Latest / Caught on the Mike... / Dynasty Combat Sports: Zayden Edwards

Transcript

Dynasty Combat Sports: Zayden Edwards · Caught on the Mike...

0:00
SPEAKER_01: Disclaimer, the views and opinions expressed in this program are those of the speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of any entities they represent.
0:11
SPEAKER_01: Listener discretion is advised.
0:26
SPEAKER_01: Mike fans, are you ready?
0:28
SPEAKER_01: I am super excited because I am joined by my co-anchor at the Dynasty Announce Team Desk and the host of the Sports With Death podcast, Caleb Betzel.
0:38
SPEAKER_01: This week we are teaming up for a special series covering Dynasty Combat Sports season beating, taking place at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska on Friday, November 21st.
0:47
SPEAKER_01: Today we are talking with Omaha, Nebraska's own David Edwards, a premier combat center fighter whose data has made waves with a lightning fast 18 seconds dimension and the kind of grip that keeps fans on their feet.
1:00
SPEAKER_01: With a growing record and relentless work ethic, he's proving what Midwest topics look like inside the cake.
1:06
SPEAKER_01: Ladies and gentlemen, this is Caught on the Mic.
1:16
SPEAKER_01: Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to another exciting episode of Caught on the Mic.
1:20
SPEAKER_01: This episode is included in Dynasty Combat Sports Fight Week with Caught on the Mic ahead of season's beatings.
1:29
SPEAKER_01: It is my most favorite Dynasty Combat Sports event, and I'm calling it at my most favorite venue, the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln.
1:38
SPEAKER_01: It's my favorite place to call fights.
1:41
SPEAKER_01: Joining me on the podcast today is the smarter half of the Dynasty Combat Sports commentary team.
1:49
SPEAKER_01: He hosts a podcast called Sports with Bets.
1:52
SPEAKER_01: You can find it on Spotify and YouTube.
1:55
SPEAKER_01: Make sure you give him those subs.
1:57
SPEAKER_01: Caleb Betzold.
1:58
SPEAKER_02: Thank you so much for letting me be a part of this.
2:00
SPEAKER_02: If I'm the smarter half, then you've got to at least be the better looking half.
2:03
SPEAKER_02: You're the more attractive half of the of the commentary crew for sure.
2:06
SPEAKER_02: Um we've we've got a very exciting interview today.
2:11
SPEAKER_02: We've got the man, the myth, the legend, Zaydan Edwards.
2:14
SPEAKER_02: Uh coming up, he's got uh you know three-and-two record in the amateur MMA scene.
2:20
SPEAKER_02: Got a big fight coming up November 21st at PBA uh for Dynasty Combat Sports.
2:26
SPEAKER_02: Zaydan, how you feeling, man?
2:29
SPEAKER_00: Man, I'm feeling good.
2:30
SPEAKER_00: Thank you guys for having me on.
2:32
SPEAKER_00: I really appreciate it.
2:33
SPEAKER_00: It's always good to spend some more time with you guys.
2:35
SPEAKER_01: Oh man, the feeling is mutual.
2:37
SPEAKER_01: I gotta tell you, the very first time I saw you, I'm like, how the hell old is this kid?
2:44
SPEAKER_01: And then I watched you fight.
2:46
SPEAKER_01: And I've told Caleb this before, and he can attest to this.
2:49
SPEAKER_01: I watched such smoothness in your movements.
2:55
SPEAKER_01: You remind me so much of my most favorite fighter, one Mr.
3:00
SPEAKER_01: Justin Gagey.
3:01
SPEAKER_01: And please take that as high praise because he is my most favorite fighter.
3:06
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
3:07
SPEAKER_00: I mean, like, yeah, and that first fight was something else.
3:11
SPEAKER_00: That was definitely a memory that's gonna stay in the brain as long as I live.
3:15
SPEAKER_02: Well, I will say, Zayden, and this I'm gonna say something that might piss some people off in our gym.
3:20
SPEAKER_02: I don't, I'm not really concerned about that necessarily because I mean it as a compliment to you.
3:25
SPEAKER_02: Um, you know, Premier Combat has a pretty stacked roster of fighters right now.
3:30
SPEAKER_02: In my personal opinion, if you look at the best fighters in our gym, I'm going Mason Dykes, number one, and I'm going Zayden Edwards, number two.
3:39
SPEAKER_02: Um I think I formed that opinion out of the uh uh after the Noah, was it Noah?
3:44
SPEAKER_02: I can't remember how to pronounce his last name.
3:46
SPEAKER_02: After you fought Noah Ulridge, yeah.
3:50
SPEAKER_00: Ulridge.
3:51
SPEAKER_02: After I saw that fight, man, that was I was just absolutely sold and bought in.
