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NORA CORNOLLE: READY FOR THE ENCORE AT ACCOR ARENA
French Standout Returns Home To Face A Familiar Foe On Saturday Night
Just over a year ago, Nora Cornolle made the walk to the Octagon for the first time, and despite having a wealth of experience in Muay Thai and a six-fight winning streak in tow, the moment at Accor Arena got on top of her a little.
“The first fight — UFC Paris, last year at the same time — I was quite stressed all the way of the camp because this was my first big thing; in Paris, in front of so many people, against someone who was (in her seventh fight) in the organization, and I was just a baby, practicing MMA two years,” Cornolle said with a smile just a few days out from her return to the scene of her debut on Saturday, where she’ll face off with Jacqueline Cavalcanti in an intriguing preliminary card pairing.
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“Normally the stress just comes during fight week or the fight for me, but it started in July and kept going up and down. I kept thinking about how it’s gonna be and everything, so I was very full of emotion when I did my entrance because it was finally an achievement to be there. It was the first time I was in full consciousness of the people in the arena, exchanging looks with them, absorbing their energy.
“I had tears in my eyes because it was emotional, not because I was scared or whatever; it wasn’t about that at all,” she added. “But when I finally came into the cage, you can’t see nobody because the lights go down; you can only see your prey, no one else.”
Paired off with Joselyne Edwards early in the card, Cornolle delivered a strong effort, earning a unanimous decision victory with scores of 30-27 twice and 29-28 once to advance to 7-1 as a professional and establish herself as a new name to watch in the bantamweight division, even if she wasn’t completely satisfied with her performance.
“That was a huge fight because it was 15 minutes. I have one loss in my career and I only did 15 minutes that first time; all my other fights were finishes. It was a big fight that I won, but I wasn’t so proud because I wanted to show more.
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“It was okay.”
Following her debut victory, the now 34-year-old Cornolle was champing at the bit to make a quick return to action, in part to deliver a performance more indicative of her skills and abilities, but also because as a Muay Thai competitor, fighting every month was the norm.
The stars failed to align for her in that way, resulting in her sophomore effort only coming in April, after she had to, as she put it, “wait and wait and wait.”
But the wait proved to be worth it.
Against Melissa Mullins, Cornolle showcased the dynamic offensive arsenal that had produced finishes in each of her six victories prior to arriving in the UFC as she left her British opponent battered and bloodied after dispatching her with as unique a finishing combination as you’ll see in the Octagon this year — a knee to the liver that buckled Mullins over followed by a pair of head kicks as she retreated to the safety of the fence.
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“I will say there was less pressure because I was more confident in my fighting,” said Cornolle, reflecting on the victory. “It took a long time for me to consider myself a real fighter when I was doing Muay Thai, and now, to be confident with my transition into a martial artist. It’s been three years now that I’ve been practicing MMA.
“I had a change of team and I really think that my skills kept building up. I was so confident with the strategy and everything. I was like, ‘Yeah, I can definitely do my strategy, my style because I have my team behind me. Everything is going to be alright. We prepared every eventuality to what could happen in that cage, and we’re gonna win.’”
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Nora Cornolle Goes To The Body To Get The Finish | UFC Fight Night: Allen vs Curtis 2
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Win she did, and now she returns to the familiar confines of Accor Arena in Paris for a second time as she shares the cage with Cavalcanti for a second time.
Originally slated to face off with former UFC women’s featherweight champ and bantamweight title challenger Germaine de Randamie, Cavalcanti was quick to raise her hand to fill the opening left by the Dutch veteran’s withdrawal in order to make her own return to Paris in search of a second win over Cornolle.
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“To be honest, I’m sad because Germaine is someone that marks the history of the sport, the UFC, had her kickboxing career, and I really wanted to (compare) my striking style to hers because she is someone I was looking at with big eyes,” admitted Cornolle when asked about the shift in opponents. “Plus, she was No. 15 when the fight was scheduled, and I was like, ‘Okay, I’m going towards my goal; climbing the rankings.’
“Unfortunately, she pulled out and Jacqueline stepped up. We tried to have someone else because I wanted someone ranked — that is my goal — and Jacqueline, I told her last year it would be cool to meet her again more at the top; in the Top 5 or something, where I do my own path, she does hers and maybe we could meet again. That would be huge storytelling, super-interesting, but it happens now.
“But I’d rather face Jacqueline than face my bed on September 28, right?” she added with a laugh. “So it’s great because it will be at home, in front of my public, and I’m really confident with that because I’m a total different person; a different fighter, but also a different fighter than three years before.”
The duo first squared off a little over three years ago when each was in the nascent stages of their respective MMA journeys — Cornolle was making her debut, while Cavalcanti was making her second start after an extended hiatus — with the Brazilian-born, Portugal-based Cavalcanti landing on the happy side of a unanimous decision result.
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Each continued competing on the regional circuit, racking up victories, before sharing the card for their joint UFC debuts last year in Paris. That night, Cavalcanti stepped in against French veteran Zarah Fairn in the opening bout of the evening, earning a unanimous decision win that didn’t really move the needle as far as Cornolle was concerned.
She’s since added a split decision victory over Josiane Nunes to her resume to extend her overall winning streak to five and make this rematch with Cornolle a clash of fighters with 2-0 marks inside the Octagon that will determine which one will take the next step forward in the bantamweight division.
Given what she’s seen from Cavalcanti of late, Cornolle certainly likes her chances this weekend.
“I saw her (fight) with Zarah, and I wasn’t impressed,” she said sheepishly, not wanting to sound disparaging while also keen to give her genuine thoughts. “To be honest, I was really eager to see her fight. I was quite convinced she would finish Zarah, so when I see the fight, I was disappointed, to be honest. In terms of level, I thought Jacqueline would crush her, but that didn't happen. Respect to everybody, but, to me, it was quite a boring fight.
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“Her second one against Josiane? Same. Such a difference in height, she had so many weapons to use, and same — I was waiting for a finish and it didn’t come.
“I have a feeling she has progressed a lot,” she said of Cavalcanti. “I think her skills are way better than three years ago, but I feel like in the cage, maybe she doesn’t succeed to put everything together in the puzzle on the night like she needs.
“We will see if I’m right on Saturday or not.”
A year after fretting over her debut for months on end before making the walk, Cornolle gets the opportunity on Saturday night to not only put forth the kind of performance that will leave her walking away from the Octagon satisfied with her efforts, but also avenge the one and only loss of her MMA career to date.
There is still some stress, but nothing like last year, and if everything goes according to plan, the post-fight festivities in “The City of Lights” will be epic.
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“It’s a different stress because, of course, she’s the only one that has a victory (over me) three years ago, so I have to leave a message — that this was a mistake, and it’s either her or me in a way,” explained Cornolle. “We signed at the same time, we had our first fights at the same time, and now we face each other, so who is gonna be going up now? Now I have to mark the fact that it’s me, not her.
“(Celebrating this win) will be ‘The Big Party’ as my coach says; we’re gonna have fun. We know what we’re gonna do, and after that, we’re gonna celebrate hugely because it was a very long fight camp with so, so, so many issues all along the camp.
“I’m more than ready,” she added with a spark in her eyes. “I’ve never been so laser-focused in my whole life, my whole career; I’m on it. I’m going to just take her out. I need that.
“We need to do that, do it the way we see it, and then enjoy.”
UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs Saint Denis took place live from Accor Arena in Paris, France on September 28, 2024. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!
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