“He’s a phenomenal athlete,” Sparks enthusiastically explained. “He’s a different type of gifted. I would bet on him to be successful in the long term.”
Sparks can easily point to his national titles, his fame, his backflips or his scrambles when explaining what makes wrestlers like Roman Bravo-Young so successful, but what Sparks admires most is what the fight community and grappling community should embrace. His ambition.
Three months after his final wrestling match as a Nittany Lion, he throws on the rash guard to compete against a top ten UFC flyweight with seven submissions to his name. Athletes like NCAA wrestlers don’t grow on trees.
“Guys like RBY, they don’t want the easy path,” Sparks said. “They want to challenge and test themselves and see what their highest potential is. I think it is awesome. The great ones don’t want the easy way, they want to challenge themselves. If you were to ask me that question, I would ask how long did it take RBY to respond, five seconds or 10 seconds? If he is by his phone, it won’t take long because that is just how he is and thinks, and that is why he is one of the greats. He is going to go on and do big things.”
Regardless of the outcome, Sparks plans to continue following Bravo-Young’s career wherever it takes him. As unpredictable as RBY is on the mat, immediately stepping out of his comfort zone on the biggest combat sports platform under the sun is exactly the kind of move Sparks would expect from the consummate competitor.
Do not miss the submission grappling debut of Penn State legend Roman Bravo-Young at the FIGHT PASS Invitational 4, LIVE Thursday, June 29, ONLY on UFC FIGHT PASS!
