Amanda Nunes

Early life Nunes was born on May 30, 1988, in Pojuca, a small town outside of Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. She has two older sisters. After her parents split up when she was four, Nunes and her sisters remained with their mother. To support the family as a single parent, her mom sold hot dogs, sweets and beauty products alongside her regular job as a school administrative assistant. According to Nunes, her father initially did not support her fighting career, but has since changed course.

Nunes has described her mother as a loving but strict parent. She encouraged Amanda to get involved with sports as a way to deal with her excess energy.

Nunes initially aspired to become a professional soccer player, starting out in elementary school as a player on the local Pojuca team and later on the Salvador team. Eventually, she got the opportunity to try out for the Vitória football club, but was unable to accept due to her mother wanting her to focus on studies instead.

My mother used to box, and I followed her footsteps into training. She loves fighting. My uncle used to fight Vale Tudo, and my mother even cornered him in some of his fights. She always says, ‘the first strike has to be yours. She can’t touch you before you touch her. You have to intimidate her.’|Amanda Nunes

Strikeforce Nunes had won five straight fights, all by knockout prior to making her Strikeforce debut on January 7, 2011, at Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Saffiedine in Nashville, Tennessee. She defeated Canadian Julia Budd by knockout in just 14 seconds.

Nunes was scheduled to fight Julie Kedzie at Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum on June 18, 2011, in Dallas, Texas. The bout was cancelled after Nunes sustained a foot injury.

Nunes fought Alexis Davis on September 10, 2011, at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov. She lost the fight via TKO late in the second round. In the first round, Nunes started strongly with heavy strikes, but quickly faded. By the second round, Nunes was exhausted from the start of the round. While attempting a takedown she was instantly reversed and Davis was able to obtain full mount to finish Nunes with strikes.

Nunes signed to face Cat Zingano at Strikeforce: Melendez vs. Healy on September 29, 2012, but the event was cancelled when Gilbert Melendez, who was set to defend his title against Pat Healy, sustained a knee injury in training that forced his withdrawal from the card.

Invicta FC Nunes was scheduled to face Milana Dudieva at Invicta FC 2: Baszler vs. McMann on July 28, 2012. Dudieva withdrew from the fight due to illness on July 9 and Nunes was then scheduled to face Leslie Smith instead. Smith also withdrew due to an injury and Nunes ultimately faced Raquel Pa'aluhi. Nunes won the fight via technical submission due to a rear-naked choke in the first round.

On January 5, 2013, Nunes returned to Invicta FC to face Sarah D'Alelio at Invicta FC 4: Esparza vs. Hyatt. Nunes lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Nunes was scheduled to face Kaitlin Young at Invicta FC 5: Penne vs. Waterson on April 5, 2013. She withdrew due to an arm injury.

Ultimate Fighting Championship Nunes made her Octagon debut against Sheila Gaff at UFC 163 on August 3, 2013, in Brazil. She won the fight via TKO in the first round.

Nunes made her second UFC appearance when she faced Germaine de Randamie at UFC Fight Night 31 on November 6, 2013. She won the fight via TKO in the first round.

For her third fight with the promotion, Nunes was named the injury replacement for Shayna Baszler against Sarah Kaufman at The Ultimate Fighter Nations Finale. Nunes later pulled out of the bout with a dislocated thumb.

Nunes faced Cat Zingano on September 27, 2014, at UFC 178. After nearly finishing Zingano with punches in the first round, she lost the next round before being finished via TKO in the third round.

Nunes faced Shayna Baszler on March 21, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 62. She won the fight via TKO in the first round.

Nunes faced Sara McMann on August 8, 2015, at UFC Fight Night 73. She won the fight via a rear-naked choke submission in the first round, after knocking her opponent down with a three punch combination.

Nunes faced Valentina Shevchenko on March 5, 2016, at UFC 196. She won the fight by unanimous decision (29–28, 29–27, and 29–27).

Bantamweight and Featherweight Champion After amassing a three-fight win streak, Nunes earned her first title shot in the UFC. She faced Miesha Tate for the UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship on July 9, 2016, at UFC 200. Nunes stunned Tate early on with knees and punches and then won the fight by submission (rear-naked choke) in the first round. Her victory made her the first openly gay UFC champion.

On December 30, 2016, Nunes made her first title defense against returning MMA superstar Ronda Rousey in the main event at UFC 207. Nunes won the fight via TKO due to punches 48 seconds into the first round.

For her second title defense, Nunes was scheduled to face Valentina Shevchenko in a rematch at UFC 213 on July 8, 2017. The pair originally fought at UFC 196, with Nunes winning by unanimous decision. Nunes was hospitalized the morning of the fight with chronic sinusitis and the fight was cancelled. Joanna Jędrzejczyk offered to replace Nunes, but the Nevada State Athletic Commission could not clear her on such short notice. Nunes instead fought Shevchenko at UFC 215 on September 9 in Edmonton, Alberta. Nunes won the closely contested fight by split decision. Out of 22 media outlets, 10 scored it for Nunes, 10 for Shevchenko, and 2 scored it a draw.

