Rising to the Occasion

Another opportunity to step forward in the Ultimate Fighting Championship women’s strawweight division awaits Amanda Lemos, and she does not intend to let it pass by.

The former Jungle Fight champion will draw her second headlining assignment inside the Octagon when she battles Marina Rodriguez in the UFC Fight Night 214 main event on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Originally scheduled for Oct. 22, the match was instead shifted to a higher-profile position two weeks later—a move to which both women had to adapt.

“We were supposed to be the co-main event [at UFC 280],” Lemos told Sherdog.com. “It got moved. We have to be ready for when that happens. We were assigned to be the main event on a new card. As professionals, we accepted. For sure, there’s more visibility.”

Rodriguez does not figure to be an easy hurdle to jump. The Thai Brasil product enters the cage on a four-fight winning streak, a stellar 6-1-2 record in the UFC in tow. She last appeared on March 5, when she eked out a split decision over Xiaonan Yan at UFC 272 and continued to establish herself as a top-shelf contender. Other victories over former Invicta Fighting Championships titleholder Michelle Waterson-Gomez, onetime World Series of Fighting titleholder Jessica Aguilar and 2015 Abu Dhabi Combat Club Submission Wrestling World Championships gold medalist Mackenzie Dern strengthen the Rodriguez resume.

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“Marina is an excellent athlete, she’s an excellent striker [and] she’s been demonstrating this inside the Octagon,” Lemos said. “She’s didn’t become the No. 3 contender by accident. We’re studying her game and her mistakes. The work is done with that in mind, so we can get the win.”

Lemos once again trained with the Marajo Brothers Team in advance of the bout and believes the preparation she undertook with boxing coach Beto Brandao, jiu-jitsu coach Roberto “Carioca” Bruno da Silva and striking coach Luiz “Toninho Marajo” Antonio Lobo Gavinho will pay dividends.

“My entire camp has been done at my homebase,” she said. “I have a very strong team. We’re training hard. I’m also working on my wrestling and with a physical conditioning coach. Everything is going great for this fight. We are correcting my past errors and looking to capitalize on hers.”

A win over Rodriguez—particularly a decisive one—could put Lemos in the title chase in 115 pounds, joining the rest of the division in pursuit of current champion Carla Esparza. For now, her attention remains on the task at hand.

“My focus, ultimately, is to always stay busy and to always evolve,” she said. “We’re going to put on a show. It’s going to be insane. We will bang it out. The fans can expect a lot of action inside the Octagon.”