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FOR NEARLY 20 YEARS, SHE WAS A MEMBER OF THE UNITED STATES WOMEN’S RUGBY TEAM. SHE PLAYED IN THREE WORLD CUPS. SHE WAS THE FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN WOMAN TO BE INDUCTED INTO THE WORLD RUGBY HALL OF FAME, AND THEN IN 2017, SHE RETIRED. SHE DID SOME COACHING, AS YOU’D EXPECT, A RETIRED ATHLETE MIGHT DO. AND THEN SHE DID SOMETHING YOU MIGHT NOT EXPECT. SHE TOOK UP A NEW PROFESSIONAL SPORT EARLIER THIS YEAR AT THE AGE OF 50. PHAIDRA KNIGHT BECAME THE OLDEST WOMAN TO MAKE A PRO MMA. MIXED MARTIAL ARTS DEBUT. SHE FOUGHT A WOMAN NEARLY 20 YEARS HER JUNIOR AND SHE WON. PHAIDRA RECENTLY JOINED ME IN STUDIO TO TALK ABOUT THE FIGHT AND ABOUT DEFYING EXPECTATIONS. I REALLY APPRECIATE YOU JOINING ME IN STUDIO. THANK YOU. IT’S SUCH A PLEASURE TO BE HERE. SO LET’S TALK ABOUT YOUR MATCH. YOU WERE UP AGAINST DIANA KARAVAS KARAVAS, AND SO SHE’S A LITTLE BIT TALLER THAN YOU A FEW INCHES. SHE IS ABOUT THE SAME WEIGHT AS YOU ARE. SHE’S 31 AND YOU ARE 50 YEARS OLD. THAT’S THE STORY OF OF MOST FIGHTERS. I FOUGHT, YOU KNOW, AND I CAME OUT IN THAT FIGHT, YOU KNOW, WE KNEW SHE’D BE A REALLY STRONG OPPONENT WHEN YOU STARTED THIS FIGHT. SHE LOOKED LIKE SHE WAS DOMINATING RIGHT FROM THE GET GO. SHE CAME OUT WITH BLAZING GUNS. AND I THINK THAT WAS HER STRATEGY. I DIDN’T REMEMBER A LOT OF IT BECAUSE I WAS JUST IN A DIFFERENT MODE. MY BRAIN TOOK A LEFT TURN. I DID HAVE ENOUGH COGNIZANCE TO KNOW, OKAY, LET ME JUST KIND OF RIDE THIS OUT. SHE HAD EVERY ADVANTAGEOUS POSITION ON ME THAT SHE COULD HAVE POSSIBLY HAD. AND THEN AND THEN THINGS CHANGED. SO I REENTERED MY BODY. AND THEN I CAME TO MY SENSES. AND I THEN TURNED, TURNED THE TIDE. WHEN I WATCH MMA, I WATCH IT LIKE THIS. AND AND I THINK YOU ARE 50 YEARS OLD AND YOU WERE RETIRED NOT ALL THAT LONG AGO. WHY? WHY ARE YOU FIGHTING MMA? PRETTY SIMPLE. I FIGHT BECAUSE I CAN. IT STARTED WITH WITH MY GRANDFATHER, DORSEY KNIGHT, WHO TOLD ME AS A CHILD, AS A THREE YEAR OLD, AND HE TOLD EVERYONE I EVER CAME IN CONTACT WITH THAT PHAI CAN DO ANYTHING. AND SO I JUST BELIEVED IT. AS A MATTER OF FACT, A CHILD WHO’S QUITE IMPRESSIONABLE, THAT’S JUST HOW I TOOK IT. I DIDN’T TAKE IT WITH AN OUNCE OF ARROGANCE OR CONCEIT. IT WAS JUST, OH, I CAN DO ANYTHING. SO YOU KNOW WHAT? I WILL DO AS I’M TOLD. AND SO THAT’S HOW I’VE LIVED MY LIFE. I KNOW THERE ARE LOTS OF PEOPLE WHO WOULD SAY, OH, COME ON, NO WAY. EVEN THOUGH YOU’RE OBVIOUSLY IN GREAT SHAPE, THAT AT AGE 50 SHE’S GOING TO BE DOMINANT IN THE OCTAGON. BUT YOU DON’T JUST THINK ABOUT THE THE BOUTS, YOU THINK OF KIND OF TAKING CARE OF YOUR BODY IN BETWEEN. THAT’S KEY. RIGHT? BECAUSE AS YOU GET OLDER, THE BODY SLOWS DOWN FROM JUST AGING. WELL, YES, IT DOES. I CAN ATTEST TO THAT. SO, YOU KNOW, WE’RE LIVING IN A TIME RIGHT NOW. IT’S FASCINATING THAT WE CAN TAKE ADVANTAGE OF ALL OF THESE MODALITIES TO ACTUALLY TURN THAT CLOCK BACK TO DETOX SO THAT WE REVERSE SO QUOTE UNQUOTE, REVERSE AGING. RIGHT. BUT WE CAN RESTORE CELLS TO A BETTER STATE SO THAT WE’RE ABLE TO PERFORM IN A WAY THAT WE DID 20 YEARS AGO. WHAT ARE THE LESSONS FOR THE REST OF US WHO LOOK AT YOU AND YOU’RE GRAPPLING LITERALLY AND WINNING MENTALLY AND PHYSICALLY? YOU KNOW, DON’T BE LIMITED BY OTHER PEOPLE’S EXPERIENCES. NUMBER ONE. RIGHT. AND DON’T BE LIMITED BY YOUR OWN PAST. YOUR PAST IS IS LITERALLY YOUR AND SO I ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO JUST, YOU KNOW, DREAM, DREAM AND THINK BEYOND, YOU KNOW, ANYTHING YOU’VE EVER THOUGHT POSSIBLE AND THEN PUT IT TO WORK, RIGHT. DO THE WORK THAT IT TAKES TO GET THERE. AND THAT’S THAT’S REALLY IT. WE WE ARE FAR TOO LIMITED AS HUMAN BEINGS. WE ARE SO DICTATED BY WHAT WE SEE, AND WHAT WE SEE IS NOT, YOU KNOW, OUR REALITY NECESSARILY. WE CREATE THAT. SO YOU HAVE TO BELIEVE IT BEFORE YOU ACTUALLY MANIFEST IT. I THINK PHYSICALLY. AND SO WE HAVE TO CREATE WHAT WE WANT. CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR WIN. THANK YO