11 Questions for Aleksandra Albu

Russian strawweight Aleksandra Albu is a true UFC discovery.

Despite having only one professional fight to her name, Albu was placed on the card for last year’s UFC Fight Night in Krakow, Poland. Albu submitted the more experienced Izabela Badurek with a second-round guillotine choke -- and then suddenly disappeared.

In a recent interview with Sherdog.com, Albu explained the reasons behind her absence and discussed her future fighting plans.

Sherdog.com: After your successful UFC performance in April 2015, you vanished from the sport. Why?

Aleksandra Albu: There were several reasons. Firstly, I was suffering from a lot of injuries, so immediately after the fight I underwent surgery, which required a fairly long recovery period. Secondly, this year is my last year at the university, and I have to defend my graduation thesis, which also requires a lot of time.

Sherdog.com: Will the audience see you in the UFC again? What are your fighting plans for this year?

Albu: Yes, of course! I would like to thank all my fans who are interested in my competitive career, who support and care for me. It is very pleasant and very motivating. I didn’t stop training in our club, MMA-KEGI, with the exception of the recovery period after surgery. I keep myself in shape and soon will be back to the UFC to continue my career there. It’s simply a necessary pause connected with the recovery and a graduate work. I am aware that it isn’t very good to make such long breaks between fights, but it was necessary.

Sherdog.com: How did you manage to sign a contact with the UFC, having only one professional fight? Why do you think you were taken to the UFC?

Albu: I think this question should be addressed to my manager in the United States, Sam Cardin. My coach, Andrei Tsarkov, negotiated with Sam, with the result of my signing with the UFC. As for the record, I had had five fights when I signed the contract. The difficulty was in the fact that four of them were in Thailand, and it was not easy to find the data from those tournaments and enter them into the official record. Nevertheless, despite this, the UFC decided to give me a chance. I believe that I didn’t let the organization down, having done well in my debut and finishing the fight early. I have a standard UFC contract; I am supposed to do four fights.

Sherdog.com: What was the most difficult thing for you in the fight against Badurek?

Albu: There were two particular aspects. First is the preparation. We had done great work with the coach in order to acquire a necessary form for that battle. I dedicated almost three months solely to this. The second thing was psychological. To perform on such a big stage -- at the first UFC event in Poland, against a Polish woman -- was quite a challenge. Plus, it was my debut, so I felt I bore great resposibility. Thank God, everything went wonderfully. I managed to psyche myself up and perform well. I fulfilled the plan 100-percent with this fight. At first I felt stiff, so avoided any risks in the beginning, but then the stiffness was gone and in the second round I fully tuned in.

Sherdog.com: Isabella Badurek was a hard nut to crack. What can you say about her?

Albu: That’s right, Isabella was a tough opponent. She was much heavier than I, but eventually the key thing was my team’s thorough preparation for the battle. Thanks to this, I didn’t encounter any surprises during the fight. Working with my back to the fence, the guillotine and other moves were being constantly worked out at the training camp; one can even see on my video materials released before the fight. I can’t say it was the toughest fight in my career. It was absolutely clear for me what to do and what to expect.

Sherdog.com: What goals do you set for yourself while in the UFC?

Albu: The goal is quite simple: victories! My division is full of serious opponents; each fight should be approached being as focused and prepared as possible. I think it is too early to talk about fighting for the championship belt, but this is my ultimate goal.

Sherdog.com: The UFC has been accused of bias against Russian fighters, who are supposedly not allowed to fight for championship belts. What do you think about it?

Albu: I have never experienced this and that’s why I can’t say. I have always felt an excellent attitude toward me and my team from the UFC’s side. They have always met our wishes and tried to do everything to make us feel as comfortable as possible.

Sherdog.com: Which of the MMA female fighters do you consider to be the best? Which one is your role model?

Albu: Those with championship belts. Besides, I try to be a role model for myself, doing everything possible to improve every day. I also try to make the coach happy with my work. Unfortunately, I practically never watch the performances of other female fighters in the UFC and I can’t say if I want to meet anyone in particular in Octagon. All of them are worthy and I have respect for each of them.

Sherdog.com: Your coach, Andrei Tsarkov, said that you work until 10 p.m. and then you go on to write your graduation thesis. Do you have enough time for training?

Albu: Yes, it’s true. There’s not enough time for training. I am working as a fitness instructor now. After work, I run to the gym. Sometimes I am late and get 50 burpees or even something worse (laughs). Late in the evening or during breaks from work, I write my thesis. I have MMA training practically every day, and several physical fitness trainings a week. When we know the date of the next battle, the number of trainings will increase two, or even threefold. Then life will become limited by this (laughs).

Sherdog.com: In Russia, a lot of people think ММА is not to appropriate for women. Why did you decide to engage in this sport?

Albu: It’s just a combination of circumstances. Once I came across my coach and MMA-KEGI, where I have been training from the very beginning of my acquaintance with MMA and up to now. The staff of the club practically became another family for me, and the fact that someone thinks MMA is not a female sport doesn’t worry me at all. I’m doing what I like and what makes me happy.

Sherdog.com: Is it difficult for a girl in Russia to grow as a MMA fighter? Is it enough, for example, to have sparring partners of the relevant class, coaches, etc.?

Albu: As I said, I am very lucky. I don’t think I would be engaged in MMA right now if I had not become a member of MMA-KEGI. I would definitely do some sport, but my love for MMA was promoted by Andrei Tsarkov. There are many of those on the internet who condemn my passion for mixed-style fighting, but nobody dares to say it to my face. It is very difficult to understand people who direct their negative comments and insults to me. In my opinion, in order to lecture me, one at least has to achieve what I have achieved. However, the positive feedback is many times larger than the negative, which cheers me up and motivates me greatly.