Kyra Batara Talks About Training With Phil Baroni

Kyra Batara has competed a grand total of nine times as a professional MMA fighter, already competing under the Rizin and Combate Americas banner.

Batara, who headlines this Thursday Night’s Combate Americas 11 card, spoke to Bloody Elbow about competing all over the globe.

“I’ve been signed with Combate. I’m on a multi-fight deal with them and I was selected out of a pool of fighters to go represent them in RIZIN. They had guys that they wanted. They were talking about Ricky Palacios also fighting for them, but they ended up taking me to fight their superstar Kanako Murata, who is actually a 125’er and I’m a 105’er. So, we met in the middle at 115…I kind of did it just to get my foot in the door. Combate really wanted me to do it. Combate always talks about me being the Ronda Rousey of the organization. So, it’s a give and take, I know that. They wanted me to fight for them, so I was about it. I believed in them. They told me that it would be a really good fight for me, good exposure, so I was definitely all over that, knowing that it was a potential loss for me. I did go to a decision. I have that loss on my record now, but I learned a lot from it. It was a great experience. Me and my mom got to go to Tokyo Disneyland after. It was a lot of fun; I wouldn’t have changed anything,” Batara said to Bloody Elbow.

Combate Americas officials have stated in past broadcasts that they will be crowning a women’s atomweight champion by the end of the year.

The female 105 star currently trains under UFC veteran Phil Baroni.

“Phil Baroni definitely put that wrestler grind into my mentality. I come from a wrestling background, which Eddie [Bravo] kind of forced me to wrestle all through high school. Working with Phil again, being back in the wrestling room, he was one of the coaches with Kevin Randleman. He was very good friends with him, so after he [Randleman] passed away, he started coaching more at Monster Wrestling. So, being in the room with all the kids, the wrestling room, I did a lot of striking with him for that fight. I felt like it gave me that hunger to get that TKO finish, too, in that fight,” says Batara.

Combate Americas 11 takes place on Thursday, February 16 from the Burbank Convention Center in Burbank, California with Kyra Batara and Vanessa Fernandez headlining. Fightful will be providing live coverage of the event.