Ladd headlines UFC Fight Night at Golden 1 Center

The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will take over the Golden 1 Center in Sacramento on Saturday night. Headlining the event will be a women's bantamweight bout between Aspen Ladd and Germaine de Randamie. Ladd, 24, lives in Pioneer, a town 60 miles east of Sacramento. She drives 90 minutes every day to El Dorado Hills to train at Urban Sprawl Fitness under the direction of MMA Gold head coach Jim West. She is currently ranked fourth in the bantamweight (126-135 pounds) class. De Randamie, nicknamed "The Iron Lady," is from the Netherlands and is a former featherweight champion at 145 pounds, and is now the number-one contender in the bantamweight division. De Randamie is 35 and at 5-9, is three inches taller and has a five-inch reach advantage over Ladd, who's 11 years younger than her opponent. Ladd didn't say it was the biggest fight of her career, but she knows the importance of it. "I think all my fights are big, but this is the first time I'm fighting the No. 1 contender so that makes it big," Ladd said. "This is also the first time I'm headlining an event. I look at it as just another fight, but it's a step in the right direction." Ladd enters the bout with an 8-0 record as a professional in mixed martial arts. De Randamie is 8-3. Ladd is a grappler and boxer, while de Randamie is a strong kick-boxer. Two different fighters with two different styles should make for an interesting bout. Ladd didn't want to give away any secrets before the fight, but she is confident. "I've fought tall and lanky fighters before," Ladd said. "She's a kick-boxer and good at stand up fighting. As for me, I'm definitely a grappler, but I try to be well-rounded. "I never go into any fight thinking I'm going to lose. I'm confident. I'm coming off a big win in New York in May and I'm ready to go." Added West, "Germaine is very tough. Every fighter is tough, and they all have their unique body types and skill sets. Our job is to try to exploit her weaknesses." West has coached Ladd since she started fighting nearly 10 years ago. "Aspen is a different athlete; a special athlete and a special person," West said. "Her intelligence, drive, and dedication have played a big part in her getting where she is at. Her all-around MMA ability and her fight IQ are big strengths, but her X-factor is her conditioning. No one has the level of conditioning that Aspen has." Ladd defeated Sijara Eubanks by unanimous decision on May 18 in what she called her toughest professional fight to date. The bout went all three rounds and earned the title of 'Fight of the Night.' The bout no doubt has her ready and confident for her fight Saturday, scheduled for five, five-minute rounds, unless it ends sooner. With the fight being in her own back yard, the crowd support should also be in her favor. "I haven't fought this close to home since I turned pro," Ladd said. "I expect to have ton of family and friends there." Ladd doesn't sit around and think about her career, either how it's gone since turning pro in 2014 or what the future holds. She loves her life and what she's doing and that's what matters most. "Anyone who competes wants to win," Ladd said. "The stakes are high in this business. If you lose; if you're having a bad day in the ring, you get physically injured, beat up and hurt. I go into every fight as prepared as possible and try to get the results that I do all the training for. "I'm in the gym for six hours a day five days a week, and that's not counting the work I do at home. I'm not in this business to chase belts. I want to fight for the experience. I enjoy the training and the fighting." It's not all about winning, though. Ladd also likes to put on a show for the fans. "I try to finish off my opponent as fast as I can and be as entertaining as possible," Ladd said.