By Kim Dunbar

Some sports come and go, but Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) has proven to be no passing fad. In fact, it’s about to get even more popular than ever around the Bay State. In December, Massachusetts became the 42nd state to legalize martial arts when Governor Deval Patrick signed a bill which put the state in charge of regulating the sport.

This is good news for local fighter Mike Zichelle, a 23-year-old professional fighter from Leominster. He got into MMA out of boredom; he had retired from baseball and was looking for another sport in which to compete. He watched his friend training and decided to get in on the crazy.

“I thought it was a crazy sport when I first started doing it,” Zichelle said. “But it is incredibly exciting. No other sport comes close. ”

Zichelle has been training for the last couple of years and fought for the first time as an amateur in October 2008. After winning the fight, he turned professional. “I thought after the first time I won that it was a fluke,” he said. “But then I realized I could really do this.”

Zichelle’s then 4-0 record (four knockouts) attracted the attention of scouts from World Championship Fighting (WCF), New England’s leading MMA promotional company. The feeling was mutual, and he joined WCF in mid- January 2010.

MMA is a full contact sport, comprised of several different forms of martial arts, and follows an “anything goes” format when it comes fighting in the ring (kicking, punching, wrestling and the like are all allowed).

“It is a lot to learn,” Zichelle said. “MMA is tough because it’s exactly what it’s called, mixed martial arts. There are a lot of parts to it.”

Zichelle said his training regimen is as multidimensional as the sport. He partakes in wrestling, boxing, Jiu Jitsu, kick boxing, weight training and sparring exercises to prepare for a fight. However, practice is just practice. “You can never emulate exactly what a fight is like,” he added.

MMA requires fighters to not only be physically fit, but also mentally tough. “It sounds like a cliché but it’s true,” Zichelle said. “It is a very mental sport. You are constantly pushing yourself. And that’s what separates a lot of fighters ~ those who are exhausted and can’t breathe, and the people who push through it.”

Not to mention the fact that your opponent is trying to knock you out. “Fighting is scary,” said Zichelle, who added that he’s a normal and goofy guy to be around outside the ring.

His advice to aspiring MMA athletes is to be patient and train hard. And one more thing: “Don’t do it if you’re afraid to get hit,” he said.

For more information on WCF, visit wcffighting.com.