Northeast MMA – September Fighter of the Month

Lee Beane

BY: David Pasquarelli

Lee Beane is an up and coming heavyweight with a sterling record of six wins with no losses and no draws, with all of his wins coming in the first round and most in the first forty seconds of his fights. “The Beast” comes from a wrestling background and is known as a powerful ground and pound fighter although he let me know that he has a lot more in store for his future opponents and he is constantly working on improving his game. Lee was a three time high school state wrestling champion and a two time New England high school champion as well as a member of the Junior Olympic Team. Lee is a 2006 Brown University graduate where he also wrestled at the D1 level and he currently uses his degree every day in his job as a sales executive. Lee currently fights out of the Wai Kru gym and is ranked #3 on the NEMMA rankings. With his physical talent and skills and his intelligent, heads-up approach to life, Lee is truly a fighter with a bright future both in and out of the cage. Following are some questions that I put to Lee and his responses.

NEMMA:  How old were you when you started wrestling?

Lee Beane:  I started wrestling in high school.  I had been in some trouble and it was strongly suggested that I join the wrestling team.  I went out and did a little as a freshman and then really worked at the sport and began to compete as a sophomore. 

NEMMA: Did you win states in your first or second year wrestling?

Lee Beane:  That is true as a sophomore I won my first state title.  I competed at 215lbs. and had a great year only losing 3 matches and winning the majority by pin.  I went on to win two more state titles and two New England titles as a heavyweight.  As a heavyweight I only weighed about 235-245 and some of my opponents weighed as much as 275.  As a senior I competed in the High School Senior National tournament and finished 6^th place to earn All-American status with the NHSCA as well as with the majority of the wrestling websites and magazines.  

NEMMA: Did you study any other types of martial arts as a kid?

Lee Beane:  I studied Tang Soo Do with Carl McDermott in Bridgewater growing up and was always active in a variety of sports.  I love to compete in anything. 

NEMMA: How did you get interested in MMA and specifically in fighting?

Lee Beane:  I have watched the UFC since the very first one.  I love any type of sport and grew up getting into my share of fights.  I became interested in the UFC after watching guys like Gracie, Shamrock and then more geared towards wrestlers like Severn, Frye, Coleman, Ortiz, and Couture, thinking that wrestling was a great base for fighting.

NEMMA: You had your fist fight in 2004, which was a victory against Chuck Mitchell, and then you took some time off to finish college and wrestle. Did you do any training during that time other than wrestling?

Lee Beane:  I mostly just trained wrestling in my time off.  I was on the junior national team and working very hard to grow as a wrestler.  When I finished college, I started a high school team and was teaching wrestling but still not training any other MMA.  I did some workouts in MMA just to stay in shape and change up my routine a little but nothing major at all. 

NEMMA: I read that you graduated with honors from Brown University, which is an impressive achievement. What did you get your degree in?

Lee Beane:  I graduated from Brown with a degree in Business Economics which I use daily in my full time sales and marketing job.

NEMMA: You are known as a ground and pound type of fighter. How is the stand-up striking coming along?

Lee Beane:  I am known as a ground and pound fighter and really enjoy finishing my fights in that fashion.  The little secret is I haven’t been working ground and pound in training at all.  I work on my bjj and stand-up and both are growing and evolving.  I am working out and fighting out of Wai Kru in Allston MA and the trainers up there for both are phenomenal.  Muay Thai work with Kru John, Kru Mark, Damien, Nick, Lisa, Mark and just about anyone else that helps train me is awesome.  I feel like I have learned so much in such a short time.  As far as bjj goes I have two great teachers at Wai Kru for that as well Alex Costa and John Clarke both are big enough to really roll with and both have such good technique.  I have even started doing some gi work to try and fully understand the entire art of bjj.  Also helping me back down closer to my house with both striking and ground work are Chuck O’Neil, Fred Conrad and all the guys at both Lauzon’s MMA and Bishops strength and fitness. 

NEMMA: Who is your favorite fighter to watch and why?

Lee Beane:  My favorite fighter has to be Randy Couture.  He works so hard and had mainly used his wrestling early in his career and now has evolved to where he is a solid striker as well.  I can only hope that I can grow in my fighting style like that.  I also enjoy the new breed of wrestlers that are fighting like Shane Carwin.  I am truly just a fan of the sport and I watch every fight I can.

NEMMA: You’ve had a bunch of really quick finishes but who was your toughest opponent so far?

Lee Beane:  That’s a great question.  I would have to say that Luke Corona was the most difficult to prepare for because he had not fought MMA before and there was no video or scouting report on him.  I knew he was primarily a Muay Thai fighter but he trains at a school with a bunch of great wrestlers.  He also is my longest fight so far.

NEMMA: In the New England area, who would you most like to fight? Why?  This is your forum to call someone out if you want to.

Lee Beane:  I want to fight anyone that is willing to fight.  I don’t care who I fight that being said and looking at the rankings and other fights that have been proposed I would love to fight Josh Watson, Cody Lightfoot and Christian Moorecraft.  Moorecraft is hopefully going to happen soon and then I will go from there.

NEMMA: Your November fight was originally supposed to be with Cody Lightfoot and then with Josh Watson but that fight was also cancelled. Can you tell me what was up there, why was the opponent changed and why was it then cancelled?

Lee Beane:  The fight was supposed to be against Lightfoot first and he hurt his knee and had to pull out about three weeks before the fight.  Then I was lucky enough to have Watson step in and say that he would take the fight.  The week before the fight I tweaked my knee and went to see a couple of doctors and the determination was that I had to take some time off and let it heal up so I had to pull from the fight which sucked.

NEMMA: Have either of those fights been re-scheduled? 

Lee Beane:  Not yet hopefully they will both get rescheduled.  I have been a very active fighter and want to maintain that. 

NEMMA:  Who are you fighting next and when?

Lee Beane:  Nothing set yet.  I am hoping to fight in March.

NEMMA:  Who are your sponsors?

Lee Beane:  My clothing sponsor is Prime Athletics who have been great with me.  I also am sponsored by Chuck O’Neil personal training, Chuck does my strength and conditioning as well as my diet.  Last is Gordon’s Cleaning with Fred Conrad.  Also would like to mention all the gyms that let me workout: Wai Kru, Lauzons, Bishops, Mendes, Elite Fitness, CCFA, and everyone that helps by being workout partners.

NEMMA: Are you still coaching wrestling?

Lee Beane:  I am no longer the head coach of a high school team.  I stepped down from that last year to start trying to train to fight.  I run a middle/elementary school program on Sunday nights at Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School and also will be helping with that high school team this year.  The wrestling season just started on Monday but the BR team looks solid. 

NEMMA: If you could have a “dream job” other than fighting what would it be?

Lee Beane:  My dream job other than fighting would be running a gym, training and managing fighters.  Hopefully after my fighting career is over I will be able to do that.  I also really enjoy what I am doing now in sales and marketing as well.

NEMMA:  What do you think is the most important virtue a person can have; loyalty, courage, honesty, or compassion?

Lee Beane:  I would have to say that the most important virtue a person can have is courage.  Courage to do what needs to be done and courage to face adversity.