The most successful name in the entire history of women's jiu-jitsu, Bia Mesquita has been dedicating her attention to Mixed Martial Arts professionally for just over two years. However, the relatively short time has been more than enough to solidify Lady Goat as one of the main promises of the Ultimate bantamweight division (up to 61,2 kg), with another chapter to be written this Saturday (20), at Meta Apex against Melissa Mullins , in the last preliminary fight of the night.
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But before that, the Rio native had an exclusive chat with SUPER LUTAS to give details about her fight preparation and her expectations for the future in the biggest MMA organization on the planet.
Bia Mesquita has been competing frequently in MMA.
Bia Mesquita with her coaches at UFC Rio. Photo: Reproduction/Instagram @macarraodossantos
A Brazilian athlete from American Top Team, she has been adopting an interesting strategy in her career management. In just two years as a professional, she already has seven fights on her record. In fact, the duel with Mullins will be her fourth fight in 12 months. Regarding this "rush," the multi-time world champion in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu makes it clear that everything has been very well calculated.
“This acceleration has been planned since I transitioned to MMA. I spent a lot of time competing in Jiu-Jitsu, so I arrived in MMA a little 'older' and I know I don't have a very long career ahead of me. I don't have 20 years of career ahead of me, like I did in Jiu-Jitsu. So accelerating the pace is part of the plan. Mainly because I've had good fights from the beginning, without cuts or injuries. And that helps me a lot to maintain my progress. I see that in each camp I've been evolving a lot in all areas,” said Bia, who is 35 years old.
Looking for another finish.
Bia Mesquita won her UFC debut against Irina Alekseeva . Photo: Reproduction/X.
Despite showing great improvement on her feet, Bia is far from dreaming of strategies related to striking. Having been on the mat for 30 years, she sees the duel against Melissa as yet another opportunity to show the rest of the division her very high level in grappling.
“I think it’s going to be a very good fight because Melissa accepts this grappling game, which is my main objective. So my team and I believe it’s a good opening to take the fight where we want it to go, the grappling , the jiu-jitsu. Training at ATT is already my biggest challenge. So this will just be another fight, a step towards the belt and to gain more experience, write my name in the UFC and show that I came here to be champion,” she stated.
Future of the category
Bia Mesquita beat Montse Rendon at UFC Vegas 114. Photo: Geety Images / Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC
The heaviest women's division in the UFC, the Brazilian bantamweight scene (up to 61,2 kg), has suffered two considerable losses recently, with the dismissal of Ketlen Vieira and the end of Norma Dumont 's winning streak . Furthermore, the top of the division awaits the conclusion of the story between Kayla Harrison and Amanda Nunes , who are finally expected to face each other this year. Regarding this, Bia preached calm and hoped to get back on the radar this year.
“I see that my category is undergoing a renewal. The older athletes are giving way to the younger ones, and I am part of the new generation. The category needs a new face, a new idol. The truth is that it's not just about fighting and putting on a show; it's necessary to have a good dialogue with the fans. An athlete today is composed of a combination of things, not just what happens inside the octagon. All of this helps me gain ground, and I believe I will arrive in good shape, with a lot of visibility, to compete for the belt,” she concluded.
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