3:56
SPEAKER_02: Um so I guess, you know, kind of starting there, what is what is your day-to-day kind of looking like?
4:02
SPEAKER_02: You know, uh, what is what is the grind look like?
4:04
SPEAKER_02: What has camp been looking like?
4:05
SPEAKER_02: How often are you training?
4:07
SPEAKER_02: How's your health?
4:08
SPEAKER_02: You know, give us uh give us an update on Zayden Edwards, how how are you feeling?
4:11
SPEAKER_00: No complaints.
4:12
SPEAKER_00: I mean, at Premier Combat, you know, we like you said, just absolute stacked roster.
4:18
SPEAKER_00: And I personally want to put myself number two in our gym.
4:22
SPEAKER_00: We got so many, dude, it's insane.
4:25
SPEAKER_00: From the Miners to Mason to Tucker, Michael Edelin, and then uh like Isaiah.
4:31
SPEAKER_00: There's just so many names that you can toss into that little pool, and we're all just there making each other better.
4:37
SPEAKER_00: And uh right now, training wise, um, with school and everything going on, Tuesdays and Thursdays, I'm in there uh during the morning classes between like 10 o'clock, one o'clock, getting some jujitsu, some pad work in, and then same thing on Thursday, and then I try and get in on Friday, Friday evening for some no-gi jujitsu, get that going, and then oh yeah, Tuesday and Thursdays nights too, you know, the CAP class with either Coach Jensen or Coach Derek there, just always getting some work in.
5:05
SPEAKER_00: Love that.
5:05
SPEAKER_01: Now, let me ask you this.
5:08
SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, we we kind of Caleb asked you about what your current training regimen is.
5:14
SPEAKER_01: What was your pathway to MMA?
5:17
SPEAKER_01: Like, how did you wake up one morning and decide, you know what?
5:21
SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna be a fighter.
5:22
SPEAKER_00: Man, growing up, I did uh pee-wee wrestling when I was like four or five, you know, just something all almost every I think every kid should do, at least just to experience that.
5:32
SPEAKER_00: But uh and then I kind of quit, got sick of it because you know, when you're a kid, you don't want to do anything that's difficult, want to take it easy, but and then growing up, I did cross country track and then football.
5:46
SPEAKER_00: Uh when I was still like too young.
5:49
SPEAKER_00: High school, just track cross-country, and then I did wrestling my last two years of my high school career, and then I was always so against MMA, like watching UFC growing up, and then one day, just the more and more you watch the sport, the more you're like, Man, this is seriously the best sport in the world.
6:07
SPEAKER_00: Like, there's just nothing better than it.
6:09
SPEAKER_00: And then started training one day, my first day at Premiere.
6:12
SPEAKER_00: I remember training Tiefs with uh Tucker.
6:15
SPEAKER_00: Man, just no idea what I was doing.
6:16
SPEAKER_00: He was trying to help me as best as he could, but I was just fumbling over myself, just so uncoordinated.
6:22
SPEAKER_01: I love that, man.
6:24
SPEAKER_01: Like, do you know the exact moment where that switched flipped for you and you decided, you know, maybe I maybe I should take this sport a little bit more seriously?
6:33
SPEAKER_01: Because one of the things we talk about on my show a lot is overriding prior biases in the world of MMA.
6:41
SPEAKER_01: So, what was that moment for you?
6:43
SPEAKER_01: What was that inflection point for you?
6:45
SPEAKER_00: Man, um, that's a good question.
6:47
SPEAKER_00: I think honestly, it have to be.
6:49
SPEAKER_00: I remember vividly when I was I don't know how old I would have been.
6:52
SPEAKER_00: I'd have to do math, and I'm not too good at that.
6:54
SPEAKER_00: But uh watching uh Conor McGregor knock out Jose Aldo, that that was like a highlight that I can remember that so vividly, just watching that sit on the couch, hearing all the adults in the background, and I just hearing them chatter, but I'm just so dialed in on the screen, just watching that happen.
7:11
SPEAKER_00: I was like, man, that was amazing.
7:14
SPEAKER_00: And then from there it was just I never wanted to miss watching the UFC, and then that's that passion just started to grow and grow ever since then.
7:22
SPEAKER_02: So and Zaydan, you're 19 currently, correct?
7:27
SPEAKER_02: Yep, just turned 19 in August.
7:29
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I don't know.
7:30
SPEAKER_02: I I just remember what I was doing as a 19-year-old.
7:32
SPEAKER_02: Do you do your 19-year-old peers look at you like a madman, like you're crazy for doing this?
7:38
SPEAKER_00: Uh, some of them.
