Issue 166

April 2018

Losing at UFC 218 was almost guaranteed to result in Amanda Cooper being bumped from the UFC. After entering TUF 23 with just two fights, it would have looked like the Octagon was not working out as a place for her MMA maturation. Inexperience wouldn’t excuse a 2-4 pro record.

The pressure was even greater because she was fighting at home in Detroit, Michigan, and had got the matchup she’d called for – against the controversial Angela Magaña, who would say and do everything she could to rattle her in the days and weeks before the contest.

Though she had almost four times the number of fights as ‘ABC’, she was on a four-fight losing streak. Cooper was a big favorite to win, but she was nervous and could have been overwhelmed by the task at hand.

However, she stayed focused and came out like a woman possessed. When the fight started, she closed down her adversary immediately and went to work. Within two minutes, she was in full mount and began several minutes of dominance. The only let-up came when referee Keith Peterson stopped the fight to address a wardrobe malfunction, and for the break between rounds.

The second-round choke was inevitable, but Cooper still had to hold back the tears during her post-fight interview with Joe Rogan after a crucial performance. She tells about her make-or-break experience…

What made you so emotional after your win at UFC 218?

I have been fighting for 14 years and I have never cried after a win. I couldn’t even fake that. I was very confident going into the fight. I felt really good. Everything was perfect. My fight camp was great. My warm-up was great. For it to all pay off and for everything to go perfect and then to hear the crowd cheer and chant my name, I couldn’t help but to show all the emotions I was feeling in the moment.

How much did the support from friends, family and fans help you through that night?

I have always had a really big support system. My family, my teammates and my coaches believe in me.

That’s never been an issue but to have so many people from my childhood, my old coaches from my softball team, people I went to high school with, everyone I met in my life came out to that fight. It really meant a lot to me.

Where you happy with your performance considering all the pressure that was on you?

I think I did well. She has fought a lot of top 10 opponents and has gone the distance with them. I am happy I got the finish against her. I worked a lot on certain areas I needed to leading up to this fight. This was the fight of my life.

Just being in my hometown and it’s the most recent fight and it’s so vivid in my mind. I was coming off a loss. It was tough to have an eight-month layoff. I had to get back from that and still walk out feeling confident.

What was the moment where you knew you had the upper hand?

As soon as I got her on the cage in the first round and took her down, I knew I was stronger. I felt so strong. I felt so ready and focused. Once I had her on the ground I knew I was going to control her and win the fight.

I always feel I have a big advantage over my opponents on the feet. I just naturally caught her kick and closed the distance. When I took her down I was like ‘Yeah this is the way I am going to win.’ Before that night, I couldn’t even imagine fighting so close to home. Now it’s hard to think about fighting anywhere else. I had such a great walkout and then getting my hand raised was amazing.

What inspired your “emotional post” on Instagram about the struggles you had leading up to the fight?

I don’t even think athletes who are at a lower level in this very sport even realize... There are a lot of people who train really hard but they don’t understand what it takes to be one of the elite. My friends that don’t fight think I have the easiest life, like I just get to do whatever I want. Do you understand what I go through on a daily basis?

My friend’s bad day at work is getting yelled at by her boss. My bad day is getting somebody on top of me at my gym and beating me to a pulp and balling my eyes out, going home and then coming back and doing it again –then finding the mental strength to wake up and do it the next day. I have lost. It sucks.

You have to come back from that. How do you change that attitude and get back into the gym? It’s a hard battle but it’s worth it. It’s a small price to have to pay to be where I’m at.

What kept you motivated throughout those difficult times in the run-up to the fight?

My family, my teammates and my coaches. All of the people that support me. It’s not one person or an idol. It’s all the people that are close to me. It’s all of the people that have seen the good and the bad and that have stood by me.

That’s what motivates me each time I’m down. I remember the people that have stuck by me and my way of giving back to them is by being great.

Though your MMA career is young, you boxed from the age of 11. What’s it like to start fighting in elementary school?

Yeah, my first fight was at 11 years old. I think they had to duct tape my pants up so they didn’t fall down. It was a bunch of these little, tiny children almost dog fighting. How many punches can we throw without dying?

Looking back, I wonder how my parents thought it was a good idea. My older sisters boxed and so did my dad. There was no skill at 11. I did have natural fighting ability. I just wanted to fight. Boxing was just how I found what I wanted to do in life.

Is it true that your dad put you into your first MMA fight on two weeks’ notice?

Ugh. He did. He wanted to see how well my boxing would do. At first, I wasn’t about it. Then I thought I might as well do it. The next day he texts me telling me he found me a fight. I said ‘Let’s try it.’ I didn’t know MMA. I never even saw a fight before. My dad and I went out there and I did it.

It was the most fun I had ever had. I thank him for that but I’m sure that he regrets it after every fight!