Reece “Lightning” McLaren (16-8) is a flyweight contender on the march, and it’s family that drives him to reach new heights.
The new dad takes on former ONE flyweight world champion Kairat Akhmetov (29-2) at ONE Fight Night 10 on Prime Video, and whoever emerges victorious could be next in line for the winner of the show’s main event, which features current divisional king Demetrious Johnson and Adriano Moraes.
McLaren and Akhmetov previously met in the ONE flyweight world grand prix quarterfinals back in 2019. The Kazakh star would win the tilt via unanimous decision.
When the rematch goes down at 1STBANK Center in Broomfield, Colorado, on May 5, however, McLaren will have an extra piece of motivation that he didn’t have during the first encounter – his 1-year-old daughter.
In fact, the 31-year-old Australian could barely find the words to describe how fatherhood has changed his life and career.
“This is everything,” he said. “You can try and describe it, but it’s like describing blue to a blind person. Yeah, it has absolutely changed my life, and I’m loving it.”
The priorities of a fighting parent are a delicate balancing act.
Many fighters are forced to travel to find the standard of training that they need in order to be successful on the global stage, and that often results in time away from their families.
McLaren is no different, and he plans to ensure that the sacrifice is worthwhile on fight night.
“Pretty much, there is no such thing as balance,” he said. “Yeah, it’s tricky. I’m away from home often, and I feel it because I miss bits and pieces with my daughter and fiance and stuff.
“But you’ve got to sacrifice a bit for this. So, we’re chasing the dream now for eight weeks (full-time) and yeah, we’re going to make it count.”
If McLaren is successful at ONE Championship’s historic U.S. debut, he will move one step closer to an elusive second chance at a world title.
The Australian star challenged for the ONE bantamweight world title way back in December 2016, dropping a razor-thin split decision to Brazilian legend Bibiano Fernandes.
Now riding a wave of momentum that comes from his two consecutive wins – including a knockout and a submission – McLaren is daring to dream of bringing a 26-pound gold belt home to his daughter.
He hopes that his exploits will inspire the youngster to go on and do great things in her own life.
“I think (bringing the world title home) would be everything,” he said.
“I mean, I’ve always had a thing in my head that you should always try to be the spark to ignite someone who changes the world, and if that’s the case, then so be it.”
