10 Questions With Stephanie Frausto (9/6/2010)

[DarrickPatrick]

10 Questions With Stephanie Frausto (by Darrick Patrick)

Stephanie "Macaquinha" Frausto is a professional mixed martial artist who has appeared in the Bellator Fighting Championships organization and at The Warriors Cage events such as Meltdown, Violence, and Primitive Rage. At the time of this interview, her next scheduled match is against Paulina Ramirez in Tachi Palace Fights at TPF 6: High Stakes on September 9th, 2010.

Darrick: What was the road that led you to professional mixed martial arts competition?

Stephanie: All of my big brothers and my sister were doing martial arts when I was little. I wanted to do it too but I was too young. I would go to all of their practices though and watch them. I was very interested in what they were learning. Watching them do the kicks and breaking boards was my favorite. By the time I was old enough to start doing martial arts, my parents had gotten a divorce so everything was put on hold. My older brother and sister started doing bad things. We moved around a lot from staying with my mom and my dad. It was a big mess. So, I just focused on school.

I let myself go. I gained a lot of weight. I was a twelve-year-old girl who was 4’ 10" and 160 pounds. I didn’t know I was overweight until I started getting teased on the bus at school. That is when I decided to do something about it. I went to my older sister Zoila for help. That is when I joined my first school team, cross country. Before that day I wouldn’t have been able to have run a lap without stopping, but I ended up running three miles without walking one stride. It also helped because my sister was right at my side the entire time. Within three years of running, I became captain of my high school varsity cross country team and that year we went to state.

I moved in with my sister at the age of seventeen. MMA was all around me, so I sort of just fell into it. I am a very fast learner and I picked up a lot of the techniques quickly. BJJ was my favorite when is started training. When I was younger I would go to my sister's fighter training every day and watch her beat up on the guys. I thought she was Wonder Woman. I started just training on my own while they practiced. Hitting the bag, doing shooting drills, sprawling, working with the jump rope, and whatever else I saw her do I would do it on my own. After a couple of weeks I got invited to start training with them. I was thinking, “No way! With the pros?" I was this itty bitty girl who started rolling with the big dogs. I had a blast.

After a year, our gym had closed and we all started training out of a garage. That was when my coach Jasper Tayaba tried to get me a few boxing matches or Muay Thai smokers. By that time my sister was already booming and when the other camps would figure out who my sister was, they all backed out. My first fight ended up being a professional MMA fight. The girl had a shaved head with tattoos everywhere, even on her neck. I still get people asking me if that was a boy I fought. The girl tried to go all street on me but I pushed forward and kicked the crap out of her. Not literally, but almost! I TKO'd her in the first round.

Darrick: Who are a few of the people in the sport that you highly respect?

Stephanie: Zoila Frausto is someone I highly respect in mixed martial arts and it's not just because she is my sister. There are a lot of things I have seen her go through that most people would think is too hard and would just give up on. Not only did she just knockout the number three ranked girl in the world (Rosie Sexton), but she did it with just about three years of MMA training...and she has only been fighting for a year and a half! All of these women she is going against have been in this game for years and she is just knocking them down like flies. Like me, her first fight was also a professional MMA bout. She has the strongest mind I have ever known. That is why she is doing so great right now.

Jorge Gurgel is another person I have a lot of respect for. He never makes any excuses about his losses, like in his last Strikeforce match against KJ Noons. Everybody knew that Jorge had taken a bunch of dirty shots. Jorge deserved a hell of a lot more respect than that. His opponent didn’t make weight and Jorge told him not to worry about it. Then, he got hit after the bell and kneed in the face while he was down. Even with all that, Jorge still didn’t make any excuses and took it as a loss. I will always wear my Team JG shirt proudly.

Darrick: Do you feel as if there are any extra hurdles being a female in mixed martial arts or do you believe it to be bascially the same struggle for both genders?

