\n<\/p>\n
Las Vegas \u2014 It\u2019s a full circle moment for Melissa Amaya as she heads into her TUF 34 strawweight finale with Valesca Macahado at UFC Vegas 121 this Saturday.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve been cornering Juliana Miller for so long, and to be on this side of the table is insane,\u201d Amaya (8-0) told media outlets including Cageside Press during media day this week.<\/p>\n
Amaya also took some inspiration from teammate Jaden Ortega fighting on the Contender Series this past Tuesday. \u201cI think seeing Jaden go through a war and not give up, and just seeing that dog in him, just kind of reignited whatever I felt against Gigi [Canuto] when I almost got finished God knows how many times.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt just kind of made me feel like alright, I\u2019m next, it\u2019s in our team, it\u2019s in our blood. We\u2019re just dogs, and it\u2019s time to perform on Saturday.\u201d<\/p>\n
Outside of fighting, Amaya is a nurse currently working with a dental clinic. \u201cThey\u2019ve been extremely flexible with this,\u201d she noted, after telling the clinic during her interview that as an aspiring fighter she\u2019d need \u201ca random week off three times a year.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd they still hired me. So I was like \u2018okay, this is insane. This is unheard of.\u2019 They\u2019re super-supportive. Actually the surgeon I work for, he\u2019s going to be coming and watching me.\u201d<\/p>\n
Amaya knows that TUF 34 finale opponent Valesca Machado is \u201cdangerous everywhere,\u201d adding that \u201cit\u2019s going to be a tough fight, but I\u2019m excited to test myself against her. And hopefully I get to surprise people too. I\u2019ve surprised people since the first fight on The Ultimate Fighter. Everybody thought I was just a grappler, and I out-striked a striker. Hopefully I can come with some surprises.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of the big surprises on\u00a0The Ultimate Fighter 34<\/em> was Amaya refusing to tap to a nasty Gigi Canuto arm-bar, one that appeared to have the limb snap. As to her thought process in the moment, she told Cageside Press \u201cdon\u2019t cry over spilt milk. It\u2019s already happening.\u201d Amaya admits she felt her arm going, but \u201cthere was never any question about \u2018I\u2019m done.’\u201d<\/p>\n