Shauna Bannon: 'I really believe that I am only getting started in my UFC career'
Michael Bolton
Dublin UFC fighter Shauna Bannon says her upcoming fight against Puja Tomer will show what she is truly capable of.
Bannon comes into the bout having won her first fight in the UFC in Manchester at UFC 304 last July, bouncing back from the first defeat of her career in 2023.
In that year, injuries and issues outside the cage made preparations less than ideal for the Dublin woman, who also had to undergo knee surgery.
Speaking to Breakingnews.ie, Bannon said the experience she went through demonstrated her ability to overcome adversity.
"It gave me the reassurance that I can get through anything," said Bannon.
"Not only was I overcoming an injury, I actually wasn't fully recovered going into that fight. I went to the PI a month after my fight and they told me my leg was 40 per cent weaker.
"The injury alone was challenging because it was affecting my daily training. I felt like I wasn't recovering, and I wasn't doing what I wanted to be doing in my daily sessions.
"What was going on in my personal life was super stressful. I think sometimes people forget fighters are human as well.
"Everyone has their daily struggles, and fighters do too. Dealing with that, the injury, and having a fight camp on top of it—and then coming out on top—it reassured me and proved to myself that I have one hundred per cent grit in my body and I know I can overcome anything."
Now fully fit and healthy ahead of her fight on March 22nd in London, Bannon hopes it will be the start of a busy year.
Since signing for the promotion in the summer of 2023, this will only be the third UFC fight for the 31-year-old.
Following difficult camps and injuries, Bannon believes she has not yet shown what she is capable of.
"I really believe that I am only getting started in my UFC career. Those two fights—they were what they were, but I don't think they were anywhere near my true potential.
"Realistically, in my mind, this is my first fight in the UFC. The first one, I didn't really have a fight camp because I got signed and then had a fight within five weeks' notice.
"This now is the real start to my UFC career, and I am super excited.
"I think activity works in my favour. My first five pro fights were in the space of 12 months, so to have that big gap afterwards was a lot.
"Normally, there is a card in the UK in July—I would love to jump on that. I would love another one before the end of the year.
"If anything pops up in between, I would love that as well."
It is a special time for Irish MMA, with Bannon one of two Irish fighters on the London card alongside Caolan Loughran.
Despite recent defeats for Ian Machado Garry and Paul Hughes, their recent bouts saw their stock grow as they took steps closer to becoming champions in their respective divisions.
For Bannon, the rise of Irish women in MMA has impressed her and made life easier.
"The girls that are coming up now—I didn't have that coming up.
"When I was an amateur, I really struggled to get fights. There weren't girls in Ireland at my level.
"Now there are loads of amateurs, more girls going professional, and it is constantly growing. It means more training partners for me—if they get better, I get better.
"We push each other, and it is really nice to have that because it wasn't there before. In this camp, I have trained with girls more than in any other camp. It is more realistic because it is very hard to find the balance training with fellas—they either go too hard or too light."
