Tereza Bledá, the first champion of the Octagon! The biography of the Cinderella who wants to become the youngest female fighter in UFC history

Tereza Bledá is still only 20 years old, yet there is probably no one on our fighting scene who doesn’t know her. At the end of the year she will fight for the title in the Octagon, her goal is to become the youngest female fighter in the history of the UFC, but time is passing very fast and there is not much left. What is her path?

A young and talented fighter, who is already known to every combat sports fan in the Czech Republic. This is Tereza Bledá. But everything could have been completely different. Instead of being an excellent fighter, she could have been a member of the army.

At the age of 14 she wrote a letter to the paratroopers, she wanted to prove that she could handle all their physical tests. She wanted to change the rules in the army and convince them that women could join the paratroopers. Besides, she liked order, serving her country.

Going on a foreign mission and honoring the Czech Republic? That would be a dream come true. But it never happened. She never sent the letter. Instead, she made another decision.

“For my 15th birthday, I wanted an army backpack and MMA gloves. I still have those gloves to this day. They served me well,” she admitted to Bez phraszí.

At the age of 16, Bledá moved from Mariánské Lázně to Prague to improve her skills. And that she was successful! Already in 2018 she won the award for MMA Fighter of the Year, besides being a junior champion in MMA, boxing or bench-press.

She flew through the amateur scene like a knife through butter. The year 2020 was a turning point for her. The Oktagon MMA organization had her first professional fight lined up for her, but it fell through due to the coronavirus. But she got the chance to fight for it at the OKTAGON Underground tournaments.

Valuable scalps and the road to the title

Tereza Bledá is not afraid of big dreams and big goals. On the contrary. She wants to be the youngest female fighter in UFC history and she will do everything to achieve it. She’s been dreaming about it for a long time. She’s even more nervous about each extra month that hinders that pursuit. Until now, the youngest fighter in the UFC was Maycee Barber, who entered her first fight at the age of 20 years and 5 months.

That’s also why she immediately chose the toughest possible opponent to start with at OKTAGON Underground, namely Lucie Pudilova, who just finished in her dream UFC. And she flew into the match under modified rules, which should have suited Pudilova better, without any respect and won on points.

In the pyramid, Bledá defeated Magda Šormová and another great talent Lucie Szabová, among others. She made a huge name for herself and the journey to the Oktagon title could begin.

Less than three months after beating Szabová, she made her first appearance under MMA rules in the best Czechoslovakian organization, defeating Maria Loiseau by TKO.

She then went on to have three fights in 2021. In January she defeated Judyta Rymarzak on submission, in May she won over Karoline Martins on points and her last appearance for the fans was at Štvanica in July where she caught Edna Oliveira Ajala on submission.

Bledá came into the Octagon as a very good ground fighter, but in the year and a half she has been able to make a lot of progress in her stance as well, which could help her a lot. After four wins, she’ll be looking for a title fight at the end of the year.

Will the Brazilian’s path ahead of her lead to the UFC?

Brazil’s Marbella Lima will battle with the talented Czech to see who will become the first ever female champion of the Octagon. Pale could then become the organization’s youngest ever champion.

It’s worth noting that Lima has one loss in her career, losing right in front of the UFC boss on his show, Dana White’s Contender Series, where male and female fighters fight for a contract in the world’s best organization.

So a potential win could actually bring Bledou significantly closer to fulfilling her dream.

“I don’t doubt myself. Maybe it bothers some people, maybe it’s not the Czech nature, but I’m not afraid to talk about wanting to be the best. I’m not afraid to sacrifice a lot. I have a path ahead of me that leads to the UFC. That’s the plan. I can’t imagine anything happening that’s going to stop me. If that happens, I’ll find that letter to the army,” Pale said.

Source: Octagon MMA, No Phrases, Fight Live, UFC