Matt Hamill is often remembered as ‘the guy who once beat Jon Jones,’ but his story goes far beyond that single bout.
Born completely deaf, Hamill defied the odds to become a high school wrestling star before eventually transitioning into a professional MMA fighter and reaching the UFC.
His journey is nothing short of remarkable.
“The number one thing I like about MMA is the challenge [to] prove everyone wrong,” Hamill once said.
“I can climb up the mountain and reach the top. But everyone thought I was like a gatekeeper. No.”
Hamill was awarded a victory over Jones in December 2009, when the latter was disqualified for using a then-illegal 12-6 elbow.
The pair met in The Ultimate Fighter: Heavyweight Finale, 15 years ago, after Hamill had emerged victorious in seven of his first nine UFC bouts, which included a split-decision defeat to Michael Bisping.
A 12-6 elbow is an MMA strike where a fighter lifts their arm as high as possible and drives it from a 12 o’clock position to six o’clock position with maximum impact.
The ban on the move was lifted ahead of a UFC Fight Night event at the start of November.
And Jones has been seen practising the one move that cost him his undefeated record ahead of his heavyweight title defence against Stipe Miocic at UFC 309 on Sunday morning.
Hamill didn’t just controversially beat Jones, but he went on to defeat MMA veterans Keith Jardine and Tito Ortiz in his following two bouts.
He eventually lost out to heavyweight greats Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson and Alexander Gustafsson before he left the UFC.
The most fascinating aspect of Hamill’s MMA career isn’t who he faced in the octagon, but rather his journey getting there in the first place.
Hamill was the first-ever deaf wrestler to win a National Collegiate Wrestling Championship.
The path he carved to get there was so compelling that a movie about his early life was released in 2010 called The Hammer—based on his nickname.
The film emotionally depicts Hamill’s life from growing up deaf and being introduced to wrestling by his grandfather—right through to his 1993 National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Wrestling Championship victory.
Hamill was originally sent to Purdue University in Indiana, before being dropped from his scholarship due to a poor wrestling record and below-par Grade Point Average score.
He then found his love for the sport again at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT), a world-leader in deaf education.
This came after Hamill found himself working as a mechanic for his grandpa Stanley Leroy McCoy, who was a key figure in his upbringing with no dad present in his life due to an early divorce.
In fact, at the beginning of the film McCoy makes a deal with Loveland High School coach Michael Rich that he would put in a word for the man with his daughter—Hamill’s mum—if he taught his grandson wrestling.
Rich remained a central figure in Hamill’s life as coach and stepfather in guiding him to the summit of professional wrestling.
Just as Hamill begins to make a name for himself at RIT as ‘The Hammer’ due to his elite wrestling skills, McCoy suffers from a pulmonary embolism—a form of blood clot—and dies one week before the National Championships.
Hamill goes on to upset two-time winner Jason Sloan at the 167 lb weight class in dramatic fashion during the final of the championship’s, before going on to win it twice more.
He also won the 190 lb class in 1998 and 197 lb in 1999, before graduating from the institute in the same year with a degree in electrical engineering.
“We weren’t sure, we were intrigued to the point,” writer and producer of The Hammer Joseph McKelheer said about making the film.
“It’s tough to find someone who you can make a movie of their life. We interviewed him one time and the story unfolded itself.
“He has a very interesting story and we knew right away right after that interview.”
UFC President Dana White has claimed for several years that he has attempted to get Jones’ loss overturned, but there has never been any official confirmation.
California State Athletic Commission Executive Director Andy Foster appeared on The Ariel Helwani Show last Tuesday—amidst the 12-6 elbow ban lift—and revealed that he is supportive of overturning the loss.
UFC 309 also has Michael Chandler facing off against Charles Oliveira in what is set to be a blockbuster five-round co-main event.
Bo Nickal takes on Scotland’s Paul Craig in the middleweight division, while UFC icon Jim Miller contests his 57th MMA bout in what could be his last octagon appearance.
The main card at UFC 309 kicks off at 3am GMT for UK fans on Sunday, November 17.
