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The returning Tatiana Suarez has explained how she managed to maintain her motivation to make a comeback despite such a long period on the sidelines.
For the past four years, Suarez has been absent from the Octagon. Beforehand, the winner of The Ultimate Fighter 23 strawweight tournament had cemented herself as perhaps the greatest threat to the 115-pound throne with four wins, including over Nina Nunes, Alexa Grasso, and two-time champion Carla Esparza.
But courtesy of a difficult and seemingly never-ending run of injuries, which saw her suffer a broken hand, a concussion, neck issues, chronic back pain, and severe knee damage, Suarez has been forced out of action since 2019.
Now, after a long road to recovery, Suarez is once again experiencing fight week in the UFC. This weekend at UFC Vegas 70, the Californian 32-year-old will return to the fold in a new division, sharing the Octagon with Montana De La Rosa for a flyweight clash.
Given the lengthy nature of her layoff, which included a planned return against Roxanne Modafferi in 2021 falling through, many had perhaps begun to feel that the upcoming return fight would never arrive.
For Suarez, though, it was never in doubt.
Suarez: “This Is What I Was Born To Do
In an interview with UFC.com ahead of her much-awaited comeback this Saturday, Suarez detailed her mindset throughout her multiple recoveries, explaining what kept her committed to feeling the Octagon canvas beneath her feet again.
For Suarez, it’s simple. She’s often insisted that she was born to compete in mixed martial arts and, with that, the cage is where she must be. The TUF 23 victor also credited the passion for the sport that she shares with her boyfriend, Bellator bantamweight Patchy Mix, for keeping the fire under her lit.
“I think when it all comes down to it, I just believe that this is what I was born to do,” Suarez said. “It sounds crazy, obviously, because we’re fighting and stuff, but being an athlete is something that I love to do. And I love training. Me and my boyfriend, after practice, we geek out all the time. We just talk about practice and or MMA, in general. Just the other day, we had a practice, and we were both all excited. We’re like, ‘Oh, that was so much fun.’ And then we’re like, ‘Yeah, we can’t wait for sparring tomorrow.’ It’s just something that we both love to do. It’s our passion.”
Suarez went on to note that giving up was certainly an option as she battled a number of serious injuries and underwent the knife multiple times. But while a less committed athlete may have turned to other avenues, Suarez is out to prove that she’s the best in the world at one thing — MMA.
“I think that I could have stopped,” she said. “I could’ve been like, ‘You know what? It’s been two years, I was trying to come back and now my knee is so messed up,’ and then just do my own thing and start my life in a different path. But I believe I’m the best in the world. I feel like I lost the opportunity to be an Olympic wrestler and Olympic champion. And then I found this dream of being a world champion (in MMA), and I feel like if I was just to quit and not try to be the best at this, I’d be selling myself short. Every day I have to look at myself in the mirror. And if I didn’t do everything that I could possibly do to at least chase that dream, then I just wouldn’t be able to look at myself because that’s not who I am.”
While Suarez made her name as a strawweight contender, she has been open about her desire to a achieve the rare champ-champ feat. She can take a step towards that with a successful flyweight debut this weekend.
Image: Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports
Are you excited for the return of Tatiana Suarez this weekend at UFC Vegas 70?
The returning Tatiana Suarez has explained how she managed to maintain her motivation to make a comeback despite such a long period on the sidelines.
For the past four years, Suarez has been absent from the Octagon. Beforehand, the winner of The Ultimate Fighter 23 strawweight tournament had cemented herself as perhaps the greatest threat to the 115-pound throne with four wins, including over Nina Nunes, Alexa Grasso, and two-time champion Carla Esparza.
But courtesy of a difficult and seemingly never-ending run of injuries, which saw her suffer a broken hand, a concussion, neck issues, chronic back pain, and severe knee damage, Suarez has been forced out of action since 2019.
Now, after a long road to recovery, Suarez is once again experiencing fight week in the UFC. This weekend at UFC Vegas 70, the Californian 32-year-old will return to the fold in a new division, sharing the Octagon with Montana De La Rosa for a flyweight clash.
Given the lengthy nature of her layoff, which included a planned return against Roxanne Modafferi in 2021 falling through, many had perhaps begun to feel that the upcoming return fight would never arrive.
For Suarez, though, it was never in doubt.
