ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Phil Hawes is on the verge of great things in mixed martial arts .... so long as the sport's preeminent free spirit, Donald Cerrone, doesn't accidentally get him killed first.
Hawes, a highly touted middleweight prospect out of the JacksonWink camp, has spent his share of time at Cerrone's BMF Ranch, about an hour out of the city. And like any newbie attempting to fit in, the 26-year-old New Jersey native has found himself doing things he never would have imagined.
"Whatever fans picture in their head about Cowboy's ranch, it's exactly that, and then some," Hawes said.