Thanksgiving certainly came early for one Irish native over in the US as Aisling Daly took on another opponent only to retain her deserved title.
By Fergus Ryan
Winning a title or championship fight is a phenomenal achievement. If you can back that achievement with a title defence then you remove any doubt about whether you deserve to be champion or not. Aisling Daly (13-2) has done just that after another successful trip stateside, one that saw her returning home with her title.
In June this year Aisling became Ireland’s most successful MMA fighter by clinching the North American Allied Fight Series (NAAFS) 125lbs ladies title. In doing this she became Ireland’s first MMA world title holder and guaranteed herself a return visit to the US and a shot at some of the big promotions.
Aisling was signed to fight local favourite Jessica Eye (5-1) for the NAAFS 125lbs ladies title shortly before losing for only the 2nd time in her 14 fight career. It was also the first time Aisling was knocked-out. The NAAFS match-makers possibly thought Aisling might be a nice scalp for Jessica Eye.
If you consider that Aisling was well beaten in her previous fight, loosing 1-2 in her previous 3 fights and had been beaten in her only other fight in the US, they may have put the Irish fighter down as a soft touch. Little did they know that the Irish competitors tend to prefer the underdog status and relish the Rocky-esque come-from-behind victories.
Since beating Eye to capture the title Aisling has worked hard on improving her game. In addition to countless hours spent in the gym, Aisling has competed in some individual aspects of MMA. She made a successful debut in the kickboxing ring in October and later in the month won the British No Gi Open at Purple Belt division.
Aisling Daly discusses pre-fight feelings
Last night Aisling fought Kelly Warren (3-0) at NAAFS ‘Night of Champions’ in Ohio. Proving that hard work pays off, Aisling was victorious in her first defence last night, winning by armbar in the second round. It couldn’t have come at a better time, as women’s MMA in US is rising in popularity thanks to fighters like Gina Carano, Miesha Tate and most recently Rhonda Rousey. It seems inevitable that Aisling will get to fight some of the biggest names in the sport now.
She had been booked to fight veteran Roxanne Modaferri before the title defence was scheduled by NAAFS. Jessica Eye who also won last night in Ohio has indicated she would like a re-match. Eye made the jump to Bellator after losing to Aisling in June, winning her fight at Bellator 51. To remove any doubt about where Aisling believes her future lies she demanded in her in-ring post fight interview that Bellator give her a slot in the 125lb ladies tournament being planned for 2012.
Aisling Daly in-ring interview after defending her NAAFS 125lbs title.
Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney has already indicated the tournament may include the likes of Zoila Gurgel (11-1), Megumi Fujii (24-1), Rosi Sexton (12-2) and Jessica Aguilar (11-4). When JOE first spoke to Aisling, she described her career goal as getting to the top of her weight class. Taking part in the Bellator tournament would certainly be a big step in achieving this goal. Winning and defending the NAAFS title will have served notice to the rest of the division that Aisling Daly deserves to fight the best.
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