X-FACTOR star Jake Quickenden is putting himself through ten mile runs and brutal sparring sessions in preparation for his MMA debut.
The singer will grace the OKTAGON MMA cage on November 4 in Manchester against comedian Paul Smith.
Quickenden is training with British veteran James Webb, starting his days at the crack of dawn and taking his licks in sparring.
He said: “Some days I'm doing four sessions a day. I should be on my rest days but I'm still doing ten mile runs.
"I'm coming in and I'm sparring James Webb, who's just been in line for the Cage Warriors world championship.
"I'm wrestling with him for 25 minutes, five minute rounds, and he's battering me, but I refuse to give in.
"And he’s saying to me afterwards ‘I'm just trying to make you give in and you won't, and that's all I need to see from you.’
"Webb says if I would have started MMA at 15 then I would be fighting for titles by now.
"I've been doing it for four months and I feel pretty strong at it and not at a bad level.”
Quickenden humbly admits he is even taking a beating from teenagers.
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He revealed: "The Shark Tank is where you get battered for 30 minutes. Pretty much everybody in the room just batters you.
"For the first couple of rounds you're quite strong and you think you can take everyone on, ten rounds in not so much.
"On Friday we had a bit of Shark Tank with the heavyweights – that was just doing seven, five minute rounds with the heavyweights, you are basically just left in there until you can't move.
"So if the class has 25 people you have to roll with 25 people, so you try and get the better ones out the way at the beginning, and then hopefully you can still survive at the end.
"But you know what? I enjoy being tested. I enjoy being battered, I've been humbled many times.
"When I first started I was humbled by 16-17 year olds, that’s when I knew this was something that needs to be taken seriously because these 15 year olds who weigh 50 kg are battering me."
Quickenden is a fan of stand up funny man Smith but he will put the laughing stops when the cage door shuts.
He said: "I like Paul, I think he's a funny guy. I was a fan of his before we signed to fight, I used to watch his comedy all the time.
"I think he's a great comedian. He seems to be a family man, which I really like, because that's me as well.
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"He also seems to talk about his mental health, which is amazing because I do the same, and I think we will probably be mates after this, and I've spoke to him a tiny little bit, and there's no animosity whatsoever at the end of the day, we're both doing this for our own reasons.
"But do I want to win? Yes. Will I go in there and try to beat him up? Yes. But not because I don't like him, but because that's the name of the game."
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