The phone rang and had a decision to make: did she want to face Marina Rodriguez in a short-notice main event in a little over a week?
After halting a two-fight skid with a split decision win over Angela Hill in September, the 35-year-old veteran withdrew from a January date opposite Amanda Ribas in order to grieve and spent time with her family following the loss of two family members. She was replaced by Rodriguez, who halted her fellow Brazilian’s meteoric ascent up the strawweight rankings with a second-round knockout that allowed her to leapfrog both Ribas and Waterson in the rankings.