Most mixed martial artists who would earn big money after a fight would usually spend it on a luxury car or something lavish. But that is not the case for Emiliano Sordi who won $1 million after winning the 2019 Professional Fighters League (PFL) light heavyweight season and playoffs.

Rather than spend it in the way that most would expect, the 29-year-old elected to use the purse to help out his countrymen over in Argentina. He helped thousands of people in his hometown of Rio Cuarto, starting by giving food to roughly 300 people. That eventually shot up to 3,000 as he tried to do his part to help his fellow Argentinians.

“I tried to use this that happened to me to help friends and people in my city,” Sordi said in Spanish when he appeared on the Hablemos MMA. “Everything here is very rough. The economy is very bad. The situation is looking very ugly.”

   

Despite helping several people with that gesture, Sordi knows that it was not enough to help all of the people in need. He admits that he just did what he could, hoping that others would follow his lead and help the ones struggling due to the effects of the coronavirus, USA Today reported.

"I didn’t buy anything. I didn’t go on vacation. I mean, I was locked at home. But I used those resources to help people who were going through a rough time," Sordi explained.

Argentina is one of the regions that was hit hard by the coronavirus. As of this writing, there have been 1,381,795 confirmed cases and 37,342 deaths according to the latest tally from Johns Hopkins University.

"I did what I could," Sordi added. I invested my money in something that brought me satisfaction and it was just that: helping those who were hungry. And to this day, there’s people who are still living in hunger."

Sordi admitted that the lockdowns caused him to get out of shape. But with restrictions now easing down, he is slowly recalling his old form.

Sordi is preparing for the PFL 2021 regular season slated to kick off on Apr. 23, 2021. From there, it will continue on Apr. 29, May 6, June 10, June 17 and June 25. Aside from Sordi, other known names returning for the new season include Brazilian fighters Nathan Schulte and Fabricio Werdum.