The One Yard Line: Kayla Harrison's journey to the doorstep of UFC gold

USA Today

27-05-2025

The One Yard Line: Kayla Harrison's journey to the doorstep of UFC gold From a "post-Olympics depression" to a highly anticipated UFC title fight, Kayla Harrison is on the cusp of becoming arguably the most decorated combat sports athlete in history.
COCONUT CREEK, Fla. – Kayla Harrison is on the cusp of becoming arguably the most decorated combat sports athlete in history. That's not hyperbole. She's already got credentials few can match.
Winning is essentially all Harrison has known when it comes to competition during her adult life. Most experience moments of failure, but hers have been few and far between en route to two Olympic gold medals in judo and two PFL championships in MMA.
At UFC 316 on June 7 at Prudential Center in Newark, N.J., Harrison (18-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC) will attempt to add the UFC women's bantamweight title to that resume when she challenges reigning champion Julianna Peña (11-5 MMA, 8-3 UFC).
Harrison admits she didn't know if she'd ever reach this moment. Her journey in judo was "love at first sight," but after conquering the highest mountain of achievement at the Olympics not just once, but twice, Harrison didn't know where the future would take her.
"After the games I suffered a post-Olympic depression," Harrison told MMA Junkie. "I went from being super focused and never hitting the snooze button, to never setting an alarm. I didn't even have a Netflix account, and then all of a sudden I watched everything there was to watch on Netflix.
"You want to talk about a couch potato? I'm pretty sure there was like an indent of me in my couch. … I just felt really sad and kind of empty."
Harrison's life now is radically different from those dreaded post-Olympic days. After initially resisting MMA, she finally gave it a try and said it wasn't long before she was on the hook.
The fundamentals from her countless hours in judo provided a nice foundation, but Harrison said entering MMA felt like she had to start from the beginning. For someone with a competitive fire that burns stronger than the average person can comprehend, that was both exhilarating and frightening.
"I don't think I've had that moment yet where I'm like, 'Oh, I've made it,' which is kind of weird, I guess, because I've had a lot of fights," Harrison said. "… I definitely feel like I'm good at what I do in the gym. I'm like, 'I'm the baddest b*tch on this planet' every time I spar. But you don't fight as often as you compete in a judo tournament, so I think there's still sometimes a little bit of, like, 'But are you?'
"Then you go out and win and you're like, 'Oh yeah – you are. You are.'"
Harrison's purpose: Motherhood
Finding a new purpose to channel her athletic experience and world-class work ethic was a clear positive point in Harrison's life. However, she said it's not the one that allowed her to make this climb into a UFC title fight with ultimate confidence and peace of mind.
That moment came when Harrison's children entered her life. She took responsibility for her niece and nephew, Emery and Kyle, after her sister and mother could no longer effectively support them. She eventually adopted both kids in October 2021, raising them as a single mother and finding what is her guiding light.
"I didn't know what I was doing," Harrison said. "Once I became a mom, that became the job. Once I realized that my kids love me and they don't care if I get a belt or I don't get a belt, if I have a lot of money or if I don't have a lot of money – they care that I come home, they care that I tuck them in at night, they care that I'm there to kiss a boo-boo; they don't give a sh*t about any of that other stuff – and once I realized that, it set me free.
"I became a free fighter. I no longer had to fight because I had to earn something from someone. … I no longer operate from that place of fear because I have everything that I need. It's just made me fight from a place of joy and love, which has been awesome."
'I'm about to be UFC champion'
Harrison, 34, struggles to even ponder the thought that all of these elements in her life are coming together at the right moment in time as she goes into her first UFC title fight.
The significance of her title fight against Peña can only stack up to those matches she had for Olympic gold in 2012 and 2016. She rose to the occasion in those moments, and it's her expectation that's what will happen again.
"On fight day, it feels like it's just a matter of time until I get what's mine," Harrison said. "I want to be UFC champion. I'm about to be UFC champion. We're almost there. We're on, like, the one-yard line. I can't wait."