"There are still more years left in this old girl," the 36-year-old Arrowtown fighter told the Otago Daily Times from managed isolation and quarantine this week.
Webster recently returned from the International Mixed Martial Arts Federation world championships in Abu Dhabi, where she was one of seven fighters in the New Zealand team.
She claimed bronze in the women’s lightweight 70.3kg category after a narrow loss on points to eventual silver medallist Aizhan Abdykadyr, of Kazakhstan.
It was a second world championship appearance for Webster, who trains with the Hammerhead Central club in Cromwell under Queenstown coach Jason Smith.
The journey to get into the cage was a "rollercoaster", she said.
"It was very touch and go for the New Zealand MMA team with travel restrictions and juggling MIQ spots."
On top of that came a scare when the US military led an operation to counter a missile attack by Yemen’s Houthis on an American air base near Abu Dhabi.
"That was a big wake-up call at 4 o’clock in the morning."
There were about 450 athletes from 50 countries at the championships, Webster said.
It was an "amazing experience" to be part of the surging sport’s biggest amateur event, held at the Jiu-Jitsu Arena in Zayed Sports City, near UFC Fight Island.
"With the amount of athletes and coaches attending, teams were spread over three hotels, so we didn’t mingle with all athletes but we got to know a few teams we were in the same hotel with."
Covid-19 rules and other protocols were strict.
Fighters had to get a fresh negative PCR test before leaving the airport, they were swabbed every 48 hours and they were temperature checked everywhere they went.
Webster’s weight class initially had eight fighters but dropped to six.
That meant she progressed straight to the semifinals due to her seeding, and she was pipped by identical scores (29-28) over each of the three rounds.
Her bronze was matched by Core MMA (Hamilton) fighter Michelle Montague, while 21-year-old prodigy Fergus Jenkins (Canterbury Fight Centre) struck gold in the men’s middleweight.
Webster hoped to fight at an XFC event in Dunedin in April run by Matt Toa, of Hammerhead MMA.
She was looking forward to returning south after completing her stint in managed isolation.
"MIQ was always going to be a challenge as I am such an active person, so being confined to one room really tests me.
"I was able to get a bike in the room so I am doing small workouts and trying to keep to a routine."
