Local MMA fighter Connor “KryptoKnight” Krebs wins first title at Havoc Fighting Championship

Initially training to end his fight with a head kick, a move he says is commonly allowed in advanced amateur competitions, he says he learned the day of the championships that the move wasn’t allowed by the Central Alberta Combative Sports Commission.

After wrapping his hands, Krebs said his gloves were too tight, cutting off his circulation and he began to feel the start of a cold coming.

“That was giving me a lot of anxiety leading up to the fight but when the bright lights are on, that’s when I shine the brightest. I put it all behind me and made the most of it,” he said.

It was the people around him, he says, that pushed him to persevere.

“When I got out there, I probably knew 200 people in the stands. I met so many of them on my way in; it was quite overwhelming hugging person after person and after person just trying to get to the locker room,” he said. “When I heard them all cheering for me, it made everything else seem redundant almost. I was going to perform; that’s all I knew.”

Right before the fight, Krebs said his long-time friend and training partner Sean Carroll, also competing that same night in the lightweight division, gave him a pep talk, putting him in the right mind frame. He says Carroll expressed how he was the reason he began fighting himself in MMA and reminded Krebs of why he fought and why he was good at the sport.

Most importantly, Krebs said his coach, Kent Brown at Kensei Martial Arts & Fitness in Red Deer, has been a crucial part of every step in his MMA career.

Krebs began training eight years ago, accepting his first fight at a Havoc contest against Ryan Williams, who he says was way out of his league as a brown belt and jiu-jitsu trainer.

Six weeks before, Krebs said he walked into the Kensei gym and asked Brown to train him. Hesitant, Brown gave him a shot.

“I didn’t miss a single class. I stayed for every kickboxing class. I stayed for every cardio class. I stayed for every jiu-jitsu class. I was the last one to leave the gym every night and I never skipped out on sparring or extra rounds,” said Krebs.

“He was the one to corner me for my first fight and he’s been in my corner every fight since and he’s always been in my corner whether it’s in the gym or in my personal life. He’s always got my back and he’s had the biggest influence and impact on my MMA career.”

Connor “KryptoKnight” Krebs’ speech winning the amateur featherweight belt at the Havoc Fighting Championship on Friday at Westerner Park. (Supplied)

Brown echoed a similar sentiment. After struggling with bullying in his youth, Brown says he found refuge in karate and MMA, later opening his gym in 2005 to help build others up and find their strong suits.

“All the work that I see Connor put in, he puts in extra sessions constantly, he books training around work and life all the time to make sure he gets his time in. I’m ecstatic and so pumped he’s been able to get to attain what he’s attained,” he said.

That day in 2014, Krebs lost to Williams but made it through the full three rounds. This Friday, was a full circle to redemption.

“It’s like human chess with dire consequences. I love the strategy in it and I love that there’s so many different dimensions to it and so many different philosophies and ways to go about training for it,” he said about the sport.

A warehouse operator by day, Krebs says his goal is to one day become a “champ-champ” like his MMA idol, Conor McGregor, who was the first ever double champion in UFC history. Krebs hopes to make this happen by simultaneously competing in the 135-pound bantamweight division.

by Alessia Proietti

Local MMA fighter Connor “KryptoKnight” Krebs wins first title at Havoc Fighting Championship

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