I recently had the opportunity to spend some time talking to Strikeforce rising star, Tim Kennedy. Tim is an amazingly talented MMA fighter who derives great pleasure from skull stomping his opponents. However, there is much more to Tim than his career as a top rated MMA fighter. Tim is a decorated Special Forces sniper who has served multiple tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan. He is a devoted husband, friend, and business partner. And for those that get to know him, he is a truly funny guy that laughs his way through life all the while bringing a smile to those around him. Ok, the Tim Kennedy love fest is over, people might start to talk, let's get to the interview.

When did you get started in martial arts?

When I was 10-11 years old. Growing up, my mother was very active in her church and was determined to raise civilized and cultured boys. In contrast, my dad was perfectly happy to raise boys who would become real men, not some dainty metro-sexual. My dad was a narcotics officer, a man's man, who traveled a fair amount for work - every time he would leave, my mom would enroll us in dance class, cooking class, anything that might help to tame or soften the knuckledraggers my dad was determined to raise. Every time dad came home he would enroll us in Jiu Jitsu, boxing, bear wrestling, eating the still beating heart of a freshly killed dear - anything he could think of to imbue us with the warrior spirit.

What attracted you to being an MMA fighter?

It was around 1998 when I started to notice that MMA was taking off in popularity, then I realized I'm already doing Jiu Jitsu, wrestling, boxing, and Muay Thai at a fairly high level - I was an MMA fighter before I even knew I was an MMA fighter.

You've trained with John Hackleman at the Pit, what was that experience like?

It was a weird experience. John is an amazing person and a brilliant coach. However, he wanted to control all aspects of my life, which did not work for me. I am a very independent person who views fighting as only one aspect of my life. It was my perception that John wanted fighting to be my entire life. We just have different philosophies on the subject.

Early in your career you had several fights with Jason Mayhem Miller, you each won a fight. Do you think you will get a chance at a rubber match now that Mayhem has signed with Strikeforce?

I better! The first fight was a skull stomping. The first round and a half of the second fight was a skull stomping until he hit me with an illegal elbow. Blood was in my eyes, I couldn't see shit then he lay on top of me and managed to fool the judges into...