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to accept a short-notice offer to debut in the largest MMA promotion in the world. “When I got that call, I was really overweight. I’d like to say I’m one of those fighters who’s always in shape, but I like the whole balance thing,” EvansSmith says. “I train my butt off, and then I can have fun, relax, chill and do it all over again. World Series of Fighting told me I wouldn’t be fighting for, like, another two months, so I was still training, but I was also on the couch eating pizza. “I’m grateful that I got into the UFC when I did, though, because now that it’s gotten so much bigger, they want, like, a 10-0 record with great marketability and a crazy backstory and all that,” Evans-Smith continues. “I had three fights at the time. I have a certain look—I don’t know if everyone likes it, but it’s a look—and they needed someone who they knew would be down to fight. After the [Fox] fight, I think they knew I was down.” But filling in as a last-minute replacement against recent UFC bantamweight challenger Raquel Pennington proved a bit too much for Evans-Smith. GETTY IMAGES/ZUFFA, LLC “Rebel Girl” did her best to get back into fighting shape and put together a game plan, but first, I felt dumb, like, ‘Wait, am I the only Pennington muscled through Evansone who thought I won?’” Evans-Smith Smith, eventually choking her unconsays with a laugh. “I was all emotional, scious at the end of the first round. “I and you could see it on my face that I made the decision in my mind that I was didn’t want to go another round, but my either going out or was going to fight it,” coach, Adam [Lynn of Subfighter], said the Evans-Smith says. “She sank the choke best thing between the second and third in, and then I heard the [10-second rounds. That’s when you know you have a warning for the end of the round]. I was good coach because you only have a couple like, ‘I got this! I’ve held this choke for of seconds to get some words of encourway longer! My teammate is way stronagement or technical advice, and it can ger with this!’ and then [snores]. I don’t make or break your mentality for the whole regret that decision at all. Every fighter round. He looked at me and said, ‘Hey, you has to make in-the-moment decisions, just beat her. Let’s beat her again.’” and it’s really important because someAnd that’s exactly what Evans-Smith times when you make the wrong decidid. Picking up where she left off, Evanssion, it can cost you the fight.” Smith used her wrestling skills to bring While some fighters might become Fox to the ground once again and landed discouraged by their first professional loss punches until the ref jumped in—this time landing them on their opponent’s highbefore the end of the round. light reel, Evans-Smith saw it as an opporThanks to the controversy surroundtunity to show everyone that she could ing Fox and the $20,000 prize (preovercome adversity with the best of them. sented live on AXS TV in the form of a Despite not competing in 2015 because giant Happy Gilmore-style check to a she tested positive for a diuretic after the sobbing Evans-Smith), the tournament Pennington fight, Evans-Smith bounced gave Evans-Smith the boost in recogniback in 2016, earning two wins in the UFC. tion she needed to take her career to the Not wanting to get complacent, the hungry next level. After dropping down to banfighter opted to experiment with some tamweight (135 pounds) and picking up other gyms and coaches around Orange another knockout victory in the World County—including a stint alongside Esparza Series of Fighting, the up-and-coming at Irvine’s Team Oyama—but ended up prospect got the call she’d previously dropping a pair of fights, the latter of which thought was impossible. ended with a dislocated elbow and another role in her opponent’s highlight reel. re you really going to tell the UFC, While healing the first injury of her ‘No’?” Lynn once asked EvansMMA career, Evans-Smith began to con» CONTINUED ON PAGE 12 Smith when she was unsure of whether
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