Always Prevail
Jordan Showtime Lucas (born 1st January 1994) is a Australian professional Mixed Martial Artists, fighting out of Team Nemesis MMA in Melbourne. Currently signed with ONE Championship (leading promotion in the wold alongside the UFC), competing in the Bantamweight division (135lb/61.2kg). Jordan is currently the #1 ranked Australian fighter in his weight division. Jordan has a ratio of 16 wins (both amateur and pro) to 1 loss. Jordan is well known in Australia for his exciting style, which combines precise high level striking with powerful takedowns and submissions.
Transcript:
"In life there's always going to be people that try and stop you from doing what you want or are always going to tell you you can't do something or be someone. I think, to be honest, that's bullshit because you control your life, and the only outcome is on you. You put in the work. You do what you want. As long as you're happy that's all that matters.
My name is Jordan Lucas. I'm a mixed martial artist from Melbourne, Australia. I'm 22 years of age. I'm the current IKBF Victorian champion, current Australian BRACE champion, and I'm also signed to one of the world's leading promotions ONE Championship.
One of my main inspirations has always been my uncle who was a professional boxer. Looking up to him from a young age made me pretty much get into the sport of boxing, to then move on to mixed martial arts. I haven't had many other inspirations. The way I see it is I'm more self-driven. If you're looking up to the same person all the time the thing should be is you want to be at their level, so why should I look up to someone that one day I'm going to fight or one day I want to be where they are at the moment?
At the age of 15 I joined the local gym, Team Nemesis MMA. One day I just came home from training and spoke to my parents, and just told them that I want to be a fighter. I want to have my first fight. It was kind of a interesting conversation with them because my mom, she's never watched any fight sports. She loves me, and I'm a mama's boy. She looks after me and wants the best for me, but as the supportive parents they were, they understood where I was coming from and I ended up having my first fight.
Since Day 1 training at Team Nemesis, my coach Denis Kelly and also my Muay Thai coach Phillip Lai have seen me grow up, and now when I fight they know everything about me. When I go into my fights having them in the corner it's just comfortable knowing that they're there for my best interest. They know the right things to say to me at the right times, and they're always looking out for me, so in all my fights I've gone into knowing that I've well-prepared and knowing that they've got me there to that point; it's been good. If you're looking for a gym to train at we're your gym.
The support I've had around me has always been one of the best things since I started. My family always supporting me, whether it's my mom cooking my meals, making sure I'm eating the right things, making sure I don't touch any ice cream in the freezer. She is always making sure that I'm on track with my food-wise.
My family always come to my fights. One of my biggest supporters would have to be my old man. He hasn't missed a fight to date. He always comes. No matter where it is, he's always at the show supporting me. I think for me to see that, to look at my old man and see him proud of me, that makes me keep going in this sport, and it makes me proud to see him proud. If I can continue making him proud as a father, then I know I'm doing the right thing.
My first look on the fight scene was I was fighting a 28-year-old. To be honest, after the fight I didn't know if the sport was for me. I gassed out. I couldn't breathe. The whole adrenaline of the experience just got to me in the end, and after that I wasn't sure if I wanted to compete again, but another fight came up, another amateur fight, and I thought, "Why not? We'll give it a go. I had a draw last fight. I'll try and get a win this one." This experience was a whole lot better for me. My second fight I won easily, and then every fight I took it as it come. I had about 10 amateur fights in MMA and in Muay Thai also. I also competed in a lot of jiu-jitsu tournaments.
Moving on to pro, I started my first pro fight as an 18-year-old, and there was a lot of hype behind my first fight. I had fought a guy that I'd fought in amateur scene before, and there was a lot of talk going on, and it was good. I made a good impression and won by knock out in 1 minute and 9 seconds. After that I just knew that this sport was for me.
One of the hardest things for me has always been cutting weight. All my fights I've had to make 61.2 kilos, and from walking around at 73 kilos, now I've fought at that weight since I was a 16-year-old, so getting older, your body changes. It's always been the hardest thing for me. Going out on weekends, watching my mates eat burgers and I got to sit there and eat spinach and chicken isn't the best, but mentally it's pretty good getting one up on my opponents all the time. Now with the new rules that ONE FC have put in, I don't have to cut weight anymore.
My biggest challenge has always been my next opponent ahead of me. Every fight you get it's going to be tougher. The opponent gets better, more credentials, and for me that's my biggest challenge, so always knowing that I have to be training harder than them, putting in the work because if you're not he is, and there's always going to be someone out there better than you.
I think the sport of martial arts for a lot of people to look at it, it looks barbaric, two people fighting in a cage. It's not a good look, but I'd recommend martial arts to any young kid out there with any anger problems, any problem going on with their life. It just teaches you a sense of discipline and just helps you in every aspect of life.
You see a lot of fighters that have been in the sport for a while. They seem to be good at one martial art only, so boxing, jiu-jitsu. They're not well rounded. I think with the more up and coming guys we're the new breed of fighters, so when I started the sport all I knew was mixed martial arts. I was learning every aspect of the sport from the start. Whether it was MMA, Muay Thai, jiu-jitsu, wrestling, I learned it all from the start, so when you see my fights I'm a well-rounded fighter. I'm comfortable wherever the fight goes, and to me it doesn't matter where the fight goes I train in every aspect to be the best wherever I can be.
