‘Respect Everybody, Fear None’ – How A Mother’s Tough Love Forged Regian Eersel Into A ONE World Champion
"The Immortal" reveals what his closest supporter taught him about life, discipline, and pride.
By Kriel Ibarrola
Oct 1, 2026, 04:13 UTC
To the combat sports world, two-sport ONE World Champion Regian “The Immortal” Eersel is an unstoppable force whose dominance borders on the supernatural. But behind that fearsome exterior lies an ironclad moral compass, forged entirely by a woman who refused to raise him any other way.
Eersel defends his ONE Lightweight Muay Thai World Title against George “G-Unit” Jarvis in the main event of The Inner Circle 33 on Friday, October 2, streaming exclusively for members on live.onefc.com from Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium.
Before this massive rematch in Asia primetime, the intensely private champion opened a rare window into his relationship with his mother and the lessons that took years of pain to understand.
Raised ‘The Suriname Way’
Long before the titles and the global stage, Eersel’s character was shaped in a home where discipline was non-negotiable. That maternal influence ran deep, rooted in an uncompromising ethos designed to prepare a young boy for the realities of the world.
The upbringing was demanding by design. Warmth existed, but it never came at the expense of standards.
The double-champ told onefc.com:
“She raised me the Suriname way. Your mom is not your friend, you know? And it sounds hard, but it’s the truth. Your mom is here to educate you to the rules of life, and for a child, it’s very hard.”
That ethos did not stop at the front door. The code of conduct she built into him remains the foundation he competes on and passes on.
To this day, every principle he lives by traces back to her.
He said:
“[I learned to] be proud of who I am, and show everybody why I want to be here. And show everybody, of course, who I am.
“Respect everybody, fear none. Treat almost everybody like you want to be treated; it doesn’t matter their rank, the color, the size, the job that they do. Stick to your own rules.”
Eersel’s Ultimatum
What neither could see was that the relationship was edging toward a breaking point. As Eersel grew into young adulthood, his mother’s rigid rules began to feel like obstacles rather than foundations.
As a headstrong teenager, he pushed back repeatedly, in the way young men test boundaries. But his mother stood firm and delivered a choice that eliminated all middle ground.
The Amsterdam resident said:
“I had a fight with her about the rules at home when I was a teenager. I didn’t stick to the rules at home. I was hard-headed. So she said, ‘If you don’t stick to the rules, then you have to move out.’ I was 18 at that time.”
The fracture, when it arrived, was triggered by something as ordinary as a missed curfew.
Driven by stubborn pride, the rebellious youngster packed what little he owned and walked out the front door.
He said:
“I broke many rules, but the one I broke at that moment was coming home late. So, for her, it was the last time.
“That was a life lesson. And me, with my hard head, I moved out because I was thinking, ‘Forget this, I’m going out.’”
Growing Up Overnight
What followed was a complete, deafening silence between mother and son. In an instant, the most constant presence of his life was gone.
Confronting the consequences of absolute independence, Eersel was suddenly thrust into the crushing grind of adult survival. The domestic comforts he had taken for granted vanished and were replaced by an unforgiving trial of self-sufficiency.
“The Immortal” said:
“I didn’t speak to her for like two, three years. And believe me, it was a hard time.
“Suddenly I have to pay my rent, I have to pay for my own food, I have to cook dinner for myself, I have to take care of all this — normal stuff that my parents did. And it was heavy.”
Ironically, the very principles he tried to escape became the only life raft that kept him afloat.
Even amid their estrangement, his mother’s voice remained. Her insistence on unwavering discipline became the internal engine that prevented him from crumbling under immense pressure.
He said:
“I had to work like 40 hours a week. I was still training because when I was 18, I became a professional fighter. But I didn’t make enough money then to live from fighting.
“So it was a pretty hard time, and I was hard-headed. I wanted to prove to myself, but also to my parents that I can do this on my own.”
The Call He Always Makes
Time and maturity eventually healed the divide that youthful defiance had created. The painful years of distance gave way to mutual reverence, transforming what once tore them apart into an unbreakable bond of gratitude.
Today, as Eersel reigns over two disciplines with 52 pounds of gold draped across his shoulders, the person who forged his spirit remains his first thought after every fight. Before the celebrations begin, one ritual of reassurance always comes first.
The lightweight king said:
“She watches [my fights] after I call her and tell her that I’m alright and I have no big injuries. Then she can rewatch the fight.
“For her, I’m still her baby boy. But on the other side, also a proud man, a proud husband, a proud father. I think she’d say that.”
What Eersel carries now is not resentment but recognition. Now a parent himself, he finally understands what she knew all along.
So, when he faces Jarvis this Friday, his mother’s values, her standards, and her uncompromising love all walk into that ring with him.
He said:
“I still carry all the lessons that she taught. I’m glad she did that because I’m now the person that I am today, and I’m satisfied. I love her, she loves me. And I am more than the man that she expected me to be.”
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