Tyrell Fortune Out to Show That He's 'More Than a Just a Wrestler' | MMAWeekly.com

Whether it was high school or college, there were few things that heavyweight prospect Tyrell Fortune didn’t accomplish in the world of wrestling. Multiple championships abounded for Fortune, and now he’s bringing that level of success with him as he prepares to make his MMA debut on November 4.

But with success could come crushing expectations. Thankfully for Fortune, he’s ready to deal with everything that comes with making a highly-publicized transition from wrestling to MMA.

“Yes it’s a fresh start because it’s a new sport, a new arena, that’s completely different from wrestling,” Fortune told MMAWeekly.com. “Because of my wrestling background and having success, I do have that automatic pressure to succeed and be successful, because that’s almost what’s kind of expected.

“To me, it doesn’t feel any different. I feel like I’ve always been expected to win, so it feels the exact same, really.”

Originally introduced to MMA when he was asked to train at Blackzilians with Rashad Evans in preparations for his scheduled fight with Daniel Cormier in 2014, Fortune has quickly adapted to the sport, though not everything has come easy.

“The only thing that’s honestly been hard with the training-side of it was training my muscles,” said Fortune. “Because in wrestling it’s a lot of you holding position and stance, and it’s a lot of pushing and pulling. It’s an adjustment to stand up and move my feet a lot more and punch and kick every day.

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“I was using muscles I hadn’t used my whole life. So that was the biggest adjustment for my muscles, just getting used to throwing 200, 300, punches in a practice, and then come back and throw 300, 400, more punches again. That was the biggest adjustment for me.”

One thing Fortune quickly learned while in training is that he can take a punch to the face, and dish some out in return.

“It was like a head to toe feeling of my whole body just warming up,” he said. “It actually put a smile on my face. It was exciting. It felt good to know I could take this and keep going. I smile and asked for more. (Getting to hit back) was the best part about it too.”

Fortune (0-0) will make his MMA debut on Friday in Uncasville, Conn., against fellow pro newcomer Cody Miskell (0-0) in a preliminary card heavyweight match-up.

“(I’ve) just really go out and focus on myself and not really focus too much on my opponent,” Fortune said. “I’ve got to utilize the techniques I’ve learned and keep it in the position for me to win. I think I’m looking to finish the fight in the first round. Just stay calm and not get overwhelmed, and just go out and fight my fight.”

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While his wrestling has helped make his debut noteworthy, Fortune is looking to show that he’s more than just a one-dimensional fighter on November 4.

“I would like to show that I’m more than just a wrestler,” he said. “During the fight I have to use wrestling obviously, but I would like to utilize the boxing and the kicks and knees I’ve learned. I feel like I’m that position to use wrestling to win the fight – I will do it – but I would like to shy away from wrestling.”

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