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JULIE
KEDZIE The Perfect Balance
©
Marc Wickert Born
in Chicago on March 18, 1981, Julie Kedzie moved to Springfield,
Missouri, until she was 12, before calling Bloomington, Indiana, home.
After finishing college, ‘Jules’ then relocated to Greenwood for
employment before settling in Albuquerque during March 2007 to pursue
her true vocation in life. “I
had a really big fight in my career, with Gina Carano (EliteXC: Destiny,
Oct. 2, 2007), and I lost. But it went the distance and I fought
really hard, and Greg Jackson (http://www.knucklepit.com/mixed-martial-arts-greg_jackson.htm)
invited me to join his gym after I met him at that fight. I knew
if I really wanted to be a professional fighter it was probably time for
me to start going out of my comfort zone. I had a wonderful team
back home, but I wasn’t able to train full time and devote myself
totally because I had a job and stuff. So I decided to pack
everything up and try something new. It’s turned out to be the
best move of my life,” says Kedzie. At
5’5” and 135lbs, Julie has notched up titles in many martial arts
disciplines, including Muay Thai (World Kickboxing Association
Championship), Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (Extreme Grappling Open), and the
2005 Hook-N-Shoot Grand Prix Title (MMA), where she won three bouts in
one night whilst competing for the first time at 135lbs. It
seems Julie is the perfect balance of beauty outside the cage and beast
when she’s fighting. Then there’s the side of her that likes
to chill out with a lager and the other half that never says “enough
is enough” whilst pushing her mind and body through grueling workouts. Julie
was at home in Albuquerque, New Mexico, when Knucklepit managed
to track her down for a chat. Earlier in the day she had been
running some errands for Greg Jackson and had done a morning session at
the gym. “Now I’m just kinda relaxing,” says the vibrant
Kedzie. Julie,
what was the BJJ event you went to last week? “It
was called the South-West Grapple Fest and I think it was the second
time they’ve held it. It’s a local BJJ competition that is
just getting bigger and bigger.” How
did you go? “I
won the women’s advanced division. I don’t train in a gi
anymore so it was a no-gi division.” Why
did you take up a fighting art originally? “My
father put me in Tae Kwon Do classes when I was five. It was a
family event: My father and mother and older sister did it. My
mother dropped out because she didn’t really like it, but my sister
and I continued, and it was just the sport we grew up with. “When
I was a little bit older the Tae Kwon Do school I went to was very
progressive and encouraged cross-training in other arts, so they
introduced me to Muay Thai, kickboxing and Erik Paulson’s Combat
Submission Wrestling and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. When it was time for
me to test for my third-degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do at eighteen
years old, I decided I really wanted to be a fighter. And after I
got my third degree I realized I wanted to pursue Muay Thai and ground
fighting; however I didn’t start taking them too seriously until it
was time for me to start competing. “Then in 2003-2004, I began training seriously for fights and decided it was what I wanted to do with my life – that’s kinda how mixed martial arts became available to me. And I trained with James Clingerman for BJJ and MMA from 2004 – 2007, whilst living in Greenwood after my first MMA fight.”
