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Claudia Gadelha says UFC title shot is on the line against Joanna J?drzejczyk
The UFC will crown its first strawweight champion on Dec. 12 at TUF 20 Finale in Las Vegas, and the first title contender will emerge 24 hours later in Phoenix.
Claudia Gadelha, who meets fellow undefeated prospect Joanna Jędrzejczyk at UFC on FOX 13 on Dec. 13, told Ariel Helwani on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour that the UFC guaranteed that the winner of this bout will fight for the title next.
“Whoever wins that fight, fights for the belt,” Gadelha said.
Gadelha was originally set to be part of The Ultimate Fighter 20 season, but her coach and manager Andre Pederneiras asked the UFC to remove her from the reality show since it would be tough for her to make weight several times in a short amount of time.
“I’m so happy to not be there,” she said. “I’m watching all these girls having a lot of drama in the house. It would be a lot of problems for me to make the weight there, so I’m so happy to not be there. I’m happy also to make the debut and be the contender.”
It’s no secret that Gadelha dislikes former Invicta FC 115-pound champion Esparza, but she wants her to win the title.
“Who I want to win is Carla Esparza,” Gadelha said. “I want her to have the belt so I can fight her.”
Gadelha and Esparza were expected to fight twice at Invicta FC, but the Nova Uniao fighter was forced to pull out on both occasions.
“The first time we were going to fight I broke my nose. The second time we were going to fight I got sick and went to the hospital,” Gadelha said. “She talks a lot s–t about that, she’s talking a lot of things about what happened and I didn’t like it, so I wanna fight her. I feel that I’m the contender right now. I’m going to win my next fight and then if she has the belt, we’re going to fight for the belt.”
With six years as a professional MMA fighter, Gadelha sees the opportunity of fighting for a UFC title as the pinnacle of her career.
“That was a dream,” Gadelha said. “I’m fighting since I was 16. I fought jiu-jitsu my whole life and I’m fighting for that (goal) for 10 years. I think I deserve that chance that the UFC gave me to be the first strawweight fighter and I’m so happy for what’s happening with the division right now. The UFC was a dream that I always fought for. (To) be the first strawweight fighter was so important to me.”
“It’s not easy being a fighter in Brazil,” she continued. “I left home when I was 16 years old and came here to Rio de Janeiro to train with (Jose) Aldo, (Renan) Barao and all these guys. I gave up everything so young to be a fighter. I put that in my mind that I wanted to be a fighter, and just left everybody behind. I came here to train. It’s very emotional to me. It’s hard being a fighter, and I made it to the UFC, the best show in the world.
“I started to train with Renan Barao back in (Natal) in Brazil and I felt a lot of good things about the sport. I was growing up with the sport. The sport was teaching me how to be a woman, grow up. Watching these guys train, competing to survive, made me want to do the same. Life was hard to me. Still is, but I put that in my mind. I saw the sport as a way to survive in Brazil. I’m from a poor family and things are not easy here, so fighting made me learn a lot of things about life, made me grow up as a woman and taught me a lot of things.”
At the best moment of her MMA career, the 25-year-old Brazilian strawweight has already made plans for her post-fight life.
“I’m a fighter and a law student,” Gadelha said. “I’m in the last semester of the law school and I worked so hard to make it to the UFC and be a pro athlete and also study. I have to be something after I quit fighting, so I always try studying so much and also train. It was hard to do both together, but I made it. I never thought about quitting because that’s what I put in my mind, that’s what I wanted my whole life. Nothing but God will make me stop.”
The UFC will crown its first strawweight champion on Dec. 12 at TUF 20 Finale in Las Vegas, and the first title contender will emerge 24 hours later in Phoenix.
Claudia Gadelha, who meets fellow undefeated prospect Joanna J?drzejczyk at UFC on FOX 13 on Dec. 13, told Ariel Helwani on Monday’s edition of The MMA Hour that the UFC guaranteed that the winner of this bout will fight for the title next.
“Whoever wins that fight, fights for the belt,” Gadelha said.
Gadelha was originally set to be part of The Ultimate Fighter 20 season, but her coach and manager Andre Pederneiras asked the UFC to remove her from the reality show since it would be tough for her to make weight several times in a short amount of time.
“I’m so happy to not be there,” she said. “I’m watching all these girls having a lot of drama in the house. It would be a lot of problems for me to make the weight there, so I’m so happy to not be there. I’m happy also to make the debut and be the contender.”
It’s no secret that Gadelha dislikes former Invicta FC 115-pound champion Esparza, but she wants her to win the title.
“Who I want to win is Carla Esparza,” Gadelha said. “I want her to have the belt so I can fight her.”
Gadelha and Esparza were expected to fight twice at Invicta FC, but the Nova Uniao fighter was forced to pull out on both occasions.
“The first time we were going to fight I broke my nose. The second time we were going to fight I got sick and went to the hospital,” Gadelha said. “She talks a lot s–t about that, she’s talking a lot of things about what happened and I didn’t like it, so I wanna fight her. I feel that I’m the contender right now. I’m going to win my next fight and then if she has the belt, we’re going to fight for the belt.”
With six years as a professional MMA fighter, Gadelha sees the opportunity of fighting for a UFC title as the pinnacle of her career.
“That was a dream,” Gadelha said. “I’m fighting since I was 16. I fought jiu-jitsu my whole life and I’m fighting for that (goal) for 10 years. I think I deserve that chance that the UFC gave me to be the first strawweight fighter and I’m so happy for what’s happening with the division right now. The UFC was a dream that I always fought for. (To) be the first strawweight fighter was so important to me.”
“It’s not easy being a fighter in Brazil,” she continued. “I left home when I was 16 years old and came here to Rio de Janeiro to train with (Jose) Aldo, (Renan) Barao and all these guys. I gave up everything so young to be a fighter. I put that in my mind that I wanted to be a fighter, and just left everybody behind. I came here to train. It’s very emotional to me. It’s hard being a fighter, and I made it to the UFC, the best show in the world.
“I started to train with Renan Barao back in (Natal) in Brazil and I felt a lot of good things about the sport. I was growing up with the sport. The sport was teaching me how to be a woman, grow up. Watching these guys train, competing to survive, made me want to do the same. Life was hard to me. Still is, but I put that in my mind. I saw the sport as a way to survive in Brazil. I’m from a poor family and things are not easy here, so fighting made me learn a lot of things about life, made me grow up as a woman and taught me a lot of things.”
At the best moment of her MMA career, the 25-year-old Brazilian strawweight has already made plans for her post-fight life.
“I’m a fighter and a law student,” Gadelha said. “I’m in the last semester of the law school and I worked so hard to make it to the UFC and be a pro athlete and also study. I have to be something after I quit fighting, so I always try studying so much and also train. It was hard to do both together, but I made it. I never thought about quitting because that’s what I put in my mind, that’s what I wanted my whole life. Nothing but God will make me stop.”
