Vanessa Demopoulos heading into LFA 81: ‘I will be in the UFC by the end of 2020’

MMA News

Vanessa Demopoulos heading into LFA 81: ‘I will be in the UFC by the end of 2020’

There’s not much about her 2019 that strawweight Vanessa Demopoulos has to complain about.

Not only was Demopoulos dominant in MMA, but did well in grappling, and feels like she’s where she should be in terms of her career.

“2019 was a huge, pivotal, year for me,” Demopoulos told MMAWeekly.com. “I had two fights with the LFA (and was victorious in both). I won second at the Worlds at brown belt in Jiu-Jitsu, which is major.

“I just tried to stay active, and keeping my head down, keeping my goals ahead of me, and am literally living my dream.”

When it comes to her wins over Valerie Soto in March, and Nadine Mandiau in June, Demopoulos feels that she did just fought just about as well as she could have on both accounts.

“I felt like I really got to showcase quite a bit (in both wins),” said Demopoulos. “I went out there (versus Soto), everyone knowing I’m a Jiu-Jitsu person, and I ended up out-boxing a boxer. All three rounds were on the feet; it didn’t go to the ground once.

“Then I went into a match with a Jiu-Jitsu person in the next fight (against Mandiau). She had won the Worlds in Jiu-Jitsu in no-gi, and I ended up finishing her in two and a half minutes. So you out-box a boxer and out-grapple the grappler, so that just kind of grows your confidence.”

This Friday in Costa Mesa, California, Demopoulos (3-1) will look to pick up her third straight win when she faces Loveth Young (1-0-1) in a main card 115-pound bout at LFA 81.

TRENDING > Frankie Edgar reveals he’s on the last fight of current UFC contract as moves to 135

“Loveth actually trained with us at Black House MMA, so there’s not a lot of mystery,” Demopoulos said. “I know her. I know what she looks like.

“I’m also very confident in my skills and my abilities. I do have a very specific game plan that I know I’m going to implement. But as much as I know her, she knows me as well. I think it’s going to be a very interesting fight.”

When it comes to this year, Demopoulos is very clear on what she wants to achieve both inside the cage and outside it as well.

“I do have a goal,” said Demopoulos. “I will be in the UFC by the end of 2020. I plan on going to fight for the LFA belt, unless the UFC calls prior to that.

“I have large goals and aspirations to be able to impact a lot of people’s lives with stories of overcoming and becoming. That’s part of the journey, that’s part of the game, fighting is that vehicle to get us there.”

Vanessa Demopoulos heading into LFA 81: ‘I will be in the UFC by the end of 2020’