Virna Jandiroba has decided that simply beating Tatiana Suarez won’t get her where she wants to go. Speaking through an interpreter at Wednesday’s media day in Las Vegas, the strawweight contender told MMA Junkie and other reporters that she’s chasing a finish in Saturday’s co-main event at the Meta APEX, because she believes a stoppage is what convinces the UFC to give her another title shot.
“We want to make sure to get a finish to get the chance,” Jandiroba said. “I think we should be next for that. You want to finish a fight strong, and you want to end it on a note that a message is sent, and the organization gets impressed enough to give you a title shot.”
She framed the matchup as a meeting of two ranked grapplers, calling it a “clash of titans” and pointing out where both women sit in the division. “We’re up there in the rankings, No. 2 and 3. So, we’re looking for that title shot,” she said.
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The fight is the co-feature of UFC Fight Night 293 (UFC Vegas 124), headlined by Cortes Acosta vs. Walker and streaming Saturday on Paramount+.
How they got here
Jandiroba (23-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) fought Mackenzie Dern (17-5 MMA, 12-5 UFC) for the vacant strawweight title last October and lost. She bounced back in April with a unanimous decision over Tabatha Ricci.
Suarez (12-1 MMA, 9-1 UFC) got her title opportunity first. She dropped a unanimous decision to Zhang Weili at UFC 312 in February of last year, then put together two straight wins: a unanimous decision over Amanda Lemos and a submission of Loopy Godinez. The one loss on her record went the distance, and nobody has ever stopped her.
That’s the hurdle Jandiroba is talking about clearing. She’s apparently been picturing exactly how she’d do it, too. UFC.com’s interview with her this week ran under the headline “I See Myself Submitting Tatiana.” Suarez, for her part, sounds like she’s reading from the same page. Her UFC.com interview carried the headline “Finish This Opponent And Get A Title Shot.”
Jandiroba also said the Dern loss taught her something specific. “I think the fight with Mackenzie was decided on details,” she said. “Some fine-tuning needs to happen. I think one of the biggest lessons I took was to be more forceful and really strive to get a knockout or a finish, and basically go for it from the beginning.”
Quick take
I like hearing a fighter name the exact adjustment she’s making after a title loss, and “go for it from the beginning” is a real tactical note. That said, both women promising a finish in a grappler vs. grappler fight usually means 15 minutes of the most technical scrambling on the card. When two people this good on the mat cancel each other out, the fight gets decided in the transitions: who wins the first grip after a takedown attempt, who gets up first, who’s chasing a submission versus who’s just holding position. Suarez has never been finished, and I’m not betting on that changing Saturday. I’ll take Jandiroba on the scorecards, and if she gets it, a clear win over the No. 2 or 3 woman in the division should be plenty for the UFC to book the Dern rematch. If the judges see the grappling, anyway.
