Bia Mesquita wasted no time setting her next target after UFC Fight Night 279, calling out Ailin Perez following a submission win over Melissa Mullins.
Mesquita tapped Mullins with an armbar on the prelims at the Meta APEX in Las Vegas, pushing her MMA record to 8-0 and her UFC mark to 3-0.
"I'm ready to climb the ranks really quick," Mesquita said after the victory, before zeroing in on Perez. "I'm looking forward to fighting Ailin Perez. I think she's No. 5 right now and I'm ready to chase that fight. I think she's very disrespectful inside the cage. I don't think that is a place to be shaking her ass. I'm ready to kick her ass and show who is the 'Lady GOAT,' the mentality of a champion and show where I came from and where I'm going."
Mesquita made it clear the callout is personal. "That's the biggest thing: I don't like her attitude," she said. "I think it's very disrespectful to the other athletes. I think to be a true champion, you have to be somebody that is respectful and is a role model to others, and I don't think she's that person."
Perez, from Argentina, is currently on a six-fight winning streak since a loss in her UFC debut nearly four years ago. Mesquita, who hails from Brazil, added, "She's kind of disgusting for the division. I don't think she's a role model to be there and that's why I want to beat her. But more than that, I think Brazil and Argentina is a great rivalry and I think that's going to be great for the fans to watch."
