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Julie Kedzie and the Early Days of Women's MMA

It's been a long time coming for the Indiana native, who started fighting back in 2004, when she was just 23 and women's MMA was barely in its infancy—a freakshow for some, but a world of possibility for a few. We called up Kedzie to ask her what it...

Last weekend, Julie Kedzie got word that she would be joining the UFC roster on the same day the promotion held its first ever women's MMA fight. It's been a long time coming for the Indiana native, who started fighting back in 2004, when she was just 23 and women's MMA was barely in its infancy—a freakshow for some, a horror for others, but a world of possibility for a few. We called up Kedzie to ask her what it was like when she heard she'd at long last made the UFC and what she had to go through to get there. Here is what she had to say.

Watching Ronda Rousey and Liz Carmouche walk to the Octagon last weekend, I have to admit I got a little overly emotional. I started crying, which is embarrassing to say. But it was such a momentous thing: 20 years without female fights and now I'm seeing the first one. I sound like a sap, but I teared up. My friend next to me was like "Dude, pull it together." And I was actually at that fight when I heard I would be entering the UFC. I was sitting, waiting for the fights, when my friend Melissa said, "Hey did you see the tweet?! It announced you're in!" So, it was an emotional night.

It's an amazing feeling and the UFC is really the best fight organization in the world, but I've been in this sport for a long time and I've known in my heart that it was going to happen to me. Like, I've known since my first fight that I was going to be in the UFC someday. I just knew it. It was one of those things that came to fruition. This was supposed to happen for my life.

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