Aspen Ladd’s long wait to return to the octagon is scheduled to come to an end Saturday at UFC Fight Night 193.
Ladd (9-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC) hasn’t seen action since December 2019 due to injury. She was supposed to come back in July, but Macy Chiasson (7-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) aggravated an injury on fight day that forced the matchup to be postponed.
There was a bit of resentment initially from Ladd that her layoff got pushed back an additional two months, but she’s now arrived at fight week and expects everything to go smoothly.
The promotion put the women’s fight with Chiasson back together, and the pair will meet at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas on the card set to stream entirely on ESPN+. Although Chiasson’s last-minute withdrawal is what caused an even longer break, Ladd said any of her previous angst over the situation is now gone.
“No (it’s not personal) – it’s our job,” Ladd told MMA Junkie and other reporters at Wednesday’s UFC Fight Night 193 media day. “It’s what we do. If someone feels like they can’t continue and do it, then that’s on them. You’re fighting the best in the world. If you have an issue and you choose to go forward with the fight, that’s definitely going to affect you.”
At this point, Ladd said she’s focused completely on herself. She was one of the top contenders at 135 pounds before injury, and she said it’s her goal to get back to that spot with a performance that meets her standards.
“I think every fight, you remind people,” Ladd said. “Nobody remembers what you did 10 fights ago. They remember what you did the last one. Every time you fight, there’s a statement to make.
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Aspen Ladd plans to ‘remind people’ at UFC Fight Night 193 after career-long layoff