Snohomish MMA star with Everett gym signs with UFC

On Monday, Miranda Granger tweeted out the words she’s been working six years to be able to send:

“I have arrived. #UFC.”

I have arrived. #UFC

— Miranda “DANGER” Granger (@GrangerousMMA) July 22, 2019

The Snohomish native and rising mixed martial arts star is heading for the sport’s brightest lights after signing with Ultimate Fighting Championship, MMA’s premier promotion.

The contract makes Granger an official member of UFC’s roster, and her first fight with the promotion is scheduled for Aug. 3 in Newark, New Jersey.

“I was walking out of church Sunday when my coach (Charlie Pearson) called me, and it was the call,” Granger said.

“This is finally a dream come true. I’ve been wanting to do this since I was 4 years old.”

Granger, a Glacier Peak High School graduate who fights out of Charlie’s Combat Club in Everett, is following in the footsteps of the likes of Randy Couture as Snohomish County natives who have reached the highest level of MMA. She has a perfect 6-0 record since turning pro two years ago, most recently rolling through Brazil’s Heloisa Azevedo in 41 seconds in May in Coachella, California, to win the inaugural Cage Fury Fighting Championships women’s strawweight (115 pounds) world championship.

According to Tapology.com, Granger is the top-ranked female fighter among all weight classes in the U.S. who wasn’t signed to a major promotion like UFC. She is ranked by Tapology.com as the 36th-best female strawweight in the world when including all elite-level promotions. So her time had been coming.

“I would say (reaching UFC) has been in my sights clearly for about six months,” Granger said. “I’ve been wanting this ever since I started fighting about six years ago, but the goal seemed more like a reality around six months ago.”

Efficient executioner. #dangeroustimes pic.twitter.com/d0uARsyqpH

— Miranda “DANGER” Granger (@GrangerousMMA) June 3, 2019

Granger has had little trouble with her opponents to date, as all six of her wins have come by submission or TKO, and only one went beyond the first round. Therefore, she relishes the challenge of taking on the world’s best in UFC.

“I feel really prepared (for the step up to UFC),” Granger said. “I want hard fights and I want to fight people who are going to challenge me, and the girls in UFC will do that. I think my skill set matches up well, and I’m ready to show the world what I’m made of. I don’t think I’ve had the chance to really showcase who I am as a fighter, and with these tougher matchups I think I’ll be able to show everything that I’ve been working on and who I am.”

Granger’s first UFC fight is part of UFC Fight Night at the Prudential Center, where the main event features Colby Covington against Robbie Lawler in a men’s welterweight bout. Granger said she was contractually unable to reveal the identity of her opponent, and an official announcement of the fight had yet to be released Tuesday afternoon. However, reports said her opponent is Hannah Goldy (5-0), who was also just signed by UFC. The fight will be a flyweight (125 pounds) bout, so Granger is stepping up a weight class. It’s scheduled for three five-minute rounds.

Dangerous times ahead, as reigning CFFC Champion @GrangerousMMA answers the call on 2 weeks notice, moving up a weight class to fight in the @UFC!#UFC #MMA #CFFC pic.twitter.com/bkYX5mtGPt

— Cage Fury Fighting Championships (CFFC) (@CFFCMMA) July 22, 2019

Signing a contract and fighting two weeks later represents an extremely quick turnaround, but Granger said she’s ready.

“I think I’m in just as good a shape as when I left my last fight,” Granger said. “My last fight lasted 41 seconds, and I knew an opportunity could come up quickly, so I stayed on my program. Typically I go on vacation after a fight, but I had a feeling that I should stay and work. I’ve been in the gym every single day, not letting that thought out of my mind, and I’m happy I did that because the opportunity came with short notice, and I’m more ready than ever.”

Now that Granger has arrived with UFC, she intends to stay a long time.

“I plan on staying until I’m done,” Granger said. “I’ve said before that I don’t want to just dip my toe in the water, I want to own the ocean, and that’s what I plan to do.

“I’m just very thankful,” Granger added. “My family has been with me through this whole journey. There are a lot of decisions we’ve made as a team at C3 that some people questioned or didn’t understand why we chose that route. But it paid off to stay patient and follow my heart.”