On April 28 at UFC Vegas 91, former KSW Brazilian champion Ariane Lipski, who is on a three-fight win streak, will fight undefeated UFC compatriot Karine Silva.
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In an exclusive interview with Telecomasia.net, Lipski shared:
- her experiences during the Polish stage of her career;
- what helped her change her approach to training and go on a winning streak;
- her feelings about fighting her countrywomen;
- her thoughts on the Valentina Shevchenko vs Alexa Grasso trilogy;
- why she changed her nickname;
- who is the greatest star of women's MMA in her opinion.
"When I gave my life to Jesus, He filled me with confidence"
- You have Polish roots and you’ve spent part of your career in that country. Do you have relatives in Poland or any connection to the country?
- I don't have relatives there, all my family is in Brazil. But I know they are from Poland, and I have fans there. I have a fan club in Poland that sends me messages all the time. I also try to keep in touch with them when I have time because when I have a training camp, I'm very busy. Poland lives in my heart. I wish to return to Poland again one day.
– KSW league is very popular in Poland and their fights sell out stadiums. Did you feel like a big star when you performed there?
- Yes, fighting at KSW was great. Everything was running perfectly there. It was a moment in my life when it felt like I was dreaming, so amazing it was. The fans, my excellent performances. I got a belt there and it was my first belt in MMA. I became champion and defended my belt. I fought five rounds and got a lot of experience. I traveled around Poland and Europe, found new places and new people. It was amazing. I love Poland and KSW and all the experience from there.
- Now you are on a three-win streak. What changes in your training have helped you reach this level?
- First of all, if we talk about training, there was more technique and tactics than before. I figured out how I work and how I need to work in the training camp. I didn't feel comfortable in big gyms with lots of coaches and sparring partners. I like more personalized workouts. My head coach Renato Silva takes care of everything. He brings the right people to work with me. That's why I have a jiu-jitsu coach, Jasmine Rocha. She's young, but she's a really good coach. And she also competes. She doesn't only teach me, she trains with me. It's great to have sparring partners in my workouts that work specifically with me. Renato is my strength coach, my fitness coach, my nutrition coach. Everything is focused exclusively on me. And that's the path I've been following for the last three fights.
Bet on MMA with 1xBetThat's the way we worked in Brazil as well, but there I didn't have the sparring partners I needed, like grapplers and wrestlers. So we moved to the United States and now we have found a way to make it work. But there's a big difference in mental and spiritual preparation because I felt something was blocking me from showing good performances in the UFC.
When I finally found myself and found my purpose, when I gave my life to Jesus, He filled me with confidence in what I was doing and why. It makes my training and fights full of joy. Fighting with purpose, with confidence in the plans He has for me.
- What do you think about your opponent Karine Silva? What advantage do you have over her?
- I consider myself a more experienced and versatile fighter and I'm going to use that in the fight to win. She has good offensive grappling. She always tries to make her opponent surrender. I’ve prepared for all of this, of course. But I have always trained for fights with the best in my weight class, and I am ready for grappling, ready for striking, and truly focused on my goal - to deliver an excellent performance in this fight, and to show that I am ready to reach the top.
"I knew that Grasso would beat Shevchenko"
- Does it make a difference for you whether you fight against your countrywomen or against fighters from other countries?
- For me, there is no difference when it comes to fights, I am a fighter. But, of course, I don't like fighting Brazilians. I know how hard it is for Brazilians to just be in the UFC because everything is much harder in Brazil than in other countries. I don't like this, but Silva is in the UFC, and I am in the UFC, we are both good athletes, and there are already so many Brazilians in my weight class that I wouldn't want to fight. But I have a goal, and I just need to do my job.
- You train at the American Top Team. MMA fighter Yana Santos said they should be called the Russian and Brazilian Top Team. Do you agree with her?
- Yes, there are indeed many Russians and Brazilians there. They might need to consider a name change.
- What do you think about the trilogy between Valentina Shevchenko and Alexa Grasso?
- I think it will be a fantastic fight. The first fight was very good. Valentina was winning it, and Grasso caught her with a submission and surprised everyone. But I knew she would win that fight. I understood it would be tough, but I knew she had the skills to win that fight. I agree with the result of the second fight, I just disagree with the score the judges gave. Each of them took two rounds, and another one was really close. Each of them could have won that fight, that round, so I believe the result was fair, but I disagree with the score. I’m looking forward to the third fight. Both athletes injured their hands in the last fight, so let's see how they recover and how they approach the fight mentally and physically. I saw that Valentina chose a different mental strategy. She was angrier, very angry before the fight. Now she's so nice. She's trying to be friendlier with Alexa. She changed something in her mind. She always follows through with what she planned. Let's see if it works. Let's see what happens.
«Pereira is the best p4p fighter»
- Who is your favorite Russian fighter?
I like those who are truly making progress. Right now, it's the champion Islam Makhachev. He has really improved his striking. He has always been a great wrestler, but I see real progress in his striking technique. I see how he is becoming more versatile. Khabib was a great fighter, but I see a difference in the new generation represented by Islam. The way he fights, how he has improved his striking. He is more versatile.
- Who do you think is the best fighter regardless of weight category?
It's hard to say. I think the best pound-for-pound fighter is Alex Pereira. I think if he fought in the heavyweight division and took the title, there would be no questions at all.
- How did you get the nickname "Queen of Violence"?
It was when I was fighting in the Polish KSW league. I had two or three consecutive knockout victories. I didn't have a nickname then, so they had to come up with one when I was fighting for the belt. Fans chose this nickname for me. I liked it. It was a great moment in my career. But now I have changed that nickname to just "Queen", and it's a new moment in my career. I got that nickname when I fought for the sake of violence, and now I’m fighting for my goal, so I decided to change the nickname and just be the "Queen.
- When Amanda Nunes left, who became the biggest star in women's MMA?
Of course, Cris Cyborg. Yes, she lost to Amanda, like everyone else. But she is really good. We saw how the fight unfolded and everything that was done there, but Amanda is not fighting anymore. If you look at Cris Cyborg's entire career, where she has been, what she has done, and continues to do for MMA and other sports, even boxing, she is unmatched as a fighter.
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