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Ever since being booked to fight on the UFC 257: Poirier vs. McGregor 2 card, Amanda Ribas has consistently asserted that she aims to "steal the show."
The 27-year-old Brazilian star rose to prominence with a spectacular first-round submission victory over Paige VanZant at UFC 251 in July 2020. Her fight against VanZant was contested at flyweight, but Ribas' upcoming UFC 257 fight is scheduled to be contested at strawweight.
Amanda Ribas recently spoke to The Schmo and opened up on her UFC 257 fight. Ribas was asked about her upcoming matchup having undergone multiple changes.
Ribas was initially fighting Carla Esparza at the event, but Michelle Waterson then replaced Esparza. And now, Ribas is set to face Marina Rodriguez at UFC 257.
In response to being asked how she could become the first fighter to beat Marina Rodriguez via stoppage, Amanda Ribas stated:
"With my training. I train so hard – Because I’m fighting on the McGregor and Dustin card. So everybody was trying to watch this fight. And I don’t want to do that. I want everybody to watch my fight. So I train hard so when my fight starts everybody is, ‘whoa, whoa, it’s in the fire’, you know. Yes! Steal the show.”
When asked whether she’s thinking about fighting for the UFC strawweight title later this year, Ribas said:
“First of all, I need to think (about) the Marina fight, I need to do a big fight with her because maybe I can go to the top of the rank. And maybe till the end of the year, I can really fight for the title.” (*H/T Sportskeeda for the transcription)
Furthermore, Amanda Ribas suggested that she loves training alongside other top women’s MMA fighters like Amanda Nunes, Nina Ansaroff, Joanna Jedrzejczyk, and others at ATT (American Top Team). Ribas added that the competition at the gym is good for her.
Amanda Ribas aims to impress at UFC 257 and fight for gold
UFC 257 will be headlined by the rematch between Conor McGregor and Dustin Poirier. McGregor bested Poirier via first-round TKO in their first fight back in September 2014.
As great as that headlining rematch is, Amanda Ribas could steal the show at UFC 257 if she manages to beat Marina Rodriguez by way of submission or KO/TKO.
Rodriguez is one of the most durable fighters in the UFC strawweight division. A win over her could help Ribas break into the division's upper echelons, getting her closer to that coveted title shot.
The UFC women's strawweight title is currently held by Zhang Weili, who's likely to defend her title against former champions Rose Namajunas or Carla Esparza next.
