nt"

CHICAGO – As she prepares for Thursday’s PFL 2, which will also serve as her MMA debut, Kayla Harrison says she hasn’t been this nervous since the World Junior Judo Championships.

That was the first big stage in which Harrison competed when she was about 18. She won. And considering Harrison would continue to do a whole lot of winning from then on, taking two Olympic gold medals in the process, maybe nerves aren’t such a bad sign after all.

“I tend to shine under the lights,” Harrison told reporters, including MMAjunkie, after open workouts outside Chicago Theater on Tuesday. “I tend to thrive under that pressure. I’m looking forward to it. Really, I’m just excited to see how I handle this new platform.”

Harrison (0-0) meets Brittney Elkin (3-4) in an NBCSN-televised main card lightweight bout at Chicago Theater.

Harrison’s MMA-related plans were first formally announced in October 2016, not too long after she earned gold in the Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. She was initially signed by World Series of Fighting (WSOF) to serve as a commentator and brand ambassador – with no hard dates set for her eventual debut as a fighter.

Considering it’s not every day that a two-time Olympic champion waltzes onto the scene, Harrison immediately got some attention. Add to it that the MMA world has kind of a history with female judo Olympians – namely former UFC champion Ronda Rousey – and that Harrison actually trained with the aforementioned Olympian and, voila, you’ve got yourself a pretty obvious story line.

Harrison has certainly answered her fair share of Rousey-related questions, but she doesn’t seem bitter about the tie-in. If anything, having used Rousey’s success as fuel for her own once, Harrison relishes the opportunity of doing it again.

“Ronda is always going to be, I think, that little ‘rabbit’ in front of me,” Harrison said. “When I was 16 and I moved to (coach Jimmy) Pedro’s, she was the superstar. She was the golden girl. She was the one everyone was watching. Every day, I said to myself, ‘I’m going to be her some day. I’m going to be better than her. Anything she can do, I can do better.’ It helped take me to the highest levels of my sport.

“So I don’t see this being any different. It’s positive motivation for me. It’s healthy. I think it’s always healthy to have something to chase, something to look forward to.”

Kayla Harrison at the 2016 Summer Olympics. (USA TODAY Sports)

Rousey is now happily settled in her new WWE life and chances are her MMA days ended before Harrison’s even began. But the newcomer is still not lacking in sources of inspiration.

“I train at (American Top Team) and, in some sense, (UFC champ) Amanda Nunes is that for me,” Harrison said. “(Ex-UFC-champ) Joanna Jedrzejczyk is that for me. I see these girls, I see how successful they are, and I want to be them. I want to be the superstar. I want to be counted amongst the greats like them.”

Before Harrison ascends to MMA’s Olympus, though, she has to get through her debut. And it’s one that’s been a while in the making as the judoka originally had February as a target to kick things off.

“Because I started training February of last year,” Harrison said. “I wanted a full year of training, I wanted a full year of hard sparring before I stepped into the cage.”

With the re-branding of WSOF into PFL, there ended up being some delays. Now that things are in motion, though, Harrison is looking to stay active. Her contract stipulates that she competes once every four months, and she’s hoping to do at least that.

Of course, that can be tricky considering that the women’s lightweight division isn’t exactly stacked. But Harrison is hoping to see it grow around her over the next months.

“I don’t want it to just be ‘The Kayla Show,’” Harrison said. “Obviously, it’s cool for me. They’re paying attention to me. They think I’m a superstar, but that’s not what sports is about. It’s not a one-person show. It takes a lot of women to make something happen, and I guess I’m part of the women’s movement. I want it to be more than just me.”

Harrison isn’t part of PFL’s ongoing tournament, which features only male fighters in six different divisions. But it’s safe to say she’s a fan of the unique format the promotion has in place.

“You’re giving 72 fighters the opportunity to make $1 million,” Harrison said. “Not only that, but you’re changing the sport. It’s no longer just about entertainment. It’s about what you do in the cage. It’s not how pretty you are; it’s not how much trash you talk. There’s going to be a regular season, playoffs and a championship.

“Every year, that championship is put on the line. That’s what real sports are. You have to prove yourself over and over. You don’t get to rest on your laurels. You don’t get to rest on your mouth. You have to prove yourself.”

To hear from Harrison, check out the video above.

And for more on PFL 2, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.