UFC: Meet my training team - Te Huna

Kiwi middleweight James Te Huna will headline New Zealand's first UFC show in Auckland at Vector Arena on June 28. Photo / File.

Kiwi middleweight James Te Huna will headline New Zealand's first UFC show in Auckland at Vector Arena on June 28. Te Huna will write an exclusive blog for nzherald.co.nz each Wednesday during the final month of his training camp as he builds up for his bout with American Nate Marquardt at UFC Fight Night 43.

Finding the right sparring partners is an important aspect of your training camp.

As I looked towards my headline bout against American Nate Marquardt at UFC Fight Night 43 at Vector Arena on June 28, I was very specific about who I decided to work with at my camp in Auckland.

New Zealand-born Australian Robert Whittaker and Sydney's Manny Rodriguez are the two guys I have chosen to help me prepare for my middleweight debut in less than two weeks.

Picking your sparring partners comes down to finding fighters who are similar to your opponent, have the right work ethic and will be comfortable if they are away from home.

I have trained with guys in the past who seemed like they were keen and then when they entered camp they got home sick or weren't able to function properly when taken out of their comfort zone.

Robert and I have only known each other for a short time but given he is a welterweight, he has great speed and working with me will also help him for his bout in Auckland when he takes on American Mike Rhodes.

It's also cool to see Robert get a chance to fight in the country of his birth and I know he will have great support at Vector Arena.

Because I am dropping down from light heavyweight to middleweight for my fight with Marquardt, I know I will have plenty of power but my speed is what will be tested.

Manny is an experienced guy with 14 professional MMA fights to his name and he has competed at middleweight and welterweight before so he has a nice mixture of pace and power.

Manny was also a cast member of 'The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes' TV series in 2012 but had to pull out with a broken leg.

That was also the same TV show where Robert won the welterweight division and showed everybody what he is capable of.

Robert and I are both determined to climb in the cage at Vector Arena and put on a show.
Both of us are going to rely on some hometown support and we hope there's a big crowd there on fight night.

I know there are some great fight-week activities planned for next week and hopefully some of you can get along to catch me and some of the fighters next Thursday when we will be signing autographs at The Cloud in downtown Auckland.

Also, it's been great to see Mark Hunt start training in Auckland as he looks to his fight with Roy Nelson at UFC Fight Night 52 in Japan in September.

I know fans have wanted to see these two heavyweight sluggers go at it for a while now and Mark will want to show everyone why he is one of the world's best at the Saitama Dome near Tokyo.

It will be like a hometown fight for Mark given his popularity in Japan and I believe he has what it takes to beat Big Country.

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