Jesse Finney Buys H.I.T. Squad, Matt Hughes and Coaches Remain

Matt Hughes at UFC 123

Representatives from the H.I.T. Squad gym on Wednesday announced that they are under new ownership. The Granite City, Illinois, training facility of UFC Hall of Famer Matt Hughes is now officially “Finney’s H.I.T. Squad.”

The new owner is Jesse Finney. A Strikeforce veteran with a 6-1 overall professional record, the 36-year-old Finney already owns Finney’s MMA in St. Louis.

Hughes will reportedly continue training at Finney’s H.I.T. Squad and the coaching staff – headed up by Marc Fiore and Kyle Watson – will remain intact.

“We are very excited about working with Matt Hughes, Marc Fiore, and Kyle Watson,” said Finney. “The H.I.T. Squad (now Finney’s H.I.T. Squad) is already considered one of the top MMA gyms in the world. Our goal is to make it THE top MMA gym. We have already begun making improvements to both training facilities, improvements that will ultimately generate bigger and better opportunities for our fighters as we evolve.”

A full size competition cage has been installed in Finney’s H.I.T. Squad facility as a result of the new ownership, and they have already begun implementing the Shamrock Fighter Development System (SDS). The system mirrors that of Major League Baseball, where players start out in a development league and work their way up based on their skills and performance.

“This is a positive change that will generate new opportunities for the gym and make the H.I.T. Squad brand even stronger,” commented Fiore. “The new build out has added value to the facility and our stable of fighters has already increased from 40 to 80. We are all very excited about the direction the gym is going.”

Finney’s MMA and Finney’s H.I.T. Squad are both 20,000 square foot state-of-the-art facilities that cater to professional fighters, as well as the general public. Classes are offered in boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, jiu-jitsu, mixed martial arts, wrestling, and sports conditioning.