This season of the Ultimate Fighter is different in many ways than the previous seasons. It’s the first time the show has an all female cast, and also the first time an inaugural champion will be crowned. TUF 20 features the top 16 ranked straw-weights in the game and Randa Markos is right in the mix.
Randa’s story is a remarkable tale of survival and overcoming adversity. She was born in Iraq and ended up imprisoned in Turkey for a year when she was only a child. Her family eventually ended up in Canada and her amazing story doesn’t stop there.
I had the privilege of sitting down with Randa and talk to her about her childhood and what led her to being one of the best female fighters on the planet.
Aaron Robbins: Hey Randa, Thanks so much for talking with me. You have an unbelievable story, would you mind telling the fans what you had to endure to get away from a war-torn Iraq?
Randa Markos: “We were forced to leave the Middle East because of the war going on between Iraq and Iran. After witnessing all of his friends dying in the war my father knew we had to leave because staying would be a death sentence. You have no choice as a male but to be part of the military. They aren’t armed or trained properly, so you were basically set up to die.
“We left on foot. My mom said we were on donkeys and walking for literally four days straight until we reached Turkey. We were put into a camp, and we had to stay there for almost a year. My brother was born there. During that time we were held at gun point multiple times. We were eating other peoples scraps, just surviving every day and hoping we would get out of there alive.
My mother had just given birth to my baby brother and they were trying to send us back to Iraq, they were waiting for my dad to kill him because he had escaped. I don’t remember much of it, but my older sister was very traumatized by the whole experience. It was very difficult and I am very grateful that I ended up here in Canada.”
AR: I can’t imagine having to deal with that kind of hardship, thank you for sharing that. At what age did you begin to have and interest in athletics and how did that lead you to combat sports?
RM: “Life was difficult at home, my father was physically and verbally abusive to us, he had dealt with so many hardships in his past he turned to alcohol. When I was young I tried to find an escape so I could enjoy every day. Joining sports got me out of the house, so I joined things like cross-country, and soccer. I did whatever I could to not have to go home after school. In High School I found wrestling and I was really excited about it. My parents didn’t want me to do it, but they didn’t give me a good enough reason to stop me from doing it. I like sports like martial arts because it’s all on you. If you don’t succeed you don’t have anyone to blame but yourself.
“I began training Jiu Jitsu after High School and I fell in love with that as well. Right away I got addicted to it. I trained with my future husband and I watched him fight, that’s when I knew I had to get into MMA.”
AR: That’s interesting, I had read that you had met your husband, Jeff, while training. Is that correct?
RM: “We actually wrestled for the same club in High School, we didn’t go to the same school, but we did a travel wrestling team. I knew him from there. We didn’t date or anything at that time, but that’s how we first met. After we started dating he went away for work for about a year, he was teaching Jiu Jitsu in Calgary. It was after he came back from there that I got into it.”
AR: That’s a great story. Can you tell the fans about your amateur career and what led you to TUF?
RM: “I was really scared of making the first move and getting in the cage. I stuck with Jiu Jitsu for a long time before I started punching the bag and kickboxing. Once I felt very secure with my Jiu Jitsu I decided to take the next step and get in the cage. I found out that when you’re in there you don’t feel anything. Your adrenaline is rushing so much that you don’t feel anything and you just want to take out your opponent. That when I really fell in love with it. After that first fight I knew I wanted to continue and get better. I won my first fight and dropped my second one to Kelly Warren. After that I went on a winning streak. After the winning streak I couldn’t get a fight for two years. I decided I needed to go pro because everybody kept backing out of my fights.
“Once I went pro I had another two fights where the girls backed out and I was ready to quit because it was like two years of my life that just went by and I was wondering if it was ever going to actually happen. Finally I got the fight with Allana Jones, she agreed to fight me with two weeks notice. After that fight doors have just been opening for me.”
AR: This season of The Ultimate Fighter is much different than any other, not only because it showcases WMMA, but because you ladies are all ranked at your weight-class and will be fighting for a belt. Tell us what you can about TUF 20.
RM: “Yes it’s completely different than all the other seasons. They put the best women in the world in the house together. We have to put up with each other, and then beat the crap out of each other. There is also the straw-weight belt on the line, not just a contract. It has been one of the craziest seasons I think.
“When I got to the house I was ranked #14, and I was pretty upset about that. I got to fight Tecia Torres, I was really happy to fight her. I had heard about her going into the house. Some people had picked her to win the whole show. I thought to myself that would be great to fight her one day. So when I found out I was going to fight her first, I figured it was going to happen sooner or later so it might as well happen now. I went in there with no pressure on me. I was ready to show everybody what I can do, and when I went in there I just left it all in the cage. I didn’t care if I got injured, I wanted to win that fight.”
AR: Tecia claimed that she was injured before the fight. Do you agree?
RM: “Maybe she was, but everyone was injured. My back had been killing me before I got in the house and I never said a word about it. Everybody had injuries, but you are always in that situation. That’s what makes the house so interesting. No matter what is going on you’re stuck in that house and you’re training every day, and you have to learn to survive. We were all in the same situation, many of the girls had injuries.”
AR: It is well documented that you have a strong faith. Does that help you continue your journey?
RM: “Yes I’m Chaldean, I believe in God and I’m Catholic. I’m very proud of that. It helps me make the right decisions sometimes. It helped me stay sane while I was in the house. I had a lot of negativity around me and it helped me come back to reality; believe in myself and what I can do. It just helps me get through every day problems and situations. It guides you to make the right decisions and believe in yourself.”
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