CHAPTER 181

"Amazing! Great job, Robby! You're doing so well!" Daniel exclaimed, all of the senseis dishing out praise to Robby as he returned to his corner after an extraordinarily successful opening round of the fight.

This was shockingly shaping up to be one of the easiest fights Robby had had so far in the tournament - at least, it was one of the most one-sided. Although Robby accepted the praise, he didn't really let it set in at all. He knew who he was up against. He knew the talent that Marcos had when firing on all cylinders. The fight that he had had a poor start meant little when there were potentially up to 4 rounds left of the fight. He couldn't get cocky now.

"What should I do next round?" Robby asked them.

"More of the same." Daniel told him. "You're mixing offense and defense so well."

"Be prepared to use more defense next round." Chozen chimed in. "Because of how good you were in round 1, be careful as he will probably be looking to fight back harder."

"You can handle it though." Johnny encouraged him. This first round, if it hadn't already been the case, had put to bed any questions that Robby was the underdog in the fight. It was most definitely a 50/50 encounter, with Robby even looking the stronger fighter right now.

Managing to make it through the round, Marcos knew that he needed a change of strategy. What he was doing right now definitely wasn't working, as towards the end of the round all he could do was defend himself and manage to survive the first 5 minutes, but that fact only elevated his anxiety and made it nearly impossible to think clearly enough to come up with a new game plan. He was going to have to rely on whatever he got from his corner.

Sarah and Kreese were surprised, at the least, at how the first round of the fight had unfolded. They knew the ability that Marcos possessed, ability that was nowhere to be found now that he was standing on the grandest stage of them all. He looked like a mere amateur, a Cobra Kai beginner pitted against a Miyagi-Do expert. They could tell that Marcos wasn't living up to his potential, so as he shuffled over to them at the end of the round, their minds were racing as they tried to figure out what they could say to unlock the potential that they knew was within him.

"What am I doing wrong, sensei? He's all over me." Marcos panted, clutching his stomach that had taken a variety of extremely powerful hits from the Miyagi-Do opponent. Kreese took a few moments to respond, but when he did, he looked Marcos right in the eye as he spoke.

"I was wrong, Marcos. I'm sorry." Kreese apologized to him. Marcos' eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"Huh? Sorry for what?" Marcos asked. "I'm the one who's getting their ass kicked right now."

"I told you to remember your Cobra Kai fundamentals. But now, it seems you're fighting too much like a Cobra Kai. You're clearly feeling the pressure so you're relying on your fundamentals." Kreese commented. Marcos was even more confused now.

"And that's a bad thing?" Marcos stammered.

"Mr. Keene has been training Miyagi-Do a lot longer than you have trained Cobra Kai. He's always going to beat you if you approach the fight as a Cobra Kai. All that fighting him as a Cobra Kai is doing is relinquishing your control over the fight." Kreese stated. "Not only that, but it's a constant reminder of the bet between our dojos, which is only seeming to stress you out further."

"Kind of hard to forget about it to be honest." Marcos remarked. "After all, whoever wins this fight, wins the entire bet."

"Right, but that's not the main reason you're fighting. You're fighting for you." Kreese said, pointing a finger at Marcos' heart. "You're fighting for your loved ones. For your future. But most of all, you're fighting because that's what you love to do. The bet should be the last thing on your mind."

Kreese's calm, rational advice was a far cry from what he might've told his student 40 years ago in the same situation. Back then, it would've been for him to shut up, stop being such a weak little wimp, and disintegrate his opponent at all costs. But now… now it was different.

"Sensei Kreese is right." Sarah chimed in. "Approach the fight authentically, not as the Cobra Kai male champion, but as Marcos Oliveira. Ignore the dojos. Ignore the ramifications of the fight. On that mat, it's just you and Robby. Treat the fight as such. Do what you've been doing your whole life, what you love doing so much, and fight the way you want to fight."

"So you're suggesting that I abandon every bit of training I have from the past year? Sensei, are you serious?" Marcos asked incredulously. Kreese shook his head.

"Not abandon. Evolve." Kreese corrected him. "You shouldn't solely rely on Cobra Kai, but there are times in this fight where using Cobra Kai will be the most effective way forward. After a year of training, Cobra Kai is ingrained in your fighting DNA. You can choose to either isolate it and only use it, or you can choose to let all of your techniques, everything you know, flow as the fight progresses. If you're able to do the latter, there's no chance that you're not walking away with this trophy."

"Are you sure, sensei?" Marcos asked, still slightly uncertain. Kreese nodded.

"Do you remember your first fight against a Miyagi-Do? It was at the Miyagi-Do dojo almost a year ago when you fought Diaz. You didn't know a single Cobra Kai technique, and yet dismantled him while barely even lifting a finger."

"Robby right now is a hell of a lot better than Miguel last summer though." Marcos murmured quietly.

"Sure. But if back then, you were able to beat anyone in that dojo with ease, while they might have improved since then, you've only improved too. You haven't lost anything from your arsenal. You've simply added to it. And so if you're able to tap into everything you know, you've got this. Don't let the dojo's current predicament make you afraid to fight the way you want to fight. Do what feels right for you."

The mention of the encounter with Miguel last year dragged Marcos back and it jolted something inside him. He remembered how carefree he was back then, at least compared to now. With everything that had happened to him in the past year, it felt like he was now carrying a chip on his shoulder that he hadn't possessed back then.

