Cole Miller - Motivated By Change
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- Category: UFC News
- Published on Tuesday, 09 August 2011 05:00
- Written by By Jordan Newmark
In 2011, Cole Miller has been making changes and he plans to make more of them.
It might not be visible on the surface, but Miller is a changed man. On August 14th in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, when he steps into the Octagon to face TJ O’Brien, on the outside Miller will still be the 6-1, skinny, lightweight with the dangerous submission game. But, on the inside, The Ultimate Fighter season 5 alum will be running high on something he says he hasn’t felt in a long time: motivation.
“I think for every fight you have to have some type of motivation,” says Miller. “You definitely need motivation, which is something I haven't had in the past year I would say. I've been winning fights, but I think I've been getting burned out mentally, and, on occasion, physically, as I've been dealing with some injuries.”
The watershed moment for Miller was in January at UFC Fight For The Troops 2 in a decision loss to Matt Wiman. Riding back-to-back wins that were also back-to-back “Submission of the Night” bonus award winners, Miller entered the cage against Wiman trying to put together his first three fight win streak in the UFC. Instead, Miller lost to Wiman in a fight he would simply like to forget. “I sucked that night and I'm trying to pretend that night never happened, like it was a bad nightmare.”
The first change the 27 year old made since the loss was getting back to having fun. “Something I neglected for a long time was personal hobbies,” admits Miller. It may seem obvious, but a fighter needs to give both their body and brain a break from fighting from time to time. “I was just fighting and training and that was it. I didn't really have things that I liked to do for fun, which is why I was feeling over-trained or burned out. I was like, I need to get some hobbies.”
The American Top Team star’s recreational activities range from playing video games to training for triathlons. Two of the hobbies that eat up most of the 17-5 Miller’s free time are rooted in a desire for completion. The first is his notable background in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Miller is a brown belt under Ricardo Liborio, and rolling with a gi is not just fun for him, but he believes it also helps his ground game for MMA, despite what some critics believe.
