'I was offered an enormous amount to promote betting app but I refused': Puja Tomar - 1st Indian to win in UFC

Puja Tomar - 1st Indian to win in UFC (Instagram/tomar_puja)

Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is still in its nascent stage in India but there is one name that has made notable progress and etched her name in the history book. We are talking about Puja Tomar, the first Indian to register a win in the UFC - a feat she achieved by beating Brazil's Rayanne dos Santos last year. The victory may be inconsequential as far as the UFC women's strawweight division is considered, the category in which Puja competes, but it did help in changing the narrative - "can Indian fighters prove their mettle?" in MMA's most prominent platform.

Puja, herself, had encountered the same unpleasant questions by foreign journalists before her fight against Santos. "Before winning the bout journalists from other countries would ask - 'If I think I can win?', 'Do you think an Indian can win in the UFC?' These questions used to pinch me and I wanted to show yes we (Indians) can do it," she told moneycontrol.com in an interview earlier this week.

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While Puja still follows a simple lifestyle, she is happy with the adulation she gets after her feat in the UFC, which on a few occasions has also caught her off-guard. "I remember bargaining at a shop and felt people were waiting for me to leave the counter so that they could make their purchases. However, I was surprised as they waited to click pictures with me. This made me realise 'Okay people have started to recognise me.'"

When asked about the sponsorship, which must have followed after the historic feat in UFC, Puja spoke her heart out, shedding light on how she has been brave to decline lucrative offers that don't align with her ethos. "Much before I signed a contract with the UFC I got an offer from a betting app. Then I didn't have much knowledge about the betting app and I needed money so I did promote it. I also promoted a nutrition company then.

"After the win in UFC I was again offered to promote a betting app and despite them quoting an enormous amount I refused to do it because of my faith in God."

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Puja is all set to step inside the Octagon again at UFC Fight Night 254 on Saturday night when she locks horns with Irish Shauna Bannon. She confirmed that fans will witness a different gameplay this time as her and Bannon's game style is almost similar, but her objective remains well beyond the fight. "There are 50 active girls in my weight category so my target is to enter the top 10-15 as quickly as possible and then challenge for the belt."