I trained for a few months, long enough to want to test myself against a real opponent. Back then, the main show in NYC was called The Underground Combat League.
So I made arrangements for a fight. On the day of the event, my opponent didn’t show up. However, there was a young man who was always ready to fight at the last minute. I knew he was more skilled, but I accepted the challenge. I had too many people there to back out. Win, lose, or draw, I was going to fight.
I stepped into the ring and stood across from this other man. I waited for the referee to issue the command to start, and then it began. For what felt like an eternity, I walked across the ring to face my opponent.
On this day, my opponent was more experienced and skilled than I was. As a result, I lost the fight in under two minutes.
I lost, but I showed up and fought. Because the fight was so quick, sometimes I wonder if it really counts or if I’m just pretending. But the truth is that I showed up, got in the ring, and gave it my all with the skills I had at the time.
When people talk about my Mixed Martial Arts experience, I sometimes feel like a fake because I only fought once and lost quickly. But regardless of the outcome or number of fights, I did step into a no holds barred underground MMA fight. So at the end of the day, despite any doubts, yes, I was a fighter.
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