7:39
SPEAKER_00: Uh, I was just at uh homecoming from my high school at the football game, and I saw a couple of uh current high schoolers that I went to high school with, and they've kind of watched me grow and start training and then start fighting.
7:52
SPEAKER_00: And they're one of them asked me, uh, how do you do that?
7:56
SPEAKER_00: I I don't know if I could handle getting punched in the face.
7:58
SPEAKER_00: And I was like, Man, it's it's a drug at the end of the day.
8:02
SPEAKER_00: It really is.
8:02
SPEAKER_00: Like, if you go a day, just like a day without it, you start to like be like, Man, I miss it.
8:07
SPEAKER_00: You start like getting the bugs under your skin for it, just starting to itch for it.
8:11
SPEAKER_01: I love that.
8:12
SPEAKER_01: With a with a three and two record, you know, five fights under your belt.
8:16
SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna build on Caleb's question here.
8:18
SPEAKER_01: What was your family's reaction to you getting into it?
8:23
SPEAKER_00: Man, I know I don't know if they ever thought I was actually going to fight.
8:28
SPEAKER_00: Uh, but I start started training, and I was training for off and on for like three, three, maybe four years before the first fight happened.
8:38
SPEAKER_00: And I know uh talking to my mom, she was so so nervous for that first fight, and then even the second one.
8:46
SPEAKER_00: The first one was almost too quick for anyone to have too many, too many emotions.
8:50
SPEAKER_00: You get all that buildup, and it was over pretty quick.
8:53
SPEAKER_00: But the second fight went to the decision and with Amir Rusilov, and my mom was just a crying mess after the fight, just seeing her, not because I lost or anything, but she was just just an absolute mess in the best way possible.
9:05
SPEAKER_02: Well, I'm I'm curious, Zaydan.
9:06
SPEAKER_02: You know, you brought up Amir Rusilov, and we just had the pleasure of calling a Muay Thai kickboxing uh match with him two weekends ago, and you know, he he looked really, really solid there.
9:17
SPEAKER_02: It it seemed like after you know you lost that, you know, in a decision uh to him, you came back against Ulrich and just were a totally different version of yourself.
9:27
SPEAKER_02: So you've got a fight coming up here in November where you're also coming off of a loss.
9:31
SPEAKER_02: Can you talk about you know the mindset coming off of a win versus coming off of a loss and how that might shape your training and and just your mentality going into a fight?
9:40
SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
9:41
SPEAKER_00: I mean, so after that Amir fight, going into the fight, it's definitely being a fighter, there's just you have to balance being like humble, and you don't want to have pride going into it, in my opinion, because pride just that's what kills it.
9:54
SPEAKER_00: That's what's gonna kill your discipline, your motivation, everything like that.
9:58
SPEAKER_00: You're gonna be like, Oh man, I'm good.
9:59
SPEAKER_00: You just what I just did that.
10:01
SPEAKER_00: I'm good, I can just coast a little bit.
10:04
SPEAKER_00: And that's the type of mindset that you just have to try and kill.
10:07
SPEAKER_00: And fighting is full of the highs and lows when it comes to that, and losing to a mirror, just really kind of put into perspective that there's always someone out there working harder than you.
10:18
SPEAKER_00: So you gotta at the end of the day, you gotta be the one pushing the pace, working when everyone's sleeping, type of deal.
10:25
SPEAKER_00: And yeah, just started after that.
10:28
SPEAKER_00: I was just I was locked, locked in after that fight, especially getting prepared for the fight in March.
10:33
SPEAKER_00: Had that time off to heal and really process it, and yeah, just get to work.
10:39
SPEAKER_02: Has your mindset been similar then coming off of your most recent fight?
10:43
SPEAKER_02: Um, going into the fight here in November?
10:45
SPEAKER_00: Honestly, I think it's a little more intensified because taking that fight uh on like six hours notice, having full confidence in myself just because that's who I am.
10:56
SPEAKER_00: I never wanna I don't I don't I try my best not to doubt myself, but you know, the confidence will fluctuate constantly.
11:02
SPEAKER_00: But Derek messaged me about that fight.
11:04
SPEAKER_00: I took it, I went in, walked into that cage feeling like I I was gonna walk away with the title.
11:10
SPEAKER_00: Obviously, that's not what happened, but and that opportunity, it was a win-win.
11:16
SPEAKER_00: I either came away with a title taking a fight on six hours' notice, or it was just more experience against someone who's bigger than me, stronger than me.
11:24
SPEAKER_00: There was nothing I could lose, like on paper, basically, but just w whenever I lose, like anything in life, just a loss just really lights a fire under my butt, and I just want to get it back, no matter what it takes.
