JitsCast #61 features BJJ black belt and undefeated professional MMA fighter Natalie Salcedo. Although Salcedo started her combat sports career with Muay Thai, she has since become known as an excellent grappler and that is how she’s won the majority of her fights. She went on a fantastic 5-0 run through the amateur circuit over the course of two years before turning professional, and is now 4-0 and preparing for her next fight. Salcedo will be facing veteran MMA fighter and elite wrestler Chihiro Sawada in a pivotal fight for the ONE Championship atomweight division at ONE Fight Night 39 on January 23rd, 2026.
Jits Magazine spoke to Salcedo about her very first experiences with Jiu-Jitsu; that actually came much later in life than most MMA fighters today. She explained what it was like to step on the mats for the first time while coming from an exclusively striking background, and even revealed that she didn’t really enjoy grappling to begin with. She spoke about how it took several months before she was able to start having more fun in Jiu-Jitsu. Obviously a lot has changed since then and now Salcedo sees herself as more of a grappler than a striker, even though she can do both sides of the sport equally well.
Salcedo also talked about the earliest days of her career, where she was the smallest person in the training room by a considerable margin. This isn’t the case now that she’s a professional fighter, but she still believes that there are benefits to training with all body sizes that actually outweigh the negatives. Salcedo finished by talking about her upcoming fight with Sawada, and how her training camp for it has gone. She explained where she sees Sawada’s strengths, and spoke about the training partners she’s brought in to prepare herself for that.
JitsCast #61 with Natalie Salcedo is now available to watch on the official Jits Magazine YouTube channel, click here to subscribe for more or check out they interview below:
