Maycee Barber plans to make a statement in UFC 276 fight with Jessica Eye: “Prove my dominance in this division and pave my way to the title”

Maycee Barber always wanted to fight Jessica Eye and she now gets her wish.

After Barber defeated Montana De La Rosa, ‘The Future’ was offered a fight with ‘Evil Eye’ at UFC 276. Jessica had just lost her slated opponent Casey O’Neill, who was forced to pull out of the contest due to a torn ACL. Once the fight with Eye became official, Barber got right back into training camp.

“I think it was the day after my fight. We had been told that Casey O’Neill was going to be out and we didn’t know why. I had agreed to the fight right away but after that, I was told she might not be out,” Barber said on Just Scrap Radio on BJPENN.com. “I was like ‘well why isn’t she out?’ She then announced she was out and she tore her ACL, which honestly that is a sucky situation to be in. I do wish her the best in recovery, I know that it sucks, I know that it is not a fun recovery and not a fun thing to go through, and wish she was still fighting Jessica Eye. But, at the same time, I’m so excited about this opportunity and I can’t wait to go out there and beat Jessica Eye up.”

This is a fight that Maycee Barber had previously asked for following her win over Miranda Maverick last July. And although Jessica Eye expressed mutual interest, the fight never came to fruition.

Now a done deal, Barber is excited to share the Octagon with one of the females who helped shape women’s MMA. She also believes a win over Eye helps prove she is a legit contender in this division.

“We tried to fight not too long ago, I know I wanted to fight her before and I want to fight her now. It makes sense in the matchup and the rankings, it makes sense in the fact I’m young, I’m 23, she’s a little older and is a veteran and she had fought for the title,” Barber explained. “She has fought so many girls and Jessica Eye, to me, is one of those veterans of the sport who has been around for so long and has really helped to be a part of what MMA is for women. To go out there and put on a performance and fight her, I’m super excited and it will propel my career a lot farther. This is my time to shine and I’m excited to go out there and dominate.”

Not only is this fight against Eye at UFC 276 on July 2 a big one for Barber, but she believes if she can finish Eye it proves she is a future champ. Only Valentina Shevchenko has finished Eye and Barber believes she has all the skills to do the same.

“The only person to finish her is Valentina Shevchenko, to be able to go out there and finish someone that has fought Valentina for the title. It shows that I’m on my way up and prove my dominance in this division and pave my way to the title… I know I’m going to be a champion and be the champion of the 125lbs division,” Barber concluded.

Do you think Maycee Barber will finish Jessica Eye at UFC 276?