Is Kayla Harrison married and does she have children? All you need to know about the UFC fighter's personal life
Many in the combat sports realm behold Kayla Harrison as one of MMA's most elite competitors today. Harrison, a two-time Olympic gold medalist in judo, made her professional MMA debut in June 2018.
The Ohio-born grappling savant hasn't disclosed many details regarding her current dating life. It's unknown whether she's married or not. However, back in 2012, she was engaged to Judo black belt and firefighter Aaron Handy. A CNBC report highlighted that Handy was her fiance and that Harrison intended to transition from judo to becoming a firefighter akin to him.
Nevertheless, Kayla Harrison appeared to have separated from Handy in the ensuing years. She subsequently partnered with fellow MMA fighter Anthony Rocco Martin (18-6 MMA, 10-6 UFC). In a 2019 interview with MMA Junkie, Harrison was notably involved in a lighthearted post-event interview alongside him.
Martin was fresh off a unanimous decision victory over Brazil's Sergio Moraes at UFC Fight Night: Lewis vs. dos Santos in March 2019. He proceeded to crack a 'Wizard of Oz' joke related to Brazil and Kansas, but the said joke seemingly fell flat. Harrison later came to Martin's defense and acknowledged that she was to blame for the 'Wizard of Oz' comedic attempt.
It's unclear if Harrison is still in a relationship with fellow ATT (American Top Team) athlete Martin. After his unanimous decision defeat against Neil Magny at UFC 250 in June 2020, the Illinois-born fighter was released from the UFC. Martin's most recent MMA bout ended with him beating Tim Bazer by second-round submission at CES 68 in May 2022.
Meanwhile, Kayla Harrison, a former PFL women's lightweight champion, made her UFC debut against Holly Holm. At the milestone UFC 300 pay-per-view event, Harrison defeated Holm by second-round submission. She will return to the competition against Ketlen Vieira at UFC 307 on Oct. 5.
Kayla Harrison kids: When the judo great discussed her experience with motherhood
As reported by MMA Junkie, she opened up about discovering the joys of motherhood in a PFL promo back in 2021. In November 2019, the MMA star's mother suffered a stroke. At that time, she was the guardian of Harrison's niece and nephew. The Judoka explained that she then adopted her niece and nephew and has been taking care of them. The 33-year-old stated:
"I became the guardian of my niece and nephew."
Moreover, Kayla Harrison drew parallels between her sports career and the challenges of being a mother to a pair of children. She indicated that during the difficult time their family was going through, she stepped up to the plate and adopted the children to give them the best life she possibly could. Harrison said:
"I love them so much, and I so badly want to get it right for them. I thought I wanted to be the best [fighter] in the world so bad. Take that feeling and multiply it by a hundred thousand. That’s how I feel for these kids."