Manon Fiorot’s flyweight showdown with Mayra Bueno Silva was supposed to take place three weeks ago, part of the UFC 266 card at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
It didn’t happen. COVID-19 protocols, a now-dreaded label affixed to fights cancelled when a fighter or one of their teammates tests positive for the novel coronavirus, was to blame.
“It was so disappointing to leave the fight week like that and [not] fight for the big show,” Fiorot (7-1) said ahead of her new date during this week’s UFC Vegas 40 media day. “But I’m focused on the good things, and I’m on the main card [this Saturday].”
With the fight pushed back, Fiorot had to both recover from COVID — she was non-symptomatic, she told media outlets this week, but was feeling tired — and get in some more training. With a bit of extra time to prepare, “now I can say I’m in good shape and 100%.”
During that three week interval, Fiorot focused on every aspect of MMA when she was training. “Really now I can say I’m a really well-rounded fighter. In my training camp, I work everything. Wrestling, striking, and ground game. I work for all the aspects of the fight.”
As for the fight itself, Fiorot is predicting a finish, which she’s pulled off in six of her seven professional wins to date. Silva, the said, is a “well-rounded fighter. Has five fights in the UFC. I like her style. And I really think if she does like usual and goes straight [forward], I can finish the fight and [knock her out] in the first or second round.”
Cognizant of the hype around her since arriving in the UFC and winning her first two fights by stoppage, Fiorot is tuning it out. “I’m here to do the job, and it is what it is.”
Watch the full UFC Vegas 40 media day appearance from Manon Fiorot above. The event takes place this Saturday, October 16, 2021 at the Apex in Las Vegas.
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Norma Dumont Media Day
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Aspen Ladd Media Day
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Andrei Arlovski Media Day
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Carlos Felipe Media Day
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Mayra Bueno Silva Media Day
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Manon Fiorot Media Day
