Everyone Counted Them Out. These 3 Athletes Had Other Plans.

Across three organizations: UFC, WWE and PBR they were told they couldn’t. But, they did.

Kyle Daukaus, Moria Novakoski and Ethan Page | PBR

Kyle Daukaus remembers being an unpopular fat kid, bullied in high school. In June, he fought on the South Lawn at the White House at UFC’s historic Freedom 250.

When he was young, aspiring wrestler Ethan Page, the son of immigrants from Yugoslavia, was told he’d never leave Canada, destined instead to perform in front of empty seats in musty community centers and legion halls.

Page has now toured Europe and the Far East, living his dream as a WWE villain who pretty much says and does what he wants, subject only to the approval of his social media manager.  

Moria Novakoski, who recently turned 16, is taking on bucking bulls 10 times her size, turning periodic backlash into motivation to prove girls can do anything boys can in a Billy Jean King-sized goal: to become the first woman to ride in PBR.

These athletes – stubborn, determined, thriving – represent three growing sports under the TKO banner. (Novakoski, who will be eligible for her PBR card when she turns 18, currently rides in exhibition events held alongside the world's premier bull riding organization.)

They came together for a sports entertainment panel at the APSE (Associated Press Sports Editors) annual conference in Washington, D.C. moderated by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Tommy Deas, a sports editor in the USA TODAY network.  

Though not part of any conscious strategy, their stories played out along a common throughline. These athletes wake up each day with one thing in mind – proving the naysayers wrong.

Growing up in different countries, cultures and circumstances, the trio is bound by a singular drive to reach an audacious goal. To achieve the improbable, they had to tune out the doubters and disbelievers and put aside a level of pain that would cause the less formidable among us to question such life decisions and change course for something less dangerous.

Moria Novakoski | Lewis Miller

Novakoski showed up at the meeting of media gatekeepers from news outlets ranging from the Boston Globe to the Baltimore Banner in an arm cast after an ill-timed dismount from a bull she was on the week before bent her arm like a swizzle stick, not in the way God intended.

“When I stood up, I luckily was in enough shock that I relocated (my forearm) back in,” she said. “So, all I have right now is pulled tendons I’m dealing with.”

In a scene that played out like Hooper and Quint hammered in the belly of The Orca trading longest-scar stories, Daukaus one-upped the bull rider by recounting a knee to the face in Austin, shattering his orbital bone and cheekbone.

He now sets off airport metal detectors with three plates in his face. In a genuine afterthought, Daukaus added that following a bad cut on his eyelid from a fight, a flesh-eating staff infection nearly gobbled up his eyeball.  

In these three sports, injuries are discussed as routine occurrences – inconveniences expected and summarily dealt with. After the plates were put in, Daukaus returned in about eight months to take more punches and kicks to the face. Novakoski hopes to avoid surgery, rehab diligently and be back in the arena, stronger than before, in three months. Page endures constant back pain.

Maybe those who fight as underdogs their whole life are conditioned to more easily come back from broken bones. Bruised egos can heal, too. They often wear rejection as a badge of honor that keeps their fire burning.

Page still talks about email from his current employer, warning he’d never be hired.

Kyle Daukaus, Moria Novakoski and Ethan Page | Jody Nova

Daukaus’ start – an amateur with five wins and five losses, fighting in cold, drafty warehouses in sketchy Philadelphia neighborhoods in the dead of winter – had all the signs of journeyman career instead of one of 14 fighters picked for the biggest fight in MMA history at the White House.

“If you would have asked anybody back then if I would have made it to the UFC they would have probably laughed in your face and told you that I was going to amount to nothing,” he said. “So, yeah, I really wanted to just prove people wrong, just make sure that everyone knows hard work will get you to good places if you keep working towards it.”

He made it to the top, then suffered a huge blow in being cut from UFC in early 2023 after being knocked out by Roman Dolidze (June 2022) and Eryk Anders (December 2022). He stopped watching UFC.

“I renegotiated with myself what I really wanted – asking if I wanted to do this,” he said. “But I didn’t come this far to get this far.”

He had to get back into UFC. Inspired by the birth of his son, he pushed his training even harder at Forge MMA, the Northeast Philadelphia gym he owns with his brother Chris Daukaus. He won several regional fights and overcame massive odds to be signed back into UFC two years after leaving the promotion.

Page battled as well to hone his craft and prove his worth, sometimes in empty houses. The Canadian recounted the days wrestling in front of a kid and his dad. They were the entire audience.

“It was a tournament, and I was so good that I made it to the finals, which means I had to wrestle three matches in front of the father and his son, who was falling asleep by the end of the show,” he recalled. 

From competing in back yards and garages, he kept at it, and the self-proclaimed “All Ego” Superstar made an immediate impact by capturing the NXT Championship in just his fourth match before later winning the North American Championship. He is now one of WWE's most compelling performers, including an impressive Raw debut in 2026.

Novakoski will see a specialist this week to determine the extent of her elbow injury. She will undoubtedly face more trials – physical and mental – as she pursues a spot in the PWR (Premier Women’s Rodeo) finals next May in Cowtown Coliseum in Fort Worth in a quest to climb to the top of the world’s most dangerous sport, one yet to have a woman rider.

Ethan Page and Moria Novakoski | Jody Nova

Meeting Novakoski for the first time at the AP sports editors conference, Page became an instant fan and was glad to offer advice.

“I have a daughter, so I’m pretty hyped to hear you say that you want to show boys that you can do everything,” he told Moria. “Don't lose that edge. And if people try and convince you otherwise, just continue to keep whatever energy motivates you now and take it all the way to old age. I’m 36 – that’s old age to me especially physically how I feel. But I still have that 16-year-old where everyone told me I’m never going to leave Canada, I’m never going to wrestle in front of a big audiences. Just keep that energy, you’ll be alright.”