Once you get to know her, it’s hard to resist the urge to repeat the cliché “What’s a girl like you doing in a place like this?”
Coming from a family of Taekwondo instructors, practitioners and overall enthusiasts. Armed with an Associates’ degree in Nuclear Medicine, a Bachelor of Science in Radiologic Science, and a Master’s in Business Administration and a late MMA bloomer – Jinh Yu Frey is a fascinating combination of beauty, brains and brawn. At 35-years, she is a former Invicta FC atomweight champion on her way to bigger and better things in the extremely competitive world of MMA.
Better Late Than Never
Jinh Yu Frey started competing quite late but her career gained momentum in a short time, jumping from amateur to pro-level in a matter of a few prominent bouts.
Defeating Liz McCarthy and Hérica Tibúrcio earned her a shot for the Invicta FC Atomweight Championship. In her first attempt to claim the Invicta FC atomweight belt, she was stopped by Japanese standout Ayaka Hamasaki via doctor’s stoppage due to a nasty cut. Jinh would take this loss and use it as rocket fuel for her rise.
Two years and a few fights later, she went for it again against Minna Grusander, bringing it home this time, and retaining the belt in a rematch with Grusander less than five months later.
Reflecting on her unconventional path to the UFC cage:
“Even when I started fighting, it wasn’t I want to do this as a career’ — it’s just something that has taken on its own life and evolved as it has gone on.”
From Invicta FC Atomweight Championship to walking to the Octagon for the third time, Frey has come a long way in a very short time. This journey is worth celebrating not just due to her coming of age in the UFC arena, but also because she’s approaching all her victories with a very different mind-set. It is difficult to adapt in the UFC but she’s someone who truly feels comfortable after experiencing things a time or two.
A Different Path to Greatness
They say MMA is a young person’s sport, and that is what truly sets Frey’s journey apart. At 35, her age-defying ability to compete on the highest levels of the sport, on the biggest mixed martial arts platform in the world proves that she is cut from a different cloth, showing her gritty, never-say-die mentality in the process. This is why one sees a lot more focus in her career, there is wisdom behind the fights she picks and the goals she sets for herself.
Summary
Now the former Invicta FC Atomweight champion Jinh Yu Frey aims for her first octagon victory when she meets Gloria de Paula in a strawweight contest on UFC Fight Night 187, March 13, 2021.
Jinh Yu Frey chooses to challenge barriers, smash goals and defy norms. She epitomizes the meaning of resiliency and strength. While we root for our athlete and Team, we wish both these amazing women luck.
Win or lose – they both will have made the world proud on International Women’s Day.
