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11th January 2001 CHOKE interview with JAMES ZIKIC
Introducing rising UK star James Zikic. James is a regular on the UK Vale Tudo circuit and fights for the London Shootfighter stable. This interview was conducted after a session at the Gracie Barra gym in London. Choke: Hi James, let's clear up something that has been bothering me.....How do you pronounce your surname? James: <laughs> It's pronounced 'Zik - itch' Choke: Ok, everyone pronounces it wrong to me. James: Yeah, yeah they do. Choke: What nationality is that? James: It's Serbian. My dad is from Serbia. Choke: Where you born in this country? James: Yeah, I was born Northwood park hospital in Harrow. Choke: Right, so where are you living now? James: I live in Wembley, London. Choke: How old are you James? James: I'm 23 years old. Choke: How long have you been training in total? James: Ever since I was 15 in the Martial arts. Choke: What styles? James: I started off in karate and then moved into kick boxing and normal boxing. I then progressed into the Grappling arts at the beginning of the boom, when the first UFC came out. Choke: Was it because of the UFC influence that you moved into that area? James: Yeah, it really opened my eyes in the same way it did for a lot of people out there. Choke: So where have you trained? James: I currently train with Alexis and Paul at London Shoot, and I train Wrestling at the Tokei gym at London bridge. I also trained in America for 3 months. Choke: Who was that with? James: That was with Frank Shamrock and I also trained at the Beverly hills Jiu Jitsu academy with Marcus Venesius <sic> and Oleg Taktarov. Choke: So you've got plenty of experience then? James: <laughs> Yeah, I have a bit. Choke: Do you prefer the grappling or the striking aspect of fighting? James: I like to keep it 50/50. Choke: So do you currently train 50/50? James: Well recently I've been concentrating more on my striking and I've neglected my grappling. But generally I tend to go for periods where I concentrate on one, to bring it up to a high level. I do that to both to balance it out. Choke: Where do you practice your striking, London Shootfighters? James: I do a bit there, but I practice most at the boxing gyms like Repton, and also in the Peacock gym where I do thai boxing. Choke: Have you ever Boxed? James: Yeah. Choke: At amateur level? James: Yeah, I've had 13 fights at cruiser weight, and am also competing in the ABA's that are coming up this year. Choke: Which area will that be? James: I'll be fighting in the North East London divisionals Choke: So cruiserweight is how heavy? James: Well I'm actually fighting at heavyweight this time around. That's the under 91kg weight class. Choke: What weight are you at the moment in kilos? James: I'm right on 90kg Choke: Ok, so going back to NHB, how many fights have you had in that area? James: I've had 13 Vale Tudo fights. Choke: How many of those did you win? James: I've won 11 of those. Choke: Who beat you? James: I lost to Scott Goddard about 2 and a half years ago. I also lost to a guy in Hawaii in a rematch that I'd previously won. I ended up losing on points in that one. Choke: We all know that you are lined up to fight Lee Hasdell, but you were originally scheduled to fight Jeremy Horn. What happened there? James: Apparently Jeremy has been offered a lot of money to fight in Japan, and he's chosen to go where the money is. But he has expressed an interest in fighting me at a later date. Choke: What weight is Jeremy Horn? James: He's about 217lbs, but he cuts weight to get under 200 Choke: Are you disappointed at not getting the chance to fight him? James: Oh yeah, obviously! But the longer I wait for the fight, the better I'll be prepared for it. Choke: So going back to Lee Hasdell, do you 2 know each other? James: I have trained with him before, when I first started in the Grappling arts. I've travelled up to Milton Keynes a couple of times. I've got a lot of respect for him. Choke: He's done a lot for the sport in general. James: Oh yeah, he gave me my first opportunity. My first Vale Tudo fight was on one of his shows. I really admire him as a fighter too. I know that he's had a few losses, but it's been against the highest class. Choke: He hasn't been afraid to travel. Seems like he's always on the go fighting abroad. James: Well, I look at him and see his strong and his weak points. I respect his strong points, I'll definitely give him full respect when I step out to face him. Choke: Do you think you know what his weak points are? James: Yeah, I think I'll find a way to win. Choke: Will you be training any differently for Lee as opposed to Jeremy Horn? James: Yeah, I'll be changing my tactics for that fight. Choke: Let's talk about your actual training. Do you use weights? James: Throughout my career I haven't been big on weights, but obviously I now need to put on a bit of weight. I plan to go up against a few guys who are a bit bigger than me, so I've started to do a bit of power lifting which I've found to be very helpful. Choke: Really? James: I do feel a lot stronger for it. Choke: Do you do much running? James: Yeah I run 5 times a week. 3 of those days I do distance running for maybe half an hour. The other 2 I do sprints. Choke: Do you do that in the morning? James: Yeah, I try to do it all in the morning. Choke: So your Martial arts/Grappling is done in the evening? James: Yeah, I train 6 days a week in those areas, mostly in the evening. Choke: Can I ask about your diet? I see that you are tucking into some organic yogurt there. Do you watch your diet? James: I try to watch my diet. Plenty of vegetables, high protein and high carbohydrates. I try to avoid saturated fats and white sugars, you know, stuff like that. Choke: Do you place importance on diet? James: Definitely! Your body is like a high performance machine and you've got to put in high quality fuel. Choke: Who do you look up to? You mentioned Lee Hasdell before. Anybody else? James: Frank Shamrock. I've got a great deal of respect for him. That's the main reason I went over to train with him. Choke: When you went over, did he give you pointers about diet? I mean he's got a phenomenal physique. James: No, he is a bit of a genetic freak. He's been blessed, it's the way he was born. He's not too crazy about his diet. He eats quality food, but he also goes out and eats a bit of junk food too. Choke: What about Alexis at London Shoot? He always looks in great shape. James: He's another one with a naturally good physique. Choke: How do you compare training styles at London Shoot with training here with Mauricio Gomes? James: Well obviously Mauricio trains in gi work, which can be a bit frustrating with getting caught up in the gi. At London Shoot, it's more geared towards Vale Tudo. We do a lot of punching on the ground and we also do leg locks and different submissions. With Mauricio there's more emphasis on technique, basics and positioning. Choke: Do you find that it gives you a good balance to do the two? James: Oh yeah, definitely. Choke: Ok, so assuming you get past Lee Hasdell, what's lined up for the future? Any more fights? James: First of all - Lee obviously, and then Jeremy Horn. I'd also like to fight in America nearer the end of the year. Choke: As for the UK, do you think that the future here is good or is it only just starting up? Or do you think that there is there still a long way to go? James: It seemed like it started off well, but people seem to be losing interest at the moment. Choke: Why do you think that is? James: There's not enough mention of it in the mainstream martial arts magazines, and there's no mention on TV. Choke: Well in Europe, the scene is massive. James: Yeah, France and Italy are well into it. Choke: Take for instance in Russia recently, there were nearly 6,000 spectators at a show there. Amazing really. Maybe one day here? James: Yeah, that's where the money is generated. Choke: So James, are you happy with the way things are going for you? I mean you are still relatively young. James: Yeah, time is on my side and I'm happy with the way I'm progressing. I've got certain goals that I set myself, and I'm improving in training all the time. Choke: Are you self motivated? James: Very self motivated. I also believe in God and draw a lot of strength from my belief in him. Choke: James, I'd like to say thank you very much, and best of luck with the preparations for your up and coming fight. James: Thanks.
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