Viviane Araujo has no intention of letting Katlyn Chookagian fight go distance at UFC 262
Viviane Araujo is looking to take the fight right to Katlyn Chookagian.
Araujo (10-2 MMA, 4-1 UFC) meets former title challenger Chookagian on Saturday’s UFC 262 main card at Toyota Center in Houston and could find herself in title contention if she can get past the second-ranked UFC flyweight.
Araujo entered the UFC with a bang when she knocked out Talita Bernardo up two weight classes from her original strawweight home in May 2019. Since then, Araujo has won three of her past four, but all three wins have come by decision. The 34-year-old Brazilian intends on hunting for a finish against Chookagian (15-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC), whom she sees as a point fighter.
“I’m very focused on my next bout,” Araujo told MMA Junkie in Portuguese. “It’s super important to me. This is an excellent opportunity for me to continue climbing up the rankings of the flyweight division. I want to show how complete a fighter I am and that I’m here to stay. Katlyn is great at using her reach and keeping distance.
“She prefers to win by points through her striking. She doesn’t normally try to get a finish. Our strategy is based on that. Without a doubt, I’ll be very aggressive. I have no intent on letting it go to the judges. I’ll win by KO or submission. I’m working hard, and I expect to be very focused in pursuit of another victory.”
Araujo has faced top-level competition since joining the UFC roster. She’s coming off back-to-back wins over Montana De La Rosa and most recently former title challenger Roxanne Modafferi in January. Though she knows it’ll be hard to close the distance against the much taller Chookagian, Araujo plans on surprising everyone with her ground game.
“I’m putting emphasis on my wrestling so I can have effective takedowns and control the fight on the ground,” Araujo said. “I’m also working on my jiu-jitsu, which is my secret weapon since I haven’t had a chance to show it in the UFC yet. I’m a jiu-jitsu black belt. I hope to be able to demonstrate the quality of my ground technique. And I keep working on my boxing. I know I have heavy hands. I’m usually able to inflict damage on my opponents. I’m focusing on being precise. I know that Katlyn’s reach makes it hard for her opponents to touch her. But we’re working on that and expect to be victorious.