Fighters by their nature are built for adversity. Whether it comes in the form of battling through a body that wants to quit inside the gym or resisting the onslaught of an opponent’s will as it’s being imposed upon them, fighters are constructed to endure, persevere and overcome. It’s something they possessed long before the realization of what they were set in, but once that moment arrived, the path ahead to travel will be one of conflict and with the hope of glory waiting at the end.
Brian Foster has always known he was tough.
Scrapping it out with other hard-scrabble country boys growing up in Oklahoma made him realize he lacked fear in chaotic situations, and that laid the foundation for what would one day be a career fighting professionally.
At first it was a good deal—throwing hands on the weekend for what he calls a “nice little chunk of money." But before long he realized there was something more there—a future—and the pursuit transitioned from being about his love of the scrap into his quest to become an elite-level mixed martial artist.
By the time 2010 rolled around, the heavy-handed welterweight was well on his way. After years of settling the opposition on smaller stages around the sport, Foster was called up to the UFC and wasted no time making his mark.
Although he stumbled in two of his first three showings inside the Octagon, even in those losses Foster fought with an intensity that resonated with MMA’s passionate fanbase. That said, he would eventually settle into the new level of competition.Impressive performances where he would brutalize Forrest Petz and choke out future contender Matt Brown via guillotine choke at UFC 123 proved Foster was not only finding his bearings in the welterweight ranks but making his way up the talent-stacked divisional ladder. Back-to-back victories had his momentum rolling hot, and he set his sights on making Sean Pierson his third consecutive victim when they squared off at UFC 129 in Toronto.
The event headlined by the title fight between Georges St-Pierre vs. Jake Shields would go on to set the live attendance record for a UFC event as 55,000 fans packed the Rogers Centre to watch a stacked card. It was an action-packed night of fights but one that did not include Brian Foster. He spent that Saturday night alone in his room, sitting with tear-filled eyes trying to come to grips with the storm of emotion he was battling.
He had no idea that particular fight would carry on for the next four years. He had no idea how much hardship was ahead as his professional, personal and financial worlds were shattered at regular intervals as the brain hemorrhage once suffered then healed continued to haunt him down every avenue he attempted to travel.
A freak accident in a routine training session was taking everything away from him, and there was nothing he could do to stop it.
Every time Foster rebuilt himself or had his MRI or CT scan cleared by another doctor, the hope he held onto with every fiber of his being would swell. Yet, the proverbial walls would come crashing down time after time as the doors to one potential opportunity after the next would slam shut in his face before he ever had a chance to start.
Foster always knew he was tough, but it took going to the frayed ends of his emotional limits to find out just what he was made of.
“I can’t really find the right words to even begin to describe what going through what I’ve gone through has been like,” Foster told Bleacher Report in an exclusive interview. “I busted my ass to get to the highest level of the sport, and before I knew what was happening, it was gone. It was devastating, and I went through it every time I tried to go back to doing what I love. What made it worse is that I did everything that I needed to do in order to prove I was healthy and good to go, but every time I had a leg to stand on it would get kicked out from under me.
“I’m a fighter, man. That’s how I make a living. That what burns inside of me, and not being able to do that was crippling in every sense of the word. Not only are we talking about the money lost by not being able to fight, but all of the tests and MRIs I had to get completely wiped out my savings. I went broke.
I went to all the best doctors and had my medicals approved by The Cleveland Clinic, which is a highly respected institution for the work they’ve done in combat sports. To put this in perspective, Thiago Alves had brain surgery and he was right back in there fighting, yet this followed me around for years.
“No matter what, I wasn’t going to give up on my dream,” he added. “I wasn’t going to allow it to break me. Yeah, I went through some terrible s--t that would make other people close up shop and call it a day, but I was determined to fight my way through. And in doing so I found peace. I found a peace and balance with the things in my life that matter the most, and I’m more comfortable with myself now than I’ve ever been. That makes me a dangerous man, and it’s going to show inside that cage.”
Source http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2296860-the-fighting-life-brian-fosterss-long-road-to-find-peace
No comments:
Post a Comment