Growing Up Fighting
Tommy Messano Sep 21, 2007
Dan Lauzon (Pictures) made history at UFC 64.
When the bell sounded to begin his bout against UFC lightweight contender Spencer Fisher (Pictures), Lauzon became the youngest fighter to compete inside the Octagon. He was 18 years, six months and 14 days old.
Lauzon had taken the fight on just six days notice. After scoring a
quick single-leg takedown, he opened a cut over Fisher's right eye.
The fight eventually returned to the feet, though, and Lauzon
joined Fisher's highlight reel via TKO 4:38 into the first
round.
"What I learned is don't take a fight on short notice," Lauzon said. "It hurt me a lot to cut the weight. Two weeks before, I was walking around at 180 pounds."
This was not Lebron James at 18, given the much-publicized task of saving his hometown team. This was not 2007 NFL first-round pick Amobi Okoye, who at 19 famously became the youngest player drafted since the 1970 merger.
Lauzon is neither savior nor prodigy. He is simply a hardworking, young fighter trying to return to a place many MMA fighters wish to be.
Nearly a year after his UFC loss to Fisher, Lauzon fights Friday in Wilmington, Mass., in the main event of a World Championship Fighting card. A native of nearby Bridgewater, Mass., he will take on Wayne Harnois.
Following the Fisher loss, Lauzon took some time to regroup. He wasn't focused when he returned in January 2007, and he lost his second fight, this time to the relatively unknown Deividas Taurosevicius (Pictures).
"I had a lot stuff going on in my personal life," Lauzon said. "It was a horrible fight. I didn't fight the way I know how to. I lost that fight before I even came out of the locker room."
He bounced back in June, however, with a victory over MMA journeyman James Meals.
Harnois, his opponent on Friday, doesn't evoke even a second thought from Lauzon.
"I think I'm going to be better at everything than he is," he said. "Standing up it doesn't look like he has too much to offer. I've seen him fight a couple of weeks ago and wasn't impressed."
Harnois' 1-2 record wouldn't intimidate most UFC veterans, but a setback to a fighter of his caliber could prolong Lauzon's route back to the big stage.
If the pressure of being a teenage pro athlete wasn't enough, Lauzon has the added weight on his shoulders that comes with his family's growing reputation.
When his older brother, Joe, became a kind of cult hero after he knocked out former lightweight champ Jens Pulver (Pictures), the surname "Lauzon" suddenly resonated with MMA fans.
Dan was Joe's corner the night of the upset win. Four years separated the brothers, but MMA had joined them when Joe began training.
"Joe started training two years before me," Dan Lauzon (Pictures) said. "He came home and showed me what he learned, and I was hooked on it."
The Lauzon brothers are opposites in many areas of their lives, and a friendly rivalry exists regarding their MMA skills.
"I still think my wrestling is better than his," Dan said. "He's a lot smoother on the ground than me. His jiu-jitsu is a lot slicker."
Don't look for a fight between the Lauzon brothers anytime soon. If for no other reason, Dan plans a move up to welterweight in the near future.
"I think right now 155 pounds is tough for me because I walk around at 180-185," he said. "I diet down pretty well to 160-165, then I just cut before fight time. I'd rather fight at 170 pounds, but right now I think I'm just too small for 170. I need to bulk up a little bit."
The timetable for Lauzon's return to the UFC is unset at this point, but the promotion issued an open invitation after his gutsy performance against Fisher.
"I signed a one-fight contract and a three-fight deal," Lauzon said. "If I would have won, the three-fight deal would have went right into effect. The UFC told me I could fight right after the Spencer fight, but I didn't really want to. I wanted to get out and get more experience. I'm just trying to throw some wins together, get a win streak going. I'm hoping four or five more fights, and I'll be back."
Meals was one win, and Harnois could be another on Friday.
A few more strong showings, a little more time, and Lauzon could return to the UFC a much-improved and matured competitor. At that point, being the youngest UFC rookie won't be his claim to fame anymore.
