Tatiana Suarez Plans Flyweight Transition After Receiving Medical Clearance to Fight

Credit: Dave
Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave
Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit: Dave
Mandel/Sherdog.com Credit:
Dave Mandel/Sherdog.com

Tatiana
Suarez is nearing her Octagon return after neck issues have
sidelined her since June 2019.

The former UFC strawweight contender told ESPN that she has
been medically cleared and is targeting a 125-pound debut for her
next promotional appearance. A bulging disc in her neck has plagued
the former Olympic hopeful after a victory over Nina Ansaroff at
UFC 238.

Suarez’s return might have arrived sooner, as she was cleared for
training in February but she suffered a broken right hand in
wrestling practice and a concussion in a separate instance while
wrestling with her boyfriend. She plans on beginning her training
camp “soon,” with September as a possibility for her next
fight.

“I’m super excited to get back out there,” she said. “It’s fun to
practice, for sure. But it’s just different competing. Everybody
knows that. It’s super exciting to just show what you’re working
on.”

The 30-year-old Suarez won Season 23 of “The Ultimate Fighter” and
kicked off her promotional tenure with five consecutive triumphs,
including wins over former 115-pound champion Carla
Esparza, and contenders Ansaroff and Alexa
Grasso.

Although Suarez was a title hopeful at strawweight, she will
transition to 125 pounds for her next UFC bout. However, she added
that she won’t “abandon” 115 pounds. For now, flyweight will be on
a trial basis.

“I was thinking I was gonna try out flyweight and see how I feel
there,” she said. “All the fights I’ve had at strawweight, during
the fight I felt weak and tired. I was wondering if maybe just the
weight cut was too draining for me. I’ve never had an issue making
weight, it was just the day after I felt like I wasn’t fully
recovered.

“I definitely feel way stronger and more explosive when I practice
than when I fight, so I was like, maybe I need to try something
where I don’t cut very much weight at all. I was walking around at
130, now I’m walking around at 135. Yeah, I’ll have to fight people
that are 145 going into the fight, but I don’t really care about
that.”

That move also means Suarez must get through one of the sport’s
most dominant champions in Valentina
Shevchenko if she is to reach the top of her new weight
class.

“I do think I have a good skill set in terms of my wrestling [that] can give her trouble,” Suarez said.