UFC’s Megan Anderson says MMA helped her ‘deal with my demons’, and now all roads lead to Amanda Nunes
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The buzz had been building around featherweight prospect Megan Anderson before the UFC took its enforced break because of the coronavirus crisis, with the Australian delivering a first-round knockout of Brazil’s Norma Dumont Viana that may well have altered the trajectory of her fight career.
At 30, and with an 11-4 record that includes back-to-back wins with the UFC, Anderson looks set for a collision course with reigning champ Amanda “Lioness” Nunes (19-4), holder also of the bantamweight belt and ranked No 1, pound-for-pound, among all women.
It’s a daunting enough prospect on paper, let alone when considering the real-life prospect of facing down the 31-year-old Brazilian phenom inside the Octagon.
“The road leads to Amanda,” says Anderson. “I’m not a traditional boxer or Muay Thai fighter. I stance switch. I set traps. I constantly change my timing and am offbeat on my punches. People think I’m slow, but I don’t think so. I just move differently. I’m constantly mixing it up and what I can match Amanda with is power. That will be the game-changer.”
What makes Anderson’s rise to prominence with the UFC all the more remarkable is the battles she has faced outside the cage, and how openly – and publicly – she now embraces those struggles.