The undefeated UFC strawweight is coming back next year.
Tatiana Suarez is gearing up for a return to the Octagon.
According to the undefeated fighter, she is fighting in February, ending her nearly four-year hiatus from the UFC. And for her first fight, Suarez says she is moving up a weight class.
The two-time Bronze medalist in freestyle wrestling previously said she would move up from strawweight to flyweight to avoid cutting too much weight.
“I was thinking I was going to try out flyweight for a couple fights and see how I feel there,” Suarez told Ariel Helwani last May. “All the fights that I’ve had at strawweight, during the fights, I always felt like I was weak and tired. So, I was wondering if maybe just the weight cut was too draining for me and it was usually like I’ve never had an issue making the weight, it was just the day after I felt like I wasn’t full recovered. I don’t know if other people feel that way too or if that’s a natural feeling, but I definitely feel way stronger and more explosive when I practice than when I fight. So, it was like maybe I need to try where I don’t cut very much weight at all.”
Suarez was sidelined with various injuries following her unanimous decision win against Nina Nunes at UFC 238 over three years ago. The 32-year-old re-aggravated a pre-existing neck injury, which kept her out of action.
Once she rehabilitated her neck, Suarez received medical clearance to return and was paired against Roxanne Modafferi at UFC 266 last year. Sadly, The Ultimate Fighter 23 winner would withdraw against Modafferi after sustaining a ‘very bad knee injury’ that required surgery.
Prior to her hiatus, Suarez was on a five-fight win streak that included finishes of Alexa Grasso and former champion Carla Esparza.