What a knockout

Like many mothers, Malcolm Hardmon's mom doesn't like his current love interest.

"My mom, she does not want to watch me fight," said Hardmon, junior in psychology and mixed martial arts fighter. "Her last fight, she said she was absolutely nerve-wracked."

That hasn't stopped Hardmon from pursuing his love of MMA fighting.

"I'm not a violent person by any means; I'm actually one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet," Hardmon said. "But to be completely honest, it is just fun beating people up."

A football player in high school, Hardmon wasn't really looking to start a new sport, but after he broke his back his senior year of high school, that all changed.

"I was going to play football in college--a broken back puts a stop to that, but it healed up, and I found MMA," Hardmon said. "It has been love at first sight."

Hardmon started his career in MMA three years ago after being approached by trainers outside of Winn-Dixie.

"They had just gotten done working out, so they were outside cooling down," Hardmon said. "They saw me in the parking lot and told me to come over there and train with them. "

He said he returned the next day, and thus began his journey.

"It wasn't anything that I expected," Hardmon said. "I was instantly good at it as far as the wrestling and striking."

Since his first day, Hardmon has competed in three fights, winning all three, and is competing for a state title Feb. 19.

Keith Johnson, Hardmon's trainer and professional MMA fighter, said he attributes Hardmon's undefeated streak to commitment and heart.

"He won't quit," Johnson said. "He'll go until he pukes. He pushes his body to that limit every time."

Hardmon is so committed he does little else besides train in the gym and work at Jimmy John's.

He wakes up at 5 or 6 a.m. and drinks a protein shake. He eats a good breakfast and two hours later, eats again.

Then he works out with weights, relaxes and goes to Nutrition First to spar.

Shortly after, he drives to Auburn MMA to train with Johnson and ends the day at work.

One advantage Malcolm has that most of his opponents wouldn't consider a benefit in MMA fighting is hearing loss.

Hardmon was born hearing impaired and wears a hearing aid when he isn't in the ring.

"You get serious tunnel vision during a fight, so it is just you and that guy," Hardmon said. "You are completely focused on him."

Hardmon said it obviously has disadvantages, too.

"My trainer is yelling at me, and I'm like, 'I can't hear you; I don't know what you are saying,'" Hardmon said. "The tips that he would give me I can't follow because I can't hear them."

But like other difficulties, Hardmon finds a way to work it out.

"What I try to do, say we go to the ground, is drag him over to my corner so I can hear them," Hardmon said.

Another advantage he has is his background in psychology.

"You have to play a psychological factor with your fighter," Hardmon said, "like Muhammad Ali--he was the greatest simply because of the psychological games he played on his opponents. "

One trick he uses is adding an opponent on Facebook.

"Not in the case that I want to get to know him because we definitely aren't going to be friends in the ring, but to loosen him up," Hardmon said. "Get him to underestimate me a little bit."

Johnson said psychologically, fighting is like a human chess match.

"There are so many variables at any given time, so if you're not dialed in, you'll get punched in the head or choked out or any number of scenarios," Johnson said.

Recently, Hardmon has been fully committed to preparing for his next fight.

He has maintained a diet of no sugar, fat or carbs and drinks two gallons of water a day.

After taking a year off from MMA in 2010, Hardmon said he is glad to be back.

"I took a hiatus for at least a year, and it kind of messed me up," Hardmon said. "I am a very physical person, and I didn't even work out for a long time. It messes with you mentally."

Hardmon said his break from MMA was because of an ex-girlfriend.

"She broke up with me and messed me up for a while," Hardmon said. "We dated for a year, and things changed. She just came out of left field one day and just cut it off."

Hardmon said he is emotionally driven, and after the breakup, he was devastated.

"If I have something I can hold on to emotionally, I can go pretty far," Hardmon said. "I put all my eggs in one basket. I put them all on her, so I was pretty emotionally drained after that."

Since the breakup, Hardmon is channeling all his emotion on winning his next fight.

"I think he likes getting back into something competitive again," Johnson said. "There is a void there for most guys when they get done with high school. If they don't do something the next level, you know you're either going to get fat and drink a beer or you're going to start fighting in bars."

One thing Hardmon is looking forward to is finishing his degree and getting a fighting nickname.

"I want one so bad," Hardmon said. "A lot of people back home call me the giant teddy bear. I want to do something like Malcolm 'The Eclipse' because I'm black."