UFC women's bantamweight Ailín Pérez is hoping for big things to be in her future should she have her hand raised in the French capital this weekend.
Pérez lost her UFC debut at the promotion's very first event in Paris two years ago, falling via submission to Stephanie Egger in the second round. Since then, the Argentine has reeled off three straight wins to enter the rankings at 135 pounds.
Now, she'll return to France in pursuit of righting the wrong from 2022 and further advancing her ambitions on mixed martial arts' biggest stage.
To achieve victory inside the Accor Arena at the second time of trying, Pérez must stall the surge of Dariya Zheleznyakova, a 9-1 bantamweight who boasts history competing on French soil owing to her days under the Ares FC banner.
Despite that, "Fiona" expects an easy night at the office come fight night on Saturday. And after making a statement, she plans to put her crosshairs on a big name in the division...
Pérez Targeting Harrison Clash: 'That's The Fight I Need To Prove I'm Worthy!'
During a recent interview with MMA Junkie, Pérez predicted a comfortable victory in Paris and reiterated her desire to hand Kayla Harrison the first defeat of her UFC career.
"Fiona" outlined her intention to request a maiden main event from CEO Dana White following this weekend's event, and be it Harrison or another of the division's high-ranked names, the 29-year-old wants to stake her claim for a title shot.
After finishing Darya, I’m going to ask my friend Dana White for a main event fight, preferably against Kayla Harrison," Perez said in Spanish (translation by Danny Segura). “We’re still insisting on that fight because that’s the fight I need to prove I’m worthy of fighting for a belt.
If not, Norma (Dumont) if she stops running from me. She only wants to fight with people above her in the rankings, and that’s OK, but part of the reason why she’s in the rankings is that she hasn’t fought and lost to me. So Dumont or Julianna Peña, who’s a punching bag.
For now, Harrison has another assignment to focus on ahead of an expected title shot down the line.
After dominating Holly Holm on debut at UFC 300, the two-time Olympic gold medalist and two-time PFL title winner will meet Ketlen Vieira at UFC 307 early next month. The winner is expected to challenge whomever emerges from the championship co-main event between Raquel Pennington and Julianna Peña with the title.
With that in mind, Pérez may be a few wins away from earning a crack at Harrison. But should she defend her spot in the top 15 against her Russian foe on Sept. 28, a bigger assignment would no doubt await her next time out.
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