It has been a bit of a roller coaster ride for the San Jose based American Kickboxing Academy as of late. With their fair share of ups and downs, a camp this strong can only season through the trials and tribulations that are embedded in this sport.

Watching their heavyweight champion return from a grueling layoff only to lose his UFC title, or seeing their captain plastered on highlights reels after a brutal knockout, has recently been only half of the story for this world class camp.

While the lows are frustrating and disappointing, this is not a family of fighters and coaches that will lay back and feel sorry for themselves. Their reputation in the fight game was not built on a rocky foundation. They find inspiration through the learning experiences to pick themselves up and dust themselves off.

The highs that offset those lows help the athletes down on their luck maintain composure and to fight back to their finest form. So where Cain Velasquez and Jon Fitch may feel the gravity of their recent bouts, they can look to Luke Rockhold to remember just how sweet it can be.

The Strikeforce middleweight champ just had another career performance against veteran Keith Jardine this month. In doing so he has become a beacon of light during some tough times for some of AKA’s most recognizable faces.

The AKA boss Javier Mendez recently took some time out to speak with Todd Jackson of Hurtsbad MMA about his middleweight champ and reflect on the recent bout. He opened up about just how far Rockhold has come as well as where he is headed.

As for the fight with “The Dean of Mean” Jav had this to tell Hurtsbad MMA. “No one has been able to do that to Keith Jardine like he did. If you watch Keith Jardine's career, he has been there with everybody, a lot of greats. Luke actually was able to do something to him that none of them were able to do and I think that was pretty impressive.”

Mendez talked about what he feels is the difference between the champ and his competitors. He recalled the situation where he and Rockhold accepted his first bout for the title with the dangerous Jacare Souza.

Jav said, “The kid is unbelievably gifted. He has got the right mental frame of mind. When he had his fight with Jacare I basically did not want that fight. I thought mentally it was a tough fight for him to take without having any tune ups having come off an injury.”

Mendez went on to explain, “We were kind of stuck in a situation where the Strikeforce middleweight division was very weak at that time due to injuries and what not. Tim Kennedy couldn't do it. There were just a lot of things going on so we had to step up to the plate.”

Recalling his fighter’s desire and heart Javier told Hurtsbad, “Luke said to me 'Jav I understand what you're saying but I'm going to beat him.' I told Luke 'I'm sure that's how you feel and all but I would like for you to have more experience before you fight him.' And he told me 'No Jav, I'm going to beat him, you watch.’”

As is the case between coach and athlete, they won’t always see eye to eye but sometimes the proof is in the pudding so to speak. Rockhold showed his coach what he needed to see to really get behind the match up that eventually won him the Strikeforce middleweight strap. “It wasn't until his sparring sessions with Josh Koscheck, because Koscheck brings the heat, it wasn't until then that I looked at Luke and I said 'Damn, you're right, you are going to beat him'. At that particular time I realized that Luke was going to beat him.”

The casual MMA fan may not realize through their Chael Sonnen vs. Anderson Silva tunnel vision but Luke Rockhold is clearly one of the top middleweights in the world in the eyes of anyone who truly understands MMA.

When asked just how his middleweight stacks up against the rest of the class regardless of promotions Mendez pulled no punches. “As far as how good is he? It's my personal opinion that there is not anyone outside of Anderson Silva who is going to beat this kid. Of course we won't know that for a while because he's in Strikeforce and he has a duty there to defend that title. Whatever the UFC decides it wants to do, that's when we will see Luke Rockhold come on over where he needs to be.”

Regardless of where he feels Rockhold belongs, he fully understands and appreciates the process and respects that it simply takes time. Javier sees a fighter that will remain focused and dedicated regardless of where he competes.

Mendez said, “If that means that he is going to be in Strikeforce because that's what they want then that's what we will have to do. I don't see this kid losing the title any time soon unless he just gives up on the sport. But he's hungrier than ever. There's always a motivating factor that guys fight.”

He went on to say, “Now I see Luke always channeling his energy which is something he does to keep himself motivated. His main thing is he wants the best challenges out there, he wants respect. And if it wasn't respect, believe me, he would find another reason. He's always motivated to stay on top.”

Looking forward Rockhold’s coach feels the sky is truly the limit, the tools are in place, and it is simply a matter of time. “My impression of the kid is he can go wherever he wants to go. The more fights and more televised time he gets the more people will start to realize what I have been saying about Luke Rockhold since long before he started getting exposure. This kid is an overall total performer.”

While a future in the UFC is a fun topic to cover, the immediate future holds a very tough challenge for Mendez and Rockhold to negotiate and navigate. From injury, to signing an actual bout, to winning it, they have their work cut out for them.

Mendez explained, “I've been wanting a fight with Tim Kennedy since before the Jacare fight. I hope somehow they can put that together. But Luke broke his hand in the Jardine fight so he has to wait to get clearance.”

Once that happens, “My hope is that the next fight will be Tim Kennedy because I think he has earned the right to fight for that title. I think he has proven that by what he has done. I think above anyone Kennedy is the one most deserving of a title shot in Strikeforce.”

Anyone who knows anything about that division would have a hard time arguing Javier’s final point. Or any of them for that matter. It goes without saying that this man has forgotten more about MMA than many could ever hope to learn.

So when he tells Hurtsbad that Luke Rockhold is a force to be reckoned with in the middleweight division, regardless of promotions, we listen. We already knew this fighter had the tools, but to hear a man who has led him into battle tell it give us all a new perspective on this rising star.

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