Amateur featherweight Hannah Sparrell will be stepping into mixed martial arts competition for the second time next month when she meets Angela Young at New England Fights 22 on April 23 at the Androscoggin Bank Colisee in Lewiston, Maine.
Sparrell (1-0) won her pro debut in September of last year as she scored a decision victory over Kira Innocenti at New England Fights 19. On yesterday’s edition of “The MMA Report Podcast,” Sparrell explained that she got her start in mixed martial arts after taking her daughter to a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu class.
“I signed my daughter up for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu classes,” Sparrell explained. “A friend of hers was doing them. I thought the self defense aspect was fantastic. It was an issue that kind of hits close to home for me. So I thought I would empower my daughter with that skill and training. I was the mom bringing her to all of the classes. Sitting in the bleachers knitting sweaters and I fell in love with the gym family there.”
“Also, the sport. I would see my daughter. How happy and elated she would be when she left class,” she continued. “I was like, I think this would be great for me too and it was something we were able to bond with. I train at some fantastic gyms and they allow children. I fell in love with jiu-jitsu the first time I trained. Now I get to train with my daughter and I really can’t ask for anything better than that for a bonding thing for us.”
Check out Sparrell’s complete interview from Thursday’s episode of “The MMA Report Podcast” below and be sure to subscribe to the show on iTunes and Stitcher.