Ava Knight Wants Bellator Belt Then Boxing Title
Ava Knight locks horns with Emilee King at Bellator 238. The prizefight goes down in Inglewood, Calfornia at The Forum on Saturday, January 25th. The stacked bill is headlined by Julia Budd defending her Bellator featherweight strap against debutant berzerker Cris Cyborg. Knight has a big profile in the world of Boxing and is stepping into the cage for her second MMA bout. Gettys has the experience edge and is riding a multi-fight win reak heading into this prizefight.
Bellator 238
Knight thinks there were a lot of valuable lessons to be taken from her debut victory in Bellator. Ava Knight said, “I’m really happy with the whole fight. It’s good that I got a little adversity with being on the floor and taken down. Getting back up and getting kicked. I got a little bit of the whole world of MMA in that one fight. It just showed that everything I prepared for worked. Caught in some mistakes, cleared them up, and finished the fight how I wanted to.”
Her first foray into MMA also revealed a lot of key distinctions as compared to her previous Boxing efforts. Knight stated, “Coming from Boxing, things like this don’t happen. We really don’t get to showcase our skills like this. When I get to go to an MMA fight and I get to be part of something that I think is so great where two women are leading a whole card, it’s amazing to me. I’m glad I get to be a part of it.”
Boxing has gone through several pronounced ups and downs. Some peaks and valleys over the years with the present landscape seeming like a fruitful one.
Ava Knight quipped, “When Laila was out there we had a lot more fighters that were televised…..All of a sudden when Laila Ali retired and those girls got older, everything changed. The minute that I turned pro, we were just backburners. We were the people that just started the whole card for the leas amount of money. They just wanted to get us out of there so it was really hard. Seeing how Boxing is changing now for the women is really good.”
Ava Knight
Ava Knight has been steadfastly focusing on her own skills ad not overly contemplating what her opponent is up to. Knight said, “I’m never the kind of person who likes to watch my opponent no matter when I’m fighting. Only because I don’t want anyone inside of my head. I want to think about me and making me better at all costs. But I do like that my coaches study what I need to be working on and that’s what hey focus on while I’m working out.”
For Knight, she has continued to work with coaches Jay Hieron and Randy Couture coupled with great training partners at Xtreme Couture. Though she won a Boxing bout in a quick turnaround after her MMA debut, Knight isn’t necessarily looking to concurrently compete in both sports right now.
Knight stated, “I just want to focus on MMA. I think I have more studying and work to do. Just well-rounding myself. Getting on the ground, throwing kicks, checking kicks. I think there’s just more to that world that I just really need to focus on more. I’ve Boxed my whole life. I know it like the back of my hand.”
Bellator Belt and Boxing Title
Ava Knight has aspirations in both Bellator as well as Boxing and has belts on the brain.
Knight remarked, “I think I’ve been very fortunate that I’ve been able to come in and fight at a catchweight. They don’t have a 115 but I think would be a great thing for them to have one. For these other girls that fight in Bellator that are smaller. They probably don’t want to fight at 125 because we don’t weight that much walking around….It’s a dream of mine to have. I want to become the champion of Bellator and then come back and win a Boxing Championship.”
Knight continued, “I think that would be amazing and great for history for women in sports. Trying to get as many wins as I can so I can get them to think about opening that up.”
Knight is also a trainer to the stars and has put in Boxing/ martial arts training work with Joe Jonas, Dave Bautista, and Wiz Khalifa. Ava Knight said, “It’s great. Honestly, they’re all just normal people who just do great things. To me, it’s great having that support, knowing them. But at the end of the day, they’re just good people that want to be there for.”
Interview below:
Ava Knight is also a proponent of cannabis and uses it as a medical product to get better quality sleeps. Knight keeps it entertaining on social media with anime comparisons to Boxers that are objectively spot on. The Dragon Ball Z love of Ava Knight permeates beyond Twitter Boxing analysis though. Knight stated, “My boyfriend got me into that and I just got suck on it. The whole cartoon is just about martial arts. Obviously they have superpowers but the lessons that I’ve gotten just from that show are amazing.”
In summation, Knight quipped “That’s part of the sport is knowing that people don’t want you here. Or people don’t support you. So you don’t have to worry about them. You just worry about the people who are supporting you and who are positive. You fight for them.”
