Juliana Lima on UFC debut: Additional weight-cutting time made matters worse

Juliana Lima didn’t officially make weight for her UFC debut, but when she was given the customary additional time to reach the 116-pound limit, she said it simply made matters worse.

Lima weighed 117 pounds on her first attempt on the scale for a UFC on FOX 12 bout with Joanna Jedrzejczyk. She got down to 116.5 pounds, but Lima said the additional time actually worked against her.

“For the first time in my life, I didn’t make weight,” said Lima, who returns tonight at UFC Fight Night 56. “It had never happened before. Actually, it did happen, but it was my opponents who came in heavy.

“For the first time, my body wouldn’t respond, and I was one pound away from target on weigh-in day. I was not able to perspire anymore. I was given two additional hours to lose that pound, and that was even worse. I took my body to the limit. I had been very confident beforehand. I was very well-trained. It was one of the best camps of my life. But I won’t blame the weight cut for my loss. Joanna Jedrzejczyk was simply the better fighter that night.”

Lima (6-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC) actually withdrew from her planned participation in “The Ultimate Fighter 20? earlier this year. She had concerns about consistently making the 116-pound limit during an extended period of time, so she opted for the non-“TUF” route to the UFC’s newest weight class.

She returns tonight to fight Nina Andaroff (6-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC) in the FOX Sports 1-televised main-card opener at Ginasio Municipal Tancredo Neves in Uberlandia, Minas Gerais, Brazil. Andaroff said she’s never lost a fight in her home state, and despite the recent defeat, she left her UFC debut with some confidence.

“I was actually satisfied with my performance,” she said. “The first round was very competitive. She clearly won the second. Some people thought I was going to be knocked out. But on the third round, I gave everything I had. It was all heart.

“Overall, it was a very emotional moment, to be stepping into the world’s most famous fight cage for the first time. Despite the end result, it was a great experience for me. I feel very thankful. I know this will strengthen me going into the future.”

Still, she wonders what would’ve been if she didn’t experience the weight problems. Lima said she and fellow UFC on FOX 12 fighter Matt Brown both dealt with some confusion at the event’s weigh-ins.

“Neither I nor Matt Brown had to pay a fine (for missing weight),” she said. “We were supposed to have two hours to lose the weight, and the athletic commission changed it to one hour only. (UFC President) Dana White got together with us. He said that the commission was wrong to only give us one hour.

“From a psychological point of view, it is tough since all you can think about when stepping on the scale is rehydrating as soon as possible. It’s frustrating to have to go back and lose yet more weight. It unclear if I lost the fight because of the weight problem, because she was the better fighter, or both. We only know that the end result was not what we expected, and now we have to do better.”

Lima, who did the bulk of her recent preparations at Renzo Gracie’s academy, returned to Brazil to wrap up camp.

On Friday she successfully made weight. Now, with the UFC’s new 115-pound women’s division still in its early stages, she’s hoping to stand out and eventually fight the inaugural champion, who will be crowned at the conclusion of “TUF 20? in December.

“It’s going to be a war,” She said. “I’m training boxing, muay Thai, takedown defense and takedowns. I’m going to be at home. It’s going to be hell for her. I’m going to be very aggressive.”

For more on UFC Fight Night 56, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.