LAS VEGAS – Casey O’Neill respects Roxanne Modafferi, but plans on sending her into retirement on a loss.
O’Neill (8-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) faces Modafferi at UFC 271 on Feb. 12 in what will be Modafferi’s final fight of her career. O’Neill is 15 years younger than Modafferi and while there’s a big experience and age gap, O’Neill is ready to prove that she represents the new wave of talent.
Modaferri (25-19 MMA, 4-6 UFC) is no stranger to upsetting highly touted prospects, bouncing both Maycee Barber and Antonina Shevchenko out of the ranks of the unbeaten, but O’Neill thinks she’s on a different level.
“I’m excited about it. She’s a super veteran female in the sport,” O’Neill told MMA Junkie. “Before girls were really doing this mainstream, she was doing it on the down low. So that’s super badass, and props to her for everything she’s done in her career. But I truly believe that I’m the next new thing – the new breed and the new set of girls that’s going to take over the division, and I’d much rather clean out all the old people and get up there with the new girls in the division and we can all fight each other once we get to the top.
“I’m preparing for the best version of Roxy, but I truly believe the best version of me beats any version of her that shows up on the night. She’s beaten other girls who are on the come-up in the past, but I truly believe that I’m better than those girls, as well, and I can’t wait to prove that. If she wants to try to spin or jump or whatever she wants to try and do, she’s just going to choose the way she gets knocked out even quicker. So that’s how I envision this fight.”
O’Neill planned on taking a bit of time off after competing four times in just over a year, but finds hit hard not to accept fights when the UFC come calling. She isn’t necessarily looking to get fast tracked to the top, but won’t turn down any big fights that come her way – including UFC flyweight champion Valentina Shevchenko.
“To be honest, I’d love to fight the whole division before I get to the title shot,” O’Neill said. “I want to clear everyone out. I know that I’m ready once I get up there. I think that the only thing that I don’t have compared to these girls is the experience. A lot of the other girls have 20-plus fights, I’ve had eight, and I’ve been a professional for a couple of years. So I would love to get a little bit more experience before I fight Valentina, but if you give me the opportunity, I don’t think I’m one person who says no – so might as well go for it.”
