Ola Akande: In five weeks, you’ll find slightly cheaper people. Thank you so much for joining us today. And look who we have back on the show. We have Queen of the South. Kate, Patsy, how are you doing, man?

Kate Bacik: We’re going. How is it going?

Ola Akande: No, everything’s blessed. Man is so good. It’s so good to have you back on the show.

Kate Bacik: Thanks for having me back.

Ola Akande: Yeah, but. Yeah, but yeah, but it’s it’s a it’s fantastic to have you back on the show again. We know. We know that you have. You have a fight with Cage Warriors coming up. Let’s, let’s get let’s get straight into that before it before everything else because really and truly is one of the main reasons why we have you back on here to talk about your upcoming upcoming bout.

Ola Akande: How did how did it come about? We’ve we’ve the whole cage warriors promotion them them contacting you you know the reaching out to you how how did that come about and the opponents as well.

Kate Bacik: I mean this but this particular fight as an opportunity for us to fight Starz in November. This didn’t happen over the fights, but obviously it’s a fun component. So I was I was not really my weight plus kind of like my I don’t know, I just kind of talk with cuts off come and I’m too much for fighting that happened.

Kate Bacik: So I was like, no, let me let me wait for something that’s flyweight. And obviously, as I was way in, the way I realize that probably going to wait a little bit longer. And I also signed with a new management backing with Culberson and the big news straight away, they would ensure that two days of fighting was really safe and to me in the same got number of fights, different shows, different dates.

Kate Bacik: And this was the soonest. If I didn’t take this one fight in April and a two months. So that’s too much of a way limitations and pockets you know like I used to fight up on complain when I was number two and do it again like most of the weight class but it means I’m not going to smoke.

Ola Akande: Yeah, 100%. We expect that as well. Obviously, with the experience and even even your experience with like past sparring partners, sparring with big guys and, and, you know, using that experience and the strength that you develop from, from doing that with those guys, I’m just dominate you know, these are the females that you’ve had fights with.

Kate Bacik: So it’s big guys you know like since since the START treaty, like we’ve got loads of women here and some of those lumpy gets through. So it’s not just big guys.

Ola Akande: Guess there you go. There you go. Obviously, you know, there’s disappointment with with your last fight being canceled. You had a fight scheduled for the for the level I mean, for the 19th of November last year. It was a fight that obviously was you was looking forward to as well. It got canceled. How how do you mentally get over something like that when you’ve compared so much for you, you know, you was looking forward to so much.

Kate Bacik: I mean, it’s not even that it was meant to be the best night of my life or anything like that. Like no disrespect to anybody. Didn’t feel like she was super challenging opponent. So it was justified to kind of stay active, you know? But I put so much work into the comms and, you know, as I said, I had a task with calls because I work with the musicians I’ve ever worked with before and thinks kind of that I’m going to go well.

Kate Bacik: And in the end, I was on my own just parting ways for like 20 hours nonstop, like nine over 9 hours in bass and then 3 hours. And so, like, I’m just like, not sweating at all. It was a nightmare. And there were there were times during that last night where I felt like like I can’t anymore. And, you know, I had to snuff out of like, you know what, I finish and, you know, eventually I fucking made it to have that, but I made it and I was like, Well, I’ll get two fights now.

Kate Bacik: And the fight didn’t happen. And like, it’s never happened before. So I didn’t really know how to deal with that. It’s almost like I was in denial. It was like, not like what you mean shows canceled because I woke up in to fight and it was like track homie. Like little miss calls, like messages and that it wasn’t just me.

Kate Bacik: The show is over like, will happen, you know, when you like card you still kind of waking up with Dizzy and everyone’s chatting, something like that. You’re like, I’m not sure if it was real or not, but obviously there was only one way to deal with it. Really. It just goes straight back into training and hope you’re going to fight soon, you know, because what can you do?

Kate Bacik: It’s not something you’ve got control over. Say, there’s no point in like, you know, thinking about myself, 5 minutes to see, you know, bitch about it and that. But then I’ve got to become straight up there.

Ola Akande: But serious to see your phone. Your phone. I mean, you instapay just blowing up that day.

Kate Bacik: Oh, yeah. So. But what I was trippin.

