On July 20, in Las Vegas, 36-year-old Atascadero Middle School teacher Cody "The Renegade" Gibson fought to keep his UFC dream alive.
Thanks to his performance on the Ultimate Fighter reality television show last year, Gibson earned himself another shot in the octagon and in his second fight back with the promotion, defeated Brian Kelleher for his first UFC victory since 2014.
“The sacrifices that I made and my family made for me to go out to Vegas and spend multiple weeks paid off for us. It's a good one and the hard work pays off. It doesn't always work out that way,” Gibson said.
But when he’s not in fight mode or gone for weeks at a time training, he’s in family mode with his wife Jackie and three kids, Ella, Margo and the newest addition to the family, three-month-old Hank.
“It's still a work in progress, honestly. It's never-ending trying to figure out how I've got to be in the gym x-amount of hours or for x-amount of sessions a day while at the same time trying to help out around here and do as much as I can with my kids,” he said.
It’s not easy living two lives, especially for Jackie Gibson who’s been by his side since 2006, but she says it’s all worth it.
“Committing to him, loving, supporting him and being with him by his side until he sees this through is important to me because I want him to not have any regrets,” she said.
So when Gibson came out with a win in his last fight, to Jackie and their children, it showed that it’s all paying off.
“By the middle of the first round, both of them are pacing with me because they're just so afraid of where it's going to go and then they ended up winning and they were getting so excited.”
Though it’s a dangerous sport, he believes it’s showing his family what it takes to achieve a dream.
“I hope, if nothing else, I'm teaching them lessons about whatever they want to pursue in life, you have to outwork other people,” he said.
“I feel like it's an inspiration not only to my kids but to myself, to other kids in the community that if you really want something, then to go after it,” Jackie added.
As "The Renegade" keeps climbing the ladder in the UFC, it’s his perspective on his intense career choice that keeps him grounded.
“You know, my neighbor down the street probably doesn't even know I'm fighting," Gibson admitted. "Like it's not that big of a deal in the grand scheme of life.”
With his family's support, though, he's making the most of the time he has left in this sport.
Jackie's advice for staying in the moment — “Each day, take each day as it comes.”
“Make the sacrifices today and reap the rewards tomorrow," said Gibson of his mindset and how he's approaching the final leg of his UFC journey. "When the time is over, ride off in the sunset that's hopefully with a bag of cash in our hands."
Gibson hopes to fight sometime between September and November to get his third fight in of 2024.
