Kayla Harrison is an incredible athlete. Who has done amazing things throughout her career. Ever since she made the jump to MMA, Harrison has been a dominant force. The American is coming off a loss to Larissa Pacheco. Now that she is returning, the Olympic gold medallist is ready to get back to winning ways.
Kayla Harrison On Her Mindset
After suffering her first loss in MMA, Harrison talks about her changing mindset.
“I did have to get still and examine my life, goals and choices and figure out if this is what I want. There’s still that fire in my heart. There’s still that desire to go down as one of the greatest ever to do it.”
What Has She Been Up To
Harrison talks about what she has been doing with her time away.
“I was still in the gym training every day. I went from training twice a day pretty much year-round to training once daily. Focusing on where I can get better — a lot of the holes in my game,” Harrison said during a PFL media day. “But the most significant gains like I made mentally, and I would argue, even. I grew as a person and discovered who I was if I wasn’t Kayla Harrison, An Olympic champion, or a world champion — if I was Kayla.
“It has brought me a peace, and God has brought me a peace that can’t be f—ed with. It’s a great time for me. I’m feeling good. I’m excited. I have a different mindset going into this year, and this fight is one of gratitude vs. pressure. It’s been fantastic.”
What Has Harrison Been Working On
Harrison talks about her training routine while away.
“Fighting is a solo sport, but you must have people around you to test you, push you and make you uncomfortable. To get to that next level,” she said. “I’ve been training and uncomfortable with no goal for ten months. I was in the gym every day and uncertain — but confident that I wanted to be there and get better.
“I did only striking rounds, I did rounds where I was only on the bottom, I did rounds with eight-time BJJ world champions on my back, trying to take my neck off. I’ve done rounds where world-class kickboxers try to kick my head off. That has allowed me the space to grow and realise that MMA is like everything else. You’ve got to find a way, dig deep, you’ve got to figure it out and keep your composure.”
Coming Back Stronger From A Loss
The American talks about how she feels coming off a loss for the first time.
“It’s safe to say for my previous 15 fights, I was kind of a front-runner, and I was kind of a bully,” she said. “I went in there and did my thing. Sometimes, you don’t win every exchange of every round. How you handle that is important. I got comfortable there.”
Harrison believes she is more dangerous than ever.
“I’m coming into this year and this fight as a different fighter completely. I’m much more well-rounded. My comfort level has increased. My range-finding ability, my striking, my fight IQ in general has gone up a level,” she said. “A lot of it is confidence and comfort. I got comfortable being uncomfortable this past year and am still trying to find a way to win. I have a different level of composure inside the cage.”
All quotes via Sherdog
Harrison is a fantastic competitor, and it will be great to see her compete again.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
