Texts, private messages, tweets, inboxes, creepy love messages, likes, retweets, emails, WhatsApps, Vibers, Skypes and phone interviews. Welcome to the life of a professional fighter. And multiply that by about 10 when that fighter happens to be an attractive woman.
How can one person keep up with all of this happening at once? It’s a hard task, but a rewarding one as well.
Before she signed with Invicta FC, Megan Anderson was just another promising fighter trying to get her break into the international market. Step by step, she started making inroads. When she finally signed on with a new management company — Poster Boy Fighters — it was full steam ahead.
No matter how you look at it, the world of social media will often consume a fighter in the lead-up to what could be their biggest moment. For Anderson, though, the newfound love that so many people have for her doesn’t make her upcoming debut with Invicta any harder. She already makes it hard enough on herself.
“It has all been pretty surreal,” Anderson told Combat Press. “It’s amazing. I’m constantly saying to my manager that it’s crazy how much support I’ve gotten, and I’ve just kind of exploded in the States and it’s incredible.
“I don’t really feel any pressure from it. The pressure and expectations I put on myself are going to far surpass any that anybody else puts on me. I look for that perfect performance. I’m a perfectionist. Even if other people are happy with my performance, I will pick it apart. So it doesn’t really bother me if I’ve got that limelight or popularity going in there. That all kind of blows out for me. I’m there to do a job and get the job done well.”
Traveling across the globe from Australia is a common desire for most twentysomethings. In Anderson’s case, though, it’s going to be a business-only expedition. It will also mark the first time that she has stepped foot in America. Prior to her Sept. 12 bout, Anderson had only traveled outside of Australia once, and that certainly wasn’t to compete.
“I’m pretty excited, it’s my first trip to the U.S.,” Anderson explained. “It’s gonna be a different experience, but I am really excited about it and I can’t wait until we finally get there.
“I’ve been to Thailand — I went to Phuket a few years ago — but that’s the only trip that I’ve ever had overseas. It’s a long flight. We leave Australia at about 8 a.m. and then get there in the morning, so it’s as if it takes us like an hour to get from the Gold Coast to Los Angeles [laughs]. It’s gonna be a long day, but I’m sure it’s not going to be too bad.”
Anderson’s Invicta FC 14 contest will be the prospect’s first fight under the Invicta banner. It’s safe to say that the whole experience is going to be completely different to what she is accustomed to on the local circuit in Australia. Even though Anderson does have friends who have made the trip over to fight in the United States, she hasn’t given too much thought to finding out what to expect.
“I haven’t really spoken to Jess [Jessica-Rose Clark] too much about what actually happens,” she admitted. “I’m just going to experience everything as it comes and just enjoy it and enjoy the whole process.”
In her Invicta debut, Anderson meets veteran fighter Cindy Dandois. Although Dandois has only fought two more times than Anderson, she has also been competing professionally since 2009. When Dandois first fought, Anderson was just 18 years old, and her debut as a fighter was still three years away. Anderson wasn’t expecting to step into the cage opposite a veteran like Dandois in her first bout on international soil.
“I thought they might have matched me with another fighter that was on debut,” she admitted. “But it’s good for me because she is quite well known, so when I beat her it’s gonna look even better. Her last fight was last year and that was her first fight in three years, so she’s relatively inactive. She might have some experience, but it was quite a while ago.”
With Anderson’s social-media profile building at such a rapid pace, the opportunity that is ahead of her is definitely the biggest of her young career. Australian women have had mixed success inside the Invicta FC cage, but Anderson plans to make the most of her opportunity.
“It’s my first international fight, and everything that I have done to now has led me to being signed to an international promotion,” said Anderson. “It’s definitely the next step up in my career and it shows that I’m growing. It’s definitely going to be a massive accomplishment, because I’ve worked so hard to get there. To get in there and get the win is going to be incredible.
“I wanna go out there and make statement. I might be popular or well known as a featherweight, but it’s still relatively unknown as to what I’m capable of, so I wanna go out there and show everyone that I’m a real contender.”