Stephanie: It is a little harder for women to be in this game than men. For one thing, it is hard to find good training partners. Women that come into my gym are always coming and going, so I don’t even bother training with them. Some guys don’t know how control themselves though and end up dislocating my shoulder or dropping me on my head. It's hard to find a guy partner that will be a little rough with you but not to the extreme of putting you into the hospital. Sometimes when you are rolling or sparring with a guy and you get a good shot in or submission, it's like there is a switch that goes off in their head. They start going crazy and you have to kick them in the balls so they will stop! No, I don’t really do that - but don’t tempt me. (Laughs) Another problem is that it's harder to get fights because there aren’t that many women in this sport. You either get an opponent that has about twenty fights or someone who is making their debut. It's hard to find a good match-up.

Darrick: Your next scheduled match is against Paulina Ramirez on September 9th. What are your thoughts about this upcoming fight?

Stephanie: Paulina Ramirez trained at Buhawe for about two weeks, but she left just like any other girl. This fight is my comeback fight. I am going to pick her apart on this one. My last couple of fights only lasted during the first round because I get too anxious. I am always trying to finish. My conditioning is really good and I know that hers is nowhere near mine. I am like the Energizer Bunny. I keep going and going and going and going.

Darrick: What brings you the most fulfillment out of martial arts?

Stephanie: Self-achievement is what brings me the most fulfillment from martial arts. Seeing all the work that is put in for one day of competition and coming up on top as the victor. Sometimes winning isn’t enough though. In order for me to feel good about my performance, I have to perform to the best of my ability.

Darrick: Any words of advice for other individuals looking to train in MMA?

Stephanie: Make sure that mixed martial arts is something you really want to do. Don’t start training because it's becoming mainstream now. A lot of people do it for the wrong reasons and that will only take you so far. Learn what it takes to be a fighter. Do the training and see if you can hang. Take some amateur fights before you become pro. Even though my sister and I never had an amateur fight, we both had been in some kind of martial arts before. Our coaches knew we were ready and we were explosive enough to defend ourselves. Jumping into a professional bout without any experience is a good way to get hurt. Analyze what it takes to become a fighter and find out if you have it in your heart to be a fighter. Do some soul-searching.

Darrick: Outside of martial arts, what are your other interests?

Stephanie: My other main interest besides martial arts is the performing arts. I was a big drama queen in high school. I was one of those athlete/actors. I even got cast to be a leading actor in a Shakespeare play.

Darrick: What is your oldest memory?

Stephanie: My oldest memories are of how competitive my siblings and I were in everything we did. Running, soccer, eating, and video games. I remember when my brother Louie and I were playing baseball one day and the game got so intense that he tripped me running to home base. I smacked my face into the concrete and got a big gash on my nose. There was blood everywhere. I had to go to the hospital to get stitches, but I still won.

Darrick: Tell us something about you that most people don't know.

Stephanie: One thing that most people don't know is even though our dad was the one who pushed us to be competitive, my mom is the one that holds everything together. She is the one that has taken care of my siblings and I through the toughest parts in our lives. She is the person that we turn to when we have problems with money, people, business, or pretty much anything! She doesn't get any credit for what she does for us but she deserves it. My sister and I wouldn't be where we are today if it wasn't for her.

Darrick: If you had three wishes, what would they be?

Stephanie: To start off with, I wish that my sister makes a bunch of money and wins a belt in three different weight divisions. Secondly, I wish my mom and papa Larry win the lottery or hit some kind of jackpot. They can then get that RV they always wanted and travel the country. For the last wish, it would be that I score a lead role in a romantic comedy after I win twenty fights.

FOR OTHER EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEWS BY DARRICK PATRICK:

http://blogs.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=blog.view&friendID=4974388&blogID=343519835

You can also check out Stephanie Frausto in the following places:

Official Stephanie Frausto MySpace Profile:

http://www.myspace.com/COOL_GIRL_2008

Official Stephanie Frausto Facebook Site:

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1809806567&ref=ts

Official Stephanie Frausto Twitter Area:

http://www.twitter.com/StephMacaquinha

Official Stephanie Frausto YouTube Page:

http://www.youtube.com/user/macaqu1nha

Stephanie Frausto on Fight Finder:

http://www.sherdog.com/fighter/Stephanie-Frausto-61109

Stephanie Frausto Photo Gallery at Sherdog.com:

http://www.sherdog.com/pictures/gallery/fighter/61109