11:40
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
11:41
SPEAKER_01: So did that taking that on short notice, win or lose, did that change your mentality as far as your preparedness for the future, as far as when other short notice fights may or may not present themselves?
11:56
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, of course.
11:57
SPEAKER_00: Um honestly, after the May fight, uh I kind of I took a break from training.
12:03
SPEAKER_00: I fractured my hand, which I should have still been in the gym, like drilling, and I really regret not being in the gym, just still moving around, being with the guys.
12:12
SPEAKER_00: Uh yeah, I fractured the hand and then was kept telling myself these excuses like, oh, I should worry about finals for school, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
12:20
SPEAKER_00: Just on and on they went.
12:22
SPEAKER_00: And then started working a construction job with the fractured hand.
12:25
SPEAKER_00: And then that's just one thing led to another.
12:27
SPEAKER_00: Wasn't really training, kind of just watching from afar.
12:30
SPEAKER_00: And then the Friday uh before I was like cleared, my hand being fully recovered, Derek sent me the message, and I was like, Yeah, I'm I can't tear that down.
12:42
SPEAKER_00: Just can't do it.
12:45
SPEAKER_01: You know, we just got done talking with Easton Edmund, and a lot of what um we point out about him is kind of exuding that sense of confidence and kind of leaning into that.
13:02
SPEAKER_01: And he made a really good comment that I'm gonna take away uh after I'm done with all these recording sessions tonight, is um, you know, he was talking about kind of trying not to talk yourself out of doing hard things, and that's something I challenge myself on all the time.
13:22
SPEAKER_01: I'm always finding some reason not to do the hard thing.
13:27
SPEAKER_01: Um, how do you overcome that in the grand scheme of things?
13:30
SPEAKER_00: Man, it kind of varies.
13:32
SPEAKER_00: Like, when it comes to fighting, there's there's something that's just whether I want to go to the gym or not, I sh like, especially like in camp.
13:41
SPEAKER_00: I I get so angry when I'm not able to be at the gym.
13:46
SPEAKER_00: Like after the fact, like after training's done, it's just almost a zen of just accomplishment.
13:53
SPEAKER_00: Whether you get beat up, whether you're the nail or the hammer for the night, it just goes back and forth.
14:01
SPEAKER_00: But just talking myself through, like, even if if I can't make it to the gym, I gotta do something else to be whether it's running six miles, whether it's just shadow boxing for 30 minutes, just doing something else to at least prepare myself to get doing something uncomfortable every day, you know.
14:20
SPEAKER_02: So I've I've got a question for you, Zaydan.
14:22
SPEAKER_02: Um, because I've noticed uh our our the the best part of this trio between me and Mike and Lexi, our announcer Lexi, when she introduces you, she introduces you as a jujitsu fighter.
14:35
SPEAKER_02: Um, I I always find that interesting because you and I have rolled a bunch of times together.
14:41
SPEAKER_02: We've trained together, you know, a ton.
14:43
SPEAKER_02: Your jujitsu is is crisp and you're really technical, you're really, really sharp uh with your grappling.
14:49
SPEAKER_02: But I feel like people know you or if they've if they followed you, they know you for the work that you do on your feet, um, you know, with your hands and with your striking.
14:58
SPEAKER_02: How would you describe your style?
15:00
SPEAKER_02: And how do you like you know, I guess what what perception do you want?
15:03
SPEAKER_02: Are you a jujitsu fighter, or how would you describe your style?
15:06
SPEAKER_00: Um I write down on the paperwork to have her introduce me as a thug jitsu style fighter, just kind of follow after one of my favorite fighters, Dustin Poirier.
15:17
SPEAKER_00: So that's and honestly, I I like striking so so much more than than the grappling.
15:23
SPEAKER_00: I I love grappling, but there's something about getting punched in the face and punching another man in the face that just really does it, you know.
15:31
SPEAKER_00: Um but you can't ignore the grappling part, and against uh uh Noah, against Noah, that was one thing that we definitely worked on a lot because his everyone from Skywalker has fairly decent wrestling, and so we knew that shots were gonna be coming, and that's just something that I wanted to make sure.
15:54
SPEAKER_00: Got the springs in my knees, as Francis said, gotta get right back up after getting taken down.
15:58
SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
15:59
SPEAKER_02: Is there a point in a fight, Zaydan, where you feel like you hit your peak confidence?
16:05
SPEAKER_00: Um definitely in the David Stevenson fight in May.
16:08
SPEAKER_00: That was during during that fight, I just after that first round, I just felt just so alive in the moment, just purely in the moment.
16:19
SPEAKER_00: There was not another thought in my mind besides this is my objective, trying to take this, take him out, trying to get this W, listening to Derek tell me what to do, just and Mason just I was so dialed in.
