“I treated fighting like meditation,” is what Kaan Ofli said about the sport of MMA. Why? Well, because life for him was harder than fighting inside the cage. For some fighters, life’s adversities and curveballs prove to be bigger challenges than competing inside the cage for a paycheck. Names like Francis Ngannou and Jared Gordon come to mind when speaking about fighters who endured a hard life before embarking on professional MMA careers.

So what is it about Kaan Ofli’s struggles that make fighting inside the ring easy compared to what he endured? That’s what we’re here to talk about, along with his origins, nationality, and ethnic background. Without further ado, let’s get right into it.

Kaan Ofli’s nationality and where is he from?

Kaan Ofli, whose nickname is ‘Genghis’ (after the famed warlord Mongolian emperor) was born on 19 June 1993, in Melbourne, into a difficult childhood. His experiences as a child forced him to grow up pretty early. A former brickie’s laborer, he left school in the 8th grade to support his Turkish immigrant mother Ela. She was without a job, with no knowledge of English, and raising him and his sister Zeynep in a car. However, they did eventually find refuge in a Church, but their troubles didn’t stop there.

One incident that ‘Genghis’ recalled while seeking refuge in the Church was when his mother tried to shield him and his sister from a man – a supposed dr-g addict – that tried to attack them. When asked about his thought process at that time, Ofli said to FOX Sports, “No idea”, before continuing, “And I can still remember that afternoon Mum rushed us into our room, locked the door, and then shoved her back against it,.” He further stated. “Some guy wanted to attack us, so mum used herself to barricade the door. She’s crying, and we were all alone … had no one”.

Clearly, Kaan Ofli’s childhood experiences forged him into the fighter he is today. But his struggles were almost marked by his father and then-girlfriend un-aliving themselves in the same year. “Both within a year”, recounted Ofli, citing his love for mixed martial arts as a driving force and major coping mechanism for all his childhood trauma. So what has Kaan Ofli achieved in the realm of mixed martial arts? Let’s find out.

Kaan Ofli UFC, MMA record an fight journey

Kaan Ofli got his first big exposure when he participated in season 32 of The Ultimate Fighter, winning the middleweight bracket with a second-round KO of Mairon Santos. According to the UFC,Ofli jumped into MMA at 18. He did not have an amateur career and dived straight into the big leagues. He said, “I discovered my passion, realized I was good at it, and turned my personal struggles into something powerful.” The Hex Featherweight Champion and the Bushido Europe Featherweight Champion looked up to Khabib Nurmagomedov and Georges St-Pierre as his primary inspiration, wanting to forge legacies like theirs.

From being a bricklayer, demolition worker, and BJJ coach, today he is a 12-3-1 featherweight phenom with an impressive 6 first-round finishes to his name. A pro since 2014, he recently fought at UFC on ESPN 62 on 24th August but was KO-ed by Mairon Santos.

Nevertheless, he is ready to fight Muhammad Naimov at UFC Fight Night 250 on 1st Feb in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. ‘Genghis’ will look to record his first promotional win this Saturday. Do you think he’ll find success? Share your thoughts in the comments below.