It is all about taking the next step for professional mixed-martial arts fighter Adam ‘Prime Time’ Townsend.
The Hampton native has made waves in the MMA circuit throughout his career and added another notch in his belt coming off a first round victory by submission against Jorge Medina during the main event of V3 Fights hosted in Nashville on Nov. 22.
The win was No. 11 for Townsend on the pro-circuit and capped off a 2014 fight season that opened with a loss against Nate Landweher.
“I was real down on myself there,” Townsend said. “I was 6-3, I took time off and trained to better myself.”
Since then, the fighter rattled off a five straight wins and will open 2015 with a tough test ahead starring in the Apex Fights 4 main event against Craig Johnson. The fight is scheduled Jan. 10 at Sullivan Central High School in Blountville, Tenn.
“It’ll be the toughest fight I’ve had,” Townsend said. “He’s bigger than me and has a 7-3 record, professionally, and I think it was 10-0 as an amateur. He’s a well-rounded fighter – more of a wrestler. From what I’ve seen, he doesn’t change his gameplan much. He wants to keep it on the ground but if he keeps it standing, I feel good about it. I’m looking forward to the jiu-jitsu part of it.”
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Mastering the craft
With his last fight at the end of November, Townsend was able to escape for a quick breather.
“I spent a week,” he said. “Getting things done at the house, spending time with my boys and just got a chance to relax.”
Since that week, Townsend can been seen at Evolution Sports Gym in Elizabethton gearing up for the fight, training with D-Evil – the gym’s fight team.
“I’ve had a lot people say that,” Townsend laughed when asked about a break. “Normally fighters will take two months off before going into their training camps, and I go straight into it after a fight. The fight’s around seven weeks away and I’ve been training to get ready.”
The facilities at Evolution Gym, along with the training, has been key for the success, according to Townsend.
“Joey (Carrier) has been great,” Townsend said of the gym’s owner. “When you train here, it’s no joke. From the sprints to training in the cage. I encourage everybody to come out and join up with the gym. It’s a great family atmosphere, it has great facilities and it’s not expensive at all.”
Credit also goes out to coaches Caleb Cupp and Dustin Walden.
“They’re great coaches,” Townsend said. “When you train with them, you’re just going to get better.”
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The next step
“Prime Time” has become the hot-ticket name across the state in the octagon.
From Nashville to Pigeon Forge and even trips to Atlantic City, Townsend has turned a dream into a reality.
“My goal without a doubt is to get into the UFC,” he explained. “All the hours training, I want to be able to maximize the chance I can to make the most money I can in something I love. Opportunities are few and far between and fighters come in dozens. I feel like I’m making the right moves in my career to get to that point.”
A new manager also helps. Sam Caplan will represent Townsend in 2015 and boasts an extensive resume under his belt including working with Bellator and 365 Fight Management.
“I’m really can’t wait to work with Sam,” Townsend said. “We’re working together in 2015. He’s a big time name in MMA.”
Townsend knows how to keep busy when he’s not training. The fighter has a podcast that is featured every Wednesday at www.blogtalkradio.com/primetimemma.
“It’s a fun thing,” he said. “We spend around 30 minutes each week talking about MMA, we bring in guests. It’s a way to grow and connect with the MMA community.
Townsend can be found on Twitter: @AdamTownsendMMA.
Townsend can also be found on Facebook: facebook.com/AdamPrimeTimeMMA
