Big Rapids former 3-sport athlete Brody Sleeper is making a career with Mixed Martial Arts.
Maria Sinclair
BIG RAPIDS — Brody Sleeper was a talented three-sport athlete at Big Rapids who has taken a unique path in his athletic career.
Sleeper has become heavily involved in mixed martial arts (MMA), a full-contact combat sport that combines striking and grappling techniques from various martial arts disciplines around the world.
Article continues below this ad
A 2023 graduate of Big Rapids High School, Sleeper competed in football, wrestling, and baseball for the Cardinals.
He played three years of college baseball, beginning at Lake Michigan College in Benton Harbor. As a sophomore, he transferred to a community college in Alabama.
“During those two years, my focus was baseball,” Sleeper said. “My arm never got back to what it was, so I decided to hang it up.”
Sleeper then enrolled at Ferris State University to pursue a degree in criminal justice.
Article continues below this ad
“I’ve known Chad Coon, the head coach of mixed martial arts, my whole life,” he said. “I started training and getting into the cage.”
Sleeper began his MMA journey in August 2025.
“Mixed martial arts is a little bit of everything,” he said. “You have jiu-jitsu, boxing, and kickboxing — all the main martial arts thrown into one. You have to train a little bit of each every day. We do jiu-jitsu three to four times a week, and we do striking three or four times a week. It’s all about finding that balance.”
He fights for 2Piece Promotions, one of Michigan’s fastest-growing MMA organizations.
Article continues below this ad
“Right now, I’m just an amateur. I’m getting my feet wet,” Sleeper said. “I’ve only had two fights. I’m slowly moving up the rankings, but we have a long way to go. I’m 1-1 so far. I had a fight last November. I was winning, but I got caught in an armbar late in the third round. My most recent fight was in March, and I won by TKO in 59 seconds of the first round.”
MMA bouts take place inside a caged octagon with a mat in the center.
Sleeper recently had a fight scheduled on a multi-fight card in Cadillac, but it was canceled.
“What’s next is to keep grinding, keep moving forward, and keep getting better every day,” Sleeper said. “I don’t listen to outside noise. I just keep my head down like I’ve always done.”
Article continues below this ad
As for his future goals in the sport, Sleeper is aiming high.
“I want to go as far as it will take me,” he said. “I like the freedom in it. If you put the work in, it shows. If you don’t, it shows. I like the mentality of it. It’s kind of me against the world.”
Sleeper noted that there are several other local MMA fighters who train with Coon MMA.
Article continues below this ad
“As much as it’s an individual sport, your team is everything,” he said. “They help you through it and are right there with you.”
He continues to work toward his criminal justice degree at Ferris State while pursuing his MMA career.