Las Vegas, NV — Former UFC women’s flyweight title challenger and Invicta FC champion Jennifer Maia returned to the octagon at UFC 264.
Her opponent Saturday night, Jessica Eye, was opened up with a nasty gash following an accidental head butt, but the bout was allowed to go the distance. In the end, it was Maia getting her hand raised, in her first fight since losing to Valentina Shevchenko last year.
Here’s what the Brazilian contender had to say following her decision win at UFC 264.
Her reaction to the victory:
I’m very happy, I’m very happy to beat Jessica Eye, because she has a lot of fights in the UFC. It was a really good opportunity for me.
Her thoughts on the toughness Jessica Eye showed:
It was not a surprise at all. I know her very well, so I knew Jessica Eye would keep coming, and I knew the cut wouldn’t bother her at all. But the blood was a good opportunity for me, to kind of help.
Whether she was surprised that the fight was allowed to continue despite Eye’s cut:
I thought that maybe the fight would be over, but it’s a doctor’s decision. And they didn’t stop [it]. It was a good decision, because she could fight very well in the third round, and the cut was bleeding just at the end of the last round.
Was she confident when the scores were being read?
I was very confident, because I hear my corners every single round, and I know if I lost, they would have told me I lost the fight. That was not the case, they told me I won all the rounds, so I was very confident that I got the victory.
What comes next for Jennifer Maia?
I didn’t hurt myself at all, so when ever the UFC wants, I’m going to be able to fight. I have no names in mind, but I want to fight someone at the top of the rankings, because I want to be able to fight for the belt again as soon as possible.
On being able to learn from her title shot against Valentina Shevchenko:
100%. After the Valentina fight, I was a new athlete. I was more confident, and I know where I can go after this fight.
