Macy Chiasson Believes Extended Layoff Was Key for Growth as a Fighter

A little bit of adversity and uncertainty helped Macy
Chiasson
get to her current position as one of the top
contenders in the UFC women’s bantamweight division.

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Chiasson secured her second victory of 2024 on Saturday, when she
earned a doctor stoppage vwin over Mayra
Bueno Silva
at UFC
303
. The current level of activity is a welcome change after
she didn’t compete at all the previous year, but “The Ultimate
Fighter 28” winner believes that extended layoff was necessary for
her overall progression.

“I had a year and a half off, but I didn’t stop training,” Chiasson
said in a backstage interview with the UFC on Saturday. “I didn’t
know when I was gonna fight again, if I was gonna fight again. I
think that changed me because I didn’t have an end goal. I just
kind of trained day in and day out without any clue of what was
next. That’s something I feel like I needed and it helped me
grow.”

While the conclusion of her fight with Bueno Silva wasn’t
completely satisfying, the elbow Chiasson landed from top position
opened a significant gash on her opponent’s forehead. Though the
Brazilian wanted to continue, it was determined that the bout
should be halted at the 1:58 mark of Round 2.

“It feels good to leave the cage [on Saturday] with a win, but not
quite the way I wanted to. It was an awesome elbow, but no one
wants to get out of a fight not feeling fulfilled completely,”
Chiasson said. “I wish we could have done a little bit more. The
ref did a good job by stopping it, and I think it was
appropriate.”

Even though the bout ended earlier than expected, Chiasson came
away relatively pleased with her overall performance.

“I think I did pretty good [at] a little bit of everything,” the
Fortis
MMA
product said. “I consider myself a mixed martial artist to
the core. And I study every single martial art there is — striking,
ground and wrestling. I work with the best of the best. My coaches
are the best in the world. I put all my faith and belief in them
and I train with them every single day. I just work on getting my
craft all the way around better.”

By besting a former No. 1 contender, Chiasson inserted herself in
the midst of the bantamweight title discussion. The 32-year-old
already has some history with current champion Raquel
Pennington
, as she suffered a second-round submission defeat to
“Rocky” in December 2021. As it stands, Chiasson has nothing but
respect for her former foe.

“I fought Raquel years ago. I was a different person then. We both
were. We’ve both grown,” Chiasson said. “I like Raquel a lot. I
think she’s an awesome champ. I think she’s an awesome person. It
would be an honor to fight her.”

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