UFC Fight for the Troops 2: George Roop Talks Mark Hominick and Shawn Tompkins

SB Nation's David St. Martin caught up with George Roop as he prepares to take on Mark Hominick at UFC Fight for the Troops 2. Roop is currently hovering around a +200 underdog and is coming off a shocking head kick KO win over Chan Sung Jung. Roop has not won more than one fight in a row since 2007/2008 while Hominick is riding an impressive 4 fight win streak coming into the bout.

Another interesting wrinkle to the fight is the fact that Roop and Hominick have trained together in the past. David asked Roop about the impact this will have on the bout:

We're not super close or anything. It's not going to be a distraction getting in there and knocking him around and smashing his face in. I have no problem with that. Afterward we'll be great friends but we have to put that aside and get the job done. We're going to be on a great fight for the U.S. troops and the UFC fans.

Beyond the fact that he and Hominick are familiar with each other, what about the fact that Shawn Tompkins (who has trained both men) will be helping Mark try to hand Roop the loss? George explains:

It doesn't bother me at all. Not one bit. I understand the relationship that Mark and Shawn have. They're like brothers, almost even a father and son type of relationship. I've only worked with Shawn for a few years so I completely respect that. I've learned a lot from Shawn Tompkins and I'm going to apply that to my fighting when I smash Hominick.

I don't think its going to be an issue in the mental state. It's kind of a good thing and a bad thing. We each know what we bring to the table. We know each others strengths and weaknesses but when you get in there it's a whole other ball game. It's a completely different person you're fighting from when you saw him in the training room. I think it's going to make for an exciting fight. We're both going to go in there and get the job done.

For the complete interview head over to SBNation.com/mma.