Only Deaf Fighter To Compete Under The UFC Banner

TORONTO - (SPORTSNET UFC) - Another hill for Hamill to climb at UFC 152. Matt (The Hammer) Hamill makes his return to the Octagon at UFC 152 against Canadian Roger Hollett. It is Hamill's return to the UFC after a year-long retirement, and is just one more challenge for the 35-year-old who was spent his entire existence on this planet defying the odds.



Hamill broke through to the public consciousness during season three of The Ultimate Fighter, the season that featured Tito Ortiz and Ken Shamrock as coaches and was eventually won by Michael Bisping. Viewers were enthralled with Hamill's story, being the only Deaf fighter to compete under the UFC banner.



Hamill was a freestyle wrestler who won gold and silver medals at the Deaflympics, and had only started training in MMA a mere six months before being cast for the show. Viewers not only loved his “Rudy”-like inspirational story, but also enjoyed his interactions with his coach Ortiz, who admitted Hamill “reminds me a bit of me.”

Read more http://www.sportsnet.ca/mma/2012/09/13/bardsley_matt_hamill_ufc152_toronto/



Visit http://www.ufc.com or www.youtube.com/UFC for more information.



As seen on articles:

UFC Videos: Matt Hamill Biography

UFC 130 - Matt Hamill Profile - Mentally Tough

Deaf UFC Fighter - "The Hammer" - Official Teaser

Deaf UFC Fighter - "The Hammer" - Official Teaser

Video: Deaf UFC Fighter - "The Hammer" - Official Teaser.



Hamill is now "The Hammer"! The movie is the true story of Deaf UFC Fighter, Matt Hamill. The captions are provided in the video promo so that hearing and Deaf audiences can experience the film together.

Video by okaplan



Some Cool Things About The Movie:

- All the Deaf characters are played by Deaf actors.



- The movie is 1/3 in sign language and 2/3 in English, which is why there are subtitles throughout, so that Deaf and hearing audiences can watch the movie together.



- Russell Harvard (who plays Matt), played Daniel Day Lewis' son in There Will Be Blood.



- Shoshannah Stern (who plays Kristi) was Bonnie on Jericho, and a prominent figure in the first season of Weeds.



- UFC Fighter Rich Franklin who plays one of Matt's wrestling coaches, actually fought and beat Matt Hamill IN 2008.



- Mark Hamill (of Luke Skywalker fame) is not in the movie.



For showtimes and more information go to: http://thehammerpremiere.com



Matt “The Hammer” Hamill and Clay “The Carpenter” Guida. .... business ventures outside the UFC including “Hamill” the movie based on my life story ... were able to see a man with a physical handicap, (Matt Hamill is Deaf) flourish in a sport ...: http://www.matthamill.com



Other names, The Hammer. Nationality, American ... Born in Loveland, Ohio, Hamill was Deaf from birth. He was introduced ... Hamill is the subject of an upcoming movie entitled Hamill about his early life and wrestling career ...: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matt_Hamill

UFC 130 - Matt Hamill Profile - Mentally Tough

Video: UFC 130 - Matt Hamill Profile - Mentally Tough in captioned.



The film is the inspirational story of Hamill, who was born Deaf. Hear what made Hamill so strong and where he is testing his limits during this training camp. Hamill will have the biggest fight of his career.

Check it out, UFC Videos: Matt Hamill Biography

Video by UFC