Heading into this year’s PFL 6 card, Kayla Harrison was less than enthused about fighting Cindy Dandois.
Harrison (9-0), the PFL’s biggest star at this point, actually stated that Dandois was the one girl she didn’t want to fight. Yet here she is, preparing for the veteran regardless, as they headline the final regular season card this Friday.
Far from being worried about the match-up, Harrison was concerned that Dandois had recently lost her mother, and was on her last run in MMA. The two-time Olympic gold medalist in judo didn’t want to be the one to put the final nail in Dandois’ MMA coffin. But that feeling is gone now that fight week has arrived.
“I mean it’s business week, it’s fight week. All the human emotions kind of have to go away, and you’ve got to become The Terminator,” Harrison told Cageside Press during the PFL 6 media day this week. “So it’s just business.”
On the match-up, Harrison stated that “I think that she’s just a game fighter. She’s been around the block, she’s very experienced, she’s a veteran of the sport, she’s fought in pretty much every promotion. I know she’s got some funky submissions and stuff like that. I know she has a judo background, I’ve seen her do a couple throws in her fights. It will be interesting to feel maybe someone try to throw me for the first time in five years.”
“I think it’s going to be a good fight,” she added. “I’m excited to showcase some of my new skills, and continue to dominate.”
And while Harrison brought up the idea of Dandois trying some judo throws, she doesn’t feel like her opponent will find much success there. “I see them being pretty one-sided. God bless Cindy, but I think she should expect to be on her back.”
Harrison also gave her thoughts on fellow crossover star Claressa Shields. While Harrison herself jumped to MMA from judo, Shields, also a two-time Olympic gold medalist, made the transition from boxing earlier this month. While she earned a TKO win, her debut wasn’t as smooth as Harrison’s own.
“We all knew she was going to have some holes, we all expected that. I think it was impressive that she was able to come back and dig deep and find a win,” observed Harrison. “But that’s what winners do, they find a way. I was impressed with her perseverance.”
“She’s got a long way to go. I know she’s young, I know she’s hungry, I know she’s motivated, so I’m excited to watch her journey,” Harrison added.
Watch the full PFL 6 media day scrum with Kayla Harrison above. The event takes place this Friday, June 25 in Atlantic City, NJ, airing live on ESPN+ and ESPN 2 (TSN in Canada).
