Rex Richards

Making the transition to becoming a full-time mixed martial arts fighter is not easy.

To many, MMA is not just a sport it's a lifestyle. So the dedication, hard work and perseverance it takes to become truly one of the elite often requires a transition away from other professions.

For some it is an easy choice, as many fighters have often quipped how they would rather be a fighter than "work for a living." For others, leaving a promising career behind, especially one in which they are already receive the type of admiration they do from fighting, can be more difficult.

Former professional football player Rex Richards knows this all too well.

After successful stints in the National Football League and Arena Football League, he decided to focus solely on his blossoming MMA career, and while he's had great success inside the cage, persistent business hang-ups have left him at times waiting months on end to fight.

Such was the case when after losing the first fight of his career last year to now Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight Shane Carwin, Richards was looking to rebound quickly and get back on the winning track. He went on to win his "post-loss" fight in just over 1 minute in the first by submission.

With the win, Richards raises his overall record to 7-1, and now looks to attain the kind of consistency that has eluded him much of his career and kept him from fighting the first five months of 2008.

He commented on his year of frustrations heading into last weekend by saying, "It wasn't the fact that the fight before I had lost, but that I had so many fights fall through.

"I got injured before the YAMMA (Pit Fighting) tournament and couldn't train the right way. Antwain Britt backed out like a coward for the UWC card. It's just frustrating, I had a lot of big opportunities to go and show my skills, and I felt they were kind of stripped from me."

Rex also has a win over the man who was dubbed as the top super-heavy in Texas, Sunia Filikitonga. Sunia, a former NFL player himself is a very dangerous striker who was previously undefeated. Richards made short work of him, beating him at his own game with a TKO at 2:50 of round 1.

Back on the winning track, things are starting to turn around for Richards, as it appears he is on the verge of some career defining opportunities.

"I'm talking to a couple different companies right now of something really big," he stated. "They both have a really big opportunity for me to shine and be seen in front of millions of people.

While Richards cannot currently divulge his upcoming activities, he is not hesitant to lock horns with anyone, including the only man to have handed him defeat in his MMA career.

"There's a big list of fighters out there that I'm looking at and I'm excited to get an opportunity to bang with," he said.

"The UFC needs to know that I'm close to heavyweight and I need to get in there and get after Shane Carwin again. I like the guy and I respect him, but my only loss is to him and I want to take it back from him."

With nothing but a fierce urge to further his fighting career, MMA big man Rex Richards looks to make his sacrifices worthwhile and truly put together the kind of run this year that will have his name among the top professionals in the sport.

"I have a ton of supportive fans that seem to multiply after every fight. To them I just want to say thanks for being there and supporting me.