Watch Former WWE Superstar Jack Swagger Win His MMA Debut

Jake Hager, also more famously known by his WWE moniker 'Jack Swagger,' announced late last year [...]

By Nick Valdez

Jake Hager, also more famously known by his WWE moniker "Jack Swagger," announced late last year that he would be making his official MMA debut against J.W. Kiser at Bellator 214, and what an explosive debut it turned out to be.

Airing live on the Paramount Network, Hager quickly wrapped up his debut match with an Arm Triangle submission victory un the first round. You can check out a clip of it below.

After managing to takedown Kiser and land a few decisive elbows, Hager secured victory at the 2:09 minute mark in the first round. This makes for a 1-0 record for Hager so far, which is a very promising start for this phase of his career. WWE even showed the former superstar some love as they tweeted out a congratulatory message shortly following the bout, "Congratulations to @RealJackSwagger on his @BellatorMMA debut!"

Hager had a successful run in the WWE as Jack Swagger as well. Debuting under the ECW brand in 2008, Swagger went on to win the ECW Championship, the United States Championship, the Money in the Bank briefcase at WrestleMania XXVI, and the World Heavyweight Championship titles during his tenure with the company.

Paying tribute to his past as a WWE SuperStar, Hager even got an extra bump for his big debut as his entrance to the ring was supported by a performance from current WWE SuperStar R-Truth. This brought both worlds colliding together, and was a big show of confidence that thankfully paid off for Hager in the long run. You can check out a clip of the debut below.

Hager seeks to make Bellator MMA his focus for this next phase of his athletic career, and although it's far too early to gauge just how well Hager will do in this sport this is a great first bout for him. It'll set him up as a rising star in the MMA world, but that also means he will have to work that much harder in order to succeed. At the very least, fans of Hager's tenure in the WWE will be happy to see that he's bringing much of the same "Swagger" to this sport that fans have come to love.

0comments
Start the Conversation

of