Adapting as best he could became the theme for flyweight Rodney Kealohi’s spring and summer. Thanks to the novel coronavirus lockdown, Kealohi’s regular training routine had to be replaced with a series of workouts with teammates at their homes, rather than at his main gym, Jackson Wink MMA.
For the most part, Kealohi feels like he was able to make the best of the situation, and thanks to friends like Michelle Waterson and Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, he was able to stay fight-ready for whenever his opportunity to return came.
“Things were shut down, gyms were shut down, so we had to find ways to meet up with training partners in a particular space,” Kealohi told MMAWeekly.com. “We worked around it.
“A bunch of my friends out here got a bunch of home gyms, so I got to do that a few times during quarantine. I did a bunch of outdoor mitt work and a bunch of cardio, doing as much as I can to stay in shape.”
Finding the fortitude to push through the lockdown and keep working on his game ended up paying dividends for Kealohi’s mental side of his development.
“I think mentally it’s been a big factor in my growth; having to find ways to stay dedicated with gyms being closed and almost no fight companies open outside of the UFC,” said Kealohi.
“It was finding the motivation to stay in shape and to keep training and meet up with training partners and be able to help with camp. I feel like all of that helped out; helped motivate myself knowing that through anything I can push and get better.”
This Friday in Park City, Kan., Kealohi (4-1) will look to pick up a win in his first fight of 2020 when he faces Mefi Monterroso (5-1) in a main card flyweight bout at LFA 92.
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“Mefi is like every other opponent I have; I just have a feeling he’s going to shoot; all my opponents shoot; so I’m going to go out there and do what I do best and put pads on him,” Kealohi said. “I’m going to hurt him and try to get him out of there early.
“For me it’s go big or go home every time I fight. I have a 100-percent finish rate. I just have to go out there and do what I do best and just have fun. I’m not really too worried on chasing the finish, because the finish will come. It will be there and it always comes in good fashion. I’ll just try to stay focused, go out there and enjoy myself.”
While Kealohi’s mind is set for Friday’s bout with Monterroso, he’s eager to keep the ball rolling and finish out the year with at least one more bout if possible.
“Right now I’m focused on what’s at hand, but yes, I am looking to fight soon after,” said Kealohi. “I’m looking to get in there, get out, no injuries, and get right back to work. I hope to put on a good performance and make the next fight bigger than this one.”
Inside LFA 92 with Ron Kruck
(Video courtesy of LFA)
For LFA’s Rodney Kealohi, it’s ‘go big or go home’
