1/28/08
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1/28/08 |
Lincoln, IL – January 28, 2008– One of Lincoln College’s graduates and Hillsboro native Matt Hughes (LC ’95) of Ultimate Fighting fame has published a new biography called Made in America: The Most Dominant Champion in UFC History, which was listed on the New York Times Bestseller list.
The book which is co-written by Michael Malice and published by Simon and Schuster tells the story of Hughes growing up on the farm in Hillsboro, the struggles he and his family face, the evolution to his collegiate career and his rise to becoming one of the UFC's most successful fighters.
Hughes said he hopes the book will give an accurate insight into his life. “The number one thing I wanted was honesty. I’ve received compliments and criticism about the stories but the process of reliving some of the memories was a lot of fun,” said Hughes. Hughes said he wrote the book due to the overwhelming response to his web pages. “I was contacted by Simon and Schuster after they saw the high volume of web traffic. The visitors on the web always wanted to know more about me so it just made sense,” said Hughes. Having just finished a book tour Hughes says the overall opinion of his readers is well received. “I have had many people say they don’t read books but they picked mine up and read it all the way through,” said Hughes.
Hughes, a graduate of Hillsboro High School, was a four time state qualifier winning state titles his junior and senior year. His college career started at Belleville Area Community College where he placed 5th in the nation. After Belleville dropped their wrestling program Matt and his twin brother Mark transferred to Lincoln College where he placed 3rd in the nation finishing with a 33-3 record for the Lynx. After earning a degree from Lincoln College, Matt continued his career at Eastern Illinois University where he was a two-time NCAA Division I All-American placing 8th in 1996 and 5th in 1997 at 158 pounds. Hughes’ love for competition took him to the sport of Mixed Martial Arts fighting. In 2001, Matt won the world welterweight title in the Ultimate Fighting Championships. He successfully defended his title eight times which is more than any other fighter in the sport. He and his wife Audra, currently live in Hillsboro with their two children.
Lincoln College was founded in 1865 as Lincoln University, the only institution of higher education named for Abraham Lincoln during his lifetime. It is a selective, two-year, private, liberal arts college located in Lincoln, Illinois. Lincoln College is designed to prepare a student for university study through a structured, supportive approach to learning. Approximately 89% of Lincoln College graduates transfer immediately to a four-year school where they succeed as well as or better than the native student. Student-teacher ratio at Lincoln College is 13:1 and the average class size is 16 students.