Undefeated and 'addicted to fighting,' CFFC 75's Miranda Granger anxious for her next hit
Miranda Granger admits it may sound odd, but she isn’t fighting just because she wants to – she does it because she needs to.
“As weird as it sounds, I’m addicted to fighting, so I need to get in there and get that hit of fighting again,” Granger told MMA Junkie. “I’m just excited. I’m really, really excited. I like pressure, so I feel like the more pressure, the better I do.”
Granger began her martial arts training at just 4 years old, in her native Washington. Beginning with taekwondo, Granger was a black belt by age 12. She remembers even back then thinking that fighting might be in her future.
“I saw girls kickboxing, and I remember just thinking, ‘Oh, I could do that,'” Granger said. “I was a pretty competitive, spunky little kid. I just remember that feeling. I always thought that I might move in that direction.”
There were some detours along the way. Granger remained active in athletics through her high school and college years, but martial arts was put on the back burner. Once school was done, though, she returned to the same gym where her training began, Charlie’s Combat Club.
“I started doing kickboxing classes just to stay in shape, and then I was like, ‘Oh, I’m actually pretty good at this,'” Granger said. “I took my first fight about a year later, and I went 10-0 as an amateur and now 5-0 as a pro, so I guess it’s working out for me.”
Indeed.
On Saturday, Granger (5-0) returns to the cage in the main event of CFFC 75, which streams on UFC Fight Pass from Spotlight 29 Casino in Coachella, Calif. She takes on Brazilian import Heloisa Azevedo (4-1) with the promotion’s inaugural strawweight title on the line.
Granger enters the cage with considerable hype building behind her. Five pro fights, five stoppage wins, including four in the first round.
While Granger credits her team, including the same coach she started training with at at age 4, Charles Pearson, “Danger” also believes her internal competitive drive has fueled her success thus far.
“I think I’ve fought girls who are tougher than me,” Granger said. “I think I’ve fought girls who are technically better than me, but I don’t think I’ve fought anyone with as much heart as me. I think my determination and just my will and want to win takes over, and I think it’s stronger than most girls out there. I think there’s a few girls at that top level that I’ve seen that in, but I just think that is lacking a lot, not just in female MMA but in MMA in general.
“I feel like people are going out there and they’re fighting and they’re doing what they need to do, but for me, it’s not just fighting. I am so competitive, and I just want to win, and a lot of my fights have been finished in the first round. Like I said, I look for that finish. Once I smell blood, I feel like it’s over. I can just feel them break a little bit. Once I see that, I know I’ve already won.”
An impressive performance on Saturday night could very well earn Granger a UFC invitation, but she insists she’s not looking past the task at hand. She also says she won’t be overly disappointed if the UFC isn’t where she fights next.
Bottom line, she’s going to fight, and feeding that addiction is priority No. 1.
“I definitely feel like (getting a UFC deal) is a possibility, but like I said, I’m taking one fight at a time,” Granger said. “If it doesn’t happen, I’m not going to be disappointed in myself. If it never happens, I’m not going to be disappointed in myself. I’m living out my dream and what I love to do every single day, so obviously, I would love to be there. That’s the top place. I think it’s a possibility, but right now my sights are just set on this fight.
“Every fight is a big moment. This obviously is the biggest so far. I’m excited.”
For more on CFFC 75, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.