View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xALkklvf1F4
In a division struggling to attract new contenders for the legendary Amanda Nunes, 30-year-old Belo Horizonte native Norma Dumont intends to soar her way to the top at 135-pounds. That ascent gets the opportunity to continue come April 10.
"I think a decisive victory over Bea Malecki definitely will prove a lot in this division," Dumont told MyMMANews regarding her next bout. "After a win, I want to fight a top 15 - top 10 opponent. I think with time, I can slowly climb my way to the top. We're thinking five or six decisive wins and I can already see myself fighting for the title."
Still very early into her professional MMA career, the Brazilian Dumont boosted her record to 5-1 in November. Showcasing her skills violently against veteran presence Ashlee Evans-Smith would put the fellow bantamweights on notice.
However, Dumont's arrival to the UFC didn't come without its hiccups. Prior to her one-sided beating of Evans-Smith, a fight in which she missed weight for, Dumont was signed as a featherweight competitor. The promotional debut for the Sanda practitioner saw her fall to the next 145-pound challenger for the aforementioned Nunes, Megan Anderson.
"It's a difficult feeling to describe," Dumont said of her first UFC win. "It's a mix of emotions depending on when you're fighting but it's definitely a mix of great emotions, good feelings, and relief. I think the main emotion I felt was relief. When you get your first win in the organization, I feel that you begin feeling a part of the organization, you really feel at home. So I felt really relieved, and I feel like now the work really begins.
"With my defeat to Megan, I didn't really feel a loss. I felt I had learned something new. I felt I needed to evolve. I wanted to evolve from having this loss so I don't really know how I would have felt after if I would have won in that first fight against Megan. I think after a loss the feeling is that you want to improve yourself and continue working."
Continued: Norma Dumont aims to inject life into bantamweight, 'I can slowly climb my way to the top'
