Kayla Harrison is already a PFL champion less than two years in to her MMA career, but thinks she’ll eventually have to make some changes to cement her legacy.
Harrison (7-0 MMA), a two-time Olympic gold medalist in judo, currently competes at lightweight, a barely established division in women’s MMA.
While she has run through most of her competition, which mostly has consisted of former featherweight and bantamweight fighters, Harrison said she knows she’ll likely have to move down a weight class if she wants to establish herself as one of the greatest fighters to ever do it.
Despite PFL not having a 145-pound division, Harrison said she’s still happy fighting there – but hinted her long-term future may be as a featherweight, where the opportunity to fight in the UFC against the world’s best would help her case.
“I don’t love the idea of ’45, but I’m willing. Everyone has a price, right?” Harrison told MMA Junkie at a media day for Dominance MMA fighters in Las Vegas earlier this month. “I firmly believe in not cutting weight. I firmly believe in the lifestyle that I have. But obviously I understand that if I want to go down as one of the greatest of all time, I’m going to probably have to fight at 145, and that’s a sacrifice I’m willing to make in order to reach the goals that I’ve set for myself.
“I’m very happy at the PFL. I love what they’re doing. I love how they’re changing the game. I love being a role model and being the poster child for their promotion. But time will tell. We’ll see what happens. One year at a time, one fight at a time, one minute at a time, one exchange at a time – that’s all I can do.”