Nunes faced Raquel Pennington on May 12, 2018, at UFC 224. After a dominant performance, Nunes won the fight via TKO in round five. This was the first UFC event headlined by two openly gay fighters.

Nunes moved up in weight to face Cris Cyborg for the UFC Women's Featherweight Championship on December 29, 2018, at UFC 232. Nunes knocked Cyborg out in 51 seconds of the first round to become the new UFC Women's Featherweight Champion. This made her the first woman in UFC to hold championship belts in different divisions simultaneously. This win also earned her the Performance of the Night award.

Nunes returned to bantamweight to make her fourth title defense against former champion Holly Holm on July 6, 2019, at UFC 239. She won the fight via knockout in round one after dropping Holm with a head kick and following up with punches. This win earned her the Performance of the Night award.

Nunes faced Germaine de Randamie in a rematch on December 14, 2019, at UFC 245 to defend her UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship. After outgrappling her opponent in every round, she won the fight via unanimous decision (49–44, 49–46, and 49–45). This win meant Nunes had the most wins in women's title fights in the UFC, with seven such wins.

Nunes was expected to face Felicia Spencer on May 9, 2020, at then UFC 250. On April 9, Dana White, president of the UFC announced that this event was postponed The bout eventually took place on June 6, 2020, at UFC 250. Nunes won via unanimous decision (50–44, 50–44, and 50–45).

Nunes was expected to defend her featherweight title against Megan Anderson in December 2020 at UFC 256. It was announced on November 9 that Nunes pulled out due to an undisclosed injury and the bout was postponed to 2021. The pairing was rescheduled for March 6, 2021 at UFC 259. Nunes won the fight via triangle armbar in round one.

Nunes was expected to defend her bantamweight title on August 7, 2021, at UFC 265 against Julianna Peña. Nunes tested positive for COVID-19 on July 29 and the bout was cancelled. The fight was rescheduled and eventually took place at UFC 269 on December 11, 2021. After dominating the first round, Nunes was outstruck in the second round, and eventually submitted via rear-naked choke, losing her bantamweight championship in a massive upset.

On February 5, 2022, it was announced that Nunes and Julianna Peña will be the coaches for The Ultimate Fighter 30 at ESPN+ and the show featured heavyweight and women's flyweight contestants.

A rematch against Julianna Peña for the UFC Women's Bantamweight title took place on July 30, 2022, at UFC 277. Nunes recaptured the title in a 5-round dominant unanimous decision victory over Peña, and became the first person in UFC history, of either gender to become double champ twice. She also became the first fighter to win a title in the weight class below the one in which they were currently holding the title. Nunes received "Fan Bonus of the Night" awards paid in bitcoin of US$30,000 for first place for this fight.

Temporary retirement A trilogy bout was scheduled against Julianna Peña on June 10, 2023, at UFC 289. On May 2, 2023, it was announced that Peña had suffered broken ribs during training camp and would be unable to compete. Irene Aldana agreed to replace Peña at the event. Nunes won the fight via a dominant unanimous decision, and announced her retirement from active competition during the post-fight interview.

Hall of Fame During UFC 314's broadcast in April 2025, Nunes was announced as the next "modern wing" UFC Hall of Fame inductee during International Fight Week festivities in Las Vegas that June.

Comeback On June 5, 2025, after spending two years in retirement, Nunes announced that she would be returning to the UFC against the winner of Kayla Harrison vs. Julianna Peña.

Nunes was scheduled to compete for the bantamweight championship against current champion Kayla Harrison on January 24, 2026 at UFC 324. However, Harrison withdrew from the bout after being diagnosed with herniated discs in her neck, which required surgery. The fight is expected to be rescheduled for a later date. The bout was reportedly linked to September 19, 2026 at UFC 331 but was once again postponed.

Personal life Nunes is the first openly lesbian UFC champion. She is married to former UFC fighter Nina Nunes (née Ansaroff), who competed in the strawweight division. She credits her UFC success to their relationship. On November 6, 2023, Nunes announced via Instagram that she and her wife welcomed their second daughter, born on November 1, 2023.

In 2019, Nunes was featured in ESPN The Magazine's The Body Issue, including an appearance on the cover.

