What happens when you volunteer to be a UFC ring card girl, and you get a yes

Michelle Nguyen

Usually, UFC fans ask for tickets or a picture when UFC President Dana White does a Q&A. The gutsy ones ask to walk out with fighters or wrap the belt around a champ.

Michelle Nguyen, 27, wanted something a little different. She wanted to be an Octagon Girl at UFC 193.

“It was my boyfriend’s birthday, so I wanted to do something truly memorable,” she told MMAjunkie.

Luckily for her, White was in a giving mood at a fan village set up outside the 70,000-capacity Etihad Stadium for the pay-per-view event. One lucky one got to put the belt around women’s strawweight champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk. Nguyen stepped up to the mic and made her request.

White didn’t miss a beat: “Yeah. What the hell.”

Nguyen, who has her own media company in her home city of Hong Kong, met up afterward with the UFC executive, who told her to have some fun.

Kahili Blundell, Michelle Nguyen and Kristie Pearson

UFC ring card girls are instantly scrutinized on the promotion’s cage apron. They draw very audible catcalls and other colorful language. Successful ones, however, become stars in the their own right, working as pin-up models and on-air hosts in addition to traveling around the world as they mark the rounds.

Don’t worry if you “stack it,” Nguyen’s boyfriend told her – there are only millions watching around the world.

The morning of the event, she reported for duty. Her fight was a flyweight clash between Ben Nguyen and Ryan Benoit.

“I had a rehearsal with the operations manager,” Michelle Nguyen said. “I joined the other Octagon Girls to have makeup done and get briefed. Everyone at the UFC was super friendly and supportive.”

The job was a piece of cake – she managed to get around the cage without falling into event staff outside it. Ben Nguyen made quick work of Benoit, submitting him in the first round via rear-naked choke. The two ring card girls assigned to UFC 193, Kristie Pearson and Kahili Blundell, took over from there and did their usual thing.

Later that night, a quartet of top women’s MMA fighters headlined the record-breaking event. The UFC saw its biggest upset to date when former boxing and kickboxing champ Holly Holm knocked out Ronda Rousey with a head kick to capture the women’s bantamweight title.

Nguyen saw it all, but from a different perspective.

Has she found a new calling?

“Ha! I wouldn’t turn down a side job,” Nguyen said. “Maybe you can start a petition and have a word with Dana.”

For complete coverage of UFC 193, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

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