16:31
SPEAKER_00: And throughout my previous fights, there's never been a moment quite like that.
16:36
SPEAKER_00: Uh in March against Noah in the third round after getting away from a takedown.
16:41
SPEAKER_00: I was like, oh, I got this, I got this, I gotta go get it, gotta go get it.
16:45
SPEAKER_00: I just kept trying to put on the pace, but we were both a little tired then.
16:50
SPEAKER_01: What have you learned about the MMA community?
16:53
SPEAKER_01: You know, being somebody that was a high school athlete, and you know, you make no secret about the fact that you're still in college yourself currently.
17:02
SPEAKER_01: Um, what have you learned about the MMA community and what has the MMA community taught you about yourself?
17:10
SPEAKER_00: That's a really good question.
17:11
SPEAKER_00: Uh the MMA community, I've been at Premier Combat.
17:14
SPEAKER_00: Uh that's where I've been the entire time, and I'm so blessed to be able to call that like my home gym.
17:21
SPEAKER_00: Uh I mean, they've taught me so much, just man.
17:25
SPEAKER_00: I'm so blessed to be able to train at Premiere.
17:28
SPEAKER_00: Uh they've taught me like just how to get over myself, how to get over like all the overthinking in my mind and stuff.
17:35
SPEAKER_00: That's and just it's the most like welcoming community out of any sport.
17:43
SPEAKER_00: Any sport that I've ever done.
17:45
SPEAKER_00: They just you're accepted almost no matter who you are.
17:48
SPEAKER_00: They're gonna bring you in, they're gonna teach you.
17:50
SPEAKER_00: Whether you pick it up the first try or not, they're gonna give you another hundred attempts before they're like, maybe this maybe it's not for him.
17:57
SPEAKER_00: But I've never seen anyone at Premiere not uh improve day day to day.
18:03
SPEAKER_00: And when it comes to like jujitsu, can't remember the uh they would do open maths on Sunday mornings, I think it was, or Saturday mornings, and I would go to that that gym and for the open maths, and everyone there again, just so welcoming, so ready to teach you.
18:19
SPEAKER_00: It's just it's the best community, it's the best sport, just hands down.
18:23
SPEAKER_01: I I agree, I will tell you, um, and maybe making a parallel here, but my experience interacting with fighters and people a part of the MMA community is there is an overwhelming sense of humility that you don't find anywhere else.
18:40
SPEAKER_01: I I pointed it out to Caleb when we've sat on commentary, how many fighters I've talked to through X amount of number of episodes of this podcast, and how I'm never surprised, but I'm always pleased by how balanced and cool and composed and good natured fighters are.
19:00
SPEAKER_01: So, saying all that, you admitted that you had a bias against MMA at one point in time in your life.
19:09
SPEAKER_01: Did you have that similar revelation or similar sense of surprise once you actually started rolling and getting involved in the community?
19:17
SPEAKER_00: Man, yeah, for sure.
19:18
SPEAKER_00: I I would think so.
19:19
SPEAKER_00: Because growing up, you know, violence is bad, you know, never want to fight anybody.
19:24
SPEAKER_00: That's what was preached to me as a kid.
19:26
SPEAKER_00: And then as you start getting into the MMA community, watching all these fighters and just seeing the way they talk and carry themselves.
19:33
SPEAKER_00: For the majority, it's just they're secure with themselves.
19:36
SPEAKER_00: They're just they're not out there trying to hurt somebody, they're out there trying to beat themselves in the long run.
19:42
SPEAKER_00: And that's the part of the sport that I absolutely love.
19:44
SPEAKER_00: Is I'm not I like I hate hurting people, hate, hate it with a passion.
19:49
SPEAKER_00: I'd never want to hurt somebody, but that's part of the job description, but I'm just trying to, at the end of the day, beat myself, make myself better every day.
19:58
SPEAKER_02: I want to ask you, because we kind of what Mike alluded to um in our last fight or our last interview with uh Easton Edmund, he talked a lot about you know his pre-fight psychology and you know how you know confidence is kind of his uh his North Star.
20:12
SPEAKER_02: What role do like confidence and fear have?
20:15
SPEAKER_02: You know, how how do you interact with the confidence and fear, making that walkout, uh leading up to a big fight?
20:21
SPEAKER_02: Um, you know, when all the the lights are at the brightest and everybody's watching you, what what role does fear and you know, courage?
20:26
SPEAKER_02: How does that how does that play out in your head uh lead up to a fight?
20:30
SPEAKER_00: Honestly, it's kind of a buildup.
20:32
SPEAKER_00: No matter what time the fight is, whether I'm the first fight of the night or closer to the last, like the fifth to last, it's about 30 minutes to an hour before.
