‘Physically, I am more prepared than ever before, and I know I have competed well. I want to taste victory in 2008 over and over again’ states Julia.
Her first MMA fight was December of 2006 against Tara Larosa, the current Ladies 135 lb champion with bodogFIGHT, and commonly acknowledged as one of the best in the world. Julia extended Larosa to the second round before succumbing to an armbar. Julia describes the bout ‘I had to defend the whole time, and she was dangerous everywhere, but I knew that day I could compete.’ Julia went on to notch her first win in a Korea-Russia themed event, before entering bodogFIGHT in 2007.
In April, Julia battled Julie Kedzie, a fighter who has tons of experience and whose technical level has been improving after joining the Greg Jackson camp. Kedzie proved to be too much, but again Julia gamely extended her to the second round. ‘I was convinced to try to fight at the lower weight class of 125 lbs’ Julia recalls. ‘I knew that I could reach the weight physically.
In August of 2007, Julia made her 125 lb debut, but once again took on one of the best in the world in Britain’s Rosi Sexton. Sexton, who holds a mathematics degree, uses visualization in her pre match preparation and sports an 8-1 record, was undefeated at 125 lbs, and Julia succumbed in the second round. ‘This was the weight class for me. I lost to a better fighter, but I found my advantages could show in this category’ claims Julia.
Julia looks forward to her bout in St Petersburg in April, rumored to be against Megumi Yabushita of Japan. ‘A world class fighter, and a Judo fighter’ Julia continues ‘this represents a challenge’. There is also talk of her fighting in Japan prior, as her rivalry with the Japanese fighter starts to build up. ‘I am looking to compete in March on a Japanese event featuring women’s MMA, and I hope to have that win under my belt when I face Yabushita’.
Stanislav Khramov, longtime MMA insider in Russia states about Julia ‘she has good potential in the ring, and also in Russia we hope that she can be in a position as a pioneer or a first for women in MMA. She has potential on the image side too’.
