‘Struggle Builds Character’ – Craig Coakley’s Uphill Journey From Dublin To ONE Championship
Craig “Coco” Coakley could have easily been on a different path in life, but his family and ambition helped him bypass the street life he saw around him.
While jail or the grave have been destinations for past acquaintances, the 31-year-old Irishman is getting ready to compete live in U.S. primetime at ONE Fight Night 24: Brooks vs. Balart on Friday, August 2.
Although Coakley didn’t get the result he wanted in his promotional debut, he’s fired up to show what he’s made of when he faces Rambolek Chor Ajalaboon at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.
Ahead of his sophomore appearance, discover the formative experiences that shaped “Coco” and ultimately carried him to the world’s largest martial arts organization.
A Helping Hand To Stay On Track
Coakley was born and raised in the Northside area of Ireland’s capital, Dublin.
While there’s wealth in some parts of the city, there’s also deprivation, and that was what “Coco” grew up knowing.
With his father absent, his mother worked her hardest to make sure her sons had what they needed – but there was always the temptation to be led astray.
Coakley told onefc.com:
“I grew up in flats. It’s a rough, rough area. But, like anywhere, it does have its nice parts. Me personally, I love where I grew up. It molded me into the person that I am now. Struggle builds character, and struggle breeds success.
“My mother was a single mother who went out and worked hard to put me and my brother in better circumstances.
“I know my dad, but I don’t really know him. He was heavy into the life of crime and drugs, and he was locked up a lot when I was a kid, so I didn’t have much memory of him.”
Coakley has never wished for a different upbringing, as he believes the hardships and situations have all formed a huge part of the man he is today.
With no father around and his mom working a lot to provide, he describes his older brother as the biggest influence who kept him out of serious trouble:
“Life was just normal for us. Obviously, there were a lot of drugs and gangs and violence where we grew up, but I didn’t get involved with it. I kept to myself.
“I have a really good older brother, Lee, who kept me in check and away from those kinda people. He’d always give me a slap around the head if I was delving too near them. He’d keep my head together.”
MMA As A Way Out
Coakley is the middle of three sons, with Lee a former fighter, and his younger brother, Senan, currently competing in mixed martial arts.
It was Lee’s guidance that got “Coco” started in something positive at a crucial time when he was being enticed by what he thought was a more glamorous lifestyle.
Coakley explained:
“When I was about 15, I could’ve gone down the wrong road, but that was then when my brother introduced me to MMA and martial arts. He told me I needed to do something with myself. I was a bit lost, doing a lot of nothing.
“I was seeing people with a lot of money while we had nothing, and you knew where that money came from. You looked up to drug dealers in these areas with all the money and all the glory. But I had a wiser brother to keep me away.”
Despite now being a world-class Muay Thai fighter, it was actually MMA and BJJ that captured Coakley’s attention first.
He said:
“MMA was my first love. I did jiu-jitsu for about a year and a half. I was always on to my coach about fighting. I wanted to fight all the time, and he was telling me my grappling was good but my striking needed work.
“I’d only done a bit of boxing when I was a kid, but I couldn’t kick at all. I needed to learn proper striking. My best friend and I lived around the corner from the gym I’m at now.
“We were walking by one day and heard the slamming of gloves into pads and the yells of fighters hitting them. So we went for a look. It was a Muay Thai. I went in and immediately loved it.”
Head Turned By Muay Thai
While Coakley’s MMA coach was still advising him to round out his skill set before he could compete, the teenager impressed in the Muay Thai gym and quickly got noticed.
Fighting was all that was on his mind, so when the opportunity arose in the all-striking sport, he was sold on it as his new priority:
“Three months [after joining the gym], I was getting asked if I wanted to fight. I was 18 at the time. I immediately said yeah. By five months of training, I had my first fight and fell in love with it.
“Going forward, I went where the juice was, and that was in Muay Thai. I wanted to fight. I lost interest in MMA and put all my focus on Muay Thai.”
Although Coakley had never been academic, he’d gone into college via a local youth project.
But once he stepped through the ropes to throw down, he knew where he wanted to place all of his energy – and it wasn’t with his head in a book.
Instead, he went headlong into his dream of becoming a professional fighter:
“My first year into college was when I started taking fighting really seriously. I ended up leaving college halfway through my first year because I was getting great opportunities in Muay Thai.
“I fought for my first title over in England when I was 18 for the Four Nations golden belt. That’s when I decided that this is what I wanted to do with my life.”
Aiming For Redemption On The Global Stage
It hasn’t all been smooth sailing since Coakley committed to his Muay Thai dream, with low purses and a scene in Ireland that isn’t as established as in other nations.
However, the Dublin Combat Academy representative stayed true to his goals and worked consistently to force open doors for himself.
He got his biggest break when he won a Road to ONE tournament in April 2023, before debuting at the high-profile ONE Friday Fights 46: Tawanchai vs. Superbon card that December.
“Coco” got stopped by Thai star Suablack Tor Pran49 that evening, but he still believes he’s right up there with the division’s leaders – and he plans on proving it:
“I genuinely think I have one of the best skill sets in the world. I just haven’t been able to show it off properly yet from my last fight.
“I did not get to show a glimpse of anything that I’m capable of last time around, so that’s where it hurt most for me. Losing and getting to show some of your skills makes it a bit easier to take.
“But not getting to show anything? No, I can’t have that. It doesn’t sit right. So it’s all about redemption.”
Coakley’s belief in his ability to operate among the planet’s finest strikers is already plenty of incentive for his battle against Rambolek, but the doting father of two is also fueled by his family.
He added:
“My girlfriend left her job in retail for a couple of months to see how things pan out with my career here so I can focus on training full time.
“That’s given me great motivation. It’s all the motivation I need. It’s all riding on me. A lot of people fold under that pressure, but it only motivates me further.
“I have to work harder. I have to win this for me and them. Pressure makes diamonds, man.”
