His Shipp Has Come In

San Diego, America’s finest city, has finally hit the big time in terms of mixed martial arts. Not only do we have submission master, Dean Lister, fighting in PRIDE but our very own silent giant Wade Shipp makes his UFC debut April 2nd on the undercard of Ortiz/Lidell. Many outside of San Diego may not know Mr. Shipp. The once Lions Den member and current San Diego Fight Club warrior has waited six years for his chance at the big time. His trainer and team captain Charlie Kohler thinks he’s ready:

Brian Piepenbrink: So how’s Wade been doing?

Charlie Kohler: Wade’s been doing really good. He’s been training hard, training consistent and he’s looking really sharp for this fight.

BP: How long has Wade been training with you here at San Diego Fight Club?

CK: About two years.

BP: What do you think some of his strengths are?

CK: I think he’s pretty well rounded. He’s got great standup skills and his jujitsu game has come a long way. His takedown defense and takedown ability is pretty strong. I think he’s well rounded. He also has athletic ability and the will to win when he gets in there.

BP: So is this the first wave of San Diego Fight Club guys in the UFC?

CK: Hopefully we’ll see some more guys in there. We have a lot of talent here and we’re just hitting the tip of the iceberg for the guys in San Diego and the guys at this club. We’ve got a lot of strong guys, up and coming guys that want to make a mark and Wade just happens to be the first one to get the privilege to fight in there. He makes a lot of us jealous [laughs]. There’ll definitely be some other guys in there in the future.

BP: Dean Lister from City Boxing is over there helping Wade train right now. So many fighters and schools in San Diego cooperate and help each other out. Why is San Diego so unique in that regard?

CK: Well first of all a lot of the head guys who have schools here, we all trained together on the way up. Back in the day we all knew each other. A lot of us came from a jujitsu background. It’s a small world although this is a big city, we have three million people. It’s a tight community.

BP: So when are you going to fight again?

CK: I’d like to fight soon. As long as I’m healthy and everything on the business end is going well. I’d like to fight as soon as I possibly can. If there’s an opportunity out there I’d like to fight some of these young guys coming up. I have my hands full with so many things. I’d want to be able to dedicate myself to at least three or four weeks of training before jumping in there with anyone, even if he’s an up and comer.

BP: Do you want a rematch with Shaolin?

CK: I’d definitely like to fight him again. He’s going to be very strong, and he’s doing very well in the NHB world. I’d really have to bring my A game to take it to him the next time we fight. I think when ever we meet up it’s going to be a war and I’m looking forward to a rematch.