20:42
SPEAKER_00: That's when the like initial fear and like nerves fully kick in, for me at least.
20:47
SPEAKER_00: And it's just from there I gotta I gotta slow everything down because my mind's just in a million different places.
20:54
SPEAKER_00: But it was just my my key to that is just slowing everything down, like working through stuff.
20:59
SPEAKER_00: I remember uh warming up for my first fight, it felt like I couldn't even throw a punch.
21:04
SPEAKER_00: I was just such so tense, just in an environment I didn't know.
21:11
SPEAKER_00: And as I've fought these five times, it's just I'm becoming at peace.
21:17
SPEAKER_00: Every step I get closer to that cage is just a just a deep exhale.
21:21
SPEAKER_00: Just yeah, this is it's my cage, it's my home.
21:25
SPEAKER_00: Just and I it's a feeling unlike anything else in this life.
21:29
SPEAKER_01: So building on that, what's your walk-out song and how does that add to your confidence?
21:35
SPEAKER_01: Man, come and get your love by Redbone.
21:37
SPEAKER_01: Yes, it's the absolute best song in the world.
21:40
SPEAKER_01: You want to see Caleb and I kind of start dancing in our chairs, like walk out sometime.
21:45
SPEAKER_01: Take a look over at us whenever you're walking out.
21:48
SPEAKER_00: I I love that feeling.
21:50
SPEAKER_00: I love that song.
21:50
SPEAKER_00: I love the way it makes the crowd feel.
21:52
SPEAKER_00: It makes me feel ready.
21:54
SPEAKER_00: It just, oh man, it's there's nothing like it.
21:56
SPEAKER_00: And I remember listening back to any of my previous.
22:00
SPEAKER_00: Fights, just you two in the on the comms, just Zaydan Edwards with the best walkout song in the night, just it playing in the background.
22:10
SPEAKER_00: I'm like, man, it doesn't get better here in that.
22:12
SPEAKER_02: I think I even said on the last uh the last fight that we caught uh called of yours Zaidan that like I found myself like a week or two after that listening to Come and Get Your Love and I'm just like jamming in my car, thinking of you, you know.
22:24
SPEAKER_02: Oh, it's such a good walkout song.
22:26
SPEAKER_00: It's it's the best one, period.
22:28
SPEAKER_00: Can't beat it.
22:31
SPEAKER_01: Well, let me uh let's let's move this to the future a little bit.
22:34
SPEAKER_01: Uh some of my favorite questions to ask, and it it's gonna require some critical thinking, but you know, considering what you've experienced so far in your MMA career and considering how young you still are, where do you see your career two years from now?
22:51
SPEAKER_01: And where do you see your career five years from now?
22:53
SPEAKER_01: Is this something you're gonna more actively pursue as time goes by?
22:57
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
22:58
SPEAKER_00: I mean, this sport is something that I want to pursue, and don't tell my mom, but the only reason why I'm going to school is to try and improve my athletic abilities.
23:08
SPEAKER_00: I I'm going to school for athletic nutrition, that's what I want to do.
23:11
SPEAKER_00: And I this sport is just something I want to chase.
23:15
SPEAKER_00: Like making it, obviously everyone wants to make it to the UFC when they start fighting, but even if it's just the PFL, we gotta make these big gotta make the baby goals, baby steps, take it step by step.
23:26
SPEAKER_00: In two years, uh I'll be 21, which is wild to think about.
23:32
SPEAKER_00: I felt like I was 18 yesterday, but it's crazy up fast it goes by.
23:37
SPEAKER_00: And uh two years, maybe I'll be pro by then.
23:42
SPEAKER_00: We'll see.
23:43
SPEAKER_00: Uh Derek uh was talking to our group of guys, just telling us that and he pointed me out and he was like, Sometimes we're taking it a little too fast, not using the training to get better instead of just preparing for fights.
23:57
SPEAKER_00: Um so this kind of a big break that I've had has been absolutely amazing.
24:02
SPEAKER_00: And he's hit it on the head, like just getting this time to train and get better instead of making it like, oh, gotta get ready for this fight, gotta train this certain way.
24:11
SPEAKER_00: I'm getting better everywhere, whether it's grappling or striking, just learning how to piece it all together and come up with my own style and mix up all these other styles.
24:20
SPEAKER_00: So we'll see.
24:21
SPEAKER_00: In two years, we could be pro.
24:24
SPEAKER_00: Five years we'll for sure be pro.
24:27
SPEAKER_00: And hopefully just on a run, going for the gold.
24:31
SPEAKER_01: Uh, I love that.
24:32
SPEAKER_01: You know, I'm gonna say, and I'm not saying that this is a right or wrong thing, but you know, so many people look at losses as a bad thing.