Ola Akande: The mad doing still, as a matter of fact, like you’ve I see the background grit team behind you there. Yeah. Yeah, that’s, you know, that’s a nice little tool for you people are the viewers that’s going to be watching nicely for that. Yeah. It’s important for and we know is is it’s a nice home for you you found a home in in GB top team and some of the you know some of your teammates over there with we’ve had a couple of them on Manuela connect so the bookstore actually had a fun the other day we areas did well we saw you support in our you’re on your insta pages of people like Simeon Powell

Ola Akande: Smoove you know you love to kitchen over there I see all your insta all the time you know I mean these are these are great people. How how is that been different to like your your previous home where you was like before some of the places that you drink and how just feeling at home what’s the what’s the difference there?

Ola Akande: Can you tell can you tell people.

Kate Bacik: I’m so I feel like all of the previous places are saying that they gave me what I needed at the time and like there’s always the right time in the right place. As is saying, if you let things slow, how they’re meant to flow, and if you just follow kind of a gut instinct, just type of progress and move on.

Kate Bacik: Like if I was to come here a few years ago, I think I didn’t make the most out of it the same way I am right now. And I feel like I always ended up in the right place, right time with those of the previous groups after that. And like obviously New Wave was my home for a few years and they’ve even made everything I could like take.

Kate Bacik: One can move forward with me as I’ve been here. If I didn’t, if I didn’t find a new way for those areas I was, then I wouldn’t be able to be here right now having this conversation with you on this. So I know I feel like this is the perfect step like I did. I could have my armature company, my armature career, and then obviously once I moved on to my professional kind of stage of what I’m doing, this is the best thing.

Kate Bacik: You know, like I’m coached by people that where where I want to be in a way. So, you know, they’ve got the experience that I need, like the coaching kind of knowledge at this point. And also in terms of bodies, no matter what section of show up to the school where like loads of people, loads of bodies at the same professional level at these very high energy levels, I’ve always good sparring partners, have always good training partners.

Kate Bacik: Whenever I when I do drills outside of the sessions, there’s always someone around who’s going to do it. You know, the facility is amazing. You know, we’ve got everything from from from massive spaces to sauna to gym to kitchen, you know, like I’m almost literally not like, do anything, anything. They don’t have someone to sleep with. But yeah, it’s it’s all good one.

Kate Bacik: Like, honestly, it was a that made the right decision in the right time. That’s how I feel about it.

Ola Akande: Yeah, that’s, that’s, that’s, that’s wicked because, I mean, I’ve seen you say one of probably your favorites, you know, aspect of the facilities is the blue to the sun being able to play there. People love your music as well.

Kate Bacik: So they have no choice. Well mothers I.

Ola Akande: Yeah but I see. I see. I see. I see all the time on, you know, your page we follow you and I, we do what we can to, to always get your stuff out there and reports just stuff and some of some of the creative shit that you do as well.

Kate Bacik: Yes, ma’am. Thanks for support. And I know I look out for the crazy bits.

Ola Akande: Of a frou frou frou. You’re making your your second work in your in your pro journey, you know, going to curious 150. How do you feel your journey would probably have been different if lockdown didn’t happen as you was just entering into this? What do you think the journey would have been, how different it might be in different?

Kate Bacik: I’m not sure. I know it’s hard to it’s hard to say. It’s hard to be like all of that. But like, look, I mean, really affect me the same way. I think a lot of people because I just didn’t give a shit about it. Last thing. And actually lockdown was what made me go back into May because I got a little bit too caught up in Jiujitsu.

Kate Bacik: You know, I was very active in pushing professional grappling scene and that dream of like carrying on and the main thing. So it was kind of pushed it aside every day because I was so busy coaching, training, competing injuries from sleep that I didn’t really have time to look out for. And I’m a major because there was no proper AMA major in rights.

Kate Bacik: And when I live the time and so it quickly became to be like almost two years where I did an informal and I’m a man, don’t you like train my students by way with them? But it wasn’t the same, you know. And then because look don’t happen to me that I have to coach and I had all this extra time.

Kate Bacik: Obviously the jujitsu competitions were not really happening the so the show so that’s what made me go into the main and and finally get back into it. So if anything looked on, I can help me get back on the right path.

