After an impressive performance in her flyweight debut, Jessica Andrade already has her sights set on becoming the next UFC Flyweight champion.
Andrade, a former UFC Women's Strawweight Champion, made quick work of the Flyweight division's No. 1 contender Katlyn Chookagian, scoring a first round TKO finish with an incredible body shot that left Chookagian doubled over in pain. Andrade made up for the height and reach disadvantage with her bullish attack style and had no trouble closing the distance with her opponent.
Andrade's power was on clear display as she forced Chookagian to the canvas multiple times in the first round. Although Chookagian suffered no major damage while on the ground, Andrade was making her presence felt.
As the round came to a close, Andrade caught Chookagian with a hard shot to the body. Chookagian let out a very audible yell in pain and attempted to back away but Andrade sticked with her and lanced another short hook to the body that sent Chookagian down to the canvas, doubled over in pain. The referee immediately stepped in and called a stop to the action at the 4:55 mark of Round 1.
Andrade now has wins in three different weight divisions (bantamweight, strawweight and flyweight), becoming the first woman in UFC to accomplish that feat. More important than making history, Andrade is hopeful she'll have a shot at the winner of the UFC women's flyweight championship fight between current champion Valentina Shevchenko and Jennifer Maia. The title bout is scheduled for November 21 at UFC 255.
"I hope I take (Chookagian)'s place in the rankings as number one, especially due to my history at 115 but I know there's a lot of other girls. But I'd love to be up there in the rankings," Andrade said after the fight.
Andrade is confident her style of fighting is a perfect counter to Shevchenko's disciplined approach.
“I think I can make a difference in this division,” Andrade said. “I think I can put up a fight against Valentina. It’s something that should have happened already in other organizations, so I think I’m going to make a difference and put on shows in this division.”