By Jeremy McDonald
jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com
SAN DIEGO, Calif.– Unleashing the Beast inside of you.
Behind the help of Founder Brett Sanchez and best friend Justin Martin, they have found an amazing way to give back to the community of San Diego and the sport of wrestling with Unleash The Beast.
HOW IT ALL BEGAN
Looking to start his post-athletic career after his time at Clackamas Community College in Oregon City, Oregon and Grand Canyon College in Phoenix, Arizona wrestling, Sanchez came up with the idea.
“I was driving to San Diego from Phoenix, Arizona starting the new chapter of my life and was just thinking what I was going to name the wrestling club,” started Sanchez. “It hit me because, as a kid I was taught growing up that everybody has a beast inside of them but some kids are too scared to bring it out, don’t be one of those kids.
“In the sport of wrestling you have to bring it out every rep, every practice, every match to be successful. So why not be the Title to what I believe in.”
Sanchez added that the journey from Point A when he was at a Grand Canyon hosted event weeks before he moved to San Diego, to Point B where Mater Dei Catholic High School Head Wrestling Coach Scott Ullsperger helped him get the ball rolling was a crazy one to get his name and his connections going.
But soon after this relocation in August of 2013 and a while of spreading the word, kids were slowly gaining interest in Unleash The Beast (UTB) as Ullsperger took the young Sanchez under his wing
“Coach Ullsperger took me under his wing after explaining how dedicated I am to helping all High School wrestlers and the youth,” said Sanchez. “So I must say I was blessed to have coach Ullsperger allow me to pursue what I wanted and what he wanted as well.”
Soon enough, Sanchez had a large number of athlete’s that wanted his expertise so he turned to an old friend in Martin entering 2013/2014.
“A large number people wanted Brett to help their kids get to the next level,” said Martin. “By the start of the 2014-2015 season, he had a group of kids that wanted to get to the next level.
“This is how UTB came to be, after seeing UTB grow larger than expected he urged me to come join him and help run the club.”
Martin moved down to the area and Unleash The Beast began with the sole purpose to increase a kid’s “wrestling IQ” to achieve their dream of college athletics.
The atmosphere, described by Martin focuses on hard work and sacrifice with the slogan of ‘It’s not a hobby, it’s a lifestyle.”
For Sanchez, he wanted to put his 21 years of wrestling experience and knowledge to help.
“I have 21 years of knowledge with this sport, so it wouldn’t be fair of me to not share it to anybody especially kids,” he said. “The purpose for me was to always give back every day of my life and starting a club was the first step to doing so.”
So far, the club has been extremely successful in it’s short history, their accolades features:
-3 High School National Championships, 3 National finalists, 10 All-Americans, 1 California State Placer, 2 D1 wrestlers, 2 NAIA wrestlers, 6 Middle School State Placers, 3 Middle School State Champions.
“So far we have been pretty successful in our goal to send kids off to college,” said Martin. “As we have sent every senior out the door with a place to call home.”
LOOKING BACK FOR THE FUTURE: NO REGRETS
The experience in the year-plus has taught Sanchez a lot from business to coaching.
Learning how to communicate with everyone that comes through the door and patience while understanding how to get through to his wrestlers at a mental and physical standpoint.
“I feel like I’ve been coaching for 10 years now after seeing how much work it takes to keep UTB a float,” Sanchez said. “Learning how to communicate with different individuals getting through to them mentally and physically it’s a challenge but it’s also a great one I love doing and seeing the growth.
“(I) understand I’m learning everyday about myself as well teaching kids wrestling, life skills, and being the role model for them to look up to and stay in a straight path for them to achieve their goals.”
Having been there for four months now, Martin reflects on his time there. Watching what his friend has created.
“We talked about this years ago when we were wrestling together in college, never knowing it would come into fruition,” he said. “The feelings I have are unexplainable really.”
For Sanchez, he stood back in awe on how he went from seven kids in January of 2015 to 72 now in the wrestling club. He has no regrets about making the move to San Diego.
“I’ve been blessed by God to do what I love everyday and bring new people into my life to help create this business,” Sanchez said. “I have a commitment to my wrestlers that I will give them every opportunity I can to help them get better at this sport and reach the highest level of competition that wrestlers dream of national and world championships.”
“It’s not a hobby, It’s a lifestyle” Martin and Sanchez have said frequently. It’s the motto, the slogan, the philosophy of life at Unleash The Beast.
If you are in the San Diego area and are interested in joining the club visit utbwrestling.com and register. All the information is on the site and Sanchez invites anyone interested to come out to Mater Dei Catholic High School Monday through Friday 530pm-830pm, to watch and try it out.
“I’ll explain we have great families and coaches who are welcoming and a great environment for your child to be apart of,” said Sanchez. “Also the benefits wrestling teaches you for other sports such as balance, coordination, strength, and aggressiveness will be noticed.”
For additional information, visit their Facebook Page at https://www.facebook.com/Unleash-The-Beast-Wrestling-870700872949349/.
PHOTO GALLERY (PICTURE CREDIT JUSTIN MARTIN/UNLEASH THE BEAST)
Jeremy McDonald is a professional sports journalist in the Salem/Portland area and is a member of the Society of Professional Journalist in Oregon with B.S. degrees from Southern Oregon University in Journalism (2011) and Health/PE (2013). Got a story idea? Email him at jeremymcdonald73@gmail.com or on Twitter at @J_McDonald81!
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