High school phenom Taylor Hishaw confident ahead of FURY Professional Grappling 13: 'I've already beaten two of these girls'
Hishaw one of four women gunning for $5,000 tournament prize on Friday, May 23 at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City.
With ultimate bragging rights and $5,000 on the line, 18-year-old grappling sensation Taylor Hishaw looks to dominate the mats.
The young prospect is not even out of high school yet and will be trying her hand in a stacked four-woman cash bracket that plays out at FURY Professional Grappling 13 on Friday, May 23, at New Jersey's Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City.
Representing B-Team Jiu-Jitsu out of Austin, Texas, Hishaw is supremely confident in herself and her team's abilities.
It all started for Hishaw when her father, Ronnie Hishaw, encouraged his daughter to start training in martial arts. She took to grappling immediately, even guiding her Oklahoma high school wrestling team to pair of state runner-up finishes.
Hishaw now looks to continue growing her skills as a whole and is anxious to prove to fans that she is more than just an outstanding wrestler.
"I've been mistaken as just a wrestler," Hishaw said. "People have put that title on me. I just wrestled to improve my grappling. I was already a grappler before wrestling, I just got really good at it.
"Jiu-jitsu has been my baby for six years. It's all that I do."
Having developed into a highly touted prospect at just 18, life has been a fun whirlwind for Hishaw. She currently attends an online high school, where she aims to complete her degree and go on to college. Jiu-jitsu, however, will remain a primary focus.
That said, a $5,000 cash bracket opportunity for a young grappler like herself is an opportunity of a lifetime.
Helping her along the way is the vaunted B-Team. Hishaw initially trained in Oklahoma, where she felt the skill level of her partners was lacking. That was until she met Craig Jones at one of her first ADCC matches. From there, she joined B-team, and the rest is history.
"It was so awesome to meet Craig," Hishaw said. "My dad talked to a couple of people from the B-Team, and they suggested I go down there. I made the trip and went down, and my mind exploded. I was flabbergasted, if you will."
Having such great tutelage available, Hishaw feels comfortable knowing that she has the best coaches in the world supporting her. She also displays the confidence needed to make it far in the sport.
As she's been eagerly counting down the days to FURY Grappling 13, so have three other competitors, with Amanda Bruse, Cindy Ung and Trinity Pun standing in her way of a tournament win. Though Bruse is a potential new opponent, Pun and Ung have history with Hishaw, as she has beaten both women in the past.
Those two look to gain redemption against Hishaw, but the young teenager's message to the two speaks for itself.
"I've already beaten two of these girls," Hishaw said. "I'm not feeling any pressure. The lady I haven't beat ain't like that. I've had two matches with Pun. First, she got me in an armbar, but last time I beat her, and me and my team knew that was going to happen.
"Cindy, same thing. I beat her. Amanda Bruse, I see it going down the exact same way. I hope everyone's training hard."
Hishaw looks to add to her quickly growing resume by winning this 125-pound women's bracket, taking home the $5,000 prize, and continuing on as a young up-and-coming star. She feels representing B-Team well is important in the matchups, as winning the tournament is sure to come with bragging rights for the victorious team along with the competitor.
Hishaw is obviously confident and is eager to get out in front of a larger audience. With great excitement around CFFC's back-to-back Memorial Day Weekend events, Hishaw believes she will get the job done.
"I just want to go put on exciting matches and get dubs," Hishaw said. "That's my goal. I like to be entertaining. I like to double people. I like to sub people. Not throwing it out there, but I definitely am."
ARTICLE BY: SETH FASSANO