Wray makes pro debut Saturday

When Spencer Wray steps into the octagon late Saturday evening to headline an MMA fighting event in West Des Moines, it will culminate a decade-long dream.

Wray was a state runner-up wrestler for Creston in 2015 at 138 pounds. His style was wide open, with wild scrambles and pins ending many of his matches in a 30-3 season.

But at the same time, another combative sport had Wray hooked on mastering. Going into his ninth grade year, he met high school wrestling teammate Zac Goodrich, who had been training at Henry’s Martial Arts in Creston as a mixed martial arts fighter.

“I was interested in that and at the age of 14 I started training with these older guys,” Wray said. “A lot of sessions were like full go. I had to learn fast or get out. I went to watch my first show when I was 14 and I said I want to do that. I loved the energy.”

Wray dove head-first into learning the varied skills of being on the mat in wrestling and martial arts situations, as well as standing and striking. In other words, a brawler looking to break his opponent’s will, just like his approach on the high school wrestling mat.

“I make people quit, that’s what I was good at in wrestling,” said Wray, now 28. “A lot of my pins were third-period pins. I had a big gas tank and constantly pushed the pace until they didn’t want to wrestle me anymore.”

Wray loved MMA so much he had his first fight shortly after his 18th birthday — the legal MMA age in Iowa — just a few months after wrestling in the state finals as a high school senior. He won by a first-round TKO in April 2015 on the grounds of the Knoxville Speedway.

Since then, Wray has fought in many shows as an amateur, recently returning to the sport after taking some time off. Married to Hannah Perrigo of Creston, with five children ranging from age five months to 12 years old, Wray’s day job is a residential electrician for one of his upcoming fight sponsors, Wired Solutions of Des Moines.

On Saturday night, Wray makes his professional debut when he meets Quayshawn Means in a lightweight (155 pounds) mixed martial arts match that headlines the Ascendancy Fighting Championship event. The 14-fight card begins at 7 p.m. at The MidAmerican Energy Company RecPlex on Grand Avenue in Des Moines. Doors open at 6 p.m.

Pro-amateur differences

Wray, a seven-time champion of amateur events over the past decade, has made the move to the professional ranks. Not only are the fight night payoffs larger, but there are more sponsorships of training costs, nutrition and fitness programs. It’s been a goal in the making for several years.

“Technically, amateur fights only allow you to receive a percentage of your ticket sales, and any sponsorship money you can gather,” Wray said. “As a professional, there are starting fees paid just to show, and additional payments to winners. And, you can keep 50% of your ticket sales. I would get a lesser percentage as an amateur.”

As of Tuesday, nearly 200 had either purchased tickets to Saturday’s event directly from Wray, or listed him as a “referred fighter” in online ticket orders. To order, go online to Nitrotickets.com and look for Ascendancy Fighting Championships (Wray’s headliner fight poster), go to Get Tickets, and you can select Spencer Wray as a “referred fighter.” Participants identified as “referred” in those orders get a percentage of those ticket sales.

“I train in different gyms depending on the specialty I’m looking for in a gym, so sponsorships help cover those costs off training, your nutrition program and personal trainers, and gear that I need,” Wray said.

Wray works regularly with trainer Anthony Baccam of Movewell Iowa in Ankeny on “functional pattern training” in addition to his MMA fight training.

Wray even had a DEXA Scan bone density test administered while determining which weight class he could drop to without adverse effects such as loss of muscle tissue. Even this former wrestler, who could cut 20 pounds to make a certain weight division in high school, admits there’s a point of negative returns in shaving pounds.

“It said I could get down to 143 pounds without cutting muscle, but I’d be down to like 0% body fat,” Wray said. “Now I’m going at 155 pounds and that’s good for me. I know that Quayshawn (Saturday’s opponent) fought twice at 170 pounds after coming back from a six-year layoff. He was on a previous card with me and was just a beast. If he’s coming down to 155 for this fight he must be putting in the work.”

Scrappy style

Wray said he hopes to use an advantage of being lighter on his feet with good movement to create effective angles. He showed the ability to grapple into submission situations, as well as stand and strike in an entertaining bout in 2022 against another area fighter, Chris Kingery of Lenox. After nearly losing by submission, Wray worked his way out of trouble and ended up winning in the same manner.

“My approach is that I’m never out of a fight,” Wray said. “I give it my all the entire time.”

His matchup with Means Saturday is scheduled for three rounds, five minutes each. Professional fights have five-minute rounds compared to three-minute rounds for amateur bouts. Strikes by the knee or elbow to the head are allowed in professional bouts, but prohibited in the amateur ranks.

Wray compiled an 11-6 amateur record.

“I’ve won seven championships of organizations that promote fights,” Wray said, “and I’ve been in three others that I lost. All my losses are by decision except one fluke when the ref stopped it. All my wins except one have been [early] finishes.”

Wray is looking for a win by knockout, technical knockout (ended by referee) or submission in grappling or ground fighting, where his wrestling or ju-jitsu (Brazilian martial art focusing on leverage and submission) can be utilized.

“I just love to brawl,” Wray said. “I’ll stand and bang, or if we go to ground I’ll use submission if I have to, or just pound until they say, I’m done.”

Wrestling background

Wray’s all-out approach was honed in the highly-competitive Creston wrestling program under head coach Darrell Frain. Current head coach Cody Downing was the lead assistant. Both have directed team state championships built through challenging workouts. The philosophy was to train to score in the decisive third period of matches.

“You had to be in that room to truly understand,” Wray said. “Coach Frain pushed you until a breaking point, and then showed you that you can go past that. The mental breaking point is not your breaking point. There’s always another gear.”

Being in the spotlight of a main event in the octagon in front of a boisterous crowd doesn’t unnerve Wray, who seems to feed off the energy of the crowd. He said those qualities were learned early in high school wrestling in front of capacity home crowds that often rattled opponents.

“I think that’s why I didn’t really have a problem with nerves in the beginning when it was time to come out in front of the crowd,” Wray said. “I’m used to walking out to the mat in a packed Creston gymnasium with everyone cheering you. It’s a game-changer to be able to harness that energy and use it to your advantage.”

Wray has garnered plenty of local support. Saturday’s Ascendancy Fighting Championship card will be livestreamed at both Mario’s Bar and Grill and Creston Eagles Club. The fights start at 7 p.m. and Wray will be in the 14th and final bout of the night, expected to begin anywhere from about 9:30 p.m. to 11 p.m.

Wray’s sponsors besides Wired Solutions and Mario’s include H&L Surveillance Systems, Creston Roofing & Siding, Top Notch Fireworks, Maven Independent Salons, Hannah Wray Realty, Lost Planet Development, The BAR Performance, Solari Construction LLC, Amber’s Place and Hi-Crest Auto.

Faith is also a big component in Wray’s day-to-day approach.

“None of this could be done without my salvation through Jesus Christ,” Wray said. “He was the major catalyst for coming back and making a statement in fighting. He gets all the glory and I get the privilege to spread the good news.”