Athletes
Bia Mesquita: ‘It’s Always a Finals Match’
Ascending Brazilian Talks Quick Return, Steady Improvements, Competitive Mindset
Bia Mesquita made her UFC debut last October in her hometown of Rio de Janeiro. Eight months later, the Brazilian jiu jitsu superstar is poised to make her third appearance inside the Octagon this weekend, but first as a ranked fighter as she steps in against Melissa Mullins on June 20 at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
“I got into the top 15 on my birthday, but I wasn’t sure that it was true,” laughed the energetic rising star. “I was on my way to the gym to spar, and I saw it on Instagram. I thought, ‘Maybe somebody is just doing predictions or things like that.’”
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Mesquita arrived at the American Top Team facility and tried to verify the validity of the post with her head coach, Marcos da Matta (known throughout the sport by his nickname, “Parrumpa”), who playfully wouldn’t confirm the information for her, but instead directed her to the UFC website.
“He looked at it, laughed at me, and said, ‘Just look at the website. If it’s true, it’s gonna be there,’” Mesquita said. “I looked and it was there and I started celebrating! I was really happy. It was really nice.”
The birthday present came a few weeks after Mesquita turned in a dominant effort in her first business trip to Las Vegas — a first-round submission win over Montse Rendon that showed how much the 10-time IBJJF world champion is developing as a mixed martial artist.
Bia Mesquita Gets The Tap In The First | UFC Fight Night Emmett vs Vallejos
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Bia Mesquita Gets The Tap In The First | UFC Fight Night Emmett vs Vallejos
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As the fight began, Rendon came out pressuring, pumping a jab in the face of Mesquita, who stood her ground and timed a right hand that landed flush and wobbled her Mexican opponent. A second right as Rendon looked to grab a leg sent her stumbling backwards to the fence, with Mesquita chasing after her, landing punches before bullying her to the canvas. From there, it was academic, as the 35-year-old worked to the back and locked up a rear-naked choke.
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“It was really nice, especially because I could see how much I’m progressing,” Mesquita said. “I feel it daily in training, but the fight is the final test, so doing that in the fight and being able to show I am truly improving while not changing my game plan that was to put her down and finish was the most important thing. I was really happy with my performance.”
She was also ecstatic with the opportunity to turn things around relatively quickly and book another fight straight away.
Heading into that fight with Rendon, Mesquita spoke about wanting to get back in action quicker following her debut win in Rio — how she was hoping to compete in December or January, drawing a comparison to her days as a dominant force on the jiu jitsu mats, where the best athletes are competing every couple of months when healthy. However, instead of two or three months, her stay on the sidelines extended to five. This time, she’s gotten the expedient return she’s always hoping for and angling to make the most of it on Saturday.
“It’s amazing,” she said. “That’s how I want to keep going — fast-paced. No injuries helped me a lot to keep going at a fast pace and I feel like the more often I fight, the more experience I’m gonna have and the faster I’m gonna achieve my goal that is to be at the top as fast as possible, get my title shot as fast as possible… Getting this experience back-to-back is amazing, and I felt the improvement in this camp was even better because I came back from the fight, back to training, helped with Michelle (Montague) with her camp and then straight to my camp. I saw my levels going up pretty quick this camp and that’s how it should be. I’m ready for it.”
The opportunity to return came so quickly that Mesquita had already accepted this weekend’s matchup with Mullins in the three-week window between her fight with Rendon and learning that she had broken into the top-15 on her birthday (April 7).
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While everything has gone swimmingly thus far, the decorated jiu jitsu player knows the key to reaching her goal is to continue getting as many reps as possible, rankings be damned.
“I don’t really pay attention to who I’m fighting against, but to my improvement — I want to be better every time I step in there,” Mesquita said. “It doesn’t matter who I’m facing, it’s always — in jiu jitsu, I used to say, ‘No matter which fight in the bracket, it’s always a finals match.’ If it’s the first one, second one, it’s always a finals match… This is the same thing for me: I’m training as if I’m fighting for the title because that’s my final goal, so every single time I step in there is going to be to have a great performance, better and better every time.
“I wanna get the most experience I can before I reach my goal, which is the belt,” she added. “Getting another fight, more experience is gonna prove that I am where I should be and I’m gonna show it in the fights. I’m gonna prove to everybody this is my place, that I deserve to be (here), and I’m gonna keep going up and up and up… Going up little-by-little is very good, but goal is to finish the year in the top-10.”
Bia Mesquita Secures Debut Submission Victory | UFC Rio
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Bia Mesquita Secures Debut Submission Victory | UFC Rio
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Currently sitting at No. 13, Mesquita isn’t too far off from reaching her goal already, and as Joselyne Edwards has proven over her last handful of fights, a run of finishes and a little good fortune can produce a meteoric rise in the women’s bantamweight ranks. But earning her place in the top-10 is a mid-range goal for Mesquita, and her focus is on getting closer to achieving it by successfully reaching her immediate goal of earning another victory this weekend.
“Another great performance for sure; I’ve been training very hard for that,” Mesquita said. “This time won’t be different. I’m gonna be ready to step in there and have another amazing performance, get my finish as fast as possible, and keep going up in the ranks and in my MMA career.”
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