The 'Female Khabib'? Undefeated UFC star Tatiana Suarez talks about the fan-given nickname and its impactÂ
Tatiana Suarez doesn't mind being called the 'Female Khabib' and recently discussed the fan-given monicker. Suarez is among the fastest-rising women's strawweight contenders and is widely known for her dominant grappling-heavy fighting style.
Suarez recently defeated Jessica Andrade via second-round submission at UFC on ESPN 50 in Nashville last weekend.
The win extended her incredible undefeated record to 10-0 and propelled her into the top-five ranks of the women's strawweight division.
Tatiana Suarez was just way too much for Andrade, she looked incredible pic.twitter.com/QVtZ7AnLgd
With five submission wins in ten outings, it's unsurprising to see Tatiana Suarez being called the 'Female Khabib.' Considering Khabib Nurmagomedov's legendary run as the lightweight champion and his unmatched grappling skills, Suarez believes her nickname is an homage to the Dagestani fighter.
In a recent interview with James Lynch for MiddleEasy, Suarez was asked how she felt about her fan-given nickname. She replied:
"Obviously, it's not a disrespectful name. I'm very humble in the sense that if they wanted to call me that, I don't mind that. I think the guy is amazing. He's retired undefeated, a world champion, and he was a dominant champion. So, I don't think that there's anything that they really could call me that would be any better."
Catch Suarez's comments below (27:18):
Tatiana Suarez on Islam Makhachev vs. Charles Oliveira
In the same interview, Tatiana Suarez shared her thoughts on the upcoming lightweight title fight between Islam Makhachev and Charles Oliveira.
Makhachev and Oliveira are set to fight each other for a second time in a lightweight title fight at UFC 294. Their highly anticipated rematch is set to go down on October 21 at the Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi.
In their first meeting at UFC 280 last October, Makhachev dominated 'Du Bronx' to a second-round submission victory to claim the vacant lightweight title.
Islam Makhachev will defend his lightweight title against Charles Oliveira in a rematch at UFC 294, Dana White announced. pic.twitter.com/cnTOSZ7AMH
In the same interview with MiddleEasy, Tatiana Suarez claimed she sees Islam Makhachev retaining his title. She stated:
"I think I'm going to go with Islam again. I mean, they're both so great. I mean, Charles Oliveira, look at all the submissions he has. Very, very impressive resume. But I just think that Islam's going to get it done."
She continued to break down what changes the Dagestani grappling maestro might have to make going into this rematch and stated:
"I'm just hoping that his rehydration process is a little better. He looked a little drained in his last fight. I think he could've done a little bit better."