It is Jan. 25, 2008, and Marcus Hicks is receiving his black belt in Brazilian jujitsu after six years of training.

Meanwhile, a freshman girl stands on the sidelines, watching her father do something she now describes as “a great accomplishment.”

“I felt like if he could do it, maybe one day I could do it too,” Ki Hicks said.

Now, when Marcus “The Wrecking Ball” Hicks – WEC mixed martial arts competitor, professional boxer, and owner of Hicks MMA and Jujitsu here in Lewisville – competes in Amarillo next month, his daughter, now a senior, will probably be on the sidelines again, watching her dad fight, knowing that if not for her, he wouldn’t have started jujitsu in the first place.

And she wouldn’t have started trying to follow in his footsteps at the age of six.

“It started with my dad in my room,” Ki said. “He was already doing it, and he was just teaching me how to defend myself. That was his main focus. He would’ve never started fighting if it wasn’t for me. He says [that] a lot. He wanted me to be able to defend myself at all costs, so he decided to teach me when I was young.”

Ki said she tries to make it a point to be at her dad’s fights, adding that it makes her proud to see him do it.

“Once or twice I have [wished he wasn’t a fighter], but most of the time it’s good,” Ki said. “It’s what he loves, and what makes him happy. I’d never wish something like stopping upon him.

“I don’t like to be told about [the fight], or even watch it on TV. I like to see it for myself.”

Marcus was a professional boxer before he was an MMA fighter.

An only child, Ki likes to play volleyball and soccer. Other than her dad, she says her grandfather has always been there for her. She now most enjoys boxing as well as jujitsu.

“I like jujitsu better because it’s more physical,” Ki said. “Submission wrestling is a lot easier than cage fighting, I think, because it’s striking and submission wrestling. But jujitsu is just straight submission.”

Ki said that she’s currently taking a break from fighting.

“I feel like I’m trying to find my own lead,” she said. “I feel like I’m trying to ponder things to find out what I like to do. I’ve been doing this for so long, I’m not sure if it’s what I wanted to do, or if it’s something I feel like I was pushed into.”

Marcus said he hopes to make it into the UFC, and later on, be a lightweight champion. He said the hardest thing about being a father and a fighter is time management.

“It all goes together,” Marcus said. “Family has to come first, and everything else is second.”

With a 9-3 MMA record, Marcus coaches his students to defend themselves, while they also learn respect and increase their self-esteem and awareness.

“[I tell them] ‘Train as if your life depended on it,’” Hicks said. “You never know when you might need it.

“Being a fighter gives you a different outlook than just a coach. You can teach the kids little tricks that other fighters can’t.”

Meanwhile, he’s taught Ki qualities such as loyalty, and discipline, along with the respect he teaches his students.

She said she’s also learned “a little something called blood, sweat, and tears.”

“[And] just that if you really work hard for something, it’ll pay off,” she said.

In addition, Marcus said fighting has taught him a lot about himself, such as always trusting your first instinct.

“Your first mindset is never gonna steer you wrong,” he said.

Marcus said he’s proud of Ki, and who she is now.

“She’s my daughter,” he said. “I love her. She can do anything she wants to do with her determination. I’ve seen her compete, and it’s been great watching her turn into the beautiful young lady she’s become.”

For Ki, the feeling is mutual.

“If I was some random person off the street, like homeless or something, and I had to pick anyone to hand my life over to, I’d pick my dad because he’s so caring and generous,” Ki said. “I love him. I’m glad he’s raised me to be the person I am. I’m glad he’s put me through the trials and tribulations he has to make me a better person.”