Matt Phinney threw his first right hook at the age of 7, accidentally knocking out his friend's tooth as they sparred. Fifteen years later, Phinney won the regional Golden Gloves boxing tournament in Lowell for his weight class, at 152 pounds.
Phinney, 23, is a student at Mount Ida College in Newton majoring in sports management, and a trainer, instructor, and manager at the United States Mixed Martial Arts studio in Bellingham. He teaches muay Thai, jujitsu, wrestling, and mixed martial arts, a combination of skills involving Brazilian jujitsu, Thai boxing, judo, traditional boxing, and kickboxing.
"The whole Ultimate Fighting Championship scene has become very popular," said Phinney, attributing some of the interest to pay-per-view and Spike, a cable television network.
He also handles a good percentage of the studio's marketing, organizes and runs a summer camp for children, and contacts wholesalers for equipment.
The 4,000-square-foot studio is not a traditional weightlifting gym, but a conditioning facility with equipment such as heavy bags, speed bags, stability and medicine balls, and resistance bands. There's also a 1,500-square-foot yoga studio.
But at the end of his work day, Phinney returns to the 12-foot-by-15-foot college dorm room that he shares with three roommates. Posters of bikini-clad women cover one wall (Phinney insists they were not his contribution), a bottle of Axe cologne sits on a desk, and a large candle that he says acts as a room deodorizer is the table centerpiece.
Phinney went through three high schools in six years before graduating.
He began at the Governor's Academy, a private prep school in Byfield, but said that academically, he got buried. "I don't have the attention or desire to sit down and do book work," Phinney said. "I learn more from doing."
The only positive aspect, he said, was his introduction to wrestling. He left Governor's halfway through his sophomore year, and spent the remaining months working as a landscaper.
Phinney repeated his sophomore year at Medway High School. By the following year, he was getting into trouble and was shipped off to the Tilton School in New Hampshire.
"There were definitely a group of kids who, for them, the school was their last chance," said Phinney. "But there were also a large number of students who choose Tilton because it was good. For me, the school was a place to succeed."
Phinney's first boxing lessons were self-taught, drawn from watching the sport on television while in middle school.
In high school, he began taking group classes at Gold's Gym in Milford with Bobby Andrews, a pro boxer who later became involved with mixed martial arts. After two years, Phinney started sparring with some of the pros. It was then that he met Jorge Rivera, who is on Ultimate Fighting Championship programs. Rivera introduced Phinney to Tom Hafers, a Franklin resident whom Phinney credits for his success both in the ring and out. For five years, Phinney took private lessons from Hafers.
"He's a best friend, a mentor, a brother, and a father figure," said Phinney. "He had so many great ideas and would teach me about mixed martial arts, and the business world."
Hafers, also a gemologist, owned Stardust Jewelers in Milford for 22 years, and taught boxing on the side. Eventually, he and Phinney began brainstorming about opening a gym, and created a business plan. Two years later, the United States Mixed Martial Arts studio was up and running.
"Matt is a natural athlete who would probably do well in any sport he chose," Hafers said. "Boxing takes coordination, balance, timing, and many other skills; he's one of the lucky people who was born with a gift."
Through his boxing career, Phinney has hyper-extended both elbows, broken his nose, torn the medial collateral ligament in his knee, popped two ribs on either side, and had four herniated disks in his neck. During the first fight in the amateur Golden Gloves boxing tournament, he broke his hand, but that didn't stop him. Phinney stepped up his footwork to get him through.
The tournament, which began on Jan. 15, ran for four weeks.
"Some guys don't have a good feel for the ring, so you'll see them backing into the ropes, running out of room, and getting cornered," said Phinney. "But if you feel comfortable in the ring and understand it, you can set up your opponent."
The second fight was against a southpaw from Worcester. Phinney said his biggest challenge was not having the use of his right hand.
"I tried to hook him to death," said Phinney. "I won by points, but by far it was my sloppiest fight of the tournament."
One week later, Phinney entered his third fight of the tournament, which he said went beautifully, even though he was still unable to use his right hand.
"I was able to control the distance, use the defense, and set everything up through a power jab, ripping shots off my left hand and slowing the pace down." After he won the fight, tournament officials told him he was fighting again the next day. Phinney said he thought they were joking, as there are usually a few days of rest between fights.
The fourth bout was tough, Phinney said, because he was tired and drained, and the fight was held in the arena with no fans - just the fighters, their cornermen, ring doctors, and commissioners. Phinney said that no one wanted to warm up and shadowbox in fear they'd give something away.
He won the fifth match in front of a full house.
Phinney said his next goal is to get to the national level, and perhaps aim for the Olympics.
"I'm certainly impressed with the kid who didn't say more than a few words when I first met him eight years ago," said Hafers. "He's a born entertainer."
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