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BJJ legend Marcelo Garcia had to go through a tough battle with stomach cancer in 2023, but he said that after beating it, he has a new and better perspective in life.
He shared this in an interview with ONE Championship ahead of his promotional debut at ONE 170 on Jan. 24 in Thailand. Among he said that changed in him is that he knows now what truly makes him happy, including time spent with family.
ONE shared a carousel of quote cards showing what Marcelo Garcia said, one of which conveyed (slide 5):
"My life changed but I have a better understanding of what makes me happy now."
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Garcia was a staunch BJJ competitor before calling it a career over a decade ago. In retirement, he continued with his passion for the sport, teaching it in the academy he put up. He also looks after his family and building memorable moments with his loved ones.
Marcelo Garcia expresses readiness for impending return to action
While he has been out of active competition for a long time, Marcelo Garcia said he is every bit ready for his return to action later this month in ONE Championship, as staying in shape has been part of his life even in retirement.
The four-time ADCC gold medal winner comes out of retirement to make his ONE debut at ONE 170 on Jan. 24 at the Impact Arena in Bangkok. He is going up against veteran Japanese fighter Masakazu Imanari in an openweight submission grappling bout.
Garcia, who is now based in Hawaii, shared in an interview on the show of combat sports journalist Ariel Helwani his thoughts on facing Imanari and his preparation for it.
"My training was never based on my opponent. I just based my training like to go compete against the best one. So I never really thought about my opponent."
The BJJ icon went on to say:
"Now, obviously, now I have a name [in Imanari]. So now I know who I can focus on. But it was never really much about the opponent."
His match against Imanari at ONE 170 will be the first for Garcia since he stepped away from the game to spend time with his family and attend to other stuff in 2011.
ONE 170 will be aired live and for free at U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
