UFC strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk tries to keep her emotions in-check throughout fight-week.
Saturday night after her flawless victory over Jessica Andrade at UFC 211, she had a moment.
Jedrzejczyk was asked about Kami Barzini departing from American Top Team during the post-fight press conference. After taking a second to think, she left the event and did not return.
During an appearance on The MMA Hour Monday, Jedrzejczyk explained what Barzini meant to her.
“It’s amazing how he changed my wrestling, how he changed my takedown defense,” Jedrzejczyk said (thanks to MMA Fighting for the quotes). “You can see that in my last fight. That’s the thing. I’d like to work with him. And he’s such a good person. He’s a master of wrestling — he’s my master. But he’s like such a good spirit. He’s like a doctor.”
Jedrzejczyk added that it was Barzini who started mentioning a move to ATT years ago while meeting up with the champion backstage at UFC events. The 29-year-old did say she plans to work with the wrestling guru despite his departure.
“Good people connect with good people and this is what happened with us,” Jedrzejczyk said. “Maybe I’m the baddest chick on the planet, maybe I’m the baddest woman in the Octagon, but I’m definitely emotional. I believe in people so badly and I love when people treat me the same way. It’s not just about the money.”
