UFC fighter’s sister to compete for wrestling bronze at Paris Olympics, eyes MMA career in future
UFC strawweight Loopy Godinez represents Mexico when she steps into the octagon but on Aug. 10, her sister will be wrestling for Canada. Ana Godinez, the UFC fighter's younger sister, will wrestle Grace Bullen of Norway for the bronze medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics.
While her focus is currently on wrestling, Ana has mentioned that she wants to follow in her sister's footsteps and transition to MMA. Godinez is unsure when she plans to fully make the career move but often spends part of her time training with Loopy.
Ana Godinez competes in the 62kg division, a weight class that resembles that of the UFC bantamweight division, making her roughly 20 pounds bigger than her older sister. It is unclear if she plans to begin her MMA career in that same division or drop down in weight.
The family's middle sister, Karla Godinez, is also a Canadian wrestler but did not qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Karla is a former World Wrestling Championship bronze medalist.
Did Loopy Godinez wrestle before becoming a UFC fighter?
Like her sisters Karla and Ana, Loopy Godinez is a strong wrestler and uses that martial art as her base in MMA. However, unlike her two younger sisters, Loopy did not compete in wrestling on a national or international stage.
Instead, the 30-year-old recalls carving out her path to the UFC after initially practicing Judo and eventually transitioning to Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Loopy eventually made her MMA debut in 2018 and quickly fought her way into the LFA, where she became the women's strawweight champion in 2020 and was signed by the UFC shortly after.
Since debuting in the UFC in 2021, Loopy Godinez has been one of the most active female fighters on the roster. She has fought 12 times, while also earning the record for the fastest turnaround in UFC history by competing twice in seven days.