Then, there was only one thing on the forefront of his mind, and that was being able to fight on the world's stage. Well, despite all of the detours and turns he had taken in the past year, he had made it, but what now? He was just going to choke everything he had worked hard for, let everything he had been through be for nothing? That Marcos from 1 year ago never would have forgiven him if he had heard that.

Being reminded of his goal, and the sheer drive and determination he possessed within him to have been able to make it there, Marcos felt the blood pumping more vigorously through his body now. His mind, that had previously been shackled by the nerves to do with not wanting his dojo to lose, managed to finally break free, and he remembered who he was again.

He was Marcos fucking Oliveira. He had trained since the age of 7, with only 1 single goal in mind, and that was to become the UFC Lightweight Champion of the World. He had walked through the depths of hell, his soul burned beyond any possible repair, but he was still standing. He had made it through, all to reach this moment. There was no way he was going to let himself squander it. For the sake of the teenager who had allowed himself to have the shit beaten out of him by his own father on a daily basis, purely because he knew that reporting him would lead to deportation and squash his dream once and for all. For the young child who had been forced to walk into a pool of blood spilling from his own mother, with her only goodbye being the faith she had in him to succeed.

As Marcos returned to the center of the mat, there was a new spring in his step. Adrenaline was coursing through his veins, veiling any signs of fatigue or pain he had felt in the previous round. He was ready to ignore the events of the first round and take the rest of the fight by the horns.

Robby could sense the difference in his opponent's attitude, even before the second round started. Marcos was a lot looser now, skipping from foot to foot, a whole new fighter from the ball of nerves he had been in the first round. The Miyagi-Do student wasn't worried though. Whatever storm Marcos threw at him, Robby knew that he could weather.

HHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

RING!

Unfortunately, that proved a lot easier said than done. When Round 2 of the fight began, Robby really was fighting a different opponent. Marcos looked almost unrecognizable from Round 1, looking much more like his old self, though Robby noticed that there were some differences and evolutions Marcos had made since they had last come to blows. Before, Marcos had relied heavily on speed, agility and nimbleness, preferring to throw several lighter punches than one heavy one. He had had an unorthodox, almost chaotic style that, although had proven to be effective, had completely changed now.

Given the muscle that the boy had clearly packed on in the past few months, Marcos now was all about pure power. He possessed the same flair as ever, but with it was also a level of calmness and calculatedness that Robby hadn't seen from him before. Every punch or kick he threw was inch-perfect. Even if it didn't land, there was a clear purpose to every shot he threw, whether it was to draw Robby's hands away from his body or to try and weaken his defense. Nothing Marcos threw did not contribute to his overall game plan, and that level of fighting intelligence was on show, even early in the round.

In the first minute of the round, Robby discovered just how powerful his opponent could be. With every punch Marcos threw, even the ones that Robby blocked, the strength exuding from them was enough to send shockwaves through his body. As Marcos unleashed another powerful combination, Robby blocked it with his hands, but the sheer power of Marcos' fist crashing against his arm sent the Miyagi-Do stumbling backwards, almost tripping over his own feet.

"Stop! Out of bounds!" The referee barked, gesturing that Robby had stepped out of bounds. As Robby walked back onto the mat and the fight resumed, there was definitely more extreme caution on the part of the Miyagi-Do. It was the first Marcos had dared to throw the full extent of his power into - reluctant to do so in the first round as he was scared of it being countered - and even with it blocked, it had been enough to almost floor his opponent. Sure most of that was because Robby had been taken by surprise, but that took nothing away from the force behind the strike. Robby knew that if one of these connected cleanly and purely with his head, he was most certainly going to be knocked down, if not totally knocked out.

For this, Robby was forced to up his defense a hundred-fold. That was all he really could do throughout the second round, as Marcos was in full flow now, dominating in the same way that Robby had been in round 1. Robby was getting blown away, the likelihood of him winning the fight shifting from almost certain to almost impossible. Marcos was in his element, on the top of his game, and as the audience roared him on in approval, he unleashed punch after punch, kick after kick.

Despite that, Robby was yet to have been properly knocked out or knocked down with one of these shots. Marcos had landed a few debilitating body shots, but nothing that completely floored his opponent. He didn't really mind though. He could feel himself growing more and more into the fight, gaining more momentum, so he knew that something would come eventually. An opportunity that he could exploit. Then, towards the end of Round 2, it happened…

As Marcos almost toyed with his opponent, unleashing some of the most flamboyant moves in his arsenal with Robby helpless to defend. The Cobra leapt into the air, wrapping his legs around Robby, a brutal flying scissor sweep takedown that slammed the Miyagi-Do down onto the ground, Marcos' limbs entangled with his. But before the Miyagi-Do could react and roll to his feet, Marcos had already made his move. With both of them lying on the ground, Marcos spun so that they were perpendicular to each other, grabbing onto Robby's arm and putting it into a crunching arm bar that in less than a minute, would probably force Robby to tap out and grant Marcos a second round victory. It was one of the first grapples or takedowns Marcos had relied on in the entire fight, but it had the potential to be the decisive one.

Robby wasn't sure what to do here, pain searing through his arm as Marcos held him locked deep. Thankfully though, he didn't find himself needing to do the same thing as girlfriend, as Robby had found himself saved, quite literally, by the bell.

RING!

The round was over. Marcos and Robby were forced out of the lock and back to their corners, Marcos letting out a loud cry of frustration, and Robby a sigh of relief. That could've been the end right there. Marcos knew it, and Robby knew it too. Marcos had dominated every second of the second round, and although the bell had worked out for Robby this time, he knew that next time, he wouldn't be so lucky. He needed a new plan.