LAS VEGAS – Oftentimes, fighters lay into their opponents for missing weight.
Following her UFC Fight Night 224 win, Karolina Kowalkiewicz took a different route when asked about opponent Vanessa Demopoulos’ botched weigh-in Friday ahead of their fight.
“Sometimes it happens,” Kowalkiewicz told MMA Junkie and other reporters. “I don’t know why she didn’t make weight. But if the doctors said she cannot cut weight anymore, OK. The health is the most important. So OK, for me it is not a problem.”
Kowalkiewicz (15-7 MMA, 8-7 UFC) went 15 minutes with Demopoulos (9-5 MMA, 3-2 UFC) before she was awarded a unanimous decision victory, her third win in a row. Kowalkiewicz said she didn’t feel a noticeable weight or strength difference from Demopoulos, who weighed 1.5 pounds over the strawweight limit.
As for what’s next, Kowalkiewicz didn’t have an opponent or date on her mind. All she wants is to return relatively soon – and have fans in the building when she does.
“I need to talk with my coach,” Kowalkiewicz said. “If he agrees with me, I want to fight as soon as possible. I need two weeks of vacation because I want to go to my family, to Poland. I need to rest a little bit. I’ll go back to ATT to train again and start preparing for my next fight. … Any open arena event. … I love fans, yeah. We fight for fans, so fighting in big arena is the best feeling in the world. ”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 224.
