Athletes
Jasmine Jasudavicius Is Ready For The Night Of Her Life
Canadian Flyweight Jasmine Jasudavicius Hopes To Bounce Back With Another Big Win In Front Of Her Home Country Fans At UFC 297: Strickland vs Du Plessis
Jasmine Jasudavicius expects to have the best night of her life on January 20. There, at UFC 297: Strickland vs Du Plessis, she lives out her dream of fighting in front of her fellow Canadians on the biggest stage, and the Ontario-native is already buzzing with excitement.
“It's going to be crazy,” Jasudavicius told UFC.com. “It's is going to be nuts. A bunch of my family's able to come, a bunch of people from the gym. There's so many people supporting, and it's going to be wild.”
How To Watch UFC 297 In Your Country
The 34-year-old Jasudavicius has done well for herself since competing on Dana White’s Contender Series in September 2021. She made her promotional debut in January 2022 and has since tallied a 3-2 record, including an impressive decision victory over Miranda Maverick at UFC 289 in Vancouver. There, she fought alongside Niagara Top Team teammate Mike Malott, who once again joins her on the card where he will face welterweight veteran Neil Magny.
In Van City, Canadian representatives went a perfect 5-0. Eight are scheduled to compete in Toronto, and Jasudavicius hopes to repeat those results from last June.
“It's been wild having Mike in there in our camps,” she said. “We're just fueling each other every day together, grinding, and it's been awesome. The energy has been there.”
GALLERY: Jasmine Jasudavicius & Gillian Robertson Attend PWHL Game In Toronto
Jasudavicius does not, however, want a repeat of her last fight. At Noche UFC, she faced rising talent and fellow Contender Series alumna Tracy Cortez and lost a unanimous decision. The fight was competitive, but Jasudavicius was on the back foot for large portions of the fight and particularly after she suffered a broken orbital.
While Jasudavicius believes the fight was a little closer than people remember, she wants to turn her losses into lessons, which she has done to this point. After her previous two professional defeats, Jasudavicius responded with a three-fight and two-fight win streak, respectively. Her lesson was relatively simple after the Cortez bout: don’t take free and open shots. Moreover, she just wants to get the taste of that fight out of her mouth.
“It sucks,” Jasudavicius said. “At the same time, I feel like even having that double vision, I still showed well (and) arguably won. But I get it. That’s behind me. I got this one in front of me. I’m kind of bitter about that (last fight), obviously, but (I’m) looking forward to moving on to the next one.”
UFC 297 Embedded | UFC 297 Full Fight Card Preview
She gets an entertaining and willing dance partner in Toronto in the form of Priscilla Cachoeira. “Zombie Girl” doesn’t have the cleanest UFC record, but she has acclimated well after a three-fight losing streak to start her Octagon tenure. In her last six fights, she is 4-2 with three knockouts and has turned into one of the more dangerous power punchers on the roster.
Cachoeira is someone who invites a brawl and hasn’t ever been finished, which is conflicting music to Jasudavicius’ ears. On one hand, she loves to scrap, but she also wants to get her hand raised more than anything.
“I understand what the cost of mistakes can be,” Jasudavicius said. “Winning a fight versus losing a fight because I want to brawl, I have to develop past that. It's hard when you're in the moment and the brawl starts. I love a brawl, as well. That will obviously be a challenge, but I'm looking forward to the opportunity.”
MORE UFC 297: Mayra Bueno Silva | Dricus Du Plessis | Co-Main Breakdown | Main Event Breakdown | Raquel Pennington | Gillian Robertson | Mike Malott
It’s hard to keep the smile off Jasudavicius’ face during any fight week, but it’s clear this one has a little extra on it. When she talks about making the walk, she visualizes the curtain opening up and the roar of a record-breaking crowd, and nothing can quite beat that feeling.
That is, other than the feeling of getting her hand raised once again.
UFC 297: Strickland vs Du Plessis took place live from Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on January 20, 2024. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
Tags