Ola Akande: Yemen, I want to congratulate you on on signing your deal with with the management. Yeah. You know something that you that you announced on your on your page as well with Carter when you when you announced it how how do you feel they they’re going to help your career you know go going the right trajectory. I finding the right fights are you finding you the right the right pay the right promotions the what what what what what are they bringing to the table for for you?

Kate Bacik: As I said, I is an amazing person and is very professional. And I trust that his experience and expertise, you know, he’s TV speaks for itself. Like you just look at the fighters this good side and the fighters do work and work full time and you know that they wouldn’t be with him if it wasn’t. Did you see the deals he’s getting for them?

Kate Bacik: And, you know, it takes one conversation with him as well to see how professional he is. And he’s always there for me. Please help me a few times already. You know, I’ve only been working with him for a very short period of time and he can be fired straight away, you know, whatever. I mean, he’s always there for me.

Kate Bacik: Very professional. We’ve got a plan, you know, for this year, for the next five years, three years, five years, whatever. So we kind of have an outlook on what we want to do. We want to take it, which is really good. And that’s kind of what I need this level of support. So actually trusted him to help me, you know, take my career to work where I’d like to take.

Ola Akande: Him and fantastic, fantastic. You’ve you’ve been a coach as well as being coach is is something that you know you that we’ve we’ve tried something that you do with pride and you’ve built up a nice campus students, if you like, from from what I’ve heard you say about you know you coaching is quite mixed class, inclusive class. You don’t like to just have like female only class.

Ola Akande: How’s that how’s that going right now and how does that fit into your regular schedule of training for for fight itself? Is it difficult to juggle how, how, how, how are you finding it?

Kate Bacik: So at the moment I kind of moved away from coaching group classes because I decided really hard to commute between the gym as well as how we make three sessions a day is if anything is more of a commute, you know, because I know, I know where in London is like fucking the hour 2 hours away, and then you’re going to make that journey twice.

Kate Bacik: You know, there’s going to be like five, 6 hours of the day just to coach a class. And financially doesn’t make sense in terms of my time, but does it make sense? So at the moment I’m doing more private sessions and stuff like that, but I really, really, really miss coaching. Has been a few weeks since I moved away from that.

Kate Bacik: I think it was the right decision again in terms of my my time and my my own of I miss coaching a lot. I’m not going to lie, so I would love to get back into it. But probably after this fight.

Ola Akande: They said they said we’re from that is now that you have that much to obviously like you said, financially and just the time, the time aspect and the time consuming aspect of it, how is that now that added to, you know, to your own giving, giving more time to yourself? Does the the because I know you’re very well-rounded fire when it comes to you know striking grappling, even freestyle wrestling as you say.

Ola Akande: But we having this time to to you know, from moving away from coaching and having that extra time to yourself does it give you more time to add extra skill level to your you know, to your toolbox, to, you know, some of the things that you probably haven’t you know, about you maybe not that good you have in time to to sharpen those tools and adding them to your toolbox.

Kate Bacik: And a percent so well it’s it mostly allows me to do is to spread myself a little bit more as well. And most days I will train three times whereas usually I used to train twice a day and then I would have longer sessions, especially the evening sessions like Trip with my person, you know, and just spend like and training like half of the night in the gym doing everything.

Kate Bacik: Whereas now I can spread that a little bit and I’ve got more time to do my SNC. So I’m kind of trying to focus on that. It’s not that I’m not strong and I’m not conditioned. Of course I am. And but I can be more, you know, I can be stronger and I can be more conditions or not.

Kate Bacik: So I’m just using that time to add a little bit more of that. So I’m working with a really good assistant coaches as well as, Yeah, I’ve got more time to take care of my nutrition too. I’m working with a nutritionist was great and it’s just the first time in my career when I’m eating loads of eating very often throughout the day.

Kate Bacik: I don’t feel like I’m finally adequately feels for the first time and my weight is actually dropping because I don’t have to drop when I’m on weight. But the more I think, the more weight I lose and I feel great and it’s the first time when I’m able to do that because I’ve got the right support. You know, we’ve got the kitchen in the gym so I can always go with it and always prep them.

Kate Bacik: It’s very convenient for me having this extra time. It gives me comfort of being able to take care of my training and them.

Ola Akande: And that’s it. That’s incredible, man. Incredible. We know. We know this. You’re in the business that you’re in is crazy. Is is so crazy, so unpredictable. But we know how much you love it. Our fighters can, as you know, you know way more than me. You could be so prepared for a fight. You go in there and take ill even though you know you did everything.

