Hecher Sosa can breathe a little easier and rest his mind now that he’s fulfilled his father’s longstanding wish: To debut in the UFC.
Last year, the MMA world witnessed Sosa’s touching story. The Spaniard had to say goodbye to his father, who was dealing with a terminal cancer, so he could travel from his home in Spain to fight for a UFC contract at Dana White Contender Series in Las Vegas. It was a difficult decision for Sosa (15-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC), but not for his father, who was adamant that he’d go and pursue his dream of becoming a UFC fighter.
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Unfortunately, Sosa’s father didn’t get to see his son win a UFC contract, as he passed days before the bout. It was devastating news for Sosa, who was in the midst of a weight cut, but he went on to make weight, fight and win in the name of his father. Although the UFC contract guaranteed him a spot with the promotion, the step of debuting was still pending on his father’s wish.
This past weekend at UFC Fight Night 269, Sosa returned to the same city and venue where he learned his father was no longer with him, and won his UFC debut. He outslugged Luan Lacerda in a wild bout to win a unanimous decision.
“Emotions did stir up a little when I got to Las Vegas,” Sosa told Hablemos MMA in Spanish. “Luckily, I got to Las Vegas two weeks before the fight, and the first few days I did think of my dad a lot, even though I always think about him. I thought about the situation I had to go through. I remembered when I went training and when I got back that my father was in his final moments. It felt a bit of everything. I felt déjà vu. In the end, it’s been six months. It’s a pain you will never get over. It’s a pain you have to learn to live with, and I use it to get stronger every day.”
With a successful UFC debut now behind him, Sosa has felt relieved knowing the job is done. However, he knows the road doesn’t stop here. His father and sister, who also passed from cancer years prior, would want him to aim higher than just getting a UFC win.
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“Of course I felt relief,” Sosa said. “My sister also told me that she won’t be at peace until I enter the UFC. My dad told me the same thing, to go to Las Vegas and to do it for him because it would make him happy. So being able to accomplish their dream and my father’s and sister’s will, of course, brings me relief. However, I’m a person that always goes for more, and I’m sure if my father were still with me, he’d be cheering me on to go for more and keep growing in the promotion, and that’s what I intend to do. I know they’ll be watching. They’re in my heart and mind, and I want to keep making them proud.”
The former WOW bantamweight champion is looking to stay active in the UFC. He doesn’t want to even think about becoming a world champion, as he just wants to go one step at a time. For now, he angles for a summer return and he’d love to fight in one of the year’s biggest cards.
“I’d like to fight in June or July, so I can then do one more fight before year’s end, and that way I’d have three fights in a year,” Sosa said. “I would like June or July. In July at International Fight Week, that would be incredible. That would be incredible in Las Vegas. But like I’ve said, the UFC calls the shots, and I’m here to keep improving.”
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Hecher Sosa ‘felt relief’ fulfilling father’s dream of debuting in UFC
