Jordan Carroll: Meet the NY State Super HW Champ

First of all, congrats on winning the New York State Super Heavyweight
Kickboxing title against the guy who looked like Chuck Liddell.

Yeah, thanks. I actually went up to Super Heavyweight for that fight because there was a vacant title.

Talk a little, if you will, about your athletic background and how that led you to being a kickboxing champion today.

I played college baseball at the University of Maryland and I played a little pro baseball in the independent league under Wally Backman, the former Met, for the Bend Bandits in Oregon, which is where he’s from. When I was released, I wasn’t getting any more looks from big league teams, and I just didn’t want to get a job, so I just said I was going to start fighting; it was the only thing I could still do. I always fought when I was a kid – I boxed – and MMA was just starting to get big, so I got right back into martial arts and fighting.

How did you and Keith Trimble and Chris Cardona of Bellmore Kickboxing come to work together?

I was training under Derek Panza originally, and I wanted a little more MMA stuff. I just liked the way Keith held mitts, so I went over to his school – a small little place in Wantagh at the time – and started training with him. Those guys were always gracious, they had me with open arms, they didn’t care if I trained other places, and I appreciated that. So Keith and I became great friends, and he’s still like my big brother.

Speaking of MMA, was it ever on your radar?

I changed my last name, and I have 8 or 9 MMA fights. I was doing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu for a long time, Kioto Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I became friends with Joe D’Arce. I’ve been around a long time. Kickboxing was something I got deterred from just because I was trying to do MMA, and now I want to get all the [kickboxing] titles I should have paid attention to back then. I just want to collect some hardware before I hang ‘em up.

So who’s next for you? I know you're fighting at GLO in September.

[Dan Lucas] has a North American title he wouldn’t put up the first time we fought, and now he’s been calling Cardona saying he’ll put up his North American title if I rematch him. And if I win that, maybe I get a shot at the world title. But I’ll be fighting the same guy again, which I don’t want to do because there’s not much to prove, but if he’ll put the hardware up, I’ll take it.

Why do you think kickboxing – the sport of pure striking -  isn’t more popular in the United States?

I am an avid K-1 fan, and high level K-1 fighters, to me, are some of the most incredible strikers. I can’t for the life of me understand why it’s not bigger.

I always say you have to go back to boxing. Boxing has fought the UFC tooth and nail because MMA is the dominant game right now. So boxing has a strangle hold and doesn’t want to let another striking sport get near them. I love boxing, but you find a good guy who can box and throw kicks – like a K-1 guy from Thailand or Holland - that’s the guy I’m afraid of, not the guy who just throws hands.

And people’s perception is that kickboxing can look sloppy. When two guys are good, a guy can look sloppy if he misses kicks, gets knocked down. Boxing’s not normally that way; guys aren’t falling all over the place. If you watch the boxing Super Six, there’s not one guy who looks sloppy.

And there’s also the physique part. No matter what anyone tells you, what someone looks like can matter. Mike Tyson had a look about him. Boxers tend to be leaner, so they have a better look. A guy like [K-1 champion] Semmy Schilt is a gawky looking guy. You can’t quantify how hard he hits until you get hit by him, and he doesn’t look like something you want to watch. He doesn’t look pretty.

You talk about the FDNY as the greatest job in the world. Talk about how that came to be.

It was after 9/11, and I watched it like everyone else. I felt like [joining the FDNY] was something I wanted to do because I was just so proud of what those guys did and stood for. I was living in Vegas with Phil Baroni for a while, and I came home, took the test and waited; they weren’t in a rush to hire back then, believe it or not. So I waited to get called and got called in 2006. I went to the Academy and actually fought some MMA fights at the beginning of the job, and it’s been the greatest job ever. It’s the only job you can do and have another life like this, to be able to fight and train.

I get the impression that firefighters take food and cooking very seriously. Very seriously. Is that accurate?

Absolutely. 100%. There’s no doubt that if you do a 24, you’re going to spend time between runs with meals that are a big deal. When it comes to food, firefighters are very particular about their food. When I’m not training for a fight, that’s when I get down.

I hear Bloomberg's closing fire houses. What’s the latest?

Bloomberg has never been on the front lines to know what it’s like. He’s a numbers guy; he wants to take away and make us do more. He doesn’t know what our day’s like. He has no clue. He just looks at the numbers, and says, “This costs too much money,” and thinks that if he closes one house, the guys close to it will make it up. So he’s really out of touch with New York as far as I’m concerned. I was told they’re going to close 5 or 6 houses. We’ll see.

Have you ever been in the fireman calendar?

No, I’ve never done it.

Would Phil Baroni be all over that?

Baroni would be in the calendar in minute. He’d love it.

I see you’ve also been involved with the show Rescue Ink.

I’m not involved any more just because of time constraints, but I’m always a supporter and I loved being part of it. Prior to having my nine-month-old daughter, I wanted to give back in some way, do something positive.  I had trained one of the guys from the show, and he knew I love animals – I have a rescue dog – and asked me if I’d be interested. I had the time so I got involved and it was a very pleasant experience, and I always believe in fighting for things that can fight for themselves. I feel better about myself and my life if I do something good for other people. And then punch them in the face.

Now it’s time to close with the much celebrated Lighting Round. I say something, you respond as fast as you can. There are no wrong answers, but there can be some ridiculous ones. No pressure, though. Here we go:

Favorite fighters: Andy Hug, Alistair Overeem, anybody that’s a striker

Best food on Long Island that’s not at all good for you: I don’t eat too many bad foods, so…

Your next tattoo: Something with my daughter

Smartest dog breed: German shepherd

Michael Vick: I really despise him.

Best movie of the Rocky series: Rocky IV. His opponent looked so incredible, it’s amazing that he beat him.

One cheesy song you’re not afraid to admit you like: Any song by Creed

What is my lucky number?: Oh man. 22, the day of this interview.

Not correct.

Your wife tells you she wants to be a fighter: See you later.

Your daughter tells you she wants to be a fighter: Get back in your room.