Ola Akande: The preparation was right and you could take a fight on five days notice, go in there and blitz out your opponent and get out there. It’s just how is just how crazy this year really is. But how do you deal with the highs and lows of of those situations where you feel you did everything right but it just didn’t translate in the fight or you didn’t you didn’t you didn’t really prepare for it and you just knocked it out of the car.

Ola Akande: How do you compartmentalize and and just put it into a box and move on in terms of dealing with without.

Kate Bacik: Suffering like firstly, like my most kind of my biggest strength, I’d say, in that aspect is that I’m always prepared, both mentally and physically, like able to tell me the could move to tomorrow. I’ll be fine, I’ll make way, I’ll fight with you. Tell me that is important. Five months. Same thing since my like I’m always training, like I’m always in which to change certain specific things, but I don’t allow myself, you know, to take so much time off that I wouldn’t feel ready for a fight.

Kate Bacik: I don’t allow myself to drift off mentally from the game too much to feel like I’m not really in it, you know? Yeah, I’m always prepared. So that’s not a problem. And most of the fights that happened for me before the fights anyways, so to have a full come home was like a luxury, you know? So that’s not really a problem.

Kate Bacik: And then in terms of like winning or losing, of course, like in theory, I actually win every single fight. You know, I’m working hard for it and prepared for it to die in the cage. But shit happens, you know, And like, this is done to finish them. Like sometimes even if you want to fight, you going to lose it.

Kate Bacik: That’s just the nature of the game. And you can’t argue with that, you know, like it is what it is, you know, able to finish that. You can’t argue it. As I said previously on the last blockbuster and that’s how you do it. But, you know, so in the end of the day, like, I don’t care about what anyone else thinks about it, you know, that I can always learn from the experience, whether it was good or bad.

Kate Bacik: So it doesn’t matter, because either way is that I don’t see my games going to add on to my experience and I’m going to move forward having more or less, even if I lose. You know, that is always a lesson in some some some learning experience. And it’s in a way so doesn’t mean being run, you know, like no matter what happens.

Ola Akande: Yeah, yeah, I hear you on that. Your next fight is on the 17th coming up against our so our name is how how you feeling about about that fight now that is is is getting closer and closer you know where matter of weeks out how you how you feeling about about that fight about your opponent you know what what she could be bringing and I know you’re probably not that concerned even though you those will be down to your coaches but you know how how how do you see that fight, you know, playing out?

Ola Akande: And you know, I’m not saying give out your strategy and what you’re going to do, but, you know, how do you see panning out?

Kate Bacik: I’m super excited for it because obviously I haven’t fought since like late August. So it’s been a while and I’m working myself to go back in and show all my skills again and again. You know, I’m always evolving, so I’m not the one to judge my opponents before I fight them. I always say I’m not going to be talking shit on her game and all that.

Kate Bacik: She’s coming to my house, She’s coming to London. I love fighting in London. I’m going to have my people have a whole team. I’ve got three of my teammates fighting on the same card and I would go with Nick and Lonnie. Yeah, amazing fight as well. I’m really looking forward to seeing them smashing the training so, you know, we’re going to have a whole army there and she’s coming to London.

Kate Bacik: I don’t lose in London. I’ve never looked at London. Thing going to happen, you know what I mean? But I want to I want to show my well-rounded skills again. You know, I’m coming. She’s coming to fight. She’s coming off. Bruno says she’s going to be hungry for it. I’m coming. Off the looks to and whether it was an actual or not, whatever on the record is a loss.

Kate Bacik: So I’m hungry to win, too. So it’s going to be a good fight we’re going to bring. And, you know, so it’s the only fight on the card as well. Um, oh, so, you know, we’re, we’re there to show the female I’m a male women’s and have a male. We can be exciting. We were round. It’s really aggressive.

Kate Bacik: We’re going to bring up pressure and we deserve put the card. You know.

Ola Akande: I love it. I love it. I love the whole, the whole. And I think that that whole mentality that you’re bringing to the card as well. And this is this is something that you’ve you’ve mentioned before in terms of like, you know, female female fighter and the talent, the talent pool, you know, over at least over here on home soil in the UK is really not that deep.

