can YOU be a fighter?

The Iceman. The Axe Murderer. The Prodigy. The Spider. Minotauro. these have become household names across the entire world. they are modern-day gladiators, supreme athletes and possess hearts of lions. the sport they participate in is condemned as barbaric in some societies and worshipped as the ultimate test of humanity in others. most of us can say that we took up the pursuit of martial arts because we were influenced by one of these true heroes. yes, i think Bruce Lee counts too. and most of us have, at some time or other, dreamed of becoming a professional fighter.

so what makes them heroes and us mere mortals? are we inherently different from them? were they born that way? do they fit into a common age/background/ability/fortune profile? can we - can anyone - become a professional fighter or is there some magic formula that we might never achieve?

rather than get philosophical, let's explore some facts.

what's age got to do with anything? i know i've been catching myself grumbling about being old and falling apart, especially since rupturing my ACL. then i read that Michelle Yeoh tore her ACL on the set of Crouching Tiger when she was my age, and she had to get surgery and almost immediately get back on set. that makes me feel like a real whiner. as for MMA fighters, age doesn't seem to be a limiting factor: GSP won his first professional fight at the age of 16. Dan Severn is 51 and will be fighting on April 18th in the UK. Renzo, Royce, Randy Couture, Ken Shamrock, and if we talk boxing, Evander Holyfield just won the WBF heavyweight belt at the age of 48!

does it take lots of money? okay, we all have some financial responsibilities. if you're a Gracie, from the very beginning you were in an optimal position to dedicate yourself to martial arts. but then there's the "up from the gutter" stories like Mike Tyson. you could spend thousands of dollars at a pro-fighter's camp, or live for next to nothing in Thailand. so unless you have 4 kids at home to feed, you can probably afford to train and live a fighter's life. and if you have 4 kids to feed, you probably shouldn't be doing it anyway.

is it luck? Lyoto Machida sure has all the right things on his side from the very beginning: he was born in Brazil to a Shotokan karate master and began training in karate at the age of three. luck of the draw has certainly put him in a unique position. as for the unlucky, look at amputee Kyle Maynard who is a bjj fighter, or Muay Thai champ Baxter "One Arm Bandit" Humby. these guys didn't let the ultimate in misfortune keep them from what they wanted to do.

is it all about having the natural ability to be a fighter? sure, we see guys who show up at the gym after us, and seem to get better than us overnight. we look at them and say "damn, he's talented". but there's a problem with this thinking. when we compare ourselves to someone who is talented, we are causing harm in two ways. they first is that by saying someone is talented, we are disrespecting their efforts and achievements. the second way is that we give ourselves an excuse to not be our best because we don't measure up.

so if all things are equal, what does it take?

a good team. for every one fighter, there's ten supporting him. there's the coach, or coaches, who have put in years dedication before you came along. there's the guys you train with, learn with, drill with. there's the higher level guys who hand you your ass and make you work for it. there's the lower level guys who keep your spirit alive when you see the excitement of combat anew through their fresh eyes. and there's your support group: your spouse, family and friends who listen to you, care for you, and love you.

and then there's the cheerleader. that would be me. i'm only training in my head at the moment, but i will always be there for my brothers and sisters to give you support and encouragement. i will scream "bridge!" when you're on the mat, and "hands up!" when you're in the ring, and i don't care who looks at me funny, or leaves comments on your youtube fight videos about "the annoying girl in the background".

so, can YOU be a fighter? just look at the people around you. hell yes you can.

加油 TRIQUEST 加油!!!