Kiefer Crosbie has had an emotional week.
Not only has he been preparing to fight Iamik Furtado (6-2) in front of 8,000 plus Irish MMA fans in the 3Arena, but his girlfriend gave birth to a baby boy during fight week.
He was elated over the latest addition to the Crosbie clan on media day.
“I’m on top of the world. He’s here, he’s healthy and I’m happy. A happy fighter’s a dangerous fighter.”
He vowed that this fight is for his next baby boy. The only thing he expects to change about this fight is how he plans on celebrating the victory.
“I’m going to go home to my baby boy. That’s what I’m going to do. Straight home from the arena, big pizza, chill out with me family. It’s going to be a different celebration. I’ll be popping bottles of milk this time instead of champagne!”
This marks the second time Crosbie has become a dad. He is already a father to a nine-year-old daughter. He hasn’t been the same since she was born. Entering parenthood gave him a clear focus.
“When you’re just a fighter and you have nothing, you’re selfish. When you have kids, they come first and you have another purpose. Another purpose to win it, another purpose to wake up every day and go get it. I’m a fucking grafter. I’m not just grafting for me, I’m grafting for them. It’s not for me. It’s for all of us. It’s for my family. It’s for the people I’m surrounded by. I’m changing their life through what I love to do.”
“That fills me with pride, motivation and drive to wake up in the morning and graft when I don’t want to graft, show up to the gym twice a day when I don’t want to show up… because I have to. I have to win a fight. When I’m standing in front of another man that’s trying to beat the fuck out of me, I won’t be going down. I won’t be stopping. I won’t be giving up. That’s in me heart and in me head. It’s a powerful thing. I’m grateful.”
His family are his main motivating factor, but his work ethic came out of necessity. His fate would have been sealed if he did not change it through sheer hard work.
“(I get) all strength from family. We come from nothing. I was destined to become nothing. I was bound to be nothing, now here I am. I changed it. I went and did it myself from the ground up. I started out with nothing and now here I am. The world is at me feet.”
“It’s coming from having fuck all and now having an opportunity. I was always good at fighting. I recognized that, so I ran with it. Now here we are. Happy days! Now I’m on billboards, buses, Luas… Mr worldwide!”
Another factor that keeps the fire burning in his belly is fear. Crosbie doesn’t shy away from pre-fight anxiety. He is aware of it. He understands how it takes effect. From talking to him, you get a strange sense that he actually enjoys it.
“Fear is real. This is fighting at the end of the day. We’re men here going into fight in the middle of the cage in the nip. Of course you are going to have nerves, anxiety and fears and doubts. It’s scary. It is fucking scary, but that fear keeps me alive. It keeps me winning. If I wasn’t afraid, I’d be afraid. Do you know what I mean?”
“I want that fear. I want them nerves and that butterfly feeling, them doubts. But I believe in my training. I know I’m a fighter deep down. I’ve battled much adversity in my own life. Much harder than any fight with any man. Nothing can beat me. Nobody can beat me. I just keep that in my mind and in my heart and here I am.”
Image credits: Sathishaa Mohan
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