Shoreland Lutheran MMA fighter Haas represents Team USA at Worlds

KENOSHA, Wis. - He's a two-time national MMA champion, and he's gearing up to represent Team USA at Worlds in Abu Dhabi. Shoreland Lutheran's Adam Haas says it started with him wanting to learn how to fight and grew from there. He says the sport makes him feel alive.

"I love MMA because I like the challenge of seeing where I can go with the sport," said Haas. "My fighting style for MMA is Brazilian jiu-jitsu. That is where I am strongest, on the ground. When I step into the octagon, it is definitely a little nerve-wracking."

He described when things got serious with MMA.

"At probably two years of experience I was like, ‘I am going to do this,’" said Haas. "Probably when I started beating adults. That's probably when."

He credited his parents for his success. 

"I couldn't do any of this without my dad; him driving me to all my practices, but my mom really can't do it because she doesn't want to see her little baby get hurt in the cage," said Haas. 

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Haas recounted what it was like to become a champion.

"I am the Gamma Youth National Champion," said Haas. "At the beginning, I felt pretty good, actually, a little loose. At the end of it all, I was actually fighting sick at the end, but I pushed through that and ended up winning it. I am the USFL National Champion. That one was really good. Threw my hands up in the air. Jumped up in the sky and everything. That's also another great thing about the sport. You get to say, ‘Oh I am a two-time national champion.’"

In August, he'll be fighting at Worlds in Abu Dhabi. 

"It is really cool because not a lot of kids get to go to Abu Dhabi," said Haas. 

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Outside of MMA, Haas said he likes to go fishing with his uncle. 

"Oh yeah, I just lost a huge bass recently because of weak line on the fishing pole," said Haas.