Fighters of New York: Austin Wolfson

At the young age of 12, Austin Wolfson met Coach Spiro, a man who would be a key figure in his life for years to come and help fuel one of his favorite hobbies to date – MMA. Initially, training in martial arts was a lot for Wolfson. “I couldn’t always keep up with it and it was always a struggle to do the mitt work and pad sessions,” he explained. Fifteen years later, Wolfson is undefeated as an amateur with a record of 3-0, and is ready for his next challenge, September 9th on KTFO’s fight card.

Austin in the cage as trainers Spiro and Keith of Bell,ore Kickboxing MMA coach from outside the cage

Originally from Merrick, NY, but now residing in Long Beach, NY, Wolfson is proudly representing Bellmore Kickboxing Academy. Due to his natural competitiveness, going through a fight camp is no different than any other time of the year for this fighter. “To be honest there’s never really a camp for me,” said Wolfson. “The worst thing a fighter, or an athlete can do is get out of shape, because it’s like the worst feeling in the world having to get back into shape.” Getting out of shape is one thing that looks very unlikely for Wolfson. Outside of fight life, Wolfson is a 7th grade special education math teacher. He is also a volleyball and wrestling coach for the Bellmore/Merrick school district, but none of his responsibilities slow down his training. “I’m always there [the gym] in the morning before I go teach. I wake up around 5:30 a.m and I train whether I’m fighting or not fighting,” said Wolfson. While the grind would make many cringe, Wolfson enjoys training and maintaining great cardio, and says he works on cardio at least 6 days a week, all year round, no matter what. “The only difference is I may not spar as much, but once camp starts I’m sparring 2-3 time a week.”

NYFE Fight night

To describe his style as a fighter, Wolfson uses one key word – “Pressure.” “One thing about my fights so far is that I’ve been able to keep constant pressure,” he said. “The stand up, the take downs, the BJJ, that has all been a work in progress, but for one thing, I’ve always been able to apply pressure to my opponent.” Applying pressure to his opponents allows him to push the pace of the fight, with his dedicated cardio regimen providing an advantage. “One thing I feel like I always have an edge on is cardio, because that’s probably one of the things that’s the most fun for me to train, I don’t know why.”

Ready for another round

The 27 year old fighter is set to match up against amateur MMA fighter Devin Dickens, and feels ready both physically and mentally. “I’m not really one of those guy who gets all pumped up or ‘you can’t talk to me a week before the fight’ or anything like that,” said Wolfson. “Just really calm, and I try to stay as casual as possible during the weigh-ins and leading up to it, and I try to be very strategic.” As many fighters know, the training leading up to the fight itself is the hard part, which leaves an opportunity for fun and enjoyment during the actually competition. “It’s just really staying out of my own head,” said Wolfson. “Your biggest opponent is yourself, so you have to stay focused and, whether it’s win or lose, you have to give your best performance.”

Victory as coach Spiro looks on

One of Wolfson’s biggest inspirations is his dad. He told New York Fighting that the reason he really got into MMA stems from back in the day when his father, who also trained with Spiro, Wolfson’s current trainer, had one amateur kickboxing fight — one he will never forget. “I was like 10 or 12 years old, and the fans boo’d him and it was tough being there because your dad is your idol,” said Wolfson. “He was definitely an inspiration for me to do more and do better than he was able to do, because I’m very competitive, even with him.” However, even the most competitive ones look forward to some downtime. To be specific – Sunday football. “After the fight I’m looking forward to Sunday football, pizza and wings,” said Wolfson. “ I couldn’t be happier that the fight is on a Friday, so I will be able to go out and enjoy my Saturday, and then Sunday I just can’t wait to relax and watch football.” He says no matter the outcome, he is going to have a great day, and root for his home team, the New York Giants.
Going into this fight, Wolfson plans to apply lots of pressure to his opponent, Dickens. “He’s a predominant wrestler and he’s a righty, so I have reach and height on him, but whether he is 5’8 or not, I’m not sure…those listings can always be wrong,” explained Wolfson. Above all, Austin Wolfson is looking forward to getting back in the cage and gaining more experience. “I just gotta win, that’s it,” he said. Improvement is a big deal to Wolfson and he hopes to do better than he did in previous bouts. “The last one I was dominated pretty good, and then I got caught with the right hand, almost got knocked out, but I was able to go forward and I knocked him out.” His hopes for the fight ahead of him? “Less damage, same result.”

Writer: Janah Campbell/The Fight Chick

Photos: Matt Culley