Undefeated Brazilian atomweight Janaisa Morandin spoke recently with Christian Stein and Dann Stupp for MMAjunkie, ahead of her Invicta debut vs. Jinh Yu Frey on Saturday, live on UFC Fight Pass. The Evil Princess said she was exposed to fighting before she was born.
My mother said I always liked fighting, hitting other people, she said. I think this comes from when she was pregnant with me. She used to stay up at the crack of dawn watching Mike Tyson fights.
I started training muay Thai at 13, and fighting at 16. And by 18, I was invited to debut in MMA. For that, I needed to learn other martial arts. That’s when I moved to the state of Santa Catarina. I left my family behind. My boyfriend and I made the move together, and that’s how I got started in MMA.
This is much more than a fight to me. It’s a dream come true. I’ve been following Invicta since their first event. Fighting in Invicta has been my dream. After I signed the contract, especially to face one of the best in the weight class, I had a great sense of accomplishment.
Whether I win or lose, it’s already a great accomplishment for me. But of course, she’s one of the best in our weight class and an excellent striker. I’m debuting without pressure. I know I’m facing one of the best. But I’m here to prove that I’m one of the best too. I think we’ll strike until one of us drops. I’m giving my blood. No matter what happens, I’m making this dream come true.
Frey is coming off a title shot loss to Ayaka Hamasaki at Invicta FC 19 in September. Prior to that she had been on a three-fight win streak.
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A post shared by Janaisa Morandin (@janaisamma) on Feb 25, 2016 at 10:47am PST
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