Josh Ford – An interview by Joe Ware          

Recently I was able to do some interviewing with Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt, Josh Ford. Josh recently scored an impressive win at the latest Fight 2 Win M.M.A. event in Denver Colorado.  In his first professional fight he scored a victory over Travis Hollis via sick heel hook. The questions that rose in my mind while watching his fight was this; what brought Josh this far into the game of fighting? What is the man behind Josh Ford. I have been fortunate enough to train under Professor Ford, so I’ll share my experience and perceptions. I also decided on a list of questions that would further help see the motivation, heart, and desire of one of my favorite black belts in the art that we call Jiu Jitsu.

            While training at Easton’s Brazilian Jiu Jitsu in early 2009, I remember briefly seeing Josh on the mat. He was a brown belt back then. The first thing I remember was he was a tough looking individual. I mean the guy has tattoos on his face. I imagined him as this mean dude who would probably choke me in a million ways just by looking at him wrong. A couple weeks later I learned that yes, he could choke me out in a million ways if he wanted too. I also learned that he was the most laid back guy I had ever met. After taking his classes I also learned he had a passion for Jiu Jitsu, and teaching that I had never seen before. His classes were physically demanding, intense, and fun as hell. His approach to Jiu Jitsu is very unique. I would certainly guess that all the great teachers he had in the past molded him into the awesome teacher/fighter he is today. What also is noteworthy, is the fact that Josh owns a tattoo shop in downtown Denver. He’s a fulltime father to 2 kids. He teaches Jiu Jitsu @Easton Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He also works and trains with some very high level fighters @ Grudge Training Center in Wheat Ridge Colorado. How does this guy find enough time in a day to accomplish so much? Well I decided to ask Mr Ford some questions about fighting, training, and some personal insight. Enjoy the ride.

Joe Ware: How did you get into the sport of M.M.A. and Jiu Jitsu?

Josh Ford: ““Originally I got into M.M.A. through training Jiu Jitsu.  I moved back to Denver in 2003, weighing 230 pounds and started training as much as possible at Colorado BJJ under Dave Ruiz.  A few friends of mine started training as well, and we all kind of got each other pumped up into trying M.M.A.  I fought a couple of times in 2004 and 2005, but wasn’t really taking it seriously.
In the beginning of 2006 I started a business and didn’t have the time to train hard enough to fight, so I just focused on bjj.  I would always get the itch to fight, but I would try and convince myself that I didn’t have time or whatever else I could put in the way.
In the summer of 2009, I received my black belt in bjj from Mauricio Zingano.  He was one of the instructors along with my teammate Tyrone Glover and my friend Luiz Claudio, who I feel really pushed me through the stages of purple, brown and eventually into my black belt.  I think after achieving that, I started to think more about fighting again.
I had also started tattooing Shane Carwin.  I had moved over to the Easton BJJ academies, and met him there.  When I would tattoo him, we’d talk about fighting and he would always kind of prod me about fighting again.  Between him and some of my Easton teammates training at Grudge, I went down to check it out.  After going there a few times I decided I’d give fighting another shot.
It took me awhile to get into the groove of training at that level again, but once it was set in I was hooked.  At Grudge I felt that there was a real fight team atmosphere, great coaches and the training partners I have gives me a much different level of confidence going into fights than I had before.
I feel now, that I’m training as a fighter should.  I eat right, train right and I’m surrounded with phenomenal and gifted teammates.

Joe Ware: What is your favorite strike, or submission to use in any fight?

Josh Ford: “ Hmmmmm…. pretty much anything that is going to win the fight, haha.  As a BJJ Black belt, I’m always a fan of submissions.  I’d probably say the rear naked choke.  To me, that submission means complete dominance.”

Joe Ware: Who is your biggest inspiration?

Josh Ford: “That’s a tough one.  I definitely see GSP as an inspiration.  After hearing the story of his fight with Dan Hardy, where he went into the locker room after the fight and immediately asked his coaches why he didn’t finish his submission attempts… man, that blew my mind and really made me see a level of discipline and drive that I hadn’t completely understood yet.

Really, there are a lot of guys who inspire me.  One of my teammates Tyrone Glover is always an inspiration for me to strive to get better.  He is so good on the mat, and I always see him looking to improve, it’s definitely a charge being around that.”

Joe Ware: Who do you consider your most helpful training partners?

Josh Ford: “My whole team are the most helpful training partners.  There are so many talented guys at Grudge, and they all bring different things to the table.  I think we all help to sharpen our strengths and to build up and overcome our weaknesses.”

Joe Ware: As of now, do you like to stand or take your opponents to the ground more?

Josh Ford: “I’d have to go with the ground.  That’s my strength, that’s where I think the fight plays more into a chess match.  I work on my stand up a lot, but it only takes one shot to put you down.”

Joe Ware: Why do you fight? What does it mean to be a fighter to you?

Josh Ford: “I just have the desire to test myself.  I’m not fighting for the money or fame, I just like the idea of combat between two warriors.  It’s the ultimate personal test, not just physically, but mentally.  In the preparation for the fight, you go through so many different stages of what to deal with, it shows what can really be accomplished when you put in the work.”

Joe Ware: What holes do you see in your game that you would like to work on?

Josh Ford: “I have a lot of holes, ha!  Stand up for sure, but working with my coach Trevor Wittman, he’s helping me to understand the concepts of striking instead of just getting in there and winging punches and kicks.

I’m always trying to work on my wrestling when I can.  I have some real good wrestlers on my team, Justin Salas who was a division 1 all american, Jarred Mercado who wrestled at Northwestern, they help me a lot.

My jiu jitsu is always a work in progress.  I have a black belt, but to me, that was just the beginning.  All my work up to black belt was more of preparation and understanding to really start to learn BJJ in my opinion.”

Joe Ware: What separates you from other fighters in the same community as you?

Josh Ford: “Not really sure.  I try not to compare myself to the smaller pond, but to the top tier guys out there.  I strive to have a good diet, work on my conditioning and my technical abilities.  I don’t think that really separates me, but I work hard.”

Joe Ware: If you could have a dream fight with anyone, who would it be with?

Josh Ford: “My dream fights?  Probably with some of the bullies I dealt with in high school, hahaha!  No, I don’t really know.  One day I’d like to be able to test myself against some of the best in the sport, but I’m okay with the baby steps.”

Joe Ware: What do you want people to remember about your fighting, training, and work ethic in general?

Josh Ford: “I hope that I can show people that I’m a smart fighter.  I would rather be remembered for good technical fights over sloppy gritty shows of heart.  I do train hard, and I feel that my work ethic is very strong, especially considering the rest of my life.  If I could train 3 times a day, I would.  For now, with my work, another business and taking care of my kids, I do the best I can and get in as much work in the training room as possible.”

           After asking Professor Ford these questions, I realized not only more about him, but the important values and discipline it takes to be a fighter in the first place. Jiu Jitsu is not only about what happens on the mat, but also about the way you learn to conduct yourself off the mat as well. You learn that fighting is an honorable thing. It takes years to master, and even then one does not ever truly master it. It’s a journey that takes every one of us to different places. I’d like to thank Josh for taking the time to give us some insight to his views of fighting. He’s made Jiu Jitsu more fun for me in the past for sure.

Fightfan.net would like to thank guest writer Joe Ware for his contribution to the site.