SALT LAKE CITY – Miranda Maverick beat Priscila Cachoeira with a third-round submission Saturday to open up the preliminary card at UFC 291 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
Take a look inside the fight with Maverick, who got back in the win column after an upset loss in June.
Priscila Cachoeira vs. Miranda Maverick
Result: Miranda Maverick def. Priscila Cachoeira via submission (armbar) – Round 3, 2:11
Updated records: Maverick (12-5 MMA, 5-3 UFC), Priscila Cachoeira (12-5 MMA, 4-5 UFC)
Key stats: Maverick had nearly nine minutes of control time from her three takedowns and outstruck Cachoeira 105-13.
Maverick on the fight's key moment
“I was finally off the cage. It’s a little bit more dangerous to go for a submission when they have something near them that they can posture up against. I had softened her up plenty, thrown a lot of elbows, thrown a lot of punches, and she kept just sticking those hands up there, prime for the taking for an armbar.
“I just wanted to wait until I had her in enough pain and stuff that she wouldn’t fight it off as much as she would have the first or second round. I couldn’t even tell you what round it was, hardly, at this point – there’s so much adrenaline going on. But I knew once I had that armbar, she wasn’t getting out without a broken arm, and I think she pretty much tapped right at the beginning. Then she held on again, then she tapped again, and I just waited for the ref to grab ahold of me before I let go of it.”
Maverick on her dad in her corner
“Every time I get a finish, it’s high emotions – especially with my dad in my corner again. Every time I get a win, it’s kind of our deal – he (carries) me around the cage like that. I’m glad not only to get a win, but to take a fight on short notice and win in a dominant fashion. (At UFC 289 against Jasmine Jasudavicius), some things came into play in the second round, but no excuses – Jasmine did a great job. I was looking to get back in there and show that that’s not me who you guys saw last fight.”
Maverick on being prepared for Cachoeira
“To be honest, Cachoeira is a fairly simplistic opponent as far as what I had to watch out for. I knew she was a heavy hitter, knew that she had good hands and knew that she could be a bully in the cage. I went in there cautious knowing that she’s also had some times that were questionable in fights – protect my eyes, protect everything. Her hands got stuck where they shouldn’t have multiple times, which was kind of frustrating. I mean, at some point, you’ve got to say it’s a point. She stuck her fingers up straight the entire fight, pretty much, and there was no chance that she was just trying to push me off – there was no flat hands. I warned the ref beforehand, and I think he did about as good of a job as I’ve seen any ref do. I said, ‘Listen: I don’t want poked in the eyes in this fight. That’s my main priority.’ And he was like, ‘All right – we’ll watch out for it.’ I hope that the whole world didn’t see (my breasts when she pulled my shirt down), but they probably did. I guess that’s part of the risk of fighting, but it was very frustrating and it made me go in there that much angrier every round.”
Maverick on fighting in Utah
“It was great. I was supposed to fight in Utah last year and it got canceled late on Thursday night against Shanna Young because of a weight issue. So I was really happy to come in here and put it on in front of fans, finally get to show up and show out instead of just sitting in the crowd watching.”
Maverick on being ready for elevation
“I’m from Denver. I’ve been training in Denver now for two years. I think it’s a big advantage coming in here. I knew she’s from the Miami area or MMA Masters, wherever that is in Florida, and I knew that was going to be one advantage. But I was going in there expecting a 15-minute war, regardless. I was ready.”
Maverick on upsetting fans who bet on her fights
“(Social media threats and hate talk) been happening since the beginning. Last fight was worse than it’s ever been, I’d say, because of the money people bet on (me as a nearly 3-1 favorite). If somebody bets, it’s not my responsibility how much money you win or lose. It’s not like I’m getting a cut of it or else maybe I’d take a little bit of the empathy with it. But yeah, there was a lot of hate last time and I’m sure there will be the same people turning around saying they love me today. It’s an unforgiving sport. I’m prepared to have that every time I step in the cage and it’s happened since the beginning as an amateur. If you’re going to be in any kind of professional spotlight of any sort, you’re going to get that hate. I just always hope that it doesn’t actually come to fruition and keep myself protected at all times.”
Maverick on what she wants next
“I love money, and activity equals money, right? I want to get in there at least one more time by the end of the year, but I would like to spend holidays with my family. So if I can get in there early November, even October – I stay in shape. I stay ready. I keep my weight low, as you guys can see by the short notices I’ve had in the UFC, and I’m ready to do the same thing. If they offer me something in two weeks, I’m there.”
Maverick on her sister leaving her MMA journey behind
“She had a lot of thought going into it. My little sister is still a great training partner, no doubt. Maybe she’ll come back eventually. She’s only 19 years old. I’m not one of those people that’s going to be telling her to do it. If she doesn’t want to do it with her life, she has so much potential to do other things. I do as well. I hate it to say when a lot of people only have fighting as their future. She doesn’t, and I don’t. And if she doesn’t have it all going into this sport, just like anyone, if you aren’t putting everything into this sport every single day, you’re probably not going to make it to the top. This is not a sport that’s fun getting to the top. You’ve got to be poor, you’ve got to put in hours, you can’t spend time with family. You’ve kind of just got to go out on your own – be selfish, be uncaring about anything else other than putting your life on the line every day.”
Maverick on the moment Cachoeira tried to pull her top off
“There’s always concerns (with the eyes) – especially with this opponent. My dad (and coach) was like, ‘I’m going to jump over the cage if she pokes you in the eye.’ The Gillian Robertson fight, it was very intentional. (Cachoeira) tried to literally gouge (Robertson’s) eyes out. So we were very cautious. We sat back in the back and told the ref: ‘Please watch out for this.’ I’ve had retina surgeries in the past. I don’t really want to go blind in this sport. Although I love it and have given it my all every time, I don’t really want them to take my eyes from me in the process. So I was being careful. That was part of the reason I waited for the armbar and everything else.”
To hear more from Maverick, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 291.
