Jessica Penne makes her return after a year of growth and change
LOS ANGELES --- It will have been nearly a year since strawweight contender Jessica Penne (12-3) last competed, when she enters the Octagon, Saturday at UFC 199. In the time since her title fight loss to champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Penne has had lots of time to think and improve.
She's also had time to eat well and train hard to try and grow into the strawweight division. Before coming to the UFC, Penne competed at 105lbs.
Despite her subsequent success at 115lbs, Penne told FOXSports Thursday morning that she felt undersized at strawweight.
"The last year I've taken the time to really try and put on a lot of size," she said.
"Coming up from atomweight to strawweight, competing against people who are dropping down from bantamweight and flyweight, it's a big change, and I knew that I would need a good amount of time to really grow into the division. It's still a work in progress."
Fortunately, Penne has been able to do that work at a place and on a team that she feels is the best fit for her. Penne said she's moved to San Diego to train at Alliance, full-time, with the likes of bantamweight champ Dominick Cruz and many others.
In the past, the Californian said she'd have to gym-hop to get all her training in, wasting time and causing stress. Now, she's in an organized one-stop-shop and she loves it.
"I've spent most of my career hopping from gym to gym. I was on the road just as much as I was in the gym. That takes a lot of the stress out of it. I live a mile and a half from Alliance. I don't have to think about anything, I don't have to worry about anything, it's all laid out for me. It's really nice," she continued.
"I'm always trying to get better and improve on every aspect of my game and it feels really good to be at a place where everyone is on the same page and I'm not traveling from gym to gym. I just have one coach and a team that is really helping me develop my game."
Penne faces Jessica Andrade (13-5), Saturday at the LA Forum and hopes to get back in the win column. She'll have the benefit of time, experience and the lessons learned from them both.
"I think you learn more from losses than victories. It's very telling, and I learned a lot about myself in that fight," she admitted.
"In every fight I learn a lot about myself. I just couldn't overcome some obstacles that I was facing in the fight and I've learned from it and it's made me better.
"I'm the best version of myself that I've been and you're going to see a mature fighter out there."