Former
IFL Condor member Adam Lynn said Debi Purcell was one of Marco Ruas’s
first US students. How did you link up with Debi? “Oh,
I saw Debi on one of the Hook-N-Shoot DVDs before I became a
professional fighter, and I was completely inspired by her. Then a
mutual friend – I wanted to become a professional fighter but I
didn’t know how to start – offered me the opportunity to meet her,
so we ended up driving to California and we trained with Debi for about
seven weeks and got to know her. She was just a really powerful,
enthusiastic and wonderful person. She got me started in MMA just
with her encouragement, and her enthusiasm for the sport is
wonderful.” I
believe you’re Greg Jackson’s personal assistant. What does
that entail? “I
basically follow Greg around and keep track of his scheduling… I have
a degree in English literature and he does a lot of articles and
interviews for people, so I put my degree to use by editing for him…
And lots of times I just follow him around, so if he loses his keys
I’m the one who has to find them. If he needs to be picked up
from the airport or his kids need to be watched, I kinda step in.” Do
you instruct at the gym? “I
teach private lessons, but not classes at the gym. Greg wants me
to be head of our female team, but the female team isn’t really
developed yet, so I’m focusing on my career, and the training that I
do is not only beneficial to my career as a fighter, but it’s an
internship of the best coach in the world, because someday I’d like to
coach female fighters and have a team of them, so Greg’s training me
in that.” What
is Ricky Kottenstette’s role there? “Ricky
is the gym manager and coordinator… We have people from all over the
world come to live in the dorm upstairs (see www.knucklepit.com/mixed-martial-arts-donald_cerrone.htm)
and train in the gym, and Ricky maintains a schedule for the day-to-day
students. Many times Greg will leave for a fight at the UFC or
other events and he’ll take me with him, leaving Ricky to make sure
everything at the gym runs smoothly. And now Ricky has taken on
the added responsibility of getting local fights for people, such as me,
who aren’t as active as fighters.” Does
Michael Winkeljohn work with you? “Yes:
He’s an amazing boxing coach and I get as much time with him as
possible. He teaches classes around here and he instructs private
classes as well.” Do
you spar with Michelle Waterson? (www.knucklepit.com/mixed-martial-arts-michelle_waterson.htm)
“Uh- huh. I spar with Michelle pretty much every day. She’s like my little sister… I’m kinda her mentor at the gym and I try to keep everything going with her career and keep her on track. She helps me the same way – she’s just wonderful.”
In
Kelly Crigger’s book, ‘Title Shot’, he said, “Anyone who says
women lack warrior spirit needs to meet Julie Kedzie.” What
motivates Julie Kedzie? “I
was born with a competitive personality and I think that I’ve found
the right sport and the right place to channel my energy where I’m
really happy. Also, I guess what motivates me is being able to be
around wonderful people and wanting to be the best fighter I can be.
Every day I wake up wanting to compete – whether against an opponent
or competing against myself.” How
do you change from being such a sweet, polite young lady outside the
cage to being such a wild gladiator in there? “Thanks
for the compliment on both counts. You know, something turns on
inside me – even in sparring. It’s like, ‘You gotta watch
out or she’ll crack you’, and I just don’t see my opponent as a
person when I’m fighting her. It’s just what I have to work
out of myself, and as a result I have cracked a few people – male and
female. “But
I’m a very emotional person, and part of controlling that is by coming
out and getting meaner – cracking people and wanting to be the best.
There is a switch inside me: I don’t stay nice. When I’m
fighting I have to impose my will on them and I have to win.
That’s the dark side of me that I have to keep down and I let it out
when I fight.” Is
your general strategy to bulldoze your opponents in the standup game and
then to either g’n’p them or win by a grappling submission? “Generally,
yeah. My fight history shows a lot of wins by decision and TKO;
however the truth is I love the ground’n’pound aspect of the game.
I’ve done a lot of work in the past with the Jackson team, so my
standup is a little bit sharper and I’m a little more poised on my
feet, and my grappling is also becoming more technical. I’d like
to become a more submission-based fighter and have some more accuracy on
my feet – that’s what I’m trying to achieve here.” When
do your fans see you fight again? “They’ll
probably see me grappling more now whilst I’m trying to finesse my
ground work, but I seriously consider any fight that comes my way whilst
trying to do what’s strategically smart for me. I’ve had 20
MMA fights and at this point I really take my career seriously and I
take all offers seriously. Hopefully, by the end of April or in May
I’ll get a fight, because I like to be active.” What
do you do to chill out when you’re not MMA-ing? “I
drink a lot of beer and eat a lot of cookies. I’m a Corona
girl.” Julie
Kedzie’s sponsors? “Tapout,
Muscle Pharm, Xyience, and of course Jackson’s Gym.” Julie,
is there anything you’d like to add? “I’m very fortunate to have worked with Tapout and they are a huge sponsor of mine, and it was a terrible tragedy with the death of Charles ‘Mac’ Lewis. Having been affiliated with him and having gotten to know him, I would say sponsorship is too little a word for what Tapout have done for me. I’m so saddened by Charles’s passing.”
For
more on Julie Kedzie: http://www.myspace.com/julesk_fighter
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