After a two-fight winning streak, which included an impressive win over Angela Hill, Tabatha Ricci got a call for a big fight. Currently ranked #10 in the strawweight division, the call came for someone much higher in the rankings – #2 Yan Xiaonan, fresh off of her title fight. Not only was it a big fight, but in a big spot as well. The fight being offered was for a co-main event in Yan’s home country of China.
While some might be nervous about fighting in their opponent’s backyard, Ricci loves the idea of it.
“I was very interested because I’m going to fight in her house,” Ricci said. “I actually like the pressure. I like to fight in enemy territory with everyone against me.”
Although it’s something she loves, Ricci hasn’t felt that feeling much in the past. However, she does feel like it’ll be similar to another feeling that she loves.
“I don’t think I’ve had that feeling before, but I do like to be the underdog,” she said. “It makes me push myself more to give me my best.”
With her absolute best foot forward, she’s sure that she can not only beat Yan, but make a statement that would have her on the shortlist for title challengers in the near future.
“I’ve been watching a lot of her fights. What she has the best of is her boxing and she does some karate kicks,” Ricci said. “But I’m looking for a lot of damage. I want to finish her. I know she’s hard to tap, but I don’t think anybody has damaged her much on the ground, so I’m looking for maybe a referee stoppage.”
You can catch that fight with Yan Xiaonan as the co-main event to UFC Macau. That fight card starts at 3am EST this Saturday with the main card beginning at 7am EST.
You can hear the entire audio of this interview at 2:16.
