MONTREAL — A wave of excitement hit UFC strawweight Randa Markos Saturday at UFC 186 as announcer Bruce Buffer revealed the Canadian had won a unanimous decision over fellow TUF 20 castmate Aisling Daly. Aside from earning her first official victory in the UFC, it also marked her first win since switching to part-time hours at her regular job where she works as a pharmacy technician. In her post fight speech, the Windsor native was quick to thank her teammates at Michigan Top Team, who have clearly helped elevate her skill set since she joined the American squad last year.
One advantage the MTT product had going into this fight was the aid of fellow teammate and UFC lightweight Daron Cruickshank, who served as one of her cornermen for the 115-pound bout. In her last fight – a loss to Jessica Penne at the TUF 20 Finale last December – Cruickshank was unable to corner her as he was competing on the same card as her against K.J Noons. Having someone like a UFC veteran in Cruickshank giving her advice proved very valuable to the 29-year-old.
“He’s an awesome athlete, he works really hard,” Markos told Sportsnet. “Just having him in my corner, just gives me more motivation. He knows what he’s doing, he knows what he’s talking about. I work with him every day at Michigan Top Team. His self-motivation kind of motivated me watching him train [and] fight.”
During her three-round affair with Daly, Markos appeared to be stronger than in previous bouts and much of that had to do with adding CrossFit to her strength and conditioning. In fact, Markos nearly ended the fight in the opening stanza, as she out muscled her Irish foe to the ground and secured an arm-triangle choke from half guard, however Daly survived. Along with adding muscle, Markos revealed that CrossFit actually aided her flexibility, which was on display at the Bell Centre.
“She [was] very slippery, flexible, I had [the submission] for a bit but I felt her slipping out. [Then] I was like I’m going to get [my positioning in] a better situation, rather than giving up my back or something like that. Being stronger definitely helps, but the flexibility I think is a big thing that helps. I’m not very flexible but I’m working on it.”
Currently the strawweight division appears to be wide open and Markos doesn’t want to waste any time sitting on the sidelines. While she admitted she wouldn’t rush back into anything, she does want to keep active and make a run for the title in 2015.
“I’m not getting any younger.” Markos laughed. “I want to [compete in MMA] much as I can. I want to climb to the top as fast as I can. I’m not looking to jump in right away, just whatever comes my way I’m not going to put it down.”
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