Jared Revel defends his middleweight championship against Drayton Angus on Saturday, February 8 at BFL 65. The event kicks off at 10:00PM ET live from Hard Rock Casino in Coquitlam, British Columbia. Revel has been making waves on the Canadian MMA scene and has his eyes set on jettisoning towards that next level. Before he can let his mind wander with those kinds of thoughts, Revel will need to first get by a stalwart in the great fight north, Drayton Angus.
10th Planet and Fighting a TUF Vet
Revel did some cross-training a little while ago and got to check out some elite facilities. “I went to Tenth Planet and then I went to a few others,” Revel told us ahead of BFL 65. “The Tenth Planet in Hollywood was pretty cool.”
The recent Collin Hart fight was a true step up in competition and Revel came through with a great performance. The BFL titlist won a majority decision over the TUF 17 participant at BFL 61 in June 2019. Reflecting on his performance, Revel said that “It’s definitely one of my favorite fights, right. It definitely tested me. I had some pretty mangled up feet… I had to dig deep for that one. So it was kind of cool. I got to test myself a little bit.”
Being a defending champion could put a lot of additional pressure on some pugilists but that doesn’t seem to be the case for Jared Revel. “I think most fights, that’s the fight that I’m at,” Revel remarked. “The belt’s cool and all but for me, each fight is the important thing.”
Revel has been making a name for himself lately and has goals of competing in UFC — but he isn’t solely fixated on that promotion. “I’m definitely not opposed to that. Whatever higher level I can fight at is kind of the goal,” he said. Revel is with Iridium Sports Agency though, and they have close UFC ties.
BFL 65
The Jiu-Jitsu game has always been there but the kickboxing has been leveling up for Revel as of late. “Overall throughout my career I’ve been focusing a lot on the standup aspect,” Revel admitted. “The ground comes pretty natural to me.”
Booking an opponent has been historically difficult for Revel and this was no different leading into BFL 65. Revel stated, “We went through quite a few different opponents. Opponents changing out…. I’m just excited to have an opponent and to be able to kind of put on a show. It’s what I do. Drayton and I, I always give respect to my opponents.”
Speaking of difficulties, martial arts also has helped Revel overcome some serious personal issues. Revel remarked, “It’s like a lifestyle for sure. Most of the people that I’m around that I’m hanging around now, it’s about having a healthy lifestyle…. I own a gym where I have over a hundred and fifty kids that I coach. They kind of look up to me. Adults look up to me… I’ve become kind of, I guess you’d say, a role model to some people… That helps push me and drive me to try to be my best.”
Revel and Revolution
Revolution MMA is the gym that Revel owns, and the fighter has been a fixture there for years. “We have a really good crew of professional fighters. UFC-caliber and all of that,” he said. “They’re around the gym at any time. Being around a bunch of winners.” In summation, Jared Revel said, “Revolution has definitely been my staple from day one. I started out just training there and now I’m co-owner. It’s been kind of my life… MMA is definitely a beautiful sport.”
