Manon
Fiorot is adamant on fighting for a title next — even if it is
an interim belt.
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Fiorot made a legitimate case for a gold bid with a unanimous
decision win over top contender Erin
Blanchfield in the main event at
UFC on ESPN 54 last month. But the French standout will have to
wait for a trilogy clash between champ Alexa
Grasso and Valentina
Shevchenko, who are expected to compete after their stints as
coaches on “The Ultimate Fighter 32.” While Fiorot would like to
serve as the backup for that bout, “The Beast” is also open to
another matchup if it has interim title implications.
“If I have to choose, the best choice for me is to be backup on the
fight,” Fiorot told MMAjunkie.com. “I think it’s a good thing if
Valentina or Alexa have an injury or miss weight or stuff like
that. I think the best choice for me now is to be backup for this
fight so I can see the fight and perhaps do a faceoff after against
the winner. If not, I can fight but for sure I want an interim
title or something like that. I think I deserve it.”
While Fiorot would have once preferred fighting Shevchenko, she
doesn’t care much now after the former champ’s loss against
Grasso.
“In the beginning I really want to fight Valentina because she was
undisputed and she is a great champ,” Fiorot said. “But now Alexa
[won] against her. So I really don’t care. I have a great, great
respect with Valentina for her achievement but no, I take the
winner and that’s it. I don’t really want to choose, and I have no
preference.”
Also calling for the backup spot for Shevchenko vs. Grasso 3 is
Maycee
Barber. Trailing just behind Fiorot for the longest active
winning streak at flyweight, Barber found the Frenchwoman’s
performance at UFC Atlantic City boring. While Fiorot also has the
same opinion of Barber’s fights, she is open to an “easy” clash
against “The Future” if it’s for the interim title.
“To be honest, I never see a full fight of Maycee because it’s
really boring,” she said. “I think the first one against Katlyn
Cerminara, I know she [won] the decision. She [did not have] a
better performance than mine, and I [fought] with a big knee
injury. So no, to be honest I don’t care, it’s easy fight for me to
fight Maycee but only if it’s an interim belt or belt.”