24:41
SPEAKER_01: I don't.
24:42
SPEAKER_01: I am not I'm not one of those guys.
24:44
SPEAKER_01: I honestly think every setback makes for a bigger comeback, you know?
24:49
SPEAKER_01: So, you know, you have a guy like we we've mentioned multiple times, like Easton with a 4-0 record that hasn't had that setback yet, versus talking to you, 19-year-old kid that's had two losses, but three pretty substantial wins.
25:06
SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, how has that influenced your playbook moving forward?
25:11
SPEAKER_00: Man, I'm the same way too.
25:13
SPEAKER_00: My grandpa always taught me it's never a loss, it's only a lesson.
25:16
SPEAKER_00: And that's a model I live by.
25:18
SPEAKER_00: Just always, I can't really ever lose as long as I'm taking something away from it.
25:23
SPEAKER_00: And if I'm not taking something away from it, then I'm wasting my time.
25:26
SPEAKER_00: So, and I hate to waste time.
25:28
SPEAKER_00: So I'm just Delaws is really just light that fire up inside, and I just want to wanna go, go, go and get back after it.
25:35
SPEAKER_00: So that's how I look at it.
25:37
SPEAKER_00: You can never really lose in life as long as you're learning.
25:40
SPEAKER_02: Can you can you share a little bit, Zaiden, about maybe where that comes from?
25:43
SPEAKER_02: Like, why even step in the ring in the first place?
25:45
SPEAKER_02: Why why you put yourself through that?
25:47
SPEAKER_02: You could just go to school and get a normal degree and do normal stuff, but like you're you know, you're you seems like you're going, you know, all in with this.
25:55
SPEAKER_02: Well, why why do you do that?
25:56
SPEAKER_00: Being a little crazy, honestly.
25:58
SPEAKER_00: A little couple of screws, a little loose, but just you never I don't want to be normal in this world, you know.
26:07
SPEAKER_00: Not saying that that's bad or anything, getting a degree that's amazing and chasing whatever you're passionate about's fantastic, but there's just something about this sport, the way it makes you feel when you're making that walk.
26:19
SPEAKER_00: And I everyone's not gonna get the same feeling, but there's something for it for me that just the competition against myself in my head has always been a thing growing up, just always trying to better myself and just ca I sometimes after a loss, you know, you beat yourself up a little bit.
26:37
SPEAKER_00: And I feel like I've done that a lot of my life, just beat myself up constantly, but it's times like that that may help you grow into the person you need to be, and doing this sport, there's nothing in life that I'm not gonna be able to do.
26:50
SPEAKER_00: And that's the type of mindset I have going forward.
26:53
SPEAKER_00: I I can do this, I will do this, this is what I want to do, it's what I'm gonna chase.
26:58
SPEAKER_01: Excellent.
26:59
SPEAKER_01: Well, why don't you give us a sneak preview of season's beatings?
27:03
SPEAKER_01: What do you know about your opponent?
27:05
SPEAKER_01: And without revealing the game plan, kind of give us a rough idea of w how you think this is gonna go.
27:13
SPEAKER_00: Honestly, man, I haven't watched much film on him quite yet.
27:16
SPEAKER_00: And I know that he's coming off that loss to our teammate, Tucker Sharon.
27:21
SPEAKER_00: So I I figure in his head he's trying to get that back, trying to get back at the gym.
27:26
SPEAKER_00: So in my mind, it's it's do or die for him, and it's the same mindset for me.
27:31
SPEAKER_00: Stewart die.
27:32
SPEAKER_00: I think we're gonna have an electric fight, probably another fight of the night.
27:37
SPEAKER_00: Um, I think it'll stay mostly on the feet.
27:39
SPEAKER_00: Obviously, I'll be ready for any sort of takedown, or and he should be ready as well for any sort of sort sort of wrestling that we end up doing.
27:47
SPEAKER_00: But I s I see a first round finish coming for me in the most humble way.
27:52
SPEAKER_00: I just whether it's getting a TKO or getting a submission, that's just I need that.
27:58
SPEAKER_00: I wanna I have there's this urge to get another finish, and I've been going against some dogs, and uh, he's one too.
28:05
SPEAKER_00: So we're gonna have a dog fight, and that's the end of the that's all I gotta say.
28:09
SPEAKER_00: Go.
28:09
SPEAKER_00: Oh boy, I can't wait.
28:11
SPEAKER_00: And it's gonna be that's in the best arena in the state of Nebraska, PBA.
28:15
SPEAKER_00: It doesn't get any better, dude.
28:17
SPEAKER_00: Doesn't get any better.
28:19
SPEAKER_01: Right on, right on, right on.
