https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3Yd78MkSaNo
There are plenty of cookies to be had at 115 lbs, just ask Carla Esparza.
The former UFC strawweight champion says she does not have to adhere to a strict diet to make weight. She would, however, make the move to atomweight should the UFC ever implement the division.
Esparza, 30, speaks on the division ahead of her upcoming bout against Tatiana Suarez. She also opens up about her friendship with Ashlee Evans-Smith and what sort of cookies even the “Cookie Monster” won’t eat.
The following quotes have been condensed for clarity and concision.
Food Is Life for Carla Esparza
“I literally just ate a pizza,” Esparza tells the Pull No Punches hosts when asked if the strict diet is worth the highs of being a professional athlete. “I’m fighting in a weight class where if I ate the way Kajan [Johnson]eats, I would be fighting at 105. Since there isn’t a 105, I can eat whatever I want.”
Make no mistake, “Cookie Monster” takes her nickname seriously. “I think if I had to eat strictly for most of the time, I think it would be hard for me to want to keep doing the sport,” she confesses. “I would be miserable all the time.”
“If I had to eat ‘no this, no that’, just nonstop egg-whites and broccoli all the time, I would be like ‘this is not worth it,'” says Esparza.
Director James Gunn Controversy
Moving on to pop culture, Esparza and the hosts share their thoughts on the fallout between Disney and director James Gunn. Disney terminated Gunn’s contract after old, cringe-worthy jokes Gunn made resurfaced on Twitter. The “Guardians of the Galaxy” director showed remorse, insisting he has grown and no longer makes such remarks.
“That’s the way it is right now. You’re going to be held accountable for anything that you put out there, so you better be conscious of what you put out there,” says Esparza. “It sucks, but anything that you do you need to think about the future. Is it fair? No. Nobody is perfect all the time, but that is the way it is so you better be careful.”
Not All Cookies Are Created Equal
And perhaps most importantly, Esparza reveals she won’t just chow down on any old cookie: “something with fruit in it. Oatmeal raisin, cranberry, pineapple, is a no-no.”
Esparza will square off with Suarez on Sept. 3 at UFC 228. Defending UFC welterweight champion Tyron Woodley take son Darren Till in the main event. In the co-main, top contender Valentina Shevchenko looks to wrestle the women’s flyweight belt from inaugural champ Nicco Montano.
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