Ola Akande: So to really get fights, it’s it’s incredibly hard. And especially when you then get fights and then it gets colder for some reason, it’s it’s even more frustrating when when that happens. So let’s just hope. Fingers crossed, you know, Did this happen for you? You got.

Kate Bacik: To cut the violence.

Ola Akande: With pray for keeping everything crossed for you that you know, that this this really, really happens happens for you. One thing we got we got one, one or two like viewers questions for one of our viewers. I’m big obstacle currency They want to know. Shout out to Carissa for this question. How did you come about the nickname Queen of the South?

Kate Bacik: Here we go again. And it’s a long story, to be honest. I’ve got probably about ten different lines that are given by different people, different gender, but this one’s a little bit more an it kind of came from the lockdown times when I trained the law at Southside Kings Academy in Croydon with my friends. Yeah, shout out the Heidelberg.

Kate Bacik: Yeah. And the Southside Kings. And then I was kind of the only woman training there and coaching there for a long time. So, you know, I was the Southside Queen, the queen of the South, blah, blah, blah and all of that. And kind of.

Ola Akande: Saying.

Kate Bacik: That was born in. So most of the places the countries uplifted in my life, it was always south. So it’s kind of like that’s.

Ola Akande: Where you been up. It makes it makes it makes sense. That makes sense. And yeah, thank you closely for for that question. And we have one more question here before we get out of here. And thank you so much for your time. You’ll be very wearing smooth today. No salute to you for that one. I would respect that.

Ola Akande: And we have one more question here from Misha. Thank you, Mr.. For for your question. Mr. C’s, what is your plan for 2023? Ideally, how much you know, how many times would you like to fight what you see come the end of 2023? What’s your plan? Thank you very much for that question, Lisa Yeah.

Kate Bacik: So obviously I’d like to stay as active as possible. I’d like to fight minimum wage. There’s more focus on doing. I would also like to have a couple or a few professional grappling matches just so I don to build on that record. I’d like to come back on some of the shows I’ve been on before. I’ve got one coming up this Saturday as well.

Kate Bacik: So it’s happening. So, you know, I’m on my own. My plan already, how it’s stick to what I want to do. And yeah, I just want to keep, you know, improve and I want to see how far I can take it. I want to keep working on my nutrition. And my nutrition is now I’m super happy with him.

Kate Bacik: I want to keep working on my sincere with my coaches and all the other elements of my game. I don’t really plan to sign any binding contracts with any promotions just yet. I kind of want to enable a little bit of whatever is given to me and see what works best for me before I commit. And then obviously, like this is all about building up my record and just showing people what I can do and then we’re going to take it from there.

Ola Akande: So yeah, all the way to the top, man. And that’s, that’s what, that’s what I’d like to hear. Look, you you’re incredible person, you incredible athlete. You’ve got fantastic personality. That’s why a lot of people fuck with you.

Kate Bacik: Thank you.

Ola Akande: And and, you know, we’re one that we want to see. The women’s the women’s game, you know, even elevate more than more than what it is. And you’re one of the people that, you know, that keeps striving to put it on the map and salute to you. I mentioned one of your teammates, my gorilla, the butcher’s daughter. And you know, so many more Molly Molly leaves.

Ola Akande: That’s that loads of you that’s trying to put the sport on the map for for women and it is great to see And hopefully, you know cage warriors will probably have their whole their own women’s you know, hole card for you know, just for the for the women. And, you know, that’s that eventually you know what where where we’d like to get to and you are one of the people that that’s you know that’s working to make that happen.

Ola Akande: So thank you for for what you’re doing for them and their community in that in that respect. And then, yeah, we’re going to wish you so much luck on your your upcoming fight on March 17th. People stay tuned for that is going to be on UFC fight pass. Make sure you tune in log that dates into your diary.

Ola Akande: The defense is going to be throwing down and we will be waiting for that for that victory lap. So that’s as a finish that fight there. You know, I mean.

Kate Bacik: And make you watch it.

Ola Akande: Make sure you watch it. Make sure you watch it people. And then up onto the next video, people, we are out salute to everybody that’s joined us. Thank you. Queen of the South Cape.

Kate Bacik: People having tobacco on.

Ola Akande: For joining us today to salute Eva that later.