This Saturday, during OKTAGON 74, Cecilia Bolander will face her first title defense. After recently defeating the first Czech woman in the UFC, Lucie Pudilová, she now aims to stop the winning streak of Slovakia's “Silent Killer” Lucia Szabová. How is her preparation going? And what does she expect from her fight at Štvanice? Find out all this and more in our interview.

Hi Cecilia, thanks for your time. How are you feeling right now? Is your preparation going as planned?

Absolutely! The preparation is going really well. My body is fit, my mind is fit. Everything is going according to plan. Way better than the last two fights.

The last fight against Pudilová was quite tough—how long did it take you to get back into training?

Well, I don’t really know why my face looked so beaten (laughs). But actually, I got a staphylococcal infection and ended up in the hospital for about five days. Now, however, I’ve sorted out all my health issues and feel much better. I guess you could say you saw me at rock bottom, so from here on, it can only go up.

How did you celebrate winning the title? And how did your surroundings react?

I celebrated with close friends and family. When we flew home, we were greeted with flowers and cake, then we went to a club and that was it. We just enjoyed life for a bit. Personally, it’s not that big of a deal for me. I just want to have good fights, and I want to see myself evolve. Honestly, I’m not that proud of the last fight, so I didn’t feel the need to celebrate too much.

Of course, you’ve gained more fans and media attention. Have you noticed this back home in Norway?

After the fight, I did get a bit of attention, but unfortunately not much more than when I was still an amateur. It’s still not that easy to spread success in MMA here because it’s illegal. It’s not part of the Norwegian sports system, so people don’t really know about it, and it’s hard for them to get behind the hype. I hope that will change in the future.

I know MMA isn’t that popular in Norway, and organizing events is even banned. What was it like for you to stand in the Eden stadium in front of so many fans?

It was so much fun! I love the connection with the fans, and I love it when even just one person moves to my song or just vibes with it. I love it, and seeing others enjoy it too – that’s probably the closest I get to pure happiness and bliss.

In an interview, you mentioned that through your success, you’d like to help change the perception of MMA in your country. Do you think that change is happening?

I think that change will happen slowly, and hopefully, one day it will be legalized. I feel like I’m playing my part in it. We need someone who doesn’t represent the “gangster” style, I would say. I’m just me, and I represent myself. I don’t want to act like something I’m not. So I think just being myself and constantly improving is the best way to get people to focus on it, so eventually, it gets legalized in Norway.

You’ll soon experience the atmosphere of a summer tournament under the open sky in the cage. How are you looking forward to that?

I’M SO EXCITED! I hope it will meet all the expectations. I’m an athlete who loves the fans, I love the noise, the crazy music, the lights – basically everything. I love that part of the game, so I’m really excited.

At Štvanice, you’ll face your first title defense against the undefeated Szabová. How do you view your opponent?

I’m super excited to meet her. I wouldn’t say I’m threatened. I think it’s a really good matchup. I think both of us have roughly the same skill levels, and then I would say I’m way stronger and probably in better condition, so I just can’t wait to get in there and prove it.

How do you generally prepare for your opponents? Do you watch their fights, or do you prefer to focus on yourself?

I mostly focus on myself, but of course, my team watches her fights, and I also watch some fights, and we aim for the style we need for that particular fighter. But I still have a lot of areas I need to work on myself, so most of my time goes into working on myself.

Now, stepping away from MMA for a moment – on Instagram, you have several photos in traditional costumes. How did you get into that? Is it a family tradition? What do you enjoy about it?

Where I’m from, every girl has one. It’s called bunad and it’s the national dress. The one I have was made by my mom from scratch. Every stitch you see was made by my mom, so it means a lot to me. And when I put it on, I feel really good, really beautiful. It’s a Norwegian tradition that has been around for decades. You also usually wear the one that represents your region.

I assume you follow OKTAGON events. Is there any fighter you never miss? What do you enjoy about their fights?

To be honest, I’m not a huge fan in terms of watching the fights. I spend a lot of time doing MMA, and I usually don’t have the need to watch it so much. But I love it when we watch it with my friends in a group. And I’m a fan of anyone who knows how to entertain.

Finally, what would you like to say to OKTAGON fans who are planning to come to Štvanice?

It doesn’t really matter if you cheer for me or not. I just really hope you enjoy the event, and that I will satisfy every need you have when it comes to watching MMA. And I’m not letting you leave the arena not entertained. That will never happen as long as I’m on the card. I’m really excited to see everyone, and I can’t wait!

FIGHTER’S STORY: UNDEFEATED SZABOVÁ CHALLENGES CHAMPION CECILIA BOLANDER

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