Edmonton — Canada’s Jasmine Jasudavicius looks to make it three wins in a row, and three wins in 2024, when she faces Ariane Da Silva at UFC Edmonton this Saturday.
Ranked #14 in the women’s flyweight division, Jasudavicius (11-3), who has become the female face of MMA in her native land, has the chance to inch up the ladder. And given her penchant for violent fights (just ask Priscila Cachoeira), the St. Catharines, Ontario-based fighter was thrilled with her latest booking.
“Yeah I’m super excited. Once I saw it was ‘The Queen of Violence,’ I was like ‘challenge accepted!'” exclaimed Jasudavicius during Wednesday’s UFC Edmonton media day. As to whether she’ll claim the throne from the “Queen of Violence,” “I don’t know. We’ll see, we’ll see,” added Jasmine.
One of the big topics this week has been the Edmonton commission’s adoption of the new MMA ruleset, which now allows 12-6 elbows, and features a more lenient definition of a grounded opponent.
“I’m a big fan of the ruleset being changed to that, and I’ve definitely been implementing it,” Jasudavicius said on that front. As far as what future changes she would like to see, Jasudavicius pointed to weight misses.
“I think more of a penalty for missing weight. Like the guy last week missing by 10 pounds, that’s crazy. There has to be some more accountability than just money, like a suspension or something like that.”
The guy in question was Victor Hugo, who came in so heavy for UFC 308 last weekend that his fight was moved up an entire weight class. Opponent Farid Basharat accepted the fight (and won), but had to put weight back on just to weigh in. Jasudavicius is no stranger to such mishaps; in January at UFC 297 in Toronto, Priscila Cachoeira came into fight week so heavy that their flyweight bout shifted to bantamweight. Jasudavicius finished her anyway.
“I think half the battle is making weight, and for people that are professional and they’re doing it, I understand yes there are some misses and stuff, and that happens,” concluded Jasudavicius. “But there has to be, I think, something with that. I don’t know what, but something.”
Given that January surprise, and Viviane Araujo pulling out of a fight over the summer, you’d forgive Jasmine Jasudavicius for being a little worried about something crazy ahead of UFC Edmonton.
“Yes. There’s always that worry,” she admitted. “But you just roll with it. Whatever happens happens, you just kind of taken it off the chin and keep going.”
In the meantime, she’s been buckling down, looking to get the most out of her current run. After all, the Canadian has long been known for saying she’s here for a good time, not a long one.
Going on a run and making the most of her position, “that’s the plan,” she stated. “That whole, ‘I’m not here for a long time,’ that’s kind of my journey within martial arts and within the sport. I started later, I was 26 when I started. That’s kind of what I mean in my kind of bro science mind of what it is. The title has always been being able to be the best in the world, and the best that I can possibly be. And I believe that is the best in the world. So yeah, the eyes are always on gold.”
As for the aforementioned Araujo fight, it’s one Jasudavicius would like back. Araujo is ranked inside of the top 10, currently #9, while Ariane Da Silva sits at #13.
“I would love that fight. It sucks being presented an opportunity like that and then it being taken away, but that’s life. I’ll just keep trucking and hopefully an even better opportunity comes after.”
Watch the full UFC Edmonton media day appearance by Jasmine Jasudavicius above.
