Alexa Grasso thinks being matched up with Manon Fiorot makes perfect sense.
Former flyweight champion Grasso (17-5-1 MMA, 9-5-1 UFC) takes on ex-title challenger Fiorot (13-2 MMA, 8-1 UFC) on Saturday's UFC Fight Night 288 (Paramount+) main card at Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Ariz.
"I think it's a fight that has to be," Grasso told MMA Junkie of Fiorot. "She's No. 2, I'm No. 3. We both fought for the title, we both want to fight for the title again. So, great fighter, she's a tough opponent. I love that. I love challenges. You know that I love challenges because they make me grow and they can make me better like so much. I'm excited for this, and I can't wait. I can't wait to perform on (Saturday)."
Valentina Shevchenko (26-4-1 MMA, 15-3-1
UFC) just relinquished her UFC flyweight title due to injury, and Natalia Silva will take on Wang Cong for the vacant belt in the UFC 332 headliner Oct. 3 at Delta Center in Salt Lake City (Paramount+/CBS). Grasso isn't sure if beating Fiorot makes her next in line, but it'll definitely put her in the title conversation.
"I never like to pass through the thing that I have in front of me, which is Manon Fiorot this (Saturday). But I do know that having a good performance could keep me closer to the goal, the biggest goal that I want," Grasso said. "So, I just have (Saturday), Noche UFC, Manon Fiorot. It's also a big challenge for me, too, because last fight was amazing.
"I have to break my own expected things. It's hard to break your own expected things and your own records. I'm just happy to be able to do what I love every single day. I love my job. I love to wake up every single day to do what I have to do because I love this. I'm just happy and excited, and can't wait to be there in that octagon that night."
Grasso found her self in a must-win situation heading into the Maycee Barber fight in March after losing two in a row to Shevchenko and Silva. Not only did she rebound, but she pulled off one of the most spectacular finishes of 2026.
"Of course, losing is never nice, but I knew the conditions," Grasso said. "I was coming back from a foot injury, of course, I was not able to do many things that I wish I could have done better. But the thing I've learned that no matter what conditions, even if I'm not at my 100 percent, I'm always in there. I always put on a fight. I'm always dangerous.
"Even if I didn't train the best I could have, I'm always in there, and I'm always looking for the fight. That's something that I'm proud of myself. You can never see a boring fight of me, never – even if I'm not healthy. That's something that I love, and I'm just happy to be able to be healthy, to be in the cage healthy, to not have any injuries or previous surgeries."
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: Alexa Grasso says Manon Fiorot a fight that had to happen: 'I'm always dangerous'
