Lauren Murphy is coming off of a second-round submission win over Liliya Shakirova at UFC 254 and the victorious fighter knows what she wants next.
A victorious Murphy, who is ranked no. 5 in the women’s flyweight division, wants a shot at the UFC women’s flyweight title.
“I want a title shot next. I want a shot at the champion, whoever that may be. I yelled at the media to stop overlooking me. Stop overlooking me. I’m ranked No. 5 right now. What is that?… Hopefully everyone will stop overlooking me. Almost my whole career, I’ve been the underdog. People have looked past me, and I think that’s going to stop now. I’ve really grown into myself as an athlete. I’m a veteran in this game. I’ve seen it all, I’ve done it all and I think people are not going to look past me anymore,” Murphy said after UFC 254 (via Matt Erickson & John Morgan of MMA Junkie).
Valentina Shevchenko is the current UFC women’s flyweight champion and she defends the gold next month against Jennifer Maia at UFC 255. Murphy also says her confidence is at an all-time high right now due to the people around her.
“It feels great. My confidence is probably the No. 1 thing that I’ve improved. My striking is the second thing that I’ve improved the most. Just going through the process and staying clam has been huge. I’ve gotten a ton of help. It takes a village to make a fighter. I utilize the best of the best in every aspect. I have the best sports psychologist, the best nutritionist, the best strength and conditioning. I have the best striking coaches, the best grappling coaches. Literally, I hand-picked a team to be around me that is the best of the best, and I think it’s showing,” says Murphy.
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