28:20
SPEAKER_01: Well, man, my favorite wrap-up question for every single guest that does my show.
28:26
SPEAKER_01: It's a little bit outside the realm of fighting, and that is what's your advice for making the world a better place tomorrow than what it is today through the lens of your experience.
28:37
SPEAKER_00: You know, I'm still a baby in this life, you know, just turned 19, but at the end of the day, I think everyone should just try and be kinder to one another.
28:49
SPEAKER_00: Open your Bible, get closer with God, and at the end of the day, that's gonna make this world a better place.
28:54
SPEAKER_02: Looking forward to calling another one of your fights, man.
28:57
SPEAKER_02: It's been really awesome.
28:58
SPEAKER_02: I I think I correct me if I'm wrong, but I think Mike and I called your debut, and now we'll be able to call your sixth fight, you know, up here in November.
29:08
SPEAKER_02: So just know you've created two fans and friends out of us, uh, you know, from being able to watch your journey.
29:14
SPEAKER_02: Um, and we wish you nothing but success in the future, my friend.
29:17
SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
29:18
SPEAKER_01: And I'm gonna add to that, you you have to know, and and this is anybody that's listening or watching this episode is probably sitting at home going, okay, he's gonna give another one of these spiels.
29:28
SPEAKER_01: But you have to know it's really hard for Caleb and I to sit there and be unbiased, but we try and do our best job possible and just call it as it is, black and white.
29:40
SPEAKER_01: There's no gray area when it's all said and done.
29:42
SPEAKER_01: So I feel very fortunate that we had this opportunity to get together and hang out as friends and and talk for a couple of minutes about this blossoming career of yours, sir.
29:54
SPEAKER_02: I I try to be as unbiased as I possibly can calling your fights and also in this interview, because I see and I see you at the gym every single day.
30:02
SPEAKER_02: I see the work you're putting in.
30:03
SPEAKER_02: I mean, it's it's hard to step foot in Premier Combat Center without Zayden Edwards being there, you know, training, working on something, getting better, man.
30:12
SPEAKER_02: So yeah, what a what a privilege it is, man.
30:14
SPEAKER_02: Can't wait to uh to see what happens here in November.
30:16
SPEAKER_00: Man, thank you guys so much for having me on.
30:18
SPEAKER_00: I'm blessed to be able to have you guys as fans, as friends.
30:22
SPEAKER_00: And it's it's amazing.
30:23
SPEAKER_00: This journey is amazing.
30:25
SPEAKER_00: I'm just so thankful.
30:27
SPEAKER_01: As I've said before, we're all algorithm girls, and this is an algorithm world.
30:32
SPEAKER_01: Why don't you tell uh everybody where they can find you online?
30:37
SPEAKER_01: We gotta build that fan base, brother.
30:39
SPEAKER_00: Yes, sir.
30:39
SPEAKER_00: I really appreciate it, Mike.
30:41
SPEAKER_00: Uh yeah, you guys can follow me on Instagram and Facebook at Zaden Edwards underscore.
30:47
SPEAKER_00: Uh follow the journey.
30:48
SPEAKER_00: Make sure you hit subscribe and like button down below too.
30:51
SPEAKER_00: Help Mike out.
30:52
SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes, yes.
30:54
SPEAKER_01: Zaden, thank you so much for doing the the show.
30:57
SPEAKER_01: Caleb, thank you so much for co-hosting.
31:00
SPEAKER_01: The world is a much better place with you guys in it.
31:03
SPEAKER_01: Mike, we appreciate you, brother.
31:05
SPEAKER_01: Dynasty Combat Sports Seasons Beatings is taking place Friday, November 21st, 2025, at the Pinnacle Bank Arena in Lincoln, Nebraska.
31:16
SPEAKER_01: You can hear my co-host Caleb Betzold and myself calling the action on MMAfutures.com.
31:24
SPEAKER_01: Like Eyes Dead in the Start.
31:26
SPEAKER_01: This is one of my most favorite events that Dynasty runs.
31:31
SPEAKER_01: I want to thank our guest, Dayton Edwards, for joining us on the podcast today.
31:36
SPEAKER_01: Make sure you are giving him a follow on Instagram at Dayton Edwards underscore.
31:43
SPEAKER_01: And make sure you are following Premier Combat Center on the same platform.
31:48
SPEAKER_01: And while you're being generous with the follows, make sure you're following Caught on the Mic at Caught on the Mic on all social media platforms and give me a subscribe on my YouTube channel.
31:59
SPEAKER_01: This has been Caught on the Mic with Michael Clark and Caleb Betzel.
32:03
SPEAKER_01: I'm Michael Clark.
32:05
SPEAKER_01: Until next time, thank you.