One of the initial three UFC stars highlighted in Threads’ Oddly Wholesome Post-Fight Rituals series, Tracy Cortez spoke with MMA KO’s Drew Beaupré about the new project, social media, and the unique ways that she unwinds out of fight camp.
Currently the UFC’s #8-ranked women’s flyweight contender, Cortez enters UFC 322 following a unanimous decision win over Viviane Araujo. Blanchfield sits at #4 in the women’s flyweight division, and Cortez will look to steal that ranking and also improve to 2-0 over “Cold Blooded” after she previously defeated her via split decision under the Invicta FC banner in 2019.
“I Haven’t Really Gotten Asked What I Do After A Fight”
Set to meet Blanchfield in a pivotal rematch at UFC 322 this Saturday, Cortex explained how the new project with Threads allowed her to really take a step back and examine what she does in between fights.
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“I don’t get asked a lot what I do in my free time,” Cortez explained. “It’s mostly kinda like, ‘What do you do to get ready for a fight? What do you do to prepare?’ So, I haven’t really gotten asked what I do after a fight. It was kind of hard to explain and put into words.”
Tracy Cortez (blue gloves) reacts to fight against Vanessa Melo (red gloves) during UFC Fight Night at Ginsasio do Ibirapuera. | Jason Da Silva-Imagn Images
“It’s just one of those things I have to remind people. It’s like ‘Well, I am the youngest of three older brothers. I’m the only girl, I grew up very tomboyish, very adrenaline junkie.’ So, it’s just one of those things where – I mean I kind of saw my big brothers, and I just followed their footsteps.”
“You Need A Chaperone When You’re Not In Camp”
Cortez notes in her Threads video that typically, fighters like to relax and spend time with their families after a fight. The 31-year-old already spends plenty of time with her family during fight camp, so she prefers to jet off somewhere and participate in high-octane activies like off-roading and skydiving.
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“I’ve actually gotten injured many times because of my activities outside of training. It became one of those things where my coaches were just like, ‘Stop. You need a chaperone when you’re not in camp.’ And I was just like ‘That’s not necessary, I’ll slow it down.’ And sure enough, like three months later I’m out of the country jumping out of planes…When I’m in camp I’m always home. I have a great support system. So when I’m here, it’s like my brothers come, they grill, and it’s just me and my brothers, you know?”
Viviane Araujo (red gloves) fights Tracy Cortez (blue gloves) during UFC 317 at T-Mobile Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images
“We don’t really have any family in the state, besides my brothers and my dad. So we have a very tight friend group, and they’re almost like – they’re more than my friends, they’re my family. So I mean, they come every weekend and we have movie night, and we’ll grill, and we’ll hang out by the pool. I’m just always surrounded by loved ones, and I just have a great support system. So when I’m out of camp, I’m just like ‘All right you guys, I’m out.’ And I’ll go treat myself, I’ll go on a vacation and – normally when I go to those locations it’s where it just sounds like fun.”
“What I Put Out, I Receive As Well”
In an age where many athletes and public figures make a point to try and avoid social media, Cortez is also unique in that she actually draws strength and motivation from the online community that she’s cultivated.
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“I live in this mindset where, especially ‘cause I’ve lived through a lot of tragedy and losses in my life, where I just wanna be surrounded by beautiful things. I mean, people say I’m a little [delusional], but I’m happy in my world. It’s my world, I have one life, and I’m gonna live it how I wanna live it. And I wanna live it happy, and I wanna live it stress free. The only stress I really have in my life – thank God – is the training, or the weight cut, or things that are not really a stress. So, when I think of something, whether it’s just like a gratitude post, or something that I’ve learned, that I’ve experienced, that I’ve grown or something, I’ll just kind of post it. And obviously – a lot of it is things that I’ve experienced myself, and I think because I’m vulnerable like that, my fans are able to really connect with me.”
Tracy Cortez is declared the winner by unanimous decision against Melissa Gatto during UFC 274 at Footprint Center. | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images
“It’s very rare when I get any negative comments or backlash. Like I’m so grateful, because my fans – I mean, it’s almost like what I put out I receive as well. And then I notice like, when I feed into the nastiness – ‘cause there could be a nasty side, you know? And that’s just the reality. And I just don’t feed into that, and I kind of just maneuver towards just being positive and more happy posts. It’s like a domino effect, it just keeps going. And I’ve been very grateful for that.”
You can check out Cortez’s Oddly Wholesome Post-Fight Rituals below.
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