What’s a Bellator tentpole event without something of a freakshow fight? From the late Kimbo Slice vs. Dada 5000 to Gracie vs. Shamrock: The Geriatric Years, Bellator has not shied away from, shall we say, interesting booking. On Saturday at Bellator 214, they were at it again, with the debut of the recently signed Jake Hager, better known to WWE fans as Jack Swagger.

The promotion, which has done well with Bobby Lashley (a gifted enough heavyweight with a winning record), was no doubt hoping to find another crossover success with Swagger. And like Lashley, and Brock Lesnar, Hager/Swagger came in with legit collegiate wrestling experience.

Could he use that experience to upset J.W. Kiser? Kiser was a 1-1 fighter with a number of amateur, boxing, and unsanctioned fights. A realistic test for a newcomer.

Kiser opened the action landing a right hand, but that allowed Hager to drive him into the fence and quickly get the fight down. From there, Hager worked for a kimura, but was eating shots to the head from Kiser which seemed more annoying than damaging. Adding some smashing elbows, Hager then set up an arm-triange choke, and using his impressive size and strength, forced the tap soon enough.

⚡️ "WE THE PEOPLE" @RealJackSwagger#Bellator214 pic.twitter.com/esVLScLLYq

— Bellator MMA (@BellatorMMA) January 27, 2019

After a bizarre walkout that featured WWE’s R-Truth rapping, and clips from his pro wrestling career, Hager/Swagger proved he’s got some skills. Those elbows were no joke, and he certainly has some submission ability. He’ll need cage time, but he might actually make a go of this.

“I feel like hard work pays off!” Hager said after the fight. Saying he liked it at Bellator, Hager added “I plan on this being life for the next decade. As long as you guys keep wanting to see me out here, I’m going to keep bringing it.” Then finished with one more “we, the people” shout. We’ll give him that one.

Jake Hager def. J.W. Kiser by submission (arm-triangle choke), Round 1, 2:09

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Los Angeles, CA — Going into Bellator 214 this weekend in Los Angeles, the attention has been on the big names. Bader. Fedor. Pico. And Jack Swagger, WWE star (properly Jake Hager). Lots of attention has been paid to Swagger/Hager, and to be fair, there’s good reason for it: the pro wrestler, with legit amateur wrestling credentials, is the latest to make the jump between the professions. Welcoming him to the cage, meanwhile, is J.W. Kiser.

When it comes to Kiser, well, few are familiar with the heavyweight. The odds reflect that. “Vegas has got me 25 to 1 as an underdog,” he pointed out, speaking to Cageside Press ahead of the fight. “I don’t think oddsmakers really understand what experience means. He’s jumping right into professional MMA. He may be successful, but it’s like almost going from high school football to the NFL.”

It’s an interesting analogy, and may not be far off. “There’s a speed of the game factor I think that you need to adjust to,” Kiser explained. “Not just speed of the game, but to get in a few tough amateur fights, and learn how to be able to battle your way through that, is such a big factor in my opinion when it comes to MMA in general.” Without real fight experience, well, “you don’t really understand what it’s like in there. There’s nothing you can do to train for that.”

Kiser is not blind to his opponent’s credentials, mind you. “I know he was a Division I All-American wrestler and that’s commendable to say the least,” he told us. “But this is a different world. It’s different when you’re getting punched in the face.”

Kiser knows it well. Despite what the online record curators may tell you, 1-1 is not an accurate reflection of his combat sports career. “Started out in boxing when I was 14,” he explained. “Every MMA website I’ve been to has my record incorrect. That’s one thing, the evolution of the sport – this is a really new sport. The UFC has been around 25 years, but, MMA has not really been popular, it didn’t really hit heavy until the early 2000s.”

“Because of that, the sport is still evolving, as far as the regulations go, the commission goes.” Are record keeping, well… “My point is, I have 18 unsanctioned fights. I was in an actual tag-team MMA match. Yeah you heard it, Swagger — I was in a tag-team MMA match.”

“I know that’s crazy,” Kiser added. “Going back to the wild west days, is what we like to call them. Before the commissions got involved, and got these things sanctioned. And thank god they did. Because this is about safety. I’ve fought guys they pulled out of the crowd.”

Overall, between unsanctioned fights, amateur fights, pro fights, and boxing matches, Kiser figures he’s somewhere around 52 career bouts. Bellator 214, against Jack Swagger, however, will be his biggest.

At least he can rest assured knowing Swagger won’t be tagging anyone in for this fight.

Bellator 214 takes place Saturday, January 26 at The Forum in Los Angeles. The fight airs live on Paramount Network and DAZN.

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