Ailin Perez asked for a fight with Amanda Nunes as soon as Kayla Harrison announced she was out of UFC 324. She didn’t get it, but she certainly got some attention for her willingness to step up.
Now, Perez (12-2) returns to face Macy Chiasson, a former TUF winner, at UFC Mexico City. And she believes the big names are starting to take notice of her.
“They are scared of me, they are trying to run, and they never mention my name, so…” she told Cageside Press in an exclusive interview.
The women’s bantamweight division, which Perez calls home, has been much maligned of late, with a lack of stars and personality. That’s an area where Perez, known for twerking after her wins and cheeky online posts, stands out. Her competition, not so much.
It’s hard to brag in a weight class where “all of them are boring,” noted Perez, “and they don’t want to fight. Always with my marketing, I try to push hard and do my best so they [the fans] can see me. The publicity and stuff that [I do] is what caught attention from the fans, not just the sport and the performance.”
At the same time, Perez has proven able to bring it in the octagon. Ranked inside the top 10, she sits on a five-fight win streak. Still, Perez feels it works in her favor if opponents take her as a joke.
“They think I’m just a funny fighter or I’m doing dumb things, but they don’t know really how hard I’m training and my actual strength. It’s good for me if they think I’m joking out here.”
The other name in the running as next up for the title at bantamweight, after Kayla Harrison vs. Amanda Nunes, is Norma Dumont. Perez made her case to leapfrog the Brazilian, saying that “it should be me, Ailin Perez, because Norma avoided fighting me. And also she’s boring. I should be the first one to fight for the title. I’m ready to fight even this weekend if necessary.”
Talk has sprung up about a fight between the two, humorously labeled “The Battle of the Butts” for rather apparent reasons. “I’m down to kick her ass and after, move my ass too,” Perez said with a laugh when asked about the match-up.
As for her fight with Macy Chiasson at UFC Mexico City, Perez suggested The Ultimate Fighter 28 winner needs to worry about her — not the other way around.
“Macy should be worried about me. I’m not worried about her for real, I’m just worried about my training, how I’m doing in my performance. I’m ready for any area; I can strike, I can box, I can kick, I can wrestle. So better be ready, Macy, because I’m ready for any area of the fight. And of course I’m going to finish her.”
Watch our full interview with UFC Mexico City’s Ailin Perez above; catch her media day appearance below. The event takes place this Saturday, February 28, 2026 at the CDMX Arena in Mexico City, Mexico.
