Highly-decorated Brazilian Jiu-jitsu star Michelle Nicolini of Brazil returns to action in the co-main event of ONE: MASTERS OF DESTINY on 12 July at the Axiata Arena in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
The eight-time BJJ world champion faces arguably her biggest test in mixed martial arts when she meets reigning ONE Women’s Atomweight World Champion Angela “Unstoppable” Lee of Singapore in a strawweight contest.
For the 37-year old Sao Paulo-native, staying in shape is never a problem, given that she continuously puts work in, even if she is not on deck for an upcoming bout.
Nicolini is coming off a unanimous decision loss to former title challenger Tiffany Teo back in November 2018, and since then has been patiently waiting for a chance to get back in action.
“Since I came back from my last fight back in November, I have been training so that I continue to learn new things and I am also trying to fix the things that didn’t work for me during that fight,” Nicolini shared.
“The thing with me is, I do train all the time, even when I don’t have a fight coming up, that way, I can keep my body in good condition all the time,” she added. “It may not be at 100% all the time, but I know that it is in good condition because I am always training.”
In Lee, Nicolini faces a well-rounded competitor who has long dominated the women’s atomweight division, but faced adversity when she moved up in weight.
Lee absorbed her first career defeat when she challenged reigning ONE Women’s Strawweight World Champion “The Panda” Xiong Jing Nan at ONE: A NEW ERA in March.
Nicolini believes Lee, who will fight in the women’s strawweight division for a second time, could likely be a regular fixture in the weight class.
“I am of the mindset that we can do whatever we believe in,” expressed Nicolini. “For me, the women’s atomweight division is super difficult to make, especially with ONE Championship’s format. I, personally, could not go down and make weight at women’s atomweight.”
“If Angela believes that she can continuously keep coming up to the women’s strawweight division and compete at the same level, then we will see it,” she continued.
The Brazilian star knows exactly what Lee brings to the table and is confident that she will try to keep the bout standing.
“I know Angela well, and I have had the chance to train with her before. She is a good striker, and as we have all seen, her Jiu-Jitsu is very dangerous as well,” Nicolini said. “She is a well-rounded competitor, but I believe she will try to keep the fight standing when we share the cage in Kuala Lumpur.”
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