Athletes
Carli Judice | Louisiana For Life
Flyweight Relishing Chance To Show Out For Her Home State At UFC 318 In New Orleans
If you want the lowdown on all things Louisiana, there’s no better person to talk to than Carli Judice. She’ll let you know that a bottle of Tony’s seasoning can make anything taste Cajun, but that the good gumbo and jambalaya you got in Jersey probably wasn’t legit.
Oh yeah, the 26-year-old from Lafayette knows a little something about fighting in the Pelican State, too.
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“Obviously everybody comes from struggle, but I think we come from a lot of doubt in Louisiana,” Judice said. “People look at Louisiana fighters and think, ‘Oh, well, Louisiana fighters can only be so good since they're way down there.’ Nobody really cares about Louisiana fighters. They see one on a card and it's like, ‘Oh, they’re not going to be that good.’ And I think it's the doubt that drives all the good Louisiana fighters to really prove people wrong. That's what I think it is. I think it's people doubting us and not thinking that we can be good, that we’re just from down south where we eat gumbo and all that stuff. So I think it's those fighters that can overcome that doubt that prove all those people wrong.”
Saturday’s UFC 318 headliner, Dustin Poirier, proved it. So did UFC Hall of Famer Daniel Cormier, Alan Jouban, Tim Credeur, Liz Carmouche, and a small group of others that made it to the big show from Louisiana. And now taking up that mantle for her home state is Judice, who gets a home game this weekend when she faces Nicolle Caliari in New Orleans. That’s a big deal. Some fighters say it’s not (they’re lying), but Judice isn’t one of those. She realizes to get this opportunity is pretty special.
“It's a huge deal and I'm so grateful for this opportunity,” she said. “This is surreal, but that's the obvious answer. Everybody would say that, but, I mean to the fullest extent, I feel super grateful for this opportunity. Not many people get to do this in their lifetime, so I can't thank Mick (Maynard) and Dana (White) and everybody that made it happen enough. I’m still new to the UFC, so to be able to get this opportunity just coming in, it feels amazing. I feel super blessed and it definitely is a big deal.”
Judice catches herself, then laughs.
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“I try to, for the sake of my nerves and for the sake of me how I perform on fight night, I try to make it a smaller deal than it actually is. It's a huge deal, but I don't want to think of it that way and make myself nervous or put pressure on myself. So I try to just think of it as it's just another fight that I've preparing for to the best of my ability. I'm going to go in there and hopefully perform just like it's another day. It's just another opportunity that I get to go out there and perform because that's what I've always done best, is just perform and compete. I'm grateful that I get to do it.”
Carli Judice Knocks Out Yuneisy Duben In The First Round | UFC Fight Night: Vettori vs Dolidze 2
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Carli Judice Knocks Out Yuneisy Duben In The First Round | UFC Fight Night: Vettori vs Dolidze 2
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She’s pretty good at it. A pro fighter since 2022, the former college softball player for McNeese State University, quickly excelled in her new sport, earning a call to compete on season seven of Dana White’s Contender Series in 2023 after just three fights. That fourth fight in Las Vegas resulted in the first loss of her career, via split decision to Ernesta Kareckaite, but she still earned a UFC contract.
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In her UFC debut in June of last year, it was another split decision loss, but when she returned in March, she needed just 100 seconds to stop Yuneisy Duben, upping her record to 4-2 with four knockouts and only two split decision losses. So, despite her relative inexperience, Judice has proved that she belongs here.
“At first, when I lost two back-to-back, it makes you question, dang, do I belong?” said Judice. “And I know they were close split decisions, but you obviously always want to get the win. You can have great fights, Fight of the Night and all that stuff, but you’ve got to get wins to stay in the UFC. I definitely understand that. But people always looked at my record or looked at my experience and said, ‘She's not ready.’ And then I feel like I always went in there and proved them wrong. Obviously, I keep gaining experience every time I step in there, but I'm a dog and I belong in there. I'm meant for these big moments even though I'm still young. So yeah, my mindset is I know that I'm meant to be here, even through the few setbacks I have, so I just keep pushing forward and getting better and rising to the occasion.”
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And for the record, Carli Judice is Louisiana for life.
“I don't think I'm ever leaving,” she said. “I'm a big family person and I could never leave. I love my sisters, I love my brothers, and all my sisters are having kids now, so I’ve got nieces and nephews that I love like they're my own, so it'll be tough.”
UFC 318: Holloway vs Poirier 3 took place live from Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana on July 19, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!