“I feel stronger, I feel happier, and I feel so much healthier,” Alexa Grasso told reporters at the UFC Vegas 8 media day this week.
Grasso (11-3) is returning to the flyweight division this weekend, where she competed prior to her UFC career. A highly touted strawweight prospect by the time she joined the world’s largest MMA promotion, Grasso struggled with the cut to 115lbs, missing weight once early in her run, and having an entire fight scratched when she badly blew weight for UFC 246 back in January.
The Mexican fighter now enters her fight with Ji Yeon Kim this weekend fully aware of the benefits ditching the taxing weight cut brings.
“I feel amazing. I know that injuries are part of the training, but I was having a lot, lot, lot of injuries,” she said of her time dropping to strawweight. “A lot of injuries, but in this fight camp, I had no injuries at all.”
“Now I understand as healthy as you are, it’s going to be better, your performance,” Grasso continued. “And of course, your body.”
Later, she admitted that while making strawweight was never fun, it recent fights, the cut had gotten worse.
“Making strawweight was always a hard, hard battle. Since I was like 25, 26 years old, it was getting harder. I think my body got more mature. I got stronger. Every training camp, you have to be faster and harder.” That created a struggle, where Grasso tried to hit the next levels in speed and strength, with the limitations put on her by the need to drain her body to cut to 115lbs. “Now, this division, it fits perfect for me.”
Still, Grasso “loved to be a strawweight. Honestly I loved that division, and that was a very important season of my life.” Moving forward, however, 125lbs is a new path for her — and she believes the move to flyweight is for good. “Yes, I think so,” she said Wednesday.
When it comes to her opponent, Kim, Alexa Grasso believes she knows what to expect. It’s right there in her name. “Everybody knows her, because I think her nickname is Fire Fist,” Grasso observed.
As for where a win in her divisional debut would leave her after UFC Vegas 8, Grasso isn’t sure. “I don’t know. Everybody ranks every fighter and every fight different,” she said. “I just hope that my performance can put me on a good target, and just [help me] to be climbing [up the rankings].”
Watch the full UFC Vegas 8 virtual media day press scrum with Alexa Grasso above.
