MMA in his blood

Mario Prusina
Times Editor

While most kids at a young age begin to play mainstream sports – hockey, soccer, baseball, football, etc., – Strathmore’s Seth Buss had another sport in mind.
The now 16-year-old envisioned himself as a mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter.
“I just always, ever since I was five years old, wanted to fight,” said Buss. “I started fighting when I was five… started off with taekwondo and gradually moved over to MMA.”
After the doors opened to Strathmore’s APEX MMA in 2014, Buss made the move to MMA. In May of 2016, he came on as staff, assisting the APEX coaches.
“They needed another instructor and I was here every day, sometimes four to five hours,” laughed Buss. “We do get a lot of people who do want to try (MMA), but most people don’t like to get hit and they second guess themselves. We have people who stick around with it and some that don’t. It’s the same for hockey – they get on the ice and they realize they can’t skate or that they don’t want to get shoulder checked.”
Buss competed in his first amateur fight and is eyeing a second fight this September. His dream is to one day compete in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), the pinnacle MMA organization on the planet.
The UFC’s global reach had hosted live events, including pay per view (PPV) fights, all over the world. The UFC had a successful show in Edmonton this past weekend and has live shows almost every weekend. Their next PPV is Aug. 17 in Anaheim, Calif.
“It’s sold out – they are actually trying to take tickets for me to sell,” said UFC President Dana White. “It’s a good, I’m excited. That (fight) card is awesome and I’m looking forward to it.”