Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a very dangerous and difficult sport. It requires not only physical strength but also incredible endurance, constant training and steadfastness of character. The American athlete from Dallas managed to overcome all obstacles on the way to numerous victories. The article tells the story of the outstanding Gina Carano, who entered the history of Dallas as one of the brightest stars of mixed martial arts. Read more on dallaski.
Gina Carano’s childhood and the beginning of her sports career
Gina Carano was born in 1982 in the heart of Texas, in the city of Dallas. Her childhood was spent with sports discipline. Her father, Glenn Carano, was a player of the National Football League, defending the Dallas Cowboys. Gina inherited from him not only physical strength but also incredible resilience, which became the foundation of her future career. From childhood, the girl learned the main truth: to achieve great goals, you need to make a lot of effort and never give up.
When Gina began studying at Trinity Christian High School, she demonstrated her leadership qualities. She helped the school’s girls’ basketball team win the state championship. After graduating from school, Gina entered the University of Nevada in Reno. There, she devoted a year to the study of psychology and continued her studies at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas. Even there, Gina felt that her calling was completely different and left study.
Gina Carano started her career in MMA completely unexpectedly. When accompanying her boyfriend Kevin Ross to training, she met his trainer, Master Chan. The trainer immediately saw the hidden potential in Gina and decided to convince her to try martial arts. He succeeded. Carano began to actively train. Subsequently, she had 14 fights in Muay Thai, winning 12, suffering only one defeat and one fight ended in a draw. One day, her talent caught the attention of mixed martial arts organizers. She was invited to take part in the first sanctioned women’s MMA fight in Nevada. The fight was held under the auspices of the little-known promotion World Extreme Fighting. Gina’s opponent was Leiticia Pestovа. That first match was forever etched in the memory of both the athlete herself and her fans. Carano won it in an incredible 38 seconds.
A successful career in MMA and the last fight
During her career, Gina Carano repeatedly entered the ring against the strongest opponents, among whom were such famous names as Rosi Sexton, Elaina Maxwell and Kaitlin Young. However, the athlete won one fight after another, showing incredible strength, technique and desire to win. After some time, Gina got the nickname Conviction Crush.
One of the most significant moments in her career was the fight with Kelly Kobold in October 2008. This match was televised nationally on CBS, which further increased Carano’s popularity. The fight seemed difficult, but the judges awarded Carano the victory. She dedicated this triumph to her grandfather. In the same year, Gina became popular not only as a fighter but also as a participant in the TV show American Gladiators.
A fight in the summer of 2009 was fateful for Gina Carano’s sports career. Then, Gina met in the ring with the Brazilian Cristiane Santos. For the first time during her stay in professional sports, she suffered a defeat. It was a technical knockout. Then, the athlete from Dallas received a record fee of one hundred thousand dollars and decided to end her career as a fighter and focus on cinema.
Gina Carano gained so much popularity that she was called the face of women’s MMA. This outstanding star from Dallas paved the way for many women in mixed martial arts, becoming a symbol of strength.