It will just be the beginning of what he expects to be a long and storied career.
When the bell sounded to begin his bout against UFC lightweight contender Spencer Fisher (Pictures), Lauzon became the youngest fighter to compete inside the Octagon. He was 18 years, six months and 14 days old.
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"What I learned is don't take a fight on short notice," Lauzon said. "It hurt me a lot to cut the weight. Two weeks before, I was walking around at 180 pounds."
Unlike other athletes, Lauzon's entrance into the Super Bowl of
mixed martial arts was met with little publicity.
This was not Lebron James at 18, given the much-publicized task of saving his hometown team. This was not 2007 NFL first-round pick Amobi Okoye, who at 19 famously became the youngest player drafted since the 1970 merger.
Lauzon is neither savior nor prodigy. He is simply a hardworking, young fighter trying to return to a place many MMA fighters wish to be.
Nearly a year after his UFC loss to Fisher, Lauzon fights Friday in Wilmington, Mass., in the main event of a World Championship Fighting card. A native of nearby Bridgewater, Mass., he will take on Wayne Harnois.
Following the Fisher loss, Lauzon took some time to regroup. He wasn't focused when he returned in January 2007, and he lost his second fight, this time to the relatively unknown Deividas Taurosevicius (Pictures).
"I had a lot stuff going on in my personal life," Lauzon said. "It was a horrible fight. I didn't fight the way I know how to. I lost that fight before I even came out of the locker room."
He bounced back in June, however, with a victory over MMA journeyman James Meals.
Harnois, his opponent on Friday, doesn't evoke even a second thought from Lauzon.
"I think I'm going to be better at everything than he is," he said. "Standing up it doesn't look like he has too much to offer. I've seen him fight a couple of weeks ago and wasn't impressed."
Harnois' 1-2 record wouldn't intimidate most UFC veterans, but a setback to a fighter of his caliber could prolong Lauzon's route back to the big stage.
If the pressure of being a teenage pro athlete wasn't enough, Lauzon has the added weight on his shoulders that comes with his family's growing reputation.
When his older brother, Joe, became a kind of cult hero after he knocked out former lightweight champ Jens Pulver (Pictures), the surname "Lauzon" suddenly resonated with MMA fans.
Dan was Joe's corner the night of the upset win. Four years separated the brothers, but MMA had joined them when Joe began training.
"Joe started training two years before me," Dan Lauzon (Pictures) said. "He came home and showed me what he learned, and I was hooked on it."
The Lauzon brothers are opposites in many areas of their lives, and a friendly rivalry exists regarding their MMA skills.
"I still think my wrestling is better than his," Dan said. "He's a lot smoother on the ground than me. His jiu-jitsu is a lot slicker."
Don't look for a fight between the Lauzon brothers anytime soon. If for no other reason, Dan plans a move up to welterweight in the near future.
"I think right now 155 pounds is tough for me because I walk around at 180-185," he said. "I diet down pretty well to 160-165, then I just cut before fight time. I'd rather fight at 170 pounds, but right now I think I'm just too small for 170. I need to bulk up a little bit."
The timetable for Lauzon's return to the UFC is unset at this point, but the promotion issued an open invitation after his gutsy performance against Fisher.
"I signed a one-fight contract and a three-fight deal," Lauzon said. "If I would have won, the three-fight deal would have went right into effect. The UFC told me I could fight right after the Spencer fight, but I didn't really want to. I wanted to get out and get more experience. I'm just trying to throw some wins together, get a win streak going. I'm hoping four or five more fights, and I'll be back."
Meals was one win, and Harnois could be another on Friday.
A few more strong showings, a little more time, and Lauzon could return to the UFC a much-improved and matured competitor. At that point, being the youngest UFC rookie won't be his claim to fame anymore.
It will just be the beginning of what he expects to be a long and storied career.
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