Germaine de Randamie spoke with the media recently at Gleason’s Gym following the UFC 208 open workouts, ahead of her fight Saturday night with Holly Holm for the inaugural women’s featherweight title.
Every fight is the toughest fight of my career, said de Randamie, as transcribed by Chuck Mindenhall to MMA Fighting. I respect Holly. She’s a tremendous athlete. To me it’s such an honor. But I’m ready. If I fought men, I can fight Holly.
De Randamie’s remark was a reference to an intergender boxing match she had in 2007 with Tom Waes, during his reality television show ‘Tomtesterom.’ Waes is a Flemish actor, television director, presenter, and singer. During the course of the series, Waes ran 150 miles across Morocco, broke the Belgian record for ski jumping, got in the Guinness Book of Records for speed eating a pizza, and got KTFO by GDR.
40 pounds [on me], she said. It was for boxing, it is what it is. They offered me the fight, he had three pro fights, and I’m like, let’s do it. He hit me hard. The first thing I thought when I hit him was damn, better keep my hand up.
Holm’s background is in boxing, while de Randamie’s is in kickboxing. The fans and the league are hoping for a stand up clash of styles, but de Randamie does not believe Holm will stand up her.
No, I don’t think so, she said. And I understand. She has her plan, and I have my plan. I welcome everybody to meet me in the middle. Let’s do this, let’s make it exciting. I’m not afraid to get knocked out, and I’m not afraid to take risks. I hope she’ll stand with me, but I don’t see it playing out that way.
De Randamie comes from the great lineage of Dutch kickboxing, and she justifiably proud of it.
We’re small, Holland is small, she said. But we’re a very strong nation. We have the best stand-up fighters in the world. I believe if you ask any fighter that has fought a Dutch kickboxer, he will tell you, that was the worst fight I’ve been in my life. Because it was fight. No matter what, if you face a Dutch fighter you know you’re in a tough fight. Bringing the belt back home…that would be a dream come true.
It’s always amazing to be some kind of role model for the next generation, and there’s a next generation of fighters coming.