The main reason behind showtime was pretty much just my style of fighting. If you watch any of my fights I'm always fighting aggressively, walking forward. Ever since the start of my career in my amateur fights it was always the same, so mainly it was pretty much a name that myself and my coaches thought fitted well, and to the day of so far lived up to it.
There's always times when you doubt yourself. You don't know if you should be doing this as a sport, but when I think about all the sacrifices I've made, quitting jobs, not being good at school, this is all I've known since I've been a young kid, so for me I can't give up now. It's inevitable for me to do well in this sport. I have to continue on, and I have to finish what I've started.
When I'm not in the gym I like to hang out with my girlfriend. She has also been a massive part of my success, keeping my head in line. I have a Rottweiler. My little boy, he's also a big part of my life, walking him, whether it's on the weekends, during the week before training. Also like playing guitar, playing poker with the boys on the weekend, checking out the street out of Melbourne. I like riding my bike on the weekends, to training, whenever it's good weather to get it out.
I have a lot of unusual hobbies, but for me it works. I like to be the best at everything I do, and when I pick up something I have to work until I'm the best at it. I'm a very stubborn person, and I think that's also a massive part in why I'm good at this sport.
One of my most recent hobbies is my new bike. I've spent a lot of time working on it, getting parts in from America and just customising it to what I like. We've also got some of the best streets around Melbourne to cruise around. We've got the city, Bolte Bridge, some real cool places, and when I'm not training in the gym it also helps clearing my head a bit just to get out on the bike.
My biggest accomplishment today would have to be winning the BRACE Australian title. Pretty much it was a eight-man tournament filled up with eight of Australia's best fighters. I was the youngest one to enter it. Before that, not many promoters in Australia had given me a chance to showcase my skills, and the BRACE promoter, Kya Pate willingly gave me an opportunity to fight on his show. I had three of the toughest match-ups I've faced to date.
My main motivation has always been just seeing my support base, my family always happy after one of my wins. I think that's what drives me the most is just to know that getting in that cage and getting my win is just going to see my family happy. I'm going to come home. Everyone is congratulating me. I've worked hard to be there. They've always supported me, and that's my main motivation.
I think whenever I doubt myself, whenever I'm not feeling good about anything I just think about what I've been through, what my family has been through and how close-knit we are. One of my favourite quotes would have to be from one of my favourite movies, The Crow, which I've actually got tattooed on my leg, which says, "It can't rain all the time." For me, my perspective on this is that no matter how bad the weather is or how tough times are, the sun will always prevail, and in the end everything will be all right.
Looking into the future outside of MMA I see myself one day being married, having a family of my own, bringing my kids up the right way like my parents have brought me up, also wanting to own a successful gym and bringing people the same inspiration and the same traits that my gym has given me. I've learned a lot from the sport of MMA, and I'd love to give back one day to what I've been given.
Obviously fighting doesn't pay the bills and you have to work. I work in the construction industry, so it's not easy on the body. I wake up at 7:00, finish at 3:00. Then I train from 4:00 to 7:30, 8:30 onwards. I think for me just that motivation, working a full day and then having to go to training, since a young kid starting the sport I've always had it in my head that I wanted to be a world champion, that I wanted to be successful in my sport, and that just drives me to keep going.
To get in my car, I know that once I'm at the gym I have to put in the work. I can't turn back and go home. It's just picking yourself up, staying true to your words and just putting yourself in the position to be where you want to be. You just have to keep going. Once you're there you have no choice but to continue.
2015 wasn't a good year for me at all. It started off pretty bad. I broke my ankle, which had me sitting out for most of the year. Finally towards the end of the year I got my first fight lined up, my debut for ONE Championship against a tough opponent. That led me into another bad week. My grandpa, who I was very close with, passed away, and also my best mate's mom died of cancer. Then to finish off the week, I copped a cut to my eye which led me pulling out of the fight, so 2015 I just want to put it in the past.
2016 I think is going to be a massive turnaround. I'm hoping to have around three fights this year, and I really want to put myself in a position where I'm going for that ONE FC World Championship. That's what I'm aiming for. Every year I've set different goals, and most of the times I've completed all my goals just being stubborn about it. This year I've set myself some new goals. I want to be top 5 ranked in the ONE Championship bantamweight division, and I really want to put myself in contention at a world title shot.
I feel that goals are very important because that way without them you're not setting yourself for any standards. For me, I want to set my goals. I want to live up to my standards. Anyone that's ever doubted me I'm going to prove you wrong, and I'm going to do what I've said I will."
Proudly produced by Bulk Powders.
All official fight footage is accredited to:
-BRACE MMA Australia
-ONE Fight Championship
Songs Used:
-Mark Petrie - Kara Kul
-Audiomachine - Helios
-Wizard - Sixth Birthday
-Our Flame Shall Endure
-Audiomachine - Ice of Phoenix
Special thanks to Nemesis MMA.
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