Issue 073
March 2011
‘The Warrior Princess’ quested her way to Bellator’s 115lb title; but uneasy lies the head that wears the crown
Zoila Frausto returns to her Hollywood, Florida, hotel room bloodied and exhausted. She’s just earned a permanent place in the annals of MMA by becoming Bellator’s inaugural women’s champion at 115lb, inscribing her name upon history as the first person to derail the seemingly irrevocable force that is Megumi Fujii. Prior to the fight, Fujii had remained unbeaten in 22 bouts. Few outside of Frausto’s inner circle had given her a chance at beating the mighty ‘Mega Megu’, considered pound-for-pound the finest female fighter in the world. So Frausto eagerly switches on her laptop to garner the exposure women combatants usually find harder to attain than victory itself.
When FO speaks to her, ‘The Warrior Princess’ has just conquered the dragon from the Orient, frustrating her for nearly 25 minutes, becoming only the third combatant to take Fujii beyond two rounds. The crowd’s raptures left Frausto crippled with emotion, crying in a fetal position. The fight was close, difficult to judge, forcing a plague of Fujii aficionados to storm the message boards intent on bashing Frausto and the decision. The game plan was to go for broke, yet the hostile response leaves her broken.
She turns to Jorge Gurgel, her trainer, manager and beau, and asks how she can please the people. Gurgel demands she “get the f*ck off the computers” before phoning two of his fighting buddies – Rich Franklin and Marcus Davis – who each repeat Gurgel’s advice. Admittedly, if she’s going to retain such a profile she’d do well to stay well away from message boards. Frausto is a champion wearing a target the size of her native California on her back. Opponents will be ravenous, fans will be demanding, even if their expectations are somewhat misguided. “People didn’t see everything I did in that fight,” says Frausto (10-1). “She had never been hurt before I rocked her. I know I won. I’m sorry everybody else didn’t see it that way, but that’s just the way it is.”
The globally revered Fujii abandoned a strategy that made her invincible for six years. Mega Megu stunned Frausto early in the first round and attempted one of her famous takedowns before neglecting her famed wrestling completely. Frausto saw her opening, landing a high kick and solid right hand; blows she believes may have given Fujii something to think about. Each time Fujii got close, she saw Frausto’s leg twitch and thought twice about going to the mat, her domain in those 22 wins prior, with 18 via submission. “She didn’t like that,” says Frausto. “I think she was more scared than anything else to get in that close.” The pattern held for the remaining four rounds. A split decision (48-47, 47-48, 49-46) awarded Frausto the fight and the title. “It doesn’t take away from what I’ve done,” says Frausto. “I wish everybody would have seen it the way that I did.”
Frausto’s approach to MMA took a dramatic turn in March 2010 following a devastating first-round submission loss to Miesha Tate that scared her straight. Cocksure in her striking abilities, Frausto overlooked Tate’s wrestling – despite being dubbed ‘Takedown’ Tate. Frausto paid a heavy price and has since endured Gurgel’s daily grappling drills. She’s responded with five straight wins, the second a stunning ‘knee to the face’ knockout of Fighters Only’s own Rosi Sexton, but the Tate loss remains, leaving an astringent taste she’s yet to fully disinfect. “It ended and I was like, ‘I’m gonna fight her again one of these days,’” says Frausto.
While Tate for now remains a distant memory, Frausto enters 2011 prepping for her first defense, opting to fight at a catchweight of 120-125lb. “Cutting to 115 was unhealthy,” says Frausto. “My body was shot.” Bellator founder and CEO Bjorn Rebney suggests the Season 4 tournament winner will be the number one contender for Frausto’s title. But The Warrior Princess wants redemption, for another controversial win over Jessica Aguilar in the semifinals of the 115lb tournament. Frausto blames her under-par performance in that clash on a massive weight cut. “Me at 110% versus her: the outcome’s not going to be the same,” says Frausto. “I want to prove I did deserve that win.” And equally deserving of much bigger accolades, whether people are happy or not.
