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I always find it funny when I am attending a Bitcoin event like Bitcoin 2023 — or next year’s Bitcoin 2024 in Nashville — and a fight fan recognizes me with a bewildered look in their eyes and asks, “Cyborg?!…What are YOU doing here?”The answer always seems obvious to me, “because I am a Bitcoiner!” One thing that makes Bitcoin special is that it is for everyone and that the more you understand it, the more certain you become of its success. Whenever I meet someone and find out they are also a Bitcoiner, I instantly feel a connection with them — a sense of respect. It’s hard to explain to someone who isn’t involved in martial arts, but it’s a feeling very similar to how I feel around my Muay Thai or Brazilian jujitsu sparring partners. Maybe this is the reason for the bewildered looks at the conference; I know we are both part of a community of financial freedom warriors. In many ways, Bitcoin reminds me a lot of martial arts, in that anyone and everyone can benefit from participating, and the proof-of-work is proven in the positive, life-changing results.I have been fighting professionally for 18 years and during that time have won every championship in the sport of MMA. I am the current Bellator MMA Champion and former UFC, Invicta FC, and Strikeforce Featherweight Champion which makes me the only “Grand Slam Champion” in the history of the sport — a title reserved only for those who have won all four major World Championships. During my time as a fighter I saw the sport change dramatically from a “No Holds Barred” spectacle into one of the largest-grossing live sporting events in the world, entertaining a truly global fanbase. When you fight for money, it is known as “prize fighting”, with money being the prize. As a fighter, our careers have very short earning periods where we have to seek the biggest “money fights” in an effort that we will be able to save and invest that money into retirement. MMA is a relatively new sport. This year the UFC — the largest MMA promotion — is celebrating its 30th anniversary. A look back on its brief history shows an amazing global growth rate in popularity and an acceptance that has never been witnessed in professional sports before. While the Bitcoin network is less than half the age of the sport of MMA, I see a strong resemblance in how it is truly evolving into a global phenomenon, quickly becoming common culture and reaching a tipping point where it will no longer be undeniable.Early in the history of “Ultimate Fighting” there were few rules. With no athletic commission sanctioning the sporting competition, Congress attempted to create laws that would have banned the sport in the U.S. Through education, regulation, and self reform, eventually audiences got to see the sport of MMA evolve into what it is today: organized, sanctioned, and relatively safe for the competitors. When I meet fellow Bitcoiners who are educating themselves about the network, advocating for adoption, or even running their own node or miners, I look at them like the early pioneers of my sport of MMA. I know that each of us collectively play an important role in helping strengthen the Bitcoin network, ensuring that the true benefits of a decentralized, peer-to-peer exchange of value are never compromised.…