Stephanie Egger: “It’s a Dream Come True”
For many, competing in the UFC is the pinnacle of MMA competition. One of those who has finally reached the mountain top and will compete this weekend at UFC Fight Night is Swiss women’s bantamweight, Stephanie Egger. Currently 5-1 with bouts in Invicta FC and Rizin, the judo practioner has shown her ability already to compete with the best around the world. Now she will be placed on the ultimate platform with a chance to ascend to the top of the women’s bantamweight division.
Impressive Grappling Career
As with most MMA fighters, there is a particular form of combat that introduces them to the sport. For Egger, it was judo. Egger has 12 national and international gold medals along with several silver and bronze medals throughout her time in Judo. In the world of Judo, Egger is also 1-1 against arguably the most popular Judoka-turned-MMA fighter, Ronda Rousey. The longtime black belt competed in the 2019 ADCC World Championships where she went to a decision with Gabi Garcia. Egger actually won the “Best Throw Award” of the contest. “ADCC was a good experience for me to test my grappling skills,” Egger told MYMMANews. “To fight Gabi Garcia was a big challenge because I had to grapple different because of our size difference. The best throw award was nice to win, but I preferred to win the fight against her. Maybe next time.”
Transition to MMA
In September 2015, Egger made the transition from Judo to MMA full-time. After winning in Germany and Italy, Egger took on her third ever MMA bout at Invicta FC 20 where she lost a close split decision to Alexa Conners. To date, this is Egger’s only MMA loss. After a 16 month break, Egger won by first-round knockout in Switzerland before fighting in her fifth country in as many fights, travelling to Japan to compete at Rizin 17 to battle the toughest task to date for her, Reina Miura. Going the full distance with the veteran, Egger walked out of Japan with the unanimous decision win. “Japan was pretty cool! I liked fighting in front of all those people. The Japanese fans are really great. I really enjoyed it,” Egger stated.
Though Judo is her background, don’t mistake it that Egger is not a well-versed mixed martial artist. “I finished my Judo career a long time ago. I try to get better in every aspect of martial arts. For my UFC debut, I’ll show everyone what I have,” Egger said.
