Athletes
Macy Chiasson Grew Up Under The Brightest Lights
After Growing Up In The UFC, Macy Chiasson Feels Like Her UFC 279 Bout With Irene Aldana Is The Perfect Opportunity To Prove She's Ready To Compete With The Best.
Editor Note: This article was published prior to the UFC 279: Diaz vs Ferguson event change. Nate Diaz will now fight Tony Ferguson in the main event, Khamzat Chimaev will fight Kevin Holland in a catchweight (180) co-main event and Li Jingliang will fight Daniel Rodriguez in a catchweight (180) bout. | Order UFC 279: Diaz vs Ferguson
UFC Announces Updates To UFC 279
There’s maturing as a fighter within the UFC, and then there’s what Macy Chiasson is doing in her mixed martial arts career. The 31-year-old earned a spot on The Ultimate Fighter sporting just a 2-0 professional record and won, so 11 fights into her career, nearly all of her fights have taken place at the sport’s highest level.
It’s a unique circumstance and a testament to both Chiasson’s raw ability, as well as the work she puts in to round out her game while fighting the toughest opposition in the world. She’s in the thick of it in two divisions with plenty ahead of her, and that often clouds her view on what she has already accomplished.
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“I basically grew up in the UFC,” Chiasson told UFC.com. “I get so competitive and so zoned in on one thing that I forget that. My coach tells me all the time, ‘You literally came into the UFC at 3-0. You grew up here. You grew up with the best of the best.’ That’s not only a confidence booster, but I’m just really starting to feel calm and at home. I feel like I have my place here. Before, I was trying to figure out my identity in the UFC, but now I just feel like I’m exactly where I need to be, and I am who I am.”
And so far, Chiasson is an aggressive, well-rounded, and ever-improving fighter who has the physical tools to mix it up at bantamweight and featherweight.
Most recently, Chiasson fought at featherweight for the second time in a row and earned a hard-fought split decision win over Norma Dumont. The win was not only her first at 145 pounds since winning the TUF finale over Pannie Kianzad, but it got her back in the winner’s circle after Raquel Pennington submitted her the fight before.
“I feel like I unlocked different levels in a video game because I just went in there and executed the game plan and kind of did a little bit more, which is always awesome,” she said.
She takes those unlocked levels into her biggest test yet: a date with Irene Aldana at UFC 279: Chimaev vs Diaz. Aldana is her first proper top-5 test and is coming off a TKO win over Yana Kunitskaya at UFC 264. Arguably, a win for Aldana could mean a title shot sooner than later, something Chiasson also has in her sights.
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The matchup came slightly as a surprise. She and Fortis MMA coach Sayif Saud candidly planned to put together a run at featherweight, but it’s also slightly familiar territory. Pennington was the biggest name Chiasson fought up to that point, and she sees where she made errors against the former world title challenger.
“This is a big fight,” Chiasson said. “I don’t want to compare it to Raquel Pennington, but Rocky was a vet when I fought her, and I slipped up and made a mistake even though I was taking the fight exactly where I wanted it to go. I can’t slip up with this girl (Aldana). She’s going to capitalize on those things, and I think that’s really where I’m going to shine, showing like, ‘Okay, I’m a vet, too. I’ve grown up here.’”
Macy Chiasson Fight Week Interview | UFC 279: Diaz vs Ferguson
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Macy Chiasson Fight Week Interview | UFC 279: Diaz vs Ferguson
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Stylistically, Chiasson expects the matchup to turn into an “explosive” contest, touting Aldana’s boxing and elusiveness on the feet.
That said, the clash could provide some opportunities for her to showcase her all-around game.
View Chiasson's Athlete Profile
“I just feel like I’ve unlocked a lot of different levels of my game to where I’m able to mix things up a little bit more and just be more of a complete MMA fighter,” Chiasson said. “She’s got great wrestling defense, so I think we’re going to run into some sticky stuff, but that’s the name of the game, and that’s what makes it fun. I’m kind of ready for whatever avenue we decide to take it.”
A win could catapult Chiasson into the top-5 in the bantamweight rankings, which essentially puts her a stone’s throw away from a title shot now that Amanda Nunes is back on the throne. It would seem like a fast rise for Chiasson but, then again, all she has known is fighting the best inside the Octagon.
While the big stage might tempt some fighters toward fighting outside of themselves in pursuit of a finish, Chiasson isn’t allowing that pressure to seep into her expectations. To her, the absolute most important thing is getting the win.
UFC 279 FREE FIGHTS: Tony Ferguson vs Katsunori Kikuno | Li Jingliang vs Muslim Salikhov | Khamzat Chimaev vs Gilbert Burns | Khamzat Chimaev vs Li Jingliang | Nate Diaz vs Cowboy Cerrone | Nate Diaz vs Conor McGregor
“All of us as fighters want to go in there and perform our best in a round, two rounds,” she said. “I want to perform my best whether it’s going to be one round, two rounds or three rounds. I’m looking to take this fight into my hands, and even if it’s not for a second, put it back in my hands, and I think that’s what I love so much about fighting. You just don’t know where it’s going to go, and you just keep doing it. You keep going until you can’t go anymore, so I’m just looking forward to getting in there and putting everything I have forward.”
Spoken like a true vet.
UFC 279: Diaz vs Ferguson took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on September 10, 2022. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
