jos Eichelberger: I was the youngest kid in the gym at 18 and I was sparring and grappling with men who aged anywhere from 23-30 and when we sparred I noticed I could hang with them and caught on very quickly. Chris said there was a fight in October which was three weeks after my 19th birthday and I decided I'll give it a shot. I won the fight and it was my new love.

HPR: What draws you to the sport?

JE: There is nothing like mixed martial arts; no other sport compares to it. There are so many aspects of the sport regarding the workouts and diet and the training schedule. Some days just get chaotic and you have to fight through it. Through MMA, you really learn a lot about yourself and who you can become.

HPR: How did your friends and family react to your MMA career?

JE: At first I do not think my family liked it at all. And my friends probably thought I was crazy. Being 19 years old and fighting guys 4-10 years older than you are doesn't sound like something mom or grandma wants to hear, but they all supported it and that means a lot to me.

HPR: Have you got to travel anywhere interesting via MMA?

JE: Yes. I've traveled to Philadelphia to try out for Bellator years ago. I’ve gone to Vegas to train. I also defended my PFC title out on Denver and won. So, it has been a wild ride and I wouldn't change anything about the path I decided to take when I was 19.

HPR: Describe your training routine.

JE: My daily routine for the days I have to work is I wake up around 8:30 am, and train from 10am-12:30. I do strength and conditioning with Eric Sweeney 3 times a week from 1-2 or I'll get a run in that ranges from anywhere to 30 min to 50 min. Days when I don't work, I train from 10am-12:30 for strength and conditioning or running, then I am back at the Academy of Combat Arts from 6-9 pm then go home and do it all over again. For work I am a bartender, but I pretty much schedule everything around my training schedule. Training to me right now is most important.

HPR: What do you want people to know about the Legacy 60 fight?

JE: I'm the co- main event on the televised part of the show. It is on AXS TV. I'm fighting a Bellator veteran and UFC veteran named Dakota Cochrane who is ranked number one in the Midwest. I was scheduled to fight Zak Ottow but he actually got signed to the UFC about 3 weeks ago. Dakota Cochrane is tough and he's been around. I’m excited to test my skills against an opponent like that.

It's the biggest fight of my career and I would love for the people of Fargo to show support for a local athlete. I am on a five-fight win streak and it makes me feel really good that my hard work that I've been putting in is paying off now.

IF YOU GO

Legacy FC 60 Event featuring Jos Eichelberger vs. Dakota Cochrane October 7, 9pm Grand Casino Hinckley, in Hinckley, Minn. Web: http://www.legacyfights.net/legacy-fighting-championship-60-event-info/ Twitter: @joseichelberger