Arlene Blencowe didn't take the usual route to the top of the fight game.
Right now, she's preparing to fight MMA legend Cris Cyborg for the Bellator featherweight world title, and with COVID disrupting everything this year, it's remarkable the event is happening at all.
But it's not as remarkable as the road the 37-year-old took to get there.
Growing up, Blencowe wanted to play footy. But girls didn't play back then. She's always liked fighting too. But girls didn't do that either.
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Eventually she found boxing, had her first professional fight at the age of 26 and became a world champion in her third bout. Lacking serious competition in Australia, she started doing some MMA training and made her debut at 30.
Now, seven years on, a title shot.
That's the condensed version anyway. There's many more ups and downs, twists and turns in the full story.
“If I could’ve when I was younger, I would’ve played tackle footy,” she tells Sporting News.
“That’s why the girls these days are so lucky. There’s no divide in sport. There’s not a male sport, there’s not a female sport.
“Girls are welcome on the mats, in the ring or the footy field, but when I was younger, there was still such a divide.”
Through fighting - which wasn't an option for her as a youngster - Blencowe has found her true purpose in life.
Over the past decade, she's become the role model for her kids that she never had.
"Life…it’s one of the biggest things with raising my two kids, just looking back at my mistakes and areas where I could’ve had someone to aspire to,” she says.
“I’ve given my kids those role models and hopefully can lead them into doing great things in their lives.
“I didn’t have that and it kind’ve led me down the wrong path at times.”
It's not just her own kids Blencowe is inspiring, either.
“I’m doing some mentoring and talking to youth who might just need some direction as well,” she says.
“Not all the kids are ‘troubled’ but they may just need some direction. I do training sessions and mentoring at the juvenile correctional centre as well.
“Through my passion, I’ve found my purpose.
“Whether I can help change peoples' lives, even just teaching them one positive thing that could help lead them down the right direction or change the path they’re going on.”
On Friday (Australian time), Blencowe will attempt to become the first female Australian MMA champion when she steps into the cage with Cyborg.
It's a huge task, but one she's been preparing for for years.
“She’s been number one, she’s been at the top of the game my whole career,” she says.
“But as a fighter you should always want to fight the best and I’ve been eyeing her off and hoping this opportunity eventuates.
“There were a few things with COVID, but we knew it would happen and we’ve just been preparing for it.”
It will be Blencowe’s second shot at the Bellator title after dropping a controversial decision to Julia Budd in August 2017.
The split decision defeat was met with boos at the arena on fight night and outrage on social media, but Blencowe says she’s been able to take valuable lessons from the experience.
“I learned a lot about myself from that world title loss to Julia,” she says.
“It was a bit controversial and with it being a five round fight, I should have done a bit more in there to make it clear in the judges’ minds.
“I went through a lot mentally after that.
“But, I’ve worked my way back up to the title shot and in the process I’ve worked on everything in and around training and mental preparation as well.”