Amanda Nunes

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

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, who sold hot dogs, sweets and beauty products alongside her regular job as a school administrative assistant. Nunes initially aspired to become a professional soccer player, starting out in elementary school on the local Pojuca team and later on the Salvador team. She first attended capoeira classes at age five, after her school teacher complained that she was too hyperactive in class. She started learning karate at age seven. At age 16, following her sister Vanessa's invitation to a dojo, she began training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and also got involved with boxing. At age 17, she moved to Salvador to train at the Edson Carvalho academy under Ricardo Carvalho, where she also started training in judo. Because she was the only girl at the academy, and because the logo of the academy are two lions, her coach and other students started calling her 'Leoa' (lioness in Portuguese). She slept on the mat and woke up at about 4:30 am to clean the whole gym with the coach. She won a gold medal at the Pan American Jiu-Jitsu Championship in 2008 as a blue belt, a gold medal at the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship in 2009 as a purple belt, and became a world champion of the North American Grappling Association (NAGA) in the lightweight and absolute divisions in 2012.

Reader's Guide

Amanda Nunes's significance in mixed martial arts stems from her historic achievements in the UFC. She is the only woman to become a two-division UFC champion, and the third fighter to hold UFC titles in two weight classes simultaneously, after Conor McGregor and Daniel Cormier. She is also the only fighter in UFC history to defend titles in two different weight classes while actively holding both championships simultaneously. Her career includes a first-round submission victory over Miesha Tate at UFC 200 to win the bantamweight title, a 48-second TKO of Ronda Rousey at UFC 207, and a split-decision win over Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 215. Nunes knocked Cris Cyborg out in 51 seconds of the first round at UFC 232 to become the new UFC Women's Featherweight Champion, making her the first woman in UFC to hold championship belts in different divisions simultaneously. She defended the bantamweight title against Holly Holm at UFC 239 via knockout in round one after dropping Holm with a head kick, and against Germaine de Randamie at UFC 245 via unanimous decision. Her ranking as #1 in the UFC women's pound-for-pound rankings in 2022 reflects her sustained excellence.

Did You Know?

• Nunes is the only woman to become a two-division UFC champion.
• She is the third fighter to hold UFC titles in two weight classes simultaneously, after Conor McGregor and Daniel Cormier.
• Nunes knocked Cris Cyborg out in 51 seconds at UFC 232 to win the featherweight title.
• She defeated Ronda Rousey by TKO 48 seconds into the first round at UFC 207.
• Nunes was the first openly gay UFC champion after winning the bantamweight title at UFC 200.

Roots in Pojuca: A Fighter's Family

Amanda Lourenço Nunes entered the world on May 30, 1988, in Pojuca, a modest town nestled outside Salvador in Bahia, Brazil. Growing up with two older sisters, her childhood took a sharp turn at age four when her parents separated, leaving her mother to raise the three girls largely on her own. To keep food on the table, her mother juggled a position as a school administrative assistant with side hustles selling hot dogs, sweets, and beauty products. Despite the financial strain, her mother remained a loving yet firm presence, steering young Amanda toward physical activity as an outlet for what was clearly an overflowing reservoir of energy. Before ever stepping into a fighting gym, Nunes dreamed of a career in soccer, playing for local teams in Pojuca and later Salvador. A tryout with the Vitória football club came within reach, but her mother insisted she prioritize her studies, a decision that ultimately redirected her path toward the martial arts she would one day master.

From Capoeira to the Mat: Forging the Leoa

Fighting was woven into Nunes's family long before she laced up a pair of gloves. Her uncle competed in Vale Tudo, and her mother—herself a regular boxer—stood in the corner during those bouts, offering the kind of hard-nosed advice that would echo through Amanda's own career: always land the first strike, always make the opponent feel your presence before they can close the distance. At just five years old, a school teacher's complaints about her restlessness led her into capoeira classes, and by seven she was training karate. The real turning point arrived at sixteen, when her sister Vanessa dragged her into a Brazilian jiu-jitsu dojo. She also picked up boxing around the same time and, despite being the sole woman in the gym, quickly outperformed every training partner in sparring. At seventeen she relocated to Salvador to train under Ricardo Carvalho at the Edson Carvalho academy, adding judo to her repertoire. Because she was the only girl in a gym whose logo featured two lions, her coach and fellow students dubbed her 'Leoa'—lioness—a name she still carries into every fight.

Two Belts, One Name: Championship Dominance

Nunes's professional journey began humbly on March 8, 2008, at Prime MMA Championship 2, where she fell to Ana Maria by armbar in the opening round. That early setback, however, was the prelude to a rapid ascent. She strung together five consecutive knockout victories before debuting in Strikeforce in January 2011, where she dispatched Canadian Julia Budd in a mere fourteen seconds. Though her path through Strikeforce and Invicta FC included losses and withdrawn bouts, the trajectory was unmistakable. Her UFC debut at UFC 163 in August 2013, fought in her home country of Brazil against Sheila Gaff, marked the beginning of a reign that would reshape the sport. Nunes went on to claim the Women's Featherweight title and later became a two-time Women's Bantamweight Champion. She stands as the only woman ever to hold UFC championships in two divisions, the third fighter in organization history—after Conor McGregor and Daniel Cormier—to simultaneously carry two belts, and the sole competitor to have defended titles in two different weight classes while actively holding both. In 2022 she was ranked the number-one female fighter pound-for-pound in the UFC.

Beyond the Octagon: A Legacy in the Making

Commentators and major sports publications consistently place Amanda Nunes among the most accomplished female mixed martial artists the sport has ever produced, a distinction that extends well beyond the UFC cage. Her grappling credentials speak to a depth of martial arts mastery that few opponents can match: she earned a gold medal at the 2008 Pan American Jiu-Jitsu Championship as a blue belt, followed by a world title at the 2009 World Jiu-Jitsu Championship as a purple belt, and capped that run by winning both the lightweight and absolute divisions at the 2012 North American Grappling Association championships. She now holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and a brown belt in judo, a combination that underscores the well-rounded, multi-disciplinary foundation behind her in-cage performances. Her story also carries a personal dimension that resonates with fans: a father who initially opposed her fighting ambitions has since come around, and a mother whose own love of boxing and cornering her Vale Tudo–fighting uncle planted the seeds of a legacy. As a Brazilian-American competitor, Nunes bridges cultures and generations, proving that the path from a small town in Bahia to the pinnacle of global combat sports is not just possible but achievable.