“One of the best things Chael taught me was ‘environment changes, but the act doesn’t,’” Hall said, referring to his coach on Season 17 of the long-running reality TV competition, former UFC title challenger Chael Sonnen. “You train so hard, you feel so comfortable, but then for me, I go in the cage and I get stage fright. It’s a mind thing.
“I’m glad I discovered that because I had to focus on it to work on my weakness and I have no shame saying it. It doesn’t make me weak and if people think it does, at least I’m doing what I can to make myself better.
“I know that when I get over this hump, it’s going to be a new day,” he added. “I think identifying your weakness and attacking it will definitely allow you to improve in whatever you do. This has been a journey and I’m not one to quit.”
Not that the thought hasn’t crossed his mind in the past and didn’t again fairly recently.
Before he got the call to face Mousasi for a second time, the Jamaican-born, Queens-raised striker thought about walking away. A two-fight losing streak and constant frustration over his inability to consistently translate what he does in the gym into his performance in the Octagon had Hall ready to pack it in, a decision he wanted to share with his younger brother.
“I called my little brother and I said, ‘Hey man – I think I’m gonna be done with this because there are certain things I
Strikeforce light heavyweight champion Mousasi, who first made a name for himself competing in Japan, entered on a two-fight winning streak and as the heavy favorite. Hall was coming off a quick first-round finish six weeks earlier and stepping into the Octagon for the fourth time in nine months.
After controlling the first round, the bout was over moments into the second frame as Hall uncorked a string of vicious strikes that would collect you scads of combination bonus points on your fighting game of choice. All that was missing was a fireball.
While the performance showed the mercurial striker at his best, many, including Mousasi, were quick to label it a fluke and the audio of the once-again surging veteran has become the featured element of the commercial hyping their rematch this weekend.
“Okay,” Hall said when asked his reaction to Mousasi essentially calling the jumping, spinning back kick that started the finishing sequence from their first encounter a lucky shot. “Someone’s opinion isn’t going to change reality, right?
“I’ve been doing that kick since I was 16 years old. I’ve mastered that kick. I’ve timed that kick. I can kick an apple off someone’s head with that kick, but I know why he said it. It wasn’t expected. It was expected of him to win, it was in a place where he had fought many times and he was highly favored, so sometimes reality hits you and you can’t accept it.”
Whatever the reasoning behind his statement and quest for a rematch, Hall is happy the loss lit a fire under Mousasi, who has won three straight in impressive fashion since their first meeting, and he welcomes the opportunity to replicate his performance Saturday night in Belfast.
“It gave him newfound motivation,” Hall surmised. “We’ve seen his fights after that and he’s more focused. He’s not out there wasting time, playing around; he’s taking dudes out. With that said, I’m sure when the last fight got cancelled and they called him, he figured, ‘Let me get the weakest link,’ but for me, it’s another opportunity.
“Good for him for saying all these things, but of course when I heard it, I know it’s not true. I’ve practiced so many years of doing this kick – it took me three years to actually learn it – so I’ll just do it again.”
