Influenced by Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles

AS a kid, she watched movies like Mortal Kombat and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.

And this has made Michelle Waterson very much a fighter, literally, today, A case of life imitates art.

“My brother and I grew up watching Ninja Turtles and Mortal Kombat, so we wanted to be like them.

“When a local martial arts studio opened up nearby, we got really good really fast and that’s when I knew I wanted it to be a part of my life and for the rest of my life,” said Michelle in Petaling Jaya yesterday.

Aside from fighting under the UFC franchise, Michelle has done stunts for movies like The Lone Ranger, Thor and Transcendence and was featured in the American metal band Megadeth’s music video for the single Head Crusher.

The 30-year-old strawweight fighter is a former Invicta FC champion with more than 10 years of professional fighting under her belt.

Nicknamed the “Karate Hottie”, Michelle, who is currently on a PR tour, said: “It’s been crazy ever since my fight last year and I’ve been on a rollercoaster travelling to New York, California, Singapore, Malaysia,

Michelle may not be fighting at the UFC Fight Night Singapore on June 17 but she’s having just as much fun entertaining her Malaysian fans.

“I’m just growing my brand and developing myself as an elite fighter.”

Michelle, who is of AmericanThailand is also a karate black belt and Brazilian jujitsu blue belt martial arts expert.

Having tried taking up muay thai with surprising results, she said: “I wanted to train in muay thai and it was the opposite of what I trained in karate.

“Martial art was easy for me, so this grasp my attention because I couldn’t get it and it from there it made me a better martial artist.”

The mother of one credits her husband, Joshua Gomez, as her hero and one of her main idols in life as the US Armed Forces amateur boxing champion has sacrificed a lot for their family. Farah Azharie