Athletes
Andre Fili | Return Of The Prodigal Son
Featherweight Veteran Is Returning To The City He Once Called Home With A Better Life, And With Big Plans For The Future.
For 36-fight veteran Andre Fili, there isn't too much he hasn't seen and experienced in his 34 years. Some of it has been good, and some of it has been bad. And, as he returns to the place he once called home this weekend for UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs. Song, he arrives back in Seattle with a feeling of inner peace.
Fili grew up in Federal Way, a city within the Seattle metropolitan area, where he spent his early years in a home that saw him endure an at-times tough upbringing. Eventually, his mother took the family south to Sacramento, where they eventually settled into life in California.
But, as Fili returns to Washington State as a grown man, he does so feeling much better about life than he did when he departed as a youngster.
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"I feel like I've come full circle," he told UFC.com ahead of his bout with Melquizael Costa this weekend.
"The things I went through, things that I saw as a kid. And my mom moved us away from the Seattle area to the Sacramento area. And I'm very fortunate to have grown up in Sacramento and around Sacramento, and I'm very happy to be back here.
"This is still a part of me. This place has a part of my heart. Even driving into the city, you get that feeling of, I'm home. The King has returned. The prodigal son.
"I pulled up in the city, and it felt like home. There's certain places that are just a part of you, and there's certain places that are in your blood. And Northern California is one of those places for me. Hawaii is one of those places for me. And the Pacific Northwest is one of those places for me.
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"So when I got here, I just took a big breath, and I felt a serene feeling. I have memories driving into Seattle. I have memories of different places, and I'm with my team, and I'm pointing things out. I remember being here as a kid, and I remember seeing this.
"Not every memory I have from up here is good, but there are still good memories up here. My grandma is 20 minutes from here. I'm gonna sneak away and go see her, and she's my favorite person in the world. So I have a lot of good memories up here, too.
"I have so many emotions, honestly, and they're all good. Mostly, I'm grateful. I'm immensely grateful for this opportunity, and to be back in this place and to make my people proud."
Hearing Fili speak, it's clear that this assignment carries additional motivation for him. But simply returning home is only part of it.
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Fili is set to become a father later this spring, and he revealed that the knowledge that he's now fighting for more than himself has taken his mindset to a place he's never been to before.
"I'm getting emotional, man," he said.
"My baby's not even here yet, but being a dad, expecting to be a dad, I've never felt more emotional in my life, and I'm enjoying it.
"Everything comes full circle. When I left here, I was an angry kid who was dealing with a lot of things that he didn't quite understand. And now I'm back as a man that I'm proud of, and I have a son on the way, and I've broken the cycle, and I have changed the course of my family's history. And, on Saturday night, I get to go do what I love and continue on that journey.
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"It's bigger than me, and there's a liberating feeling when it's not about you anymore. There's just a feeling. There's a feeling that that as soon as I found out I was going to be a dad, I just was overcome with the feeling of – I don't even know what to call it – it's like a freedom.
"It's not about me. It's about something bigger than me. And I'd like to think it always was about something bigger than me, but having a kid on the way puts everything in perspective. Everything else, every other motivation before this, feels kind of trivial, and now my motivation is skyrocketing. My motivation, it's like rocket fuel to provide the best life I can for my son. I got chills talking about it."
Fili's last UFC appearance saw him go back and forth over three super-competitive rounds with fellow Octagon veteran Cub Swanson. It was a bout that Fili said he'll cherish after getting to share the cage with one of the most respected figures in the sport.
"It was really weird to fight Cub. It was an honor," said Fili.
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"He's a guy that I've watched literally since high school. I've been a fan of Cub for a long time.
"It felt weird being in there with him. One, because he's Cub Swanson. You're fighting a guy that you've watched for years. And two, because his timing is so weird and his style so weird. And for 15 minutes, I could never really figure out what he was doing.
"He hits hard, and he's a weird guy to fight. I was very happy to get the win in a tough fight."
Fili also said that he saw a little of himself in Swanson, and explained that being able to fight an authentic, legitimate character in the cage meant a lot to him.
"I was honored to get to share the cage with him, because his story and mine probably share a lot of similarities," he said.
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"There's a lot of people in this sport who are playing a character, and there's a lot of people who are sort of, even if their character is rooted in some truth, they're really fabricating a lot of who they are.
"Cub is not one of those guys. And so anytime you fight another guy who's authentic, who's really himself, unapologetically and authentically himself, you got my utmost respect. Cub is a legend, man. It was, was an honor to get to fight him."
Having shared the cage with a legend last time out, Fili now finds himself matched against Costa, who has five UFC fights to his name compared to Fili's 24.
It's a bout that Fili plans to use to kickstart a huge year, both personally and professionally.
"I got 2025 planned, brother. It's already manifested," he said.
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"I'm going to win my fight Saturday night here in Seattle, in spectacular fashion. I'm gonna get my hand raised Saturday night. I'm gonna collect three checks for my performance. I'm gonna go home, and I'm going to spend all of spring nesting with my beautiful wife and getting prepared to be the best father in the world.
"And, in April, my baby boy will be here. And by summer, I'll be moving back to Sacramento and everything will be right with the world. Everything will be beautiful."
UFC Fight Night: Cejudo vs Song took place live from Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Washington on February 22, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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