Alyse Anderson gets a shot at redemption in front of a crowd of her compatriots when she returns to Colorado for ONE 168: Denver on Friday, Sep. 6.
The American star has been absent from the scene since her defeat to Stamp Fairtex at ONE Fight Night 10. But her atomweight MMA bout against Victoria Souza at ONE Championship’s U.S. return has been an honor and boost, and she’s ready to make the most of it.
“It meant a lot to see the promotion get behind me in the United States. It made me feel really good and positive. That’s giving me that much more of a push to give my best and get the best result,” Anderson stated to ONE.
Souza is looking to springboard into title contention with another win after she upset Itsuki Hirata at ONE 167 this past June.
A second-straight victory could put her in the mix, but Anderson plans to stifle her foe’s offense by utilizing her physical advantages.
“I know she has some kickboxing fights, and she has good grappling. She’s the shorter, more explosive type of fighter. I think she has lots of strengths and kind of bulldozes in, and it’s just going to be a matter of keeping my range and definitely working the straight punches to keep her on the outside,” she remarked.
After seeing how Souza storms out, “Lil’ Savage” is expecting a quick match in Denver.
She wants to meet that aggression with her own, assert her dominance, and return to form to erase the bitter taste of her last loss.
“I feel like it’s going to be pretty quick, especially because of the elevation. You just want to get in and out. Watching her last fight, it was pretty quick, so I see that she doesn’t mind starting quickly as well. I don’t really see a feeling-out process,” Anderson said.
“I don’t want to put an exact prediction on it. I just know that I’m going to come out on top because of the work that I’ve been putting in, but I’ll probably end up getting a submission with how much grappling I’ve been working.”
Victory is important to achieve for Anderson and her career, but she’ll also be fighting for something equally meaningful.
After her father’s cancer diagnosis, the talented atomweight wants to bring him joy by showcasing her skills in front of a global viewing audience.
“When my dad got diagnosed, I for sure thought I was going to pull out of the fight, move home, and quit fighting in June. So, to go home for two weeks and have my dad tell me, ‘I don’t want you to give up, get back to Vegas, get back to work, and just get right back into it,’ it gave me the push to keep going. I just want to do my best on September 6,” Anderson admitted.
“Right now, he sees it as us both in our own fight. He thinks it’s cool, and he’s excited about it. So, if I can keep him motivated to keep fighting, then I’m going to just keep on poking along as best as I can for him.”
With family and redemption in mind, ONE 168 is shaping up to be “Lil’ Savage’s” most significant bout to date.
She is honoring her father by competing, and a win will be something they can revel in together.
“He’s super excited [for my fight]. He feels like all of our family has been so focused on his cancer treatment that it’s been taking away from me having a fight coming up. I’ve tried to tell him that I don’t care at all about that, but it’s important to him,” Anderson said.
“When he does talk about it, he will start to cry because it’s just something for him to look forward to while we’re going through not the best situation.”
“I think that if I win this fight it would bring my dad so much joy and happiness because all he wants is to see me happy. With him being a martial artist, I just know he’s so proud, and I want to honor him in every way.”
ONE 168: Denver airs live and free at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Friday, Sep. 6, on Prime Video.