Rebecca Evans taking training from Thailand into contest at Cowboy Fight Series
Rebecca Evans walks to the cage for the third time as an amateur mixed martial artist when she meets Cheyenne Hall (1-0) at Cowboy Fight Series at the Richard Ernst Community Theater later this month in Annandale, Virginia. The fight goes down January 26 and will be contested at bantamweight.
In 2018, the highly popular UFC fighter, Donald ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone announced plans to to launch an amateur fight series called ‘Cowboy Fight Series’. These events, as Cowboy explained to BJPenn, “will give amateur fighters a platform on which to grow their skills and their reputations, and in some cases, earn professional contracts with top regional promotions.”
Several months later and the famed fighter from New Mexico takes his first show on the road to Virginia.
Evans, a student at Delaware Dragon Martial Arts, said that she applied for a spot on the card and was excited to receive her opportunity. Her gym is part of Greg Jackson’s MMA Association, a chain of schools that offer the training and curriculum provided by world famous MMA coach Greg Jackson. Jackson, of course, is a long time coach of ‘Cowboy’ Cerrone.
When asked why she believes Cerrone, whose world famous fight ranch in New Mexico, would hold his first card in Virginia, Evans was confident it had to do with the ruleset.
“Cowboy loves to fight,” Evans said. “I honestly think it is the rules. Different rules in Virginia. No shin pads like in Pennsylvania. We can ground and pound. Three minute rounds. I think Cerrone wants to give amateurs the best place to showcase their skills. We may see him move the show, but I think Virginia is a good start.”
Evans’ opponent is one that presents a challenge, one that she is well aware of.
“You honestly cannot come up with a better matchup,” Evans said. “She (Cheyenne) is a true bantamweight. She’s got height and reach like me. I think it is a very interesting fight.”
Evans recently ventured off to Thailand to further her certification and training, a trip she says was unlike any other, one that she is waiting to do again. Along with several teammates, Evans training under the legendary Master Toddy who has more than 50 years experience and has helped set up more than 300 Muay Thai schools/gyms around the globe.
“While it was a vacation, it really wasn’t a vacation at all. We trained for seven days, two times a day, and at the end we are critiqued. Master Toddy doesn’t just give his certifications away. If you want to teach his system, you have to pass. There were some people that did not pass. Luckily we did.”
Evans and her teammates were evaluated by the Ministry of Education in the final days.
“It is very strict and very regulated,” she said of the training. “But, I would absolutely do every bit of it again. It was definitely well worth it.”
Evans takes that experience back home with her to Delaware where the 25-year old fighter prepares for her upcoming contest later this month.
“I’m glad I got to experience that training in Thailand to have it come at the beginning of my fight camp is a blessing,” she said.
“I know my opponent is training, and she’s training hard. If she’s doing two-a-days, I’m doing three-a-days. I’ve got to prepare harder and better. There’s no way I can lose this fight.”
To purchase tickets to the event visit cowboyfightseries.com.
