Trevor Peek bursted on to the UFC scene with a win on Contender Series. Not because he was dominant. Not because he was quick. Rather, he gained notoriety for his insane durability, an unbreakable will, and a funky striking style.
All three of those things are born from Peek’s rough adolescent years, which he spent dealing with drug abuse, fighting in the streets and getting in trouble in various ways. However, after finding God, MMA, and the inner power to get sober, Peek has become one of the more talked about prospects in MMA. While those wild days are well behind him, some of the remnants are still there – most notably, the standing hammerfists that he throws.
“I don’t know, man, I guess I’m unique. I’ve been throwing them things for a good while now,” Peek explained. “I originally started throwing them street fighting.”
As he picked his fighting up off the streets and into the gym, he kept doing what felt comfortable, and more importantly effective, to him.
“Eventually, whenever I would be doing bag rounds, I started throwing them – just here and there,” he said. “Man, I can generate so much power and I’ve often wondered whenever I’m throwing them – I don’t know why nobody untilizes these things.”
Although he questions why nobody else throws them, he’s happy to be in a class of his own. He’s got something that people are going to remember his fights by just one fight into his UFC career.
“I’m excited about it. I think it’ll be something that be relate me with – the hammerfists,” Peek said. “I’m excited that I’ve got my own thing started.”
It’s not just fans that he’s won over. He’s also begun to convince experienced striking coaches that he can make it work.
“They’re a little concerned, I guess. My striking coach, Jeff Powell, he gets concerned with it because it leaves you so exposed,” he admitted. “Ultimately, and he’s talked about it a bunch of times, he wants to train me, but he also wants to leave those unique special things that I do. So we’ve actually started working some combinations that are including the ‘tomahawk punch.”
We might see some of those special combinations at UFC Jacksonville this weekend. Peek will get a chance to show off his unique style when he faces Chepe Mariscal as part of the ESPN prelims.
You can hear the entire audio of this interview at 23:44.
