“My passion is undeterred to expedite India’s run in the MMA space,” says Ritu Phogat

The Indian tigress ‘Ritu Phogat’ is on a dream run in her MMA career. With her recent win over Jomary Torres, she extended her winning streak to 4-0. She is working hard for the dream to bring the first World Championship in MMA for India.

After her win over Jomary Torres, Ritu said “My heart is in the right place and my passion is undeterred to expedite India’s run in the MMA space”.

During an interview with ETV Bharat, she was asked about her transition from wrestling to MMA. “I had a huge benefit in MMA due to my background in wrestling. If we go by the top six or seven fighters in MMA, most of them have a background in wrestling. A wrestler can easily benefit in Mixed Martial Arts,” she said.

My father supported me when I told him about MMA: Ritu Phogat

Further, when she was asked about his father’s reaction when she decided to tell him about changing her carrier to MMA. “I used to watch Mixed Martial Arts a lot on YouTube and found it very different, which is what attracted me to the sport. I didn’t have any idea about the training centres in India. I used to like watching the fights.”

“I watched Khabib a lot fighting against his opponents and always wondered why there is no one representing India. Why there is no champion or a fighter from our country. But then an opportunity came from Asia’s biggest gym. They asked me to join them as I was interested in the game,” Ritu told ETV Bharat.

“During that time, I was doing very well in wrestling and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics was also around the corner. I first had a chat with my sisters and they talked to my father regarding this. My sisters were also concerned about the Olympics but I told them that I don’t want to miss out on the opportunity. They showed support after I told them I am interested in MMA.”

“They discussed this with my father and he supported me completely. He never said no to anything. My father said…be it wrestling or MMA, the focus should be to do well for the country. I am doing well for the country because of all the support I have got throughout.”

Ritu Phogat also shared her future plans

With 4 wins in the atomweight division, Ritu Phogat is now a strong contender for the title in the future. She also added, “I have learned from all my four matches. You can witness my improvement in every match. My confidence has increased after the recent fourth win. I am reaching towards my goal step by step.”

“My coach has been putting a lot of effort into me and improving my skills on a daily basis. My dream is to bring a championship belt for the country. I want to do this for the people of our country who have been dreaming of this. I am doing all the hardwork it requires and working on areas I lack and pushing myself more where my strength lies,” she concluded.

Also Read: Ritu Phogat continues her dominance, scored a first-round TKO win against Jomary Torres