Former UFC star Matt Hamill recently moved MMA fans when he revealed he could finally hear his mother and children's voices for the first time after using high-powered hearing aids.
Matt Hamill made UFC history in 2006 when he became the first deaf fighter to compete in the UFC Octagon after success in The Ultimate Fighter 3.
'The Hammer' had a successful career in the promotion, beating the likes of Tito Ortiz and of course scoring a controversial win over Jon Jones, the only man to beat 'Bones'.
Photo by Josh Hedges/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images
Matt Hamill talks about what it was like to hear it for the first time in more than 40 years
Hamill was born deaf and has spent his life trying to improve his situation. He explained how as a child he used a machine that sent him Morse code-like signals.
Despite this, the 48-year-old who retired from MMA in 2018 recently revealed that he celebrated one of his biggest wins ever in early 2025 when he bought one of the most powerful hearing aids in the world.
“When I was born, about 1 or 2 years old, I had an old-fashioned box. It looked like an AM/FM radio with headphones,” Hamill explained on The Ariel Helwani Show.
“That was old fashioned in the 70s, I mean it looked more like an R2 (D2) from Star Wars with a heavy box. I stopped taking it until I was 8 years old.
“If you said, 'How are you?' it was sent to the box. It would ring with a 'ta, ta, ta, ta'. It's not really words like (you'd expect), it's more like Morse code,” Hamill continued.
After purchasing a hearing aid when his manager told him about it, Hamill explained what it was like to finally hear his children for the first time and hear things he never thought he would appreciate so much.
“And then I stopped wearing hearing aids until now. My manager says, “Matt, there's a new model – the newest, most powerful hearing aid ever made.” I'm like, 'Okay, why not (try them)?' I just tried it. So when I put this on I think, 'Wow.'
“Then I started listening to my mother's voice. I said, “Mom, I can finally, for the first time, hear your voice.” And she cried, and she cried. Then I looked at both my children, they were just staring at me. They cried. They said, 'Daddy.' And I'm like, 'Oh man, this is amazing.' It takes some time to adjust (to the change),” Hamill explained emotionally.
Matt Hamill promises violence in a possible rematch against Jon Jones
Hamill's aforementioned fight against current UFC heavyweight champion Jones is one of the most controversial results in the history of the sport.
After Jones was disqualified for illegal 12-6 elbows, which have since been legalized in the UFC, Hamill was declared the winner and remains to this day the only fighter to have a win against the greatest consensus of all time.
After one of the biggest wins of his career outside the cage, Hamill is keen on a rematch against Jones, promising 'blood and broken bones'.
Despite Hamill's eagerness to share the cage with the 37-year-old again, it was recently claimed by Joe Rogan that Jones is once again considering retirement.
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