Maycee Barber plans to remind the world just how good she is.
In the co-main event of UFC 258, Barber is set to return after her first career loss and a torn ACL to battle Alexa Grasso. It’s a very intriguing matchup but many fans are surprised this is the fight because both Barber and Grasso are two up and comer prospects.
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“I’m excited, it has been a long journey back,” Barber said to Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com. “There has been a lot of ups and downs with the recovery. I switched camps, it has been a lot of back and forth but I’m ready and never have felt better so I’m excited.
“I think a lot of people are surprised because she is tough and we both are up and comers. I’m not surprised because I’ve never turned down a fight because if they offer me someone the UFC has a plan,” Barber continued. “You have to stick with the plan and go with it. She has a lot of followers behind her and I have a lot of followers behind me.”
Entering the fight, Maycee Barber is the betting underdog but isn’t paying much attention to it. Instead, she knows she has what it takes to win and get the finish by using her wrestling.
“She’s a striker and she doesn’t have that wrestling background,” Barber explained. “At 115, if she was cutting that hard, she would struggle. Tatiana Suarez dominated her on the ground and that is what I plan to do as well. Depending on how the fight goes, we will see.
“The plan is to go out there and work for the finish,” Barber continued. “I don’t know if it does surprise me. Maybe a little bit, I don’t expect to be the underdog but in my last fight, it didn’t look good. But, underdog or not, I’m still going out and getting the finish.”
If Maycee Barber does end up finishing Alexa Grasso she already knows her next fight and plans to call out Joanne Calderwood. Barber is still hoping to be the youngest UFC champion and knows if she can get a fight with Calderwood and beat her, she could be fighting for UFC gold later this year.
“The plan is to fight Grasso, get the win and we just watched Joanne Calderwood vs Jessica Eye. That fight, I want Calderwood because they are two girls I can beat and they are ranked. Fight Alexa, fight Joanne get the win, and go for a title shot,” Maycee Barber concluded. “I hate not being able to fight consistently but I learned a lot last year. I learned so much about myself, just training and recovering and overcoming different obstacles I learned a lot. This year I would like to be very active, get a lot of wins, get a lot of money.”
Do you think Maycee Barber will finish Alexa Grasso at UFC 258?