At UFC Fight Night 20, middleweight up-and-comer Aaron Simpson will find himself in an all too familiar position. Even though he is only six fights into his professional career, the thirty-five year old Arizona native has been training in combat sports since the age of four and shows no signs of slowing down.

The highly respected member of Arizona Combat Sports had his first fight in 2007 and has been burying the competition ever since. Simpson is undefeated at 6-0 and has yet to go the distance in any one of his fights, finishing all of his opponents by KO, including notable fighters David Avellan and Tim McKenzie.

The former Arizona State All-American passed his first real test in the Octagon against Ed Herman this past August at UFC 102. In one of the more exciting fights of the year, Simpson kept the pressure on the Ultimate Fighter Season Three runner-up ending the fight with an early second round TKO in which Herman suffered a demoralizing knee injury that has kept him out of action to date.

One of the top breakout stars in the UFC in 2009, Simpson is preparing to start the New Year with a bang when he takes on "Filthy" Tom Lawlor, January 11 in Fairfax, Virginia.

Tommy Kail of FiveKnuckles.com recently sat down with Simpson to discuss thirty years of life in athletics and what 2010 might hold in store.

FiveKnuckles.com: Aaron, you were a highly decorated wrestler in high school as a four time state champion and also in college where you were a two time All-American. What is it that led you to finally pull the trigger on an MMA career after a lengthy gap in active competition?

Aaron Simpson: When I look back on things, it all comes down to timing. I had many years of wrestling at the elite level. After I finished college, I was training for the Olympic trials and I was also going overseas and competing internationally. When I started coaching at Arizona State, I was still training and some things just happened along the way that allowed me to try my hand at MMA. It was always in the back of my mind and I had some friends that were doing very well in the UFC. Josh Koscheck, who I'm really close with, stepped it up and started to dominate. To see him do what he's been doing has been motivating for me. Gray Maynard is another guy who's doing great. I've known Gray forever. We're both on the same card coming up in Fairfax. It's just amazing for me to be a fighter at this point in my life and I'm very thankful.

FiveKnuckles.com: Some would argue that MMA is for the young and able bodied, but the success that many fighters have as they get older proves that theory wrong. What's allowing you to compete at such a high level right now?

Aaron Simpson: Honestly, I feel like I'm young and able bodied. The dedicated and the hungry can compete in this game, and the age of a fighter doesn't have much to do with it. Nothing's ever changed in my career and I'm still doing the things I've always done. I can train at the highest level. I'm still wrestling at the highest level. I can run and lift at the highest level. None of that has ever left me. People always ask me if I ever gotten sick of wrestling or if I've ever...