NICOLINI: “POLARIS ARE GIVING ME A PLATFORM TO FIGHT”

Hear from 8x World Champion, Michelle Nicolini, ahead of her Polaris Pro fight against Angelica Galvao.

Hi Michelle, so you must be pretty excited to be fighting at the first Polaris Pro Jiu Jitsu Invitational?

I am really excited about it! The organisers worked really hard trying to find a good opponent for me, so it’s great to be fighting Angelica Galvao and to be on the first Polaris show.

Have you fought Angelica before?

We have fought once before yes in Abu Dhabi at the World Pro. I managed to catch her with a footlock then actually.

You were involved in the only female Metamoris match to date, so do you think it’s important that there is a platform for elite female jiu jitsu fighters to showcase their skills?

I think it’s really important yes. People keep sending me messages saying I should fight Metamoris again, but it’s not my decision. I think Mackenzie (Dern) and I did a really great job when we fought on Metamoris, so I don’t understand why we couldn’t fight again. So now we have Polaris, which is great – I’m really happy that Polaris are giving me a platform to fight.

I am looking forward to putting on a great fight, doing my best and I hope that everyone will enjoy the show.

Are you excited to be fighting such a big event in Europe?

I think it’s going to be really awesome actually. All my guys from London Fight Factory and my team will be there, it’s going to be in a great venue and I think it’s an event people can really get excited about.

Do you think submission only suits you?

I really like both actually. Submission only is really nice, and I love being able to go for heel hooks and things like that. I don’t know the exact rules yet, so I’ll wait and see if I’ll be able to use them!

Do you enjoy fighting at big events like Polaris Pro, where the athletes take centre stage, one fight at a time?

I think this sort of format makes the athletes feel very special, because it’s not like a competition - it’s like a show. Everyone is looking forward to a particular fight, cheering for their teammates and hoping for submissions. I think it’s an amazing event and I really look forward to competing.

For more details on the debut Polaris show visit www.polaris-pro.org or book your tickets HERE.

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