Suarez: “This Is What I Was Born To Do
In an interview with UFC.com ahead of her much-awaited comeback this Saturday, Suarez detailed her mindset throughout her multiple recoveries, explaining what kept her committed to feeling the Octagon canvas beneath her feet again.
For Suarez, it’s simple. She’s often insisted that she was born to compete in mixed martial arts and, with that, the cage is where she must be. The TUF 23 victor also credited the passion for the sport that she shares with her boyfriend, Bellator bantamweight Patchy Mix, for keeping the fire under her lit.
“I think when it all comes down to it, I just believe that this is what I was born to do,” Suarez said. “It sounds crazy, obviously, because we’re fighting and stuff, but being an athlete is something that I love to do. And I love training. Me and my boyfriend, after practice, we geek out all the time. We just talk about practice and or MMA, in general. Just the other day, we had a practice, and we were both all excited. We’re like, ‘Oh, that was so much fun.’ And then we’re like, ‘Yeah, we can’t wait for sparring tomorrow.’ It’s just something that we both love to do. It’s our passion.”
Suarez went on to note that giving up was certainly an option as she battled a number of serious injuries and underwent the knife multiple times. But while a less committed athlete may have turned to other avenues, Suarez is out to prove that she’s the best in the world at one thing — MMA.
“I think that I could have stopped,” she said. “I could’ve been like, ‘You know what? It’s been two years, I was trying to come back and now my knee is so messed up,’ and then just do my own thing and start my life in a different path. But I believe I’m the best in the world. I feel like I lost the opportunity to be an Olympic wrestler and Olympic champion. And then I found this dream of being a world champion (in MMA), and I feel like if I was just to quit and not try to be the best at this, I’d be selling myself short. Every day I have to look at myself in the mirror. And if I didn’t do everything that I could possibly do to at least chase that dream, then I just wouldn’t be able to look at myself because that’s not who I am.”
While Suarez made her name as a strawweight contender, she has been open about her desire to a achieve the rare champ-champ feat. She can take a step towards that with a successful flyweight debut this weekend.
Image: Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports
Are you excited for the return of Tatiana Suarez this weekend at UFC Vegas 70?
Click here to view the article.
For the past four years, Suarez has been absent from the Octagon. Beforehand, the winner of The Ultimate Fighter 23 strawweight tournament had cemented herself as perhaps the greatest threat to the 115-pound throne with four wins, including over Nina Nunes, Alexa Grasso, and two-time champion Carla Esparza.
But courtesy of a difficult and seemingly never-ending run of injuries, which saw her suffer a broken hand, a concussion, neck issues, chronic back pain, and severe knee damage, Suarez has been forced out of action since 2019.
Now, after a long road to recovery, Suarez is once again experiencing fight week in the UFC. This weekend at UFC Vegas 70, the Californian 32-year-old will return to the fold in a new division, sharing the Octagon with Montana De La Rosa for a flyweight clash.
Given the lengthy nature of her layoff, which included a planned return against Roxanne Modafferi in 2021 falling through, many had perhaps begun to feel that the upcoming return fight would never arrive.
For Suarez, though, it was never in doubt.
Suarez: “This Is What I Was Born To Do
In an interview with UFC.com ahead of her much-awaited comeback this Saturday, Suarez detailed her mindset throughout her multiple recoveries, explaining what kept her committed to feeling the Octagon canvas beneath her feet again.
For Suarez, it’s simple. She’s often insisted that she was born to compete in mixed martial arts and, with that, the cage is where she must be. The TUF 23 victor also credited the passion for the sport that she shares with her boyfriend, Bellator bantamweight Patchy Mix, for keeping the fire under her lit.
“I think when it all comes down to it, I just believe that this is what I was born to do,” Suarez said. “It sounds crazy, obviously, because we’re fighting and stuff, but being an athlete is something that I love to do. And I love training. Me and my boyfriend, after practice, we geek out all the time. We just talk about practice and or MMA, in general. Just the other day, we had a practice, and we were both all excited. We’re like, ‘Oh, that was so much fun.’ And then we’re like, ‘Yeah, we can’t wait for sparring tomorrow.’ It’s just something that we both love to do. It’s our passion.”
