UFC strawweight Vanessa Demopolous attributes her exceptional strength and muscle mass to an unlikely source – her background in competitive pole dancing.
“My background in Jiu-Jitsu is actually pole dancing,” Demopolous revealed in a recent interview. “People don’t understand what that even means, but if you ever look up competitive pole dancing, it is genuinely like one of the most insane sports.”
Demopolous competed in pole dancing before transitioning to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and MMA. She believes this unique background gives her a physical edge in the UFC’s 115-pound division.
“In the strawweight division, according to the Performance Institute, I am the strongest in the division. I have the most muscle mass for that division and I will definitely give a lot of that credit to pole dancing because of all the calisthenics that it takes,” she explained.
The star described competitive pole dancing as “Cirque du Soleil at like the highest level of performance in competition form.” She noted that the strength and body control required translate well to grappling and MMA.
“I used to compete in pole dancing before I started Jiu-Jitsu,” she added, highlighting how this unconventional background helped shape her into one of the most physically imposing mixed martial artists in her weight class.
Demopolous has a professional MMA record of 11-6 and is 5-3 in the UFC. She continues to keep a pole in her home for training, demonstrating her impressive strength by easily climbing and holding poses during the interview.
Heading into her upcoming submission grappling match against Kiaya Jackson at PGF on November 8th, Demopolous is excited to showcase her well-rounded skills.
“I am 100% coming with some heat, coming with some fire, you know, because I got something to prove to everybody and show them exactly what type of a grappler I am,” she stated.
The match will be contested at 125 pounds, which is above Demopolous’ usual 115-pound weight in the UFC. However, she noted she typically walks around at 150 pounds between bouts, saying “I’m a big [expletive]” and “I get thick.”
Demopolous sees professional grappling as a growing opportunity for athletes to make a living, commenting: “I think if you’re a good competitor and you’re out there on the scene, there are so many organizations now that are really starting to grow in the Jiu-Jitsu community, and I couldn’t love it more.”
She added: “Now I feel like it’s really becoming something that people can get paid, you know, between the PGF, the FPIs, the ADXCs – like they’re starting to pay grapplers a pretty decent salary, almost I can say, because we’re starting to see the same competitors being really consistent on these grappling scenes.”
With her unique background, enthusiasm for grappling, and physical dominance in the strawweight division, Demopolous will look to claim the PGF championship and further establish herself as a top submission artist.
