Athletes
Erin Blanchfield Expects Excellence
Twenty-Four-Year-Old Flyweight Contender Erin Blanchfield Isn’t Surprised To Find Herself On The Precipice Of Title Contention At UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs The Korean Zombie
Erin Blanchfield is as stoic as they come in the Octagon. Despite just two years on the UFC roster, she shows such composure throughout the lead-up to, and during, her fights that is nearly as impressive as her skillset, one that continues to improve each time she competes. It’s why, after submitting a former champion in Jéssica Andrade, her label moved from “potential future champion” to “current title contender” at 24 years old, when the youngest active champion in the promotion is Sean O’Malley (28 years old).
That quick ascent, which includes a spotless 5-0 record in the Octagon and three consecutive submissions, might seem a little surprising all things considered, but Blanchfield is just meeting her own expectations. Even when a main event fell into her lap at the last second against Andrade, she stepped up to the moment and delivered her best performance to date.
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“I did exactly what I expect out of myself,” Blanchfield told UFC.com. “I expect to finish people at that level, and I plan to do that again Saturday.”
Blanchfield’s maturity is something she maintains she has always had. Even when she first turned pro at 18 years old with eyes on making it to the mixed martial arts leader, she knew the best way to do that was taking one fight at a time.
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That trait is also helping her on this quick ascent up the flyweight rankings. Instead of getting caught up in her own hype and wondering what each little thing might mean as far as her case for a title shot, she locks in at her task at hand. At UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs The Korean Zombie, that task comes in the form of recent title challenger Taila Santos.
“Once I get a fight, I'm super focused on that one,” Blanchfield said. “All my focus went into the camp for that and dieting and everything. I really focus on one fight at a time, and I feel like that's why my success keeps coming.”
Erin Blanchfield Submits JJ Aldrich | UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs Rozenstruik
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Erin Blanchfield Submits JJ Aldrich | UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs Rozenstruik
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In Santos, Blanchfield faces the woman many believed gave former champion Valentina Shevchenko her toughest fight until Alexa Grasso submitted “Bullet” at UFC 285.
That split decision loss in June 2022 was the last time Santos competed, but Blanchfield isn’t taking that to mean anything other than it’s been a while since Santos fought. The two were booked to fight in February, but Santos was forced to withdraw, which opened the door for Blanchfield’s submission win over Andrade.
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Now, though, the two kick off an ultra-important month-long stretch in the division. A week after they fight, former strawweight champion Rose Namajunas makes her flyweight debut against top contender Manon Fiorot at UFC Fight Night: Gane vs Spivac. Two weeks after that, Grasso defends her throne against Shevchenko in their rematch on Mexican Independence Day.
Blanchfield isn’t getting caught up in that whirlwind, though. She knows none of it matters if she drops her first UFC fight to Santos.
“She's a well-rounded fighter,” Blanchfield said. “She gave Valentina a great fight. She hasn't fought since then, but I know I'm super excited. I feel like at this level, every girl is super tough. Everybody's well-rounded. You need to just make those decisions a little quicker. You need to find the little weaknesses that everybody has and just capitalize on them, and that's what I plan on doing.”
The New Jersey-native knows she can’t just get a win on August 26 if she wants to get a title shot sooner rather than later. A finish always helps, but that doesn’t mean she is going to fight outside of herself in Singapore.
“I know what I can do,” she said. “I know if I stick to the plan, it'll be impressive, so that's what I’ll do.”
UFC Fight Night: Holloway vs The Korean Zombie took place live from Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore on August 26, 2023. See the Final Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
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