Larissa Pacheco says 'the market has kind of closed its doors on me' a year after PFL exit
The former two-division PFL champion, who holds a win over Kayla Harrison, believes the UFC passed on her to protect its bantamweight champion.
Larissa Pacheco says she cannot get a fight a year into free agency, despite holding a win over UFC champion Kayla Harrison.
"The market has kind of closed its doors on me, you know?" the former two-division PFL champion told MMA Fighting. "If they sign me, I'll hold up an entire division."
Pacheco was let go by the PFL a year after her five-round fight with Cris Cyborg. Her attempt to return to the UFC came to nothing, and she believes it was to protect Harrison, the UFC bantamweight champion. KSW and Oktagon did not sign her either.
She has competed once in two years, beating Julia Stasiuk at Karate Combat to show she can make 135lbs. "I've already accepted extremely low purses just to be able to compete," she said. "I'm not asking for a title fight. I'm not asking to get into the UFC and fight Amanda or Kayla."
She added: "What, do I need to fight a man for that? That's ridiculous, because I train with men every day."
Harrison defends her title against Amanda Nunes at Madison Square Garden on 14 November.
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