Championships and accomplishments Ultimate Fighting Championship UFC Hall of Fame (Modern wing, Class of 2025) UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship (two times) Six successful title defenses (overall) Five successful title defenses (first reign) One successful title defense (second reign) Tied (Valentina Shevchenko) for most wins in UFC title fights amongst women (11) Most wins in UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship fights (8) Most bouts in UFC Women's Bantamweight Championship fights (9) First woman in UFC to win two titles (bantamweight and featherweight) and to also hold them simultaneously First and only UFC fighter to defend titles in two divisions while holding both titles simultaneously Sixth multi-divisional champion in UFC and third to hold two titles simultaneously (after Daniel Cormier and Conor McGregor) First and only fighter to retire as multi-division champion in UFC history Fourth longest single UFC title reign of all time (1981 days) (behind Demetrious Johnson, Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva) UFC Women’s Featherweight Championship (one time) Two successful title defenses Tied (Cris Cyborg) for most wins in UFC Women's Featherweight Championship fights (3) Tied (Anderson Silva & Valentina Shevchenko) for fourth most title fight wins in UFC history (11) Performance of the Night (five times) vs. Sara McMann, Miesha Tate, Ronda Rousey, Cris Cyborg and Holly Holm Tied (Gillian Robertson) for most finishes in UFC Women's history (10) Tied (Anthony Johnson, Charles Oliveira and Andrei Arlovski) for fifth most first-round finishes in UFC history (9) Most knockouts in UFC Women's history (7) Most consecutive wins in UFC Women's history (12) Most knockout wins in UFC Women's Bantamweight division history (6) Most finishes in UFC Women's Bantamweight division history (8) Most takedowns in UFC Women's Bantamweight division history (32) 2018: Ranked #2 Fighter of the Year & Ranked #4 Knockout of the Year 2021: Ranked #5 Submission of the Year Yahoo Sports 2010s Female MMA Fighter of the Decade The Athletic 2010s Women's Bantamweight Fighter of the Decade BJPenn.com 2010s #8 Ranked Fighter of the Decade Bloody Elbow 2010s Women's Bantamweight Fighter of the Decade Forbes 2016 UFC Fighter of the Year MMA Junkie 2015 August Submission of the Month vs. Sara McMann 2016 #6 Ranked Fighter of the Year 2018 Female Fighter of the Year 2019 Female Fighter of the Year 2010s #6 Ranked Fighter of the Decade Combat Press 2018 Upset of the Year vs. Cris Cyborg 2018 Female Fighter of the Year 2019 Female Fighter of the Year Cageside Press 2019 Female Fighter of the Year MMA Weekly 2018 Knockout of the Year vs. Cris Cyborg Equality California 2016 Equality Visibility Award MMADNA.nl 2016 Female Fighter of the Year 2018 Female Fighter of the Year World MMA Awards 2016 Female Fighter of the Year 2018 Female Fighter of the Year 2018 Knockout of the Year vs. Cris Cyborg at UFC 232 Fight Matrix 2016 Female Fighter of the Year 2018 Female Fighter of the Year 2018 UFC Fighter of the Year theScore 2016 Fighter of the Year Sports Illustrated 2016 #3 Ranked Fighter of the Year MMA Fighting 2022 First Team MMA All-Star

Mixed martial arts record Win

Irene Aldana Decision (unanimous) UFC 289

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada Win

Julianna Peña Decision (unanimous) UFC 277

Dallas, Texas, United States Loss

Julianna Peña Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC 269

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Megan Anderson Submission (reverse triangle armbar) UFC 259

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Felicia Spencer Decision (unanimous) UFC 250

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Germaine de Randamie Decision (unanimous) UFC 245

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Holly Holm TKO (head kick and punches) UFC 239

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Cris Cyborg KO (punch) UFC 232

Inglewood, California, United States Win

Raquel Pennington TKO (elbows and punches) UFC 224

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Win

Valentina Shevchenko Decision (split) UFC 215

Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Win

Ronda Rousey TKO (punches) UFC 207

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Miesha Tate Submission (rear-naked choke ) UFC 200

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Valentina Shevchenko Decision (unanimous) UFC 196

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Sara McMann Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs. Saint Preux

Nashville, Tennessee, United States Win

Shayna Baszler TKO (leg kick) UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. LaFlare

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Loss

Cat Zingano TKO (elbows and punches) UFC 178

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States Win

Germaine de Randamie TKO (elbows) UFC: Fight for the Troops 3

Fort Campbell, Kentucky, United States Win

Sheila Gaff TKO (punches and elbows) UFC 163

Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Loss

Sarah D'Alelio Decision (unanimous) Invicta FC 4

Kansas City, Kansas, United States Win

Raquel Pa'aluhi Technical Submission (rear-naked choke) Invicta FC 2

Kansas City, Kansas, United States Loss

Alexis Davis TKO (punches) Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov

Cincinnati, Ohio, United States Win

Julia Budd KO (punches) Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Saffiedine

Nashville, Tennessee, United States Win

Ediane Gomes TKO (punches) Bitetti Combat 6

Brasília, Brazil Win

Vanessa Porto TKO (corner stoppage) Samurai Fight Combat 2

Curitiba, Brazil Win

Deise Lee Rocha TKO (punches) Samurai Fight Combat 1

Curitiba, Brazil Win

Ana Maria TKO (punches) Prime MMA Championship 3

Salvador, Brazil Win

Paty Barbosa TKO (corner stoppage) Demo Fight 3

Salvador, Brazil Loss

Ana Maria Submission (armbar) Prime MMA Championship 2

Salvador, Brazil Pay-per-view bouts