Is 'Born a Champion' a true story? Get to know details about the martial art film

Released recently in select theatres, Born a Champion is a mixed martial arts movie that narrates the story of Mickey Kelly. Mickey Kelly is a retired Marine officer who is a prodigy in jiu-jitsu. Initially underestimated for his age, he proves his talent in the sport. Things take a turn when he fights Marco Blaine, another skilled MMA fighter. Mickey Kelly loses terribly to him, in a way that it might end his entire career in jiu-jitsu. Later, a video of the fight surfaces on the internet showing that Marco Blaine cheated. Seeing this, many become interested in seeing a rematch between the two. 

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As promoted on Born a Champion's poster, the movie is Mickey Kelly's story of redemption. Born a Champion dives into the way Mickey Kelly prepares and emerges victorious against his opponent who left him with almost career-ending injuries years ago. This documentary-style movie also touches upon Mickey Kelley’s love with Layla and family. 

Is Born a Champion a true story?

Born a Champion is actually a pseudo-documentary and Mickey Kelly’s story is not real. Mickey Kelley is actually a fictional character based on Sean Patrick Flanery, the actor who played the role. Similar to Mickey Kelley, even the actor is talented in Brazillian jiu-jitsu. He has a black belt. The actor has been practising martial art since the age of nine. He even has his own martial arts academy where he teaches kids and adults.

In an interview with Screen Rant, the actor said that he wanted Mickey Kelly to look very authentic. Mickey Kelly is an old man who has been doing jiu-jitsu for a long time. Therefore, he wanted the character to look like it. As Flanery does jiu-jitsu regularly, he added he was able to bring that realness in the way he looked in the movie. He did not have to do anything special for it because he already has the said body shape.

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With Flanery being passionate about jiu-jitsu, he referred to Born a Champion as “true love letter to that martial art.” Flanery initially wrote Mickey Kelly’s story on a UFC forum back in 2007, according to the portal. After deciding to make it into a movie, he made the post private. He later partnered with Alex Ranarivelo, the director of the movie, to co-write the script. The original story was also written in a documentary style, just like the movie. 

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Image Courtesy - Still from Born A Champion official trailer