Issue 199

July 2023

With a lengthy UFC tenure and more than 30 professional fights to his name, Andre Fili could quite legitimately be called a veteran. But, despite his vast experience, the UFC featherweight tells Simon Head there's still plenty more gas in the tank.

Andre Fili is fast approaching a major career milestone, with the Team Alpha Male athlete heading towards 10 years in the UFC. It's a remarkable achievement for the 33-year-old, who tried to put his finger on what has kept him on the sport's biggest stage for so long.

"It's a good question," he told me ahead of his bout with Nathaniel Wood at UFC London.

"People have asked me about that 10-year mark. I think September is 10 years (and) people have asked me about that 10-year mark a lot this weekend. And it's a weird thing. It doesn't feel like 10 years. You just wake up one day and you've been doing it for 10 years."

Fili made his UFC debut back in October 2013 at UFC 166, where he stopped Jeremy Larsen in the second round to get his career on the big stage off to a winning start. Since then, Fili has shared the cage with the likes of Max Holloway, Yair Rodriguez, Artem Lobov, Calvin Kattar, Dennis Bermudez and many more. Overall, his UFC record reads 10 wins, eight losses, one no-contest. 

The secret to sticking around

Fili’s willingness to step in and throw hands with anyone at 145 pounds has made him a constant presence on the UFC roster, though Fili himself said that the secret to his longevity is simple – being happy.

"I think the secret is just really doing what you love, being passionate about what you love, staying young at heart," he said.

"I'm also a student. I'm always learning. I learn from guys who are younger than me, I learn from guys who are older than me, I learn from guys who are retired, I learn from guys who aren't even in the UFC yet. I learn from everyone.

"I'm a student, and I don't think of myself like this 10-year veteran. In my head when I think of myself, I'm not a 33-year-old guy who's done this forever and has all the answers and has been through everything twice. I'm still 23, I'm still new, I still have a lot to prove, I'm still excited and young. And this is my mentality. I don't feel 33, I don't feel like a tenured veteran. I don't feel like a guy who's done everything. I feel like a young, hungry kid. I just love this s**t."

And, despite being 32 fights into his 14-year career, Fili thinks the best could still be to come, as he spoke of how some of the other veterans of the Octagon inspire him to continue to chase success on the big stage.

"I think, when you do what you love, you could do it forever," he said.

"You know, and I've said this a few times this weekend, Jim Miller looks the best he's ever looked. Dustin Poirier looks the best he's ever looked. Glover Teixeira just won a belt at 42. You guys might be stuck with me for another 10 years, dude!

"I'm not going anywhere. I've been in the UFC 10 years, but I'm only 33. You guys are stuck with me! And I love this sport. I ain't going anywhere, so I think that's part of it. Part of the longevity is just that I really love this s**t, and there's nothing else I would rather do."

Witnessing the growth

Being in the UFC for a decade has meant that Fili has seen the evolution of the sport, and the UFC, first-hand. 

“The biggest change I've seen in the sport is the UFC really stepping up, stepping the game up, and getting the P.I. (UFC Performance Institute) set up,” he said.

“The P.I. nutritionists – shout out to Charles, he's incredible, man, he's my nutritionist from the P.I. – they set you up for success in every step. They'll help you with your food, they'll help you with your supplements, they'll help you with your sleep routine. The amount of resources that fighters have now is incredible. 

“That's the one and only time that I feel like the old guy! When the young guys get to the UFC and I'm like, 'Yo! Back in my day when we cut weight we had to die! We had to we had to do this, we had to do that.' And now, when guys cut weight, it's like a streamlined process, because the UFC has the P.I. and the P.I. nutritionists and strength and conditioning coaches, and all the resources. It's just huge. It's a beautiful thing to see. I think the UFC has done something really special with the P.I. and the resources for fighters. So that's the biggest advancement in the sport.”

Fili has also seen how he has grown, both as a person and as a mixed martial artist. The hunger to compete and win remains the same, but he’s channeling it more effectively now, and he’s balancing taking care of his mental health while still pushing himself to be the best he can be, inside and outside the cage.

“The biggest advancement for myself is just the personal growth, you know?” he explained.

“You obviously get better at fighting – I've been doing this for 10 years, I'm a more technical fighter everywhere. But that's not the biggest growth. The biggest growth for me has been my relationship with myself. 

“When I first got into UFC, I pushed myself in a way that I think was important to get here. But it's not sustainable for 10 years. It's not sustainable for a long, healthy career. It's not sustainable for a happy, healthy life. 

“I pushed myself in a way where I never stopped to pat myself on the back. I never appreciated myself. My inner dialog to myself was always harsh. I was I was never kind to myself. I hated myself at a certain point. And, you know, I don't know if it's age, or wisdom, or some of the things I've been practising, like gratitude journals and these exercises. It could be a combination of all of them. 

“But I've grown in a way where I really love myself. Even, you know, and even being able to say that in a room full of people is something that, at any other point in my life, I would have never been able to say that. So that's been a huge growth for me and I think it's affected my life outside of fighting immensely, but it's also immensely positively affected my life in fighting. 

“As much as you need to push yourself but as much as you need to be hard on yourself and be disciplined and always demand more from yourself and have a little chip on your shoulder and be angry and all these things that make you a great fighter, it's also really important to love yourself, and to take care of yourself and to treat yourself with kindness. And that's something I wasn't even able to do until recently and it's a gamechanger.”