Suarez went on to note that giving up was certainly an option as she battled a number of serious injuries and underwent the knife multiple times. But while a less committed athlete may have turned to other avenues, Suarez is out to prove that she’s the best in the world at one thing — MMA.
“I think that I could have stopped,” she said. “I could’ve been like, ‘You know what? It’s been two years, I was trying to come back and now my knee is so messed up,’ and then just do my own thing and start my life in a different path. But I believe I’m the best in the world. I feel like I lost the opportunity to be an Olympic wrestler and Olympic champion. And then I found this dream of being a world champion (in MMA), and I feel like if I was just to quit and not try to be the best at this, I’d be selling myself short. Every day I have to look at myself in the mirror. And if I didn’t do everything that I could possibly do to at least chase that dream, then I just wouldn’t be able to look at myself because that’s not who I am.”
While Suarez made her name as a strawweight contender, she has been open about her desire to a achieve the rare champ-champ feat. She can take a step towards that with a successful flyweight debut this weekend.
Image: Kevin Jairaj/USA TODAY Sports
Are you excited for the return of Tatiana Suarez this weekend at UFC Vegas 70?
The returning Tatiana Suarez has explained how she managed to maintain her motivation to make a comeback despite such a long period on the sidelines.
For the past four years, Suarez has been absent from the Octagon. Beforehand, the winner of The Ultimate Fighter 23 strawweight tournament had cemented herself as perhaps the greatest threat to the 115-pound throne with four wins, including over Nina Nunes, Alexa Grasso, and two-time champion Carla Esparza.
But courtesy of a difficult and seemingly never-ending run of injuries, which saw her suffer a broken hand, a concussion, neck issues, chronic back pain, and severe knee damage, Suarez has been forced out of action since 2019.
Now, after a long road to recovery, Suarez is once again experiencing fight week in the UFC. This weekend at UFC Vegas 70, the Californian 32-year-old will return to the fold in a new division, sharing the Octagon with Montana De La Rosa for a flyweight clash.
Given the lengthy nature of her layoff, which included a planned return against Roxanne Modafferi in 2021 falling through, many had perhaps begun to feel that the upcoming return fight would never arrive.
For Suarez, though, it was never in doubt.
Suarez: “This Is What I Was Born To Do
In an interview with UFC.com ahead of her much-awaited comeback this Saturday, Suarez detailed her mindset throughout her multiple recoveries, explaining what kept her committed to feeling the Octagon canvas beneath her feet again.
For Suarez, it’s simple. She’s often insisted that she was born to compete in mixed martial arts and, with that, the cage is where she must be. The TUF 23 victor also credited the passion for the sport that she shares with her boyfriend, Bellator bantamweight Patchy Mix, for keeping the fire under her lit.
“I think when it all comes down to it, I just believe that this is what I was born to do,” Suarez said. “It sounds crazy, obviously, because we’re fighting and stuff, but being an athlete is something that I love to do. And I love training. Me and my boyfriend, after practice, we geek out all the time. We just talk about practice and or MMA, in general. Just the other day, we had a practice, and we were both all excited. We’re like, ‘Oh, that was so much fun.’ And then we’re like, ‘Yeah, we can’t wait for sparring tomorrow.’ It’s just something that we both love to do. It’s our passion.”
Suarez went on to note that giving up was certainly an option as she battled a number of serious injuries and underwent the knife multiple times. But while a less committed athlete may have turned to other avenues, Suarez is out to prove that she’s the best in the world at one thing — MMA.
“I think that I could have stopped,” she said. “I could’ve been like, ‘You know what? It’s been two years, I was trying to come back and now my knee is so messed up,’ and then just do my own thing and start my life in a different path. But I believe I’m the best in the world. I feel like I lost the opportunity to be an Olympic wrestler and Olympic champion. And then I found this dream of being a world champion (in MMA), and I feel like if I was just to quit and not try to be the best at this, I’d be selling myself short. Every day I have to look at myself in the mirror. And if I didn’t do everything that I could possibly do to at least chase that dream, then I just wouldn’t be able to look at myself because that’s not who I am.”
While Suarez made her name as a strawweight contender, she has been open about her desire to a achieve the rare champ-champ feat. She can take a step towards that with a successful flyweight debut this weekend.
Are you excited for the return of Tatiana Suarez this weekend at UFC Vegas 70?
Click here to view the article.
