UFC’s first deaf fighter Matt Hamill announces he can hear family ‘for the first time in 41 years’

Former UFC fighter Matt Hamill had a life-changing breakthrough to kick off the new year.

Hamill, the first deaf fighter to compete for the UFC, announced that he can now hear for the first time in his life after getting a new digital hearing aid. The 15-fight octagon veteran shared his story on Instagram on Wednesday.

“I just got the most powerful digital hearing aids ever made,” Hamill wrote. “For the first time in 41 years, I can finally hear my kids’ voices, the sounds of people walking and laughing. I finally heard my mom’s voice and she cried. I’m looking forward to hearing my brother Pat’s voice too. I only hope he doesn’t have a voice like a foghorn. This is awesome although I know it will take time to adapt to all of this. Happy New Year!”

Controversial or not, Hamill is the only fighter to hold a win over current UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones — a disqualification for illegal downward elbows at The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale in December 2009. “The Hammer” went 10-5 in his UFC run, and also competed on the third season of The Ultimate Fighter.

Hamill lost three of his final four octagon bouts, before competing for the likes of World Series of Fighting and Combate Americas. The 41-year-old picked up victories in his last two MMA bouts on the regional scene, including a split decision win in his final fight for Maverick MMA in April 2018.