UFC flyweight competitor Molly McCann, also known as Meatball Molly, has made an interesting claim about MMA.
Molly, 33, won her last fight against Erin Blanchfield at UFC 281 in November 2022 and is now set to take on Julija Stoliarenko on July 22 in UFC Fight Night.
Talking about MMA, the 33-year-old said that the sport is not just about fighting, it is like six Olympic sports in one.
“It [MMA] wasn’t just big masculine women fighting, or skinhead men that had nothing about them except rage, she just showed us what the sport really is – it’s like six Olympic sports in one. I’ve just immersed myself ever since then, my whole life has gone into it,” she said.
She also opened up about her upcoming fight and the tough training schedule that she has to go through every day just to be prepared for the fight.
“Camps tend to be eight to 12 weeks, but this one has been 18 weeks because the fight got pushed back,’ Molly tells Grazia.
“That’s three sessions a day, two technical so striking and grappling, then the third will be either sprints, running or weights six days a week… It’s tough, but if you train every session that God gives you and eat every macro-nutrient, you’re supposed to you will be bulletproof going into that fight.”
Talking about if there’s any pressure inside the octagon, Molly said: “Yes and no,’ she says. ‘When I lost my last fight, in that moment I felt every bit of pressure leave.
In fight week pressure will mount up because you’re doing constant media, you’re tired and you’ve got to cut weight. You’re realising, “Jesus, tonight I’ve got to go and fight in front of 25,000 people live and hundreds of thousands watching on tele”. But it’s a positive pressure now, I don’t care to be heard by trolls anymore.”
Not just that, she also talked about the bullying and trolling culture of social media which has made not only her’s but many athletes' lives a living hell. Molly admitted that trolling would get to her.
“If people wrote negativity about me, I’d always be like “But you don’t know where I’m from or what I’ve gone through, why are you being this nasty?”. Then I thought, if they’re not going to take the time to read into my history then their opinion is valid on me. I had to stop giving it my attention, and the second I done that my life completely changed,” she added.