Karine Silva de Almeida (born December 2, 1993) is a Brazilian professional

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorp ...

who competes in the

Flyweight Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing above 49 kg (108 lb) and up to 51 kg (112 lb). Professional boxing The flyweight division was the last of bo ...

division of the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

. As of November 7, 2023, she is #13 in the UFC women's flyweight rankings.

Background

With minimal financial resources, Silva took the daring step of leaving her job to move into a martial arts academy. Despite lacking support from her family, both morally and financially, she persevered. Working odd jobs, from security guard to masseuse and receptionist, she hustled to sustain herself while immersing herself in martial arts training. Silva's venture into the world of combat sports began with "

Chinese boxing Sanda (), formerly Sanshou (), also known as Chinese boxing or Chinese kickboxing, is the official Chinese kickboxing full-contact combat sport. Sanda is a fighting system which was originally developed by the Chinese military based upon the s ...

," eventually transitioning to mixed martial arts. At 19, she made her professional debut, although she hadn't initially planned on pursuing a career in the sport. Driven by her newfound passion, she abandoned school, family, and job to fully commit to her training. Her journey took a significant turn when she joined a team that offered comprehensive training in various disciplines like luta livre, wrestling, MMA, and muay Thai.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Silva's early career had primarily unfolded in Brazil, except for an ill-fated venture to Russia. During her early years, she dominated under the Aspera Fighting Championship banner, capturing six wins and headlining AFC 20 with a first-round armbar victory over Leticia Oliveira Ribeiro. Her only loss came against fellow future UFC fighter

Maryna Moroz Maryna Moroz (Ukrainian: Марина Мороз; born September 8, 1991) is a Ukrainian professional mixed martial artist, signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where she competes in the Women's Flyweight division. Moroz is also ...

at XFC International 7 on November 1, 2014, being submitted via armbar in the first round. She would go on to win her next 4 bouts via stoppage, however, her international debut ended in defeat, as

Marina Mokhnatkina Marina Yuryevna Mokhnatkina (russian: Марина Юрьевна Мохнаткина; née Kormiltseva, born 12 May 1988) is a sambo competitor and mixed martial artist. Mokhnatkina is a six-time world champion and two-time European champion in ...

submitted her with a kneebar at Fight Nights Global 81: Matmuratov vs. Ignatiev in December 2017. She would go on to lose her next bout via unanimous decision to Dione Barbosa after a two year layoff, Silve started building momentum by dropping down back to flyweight and knocking out Vitoria Ferreira in August 2019. Silva embarked on a five-fight winning streak that positioned her for her shot at making the

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

. Her chance came against Qihui Yan on Dana White's Contender Series 45, where she displayed her defensive prowess in the first round by thwarting Yan's attempts and even landing shots from the bottom. In the second round, Silva turned the tide with offensive aggression. She capitalized on an opportunity, executing a flawless guillotine choke that compelled Yan to tap, sealing her victory at 1:44 into Round 2.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Silva made her promotional debut against

Poliana Botelho Poliana Botelho (born December 15, 1988) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the strawweight division of Bellator MMA. She previously has competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and held the Women's Flyweight Champio ...

on June 4, 2022 at

UFC Fight Night 207 ''UFC Fight Night: Volkov vs. Rozenstruik'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 207'' and ''UFC on ESPN+ 65'' or ''UFC Vegas 56'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on June 4, 2022, at the ...

. She won the fight via a brabo choke in round one. This win earned her the ''

Performance of the Night UFC Bonus Awards are three separate cash bonuses usually awarded to four fighters after each UFC event, based on internal decisions by UFC management. More/fewer bonuses have been awarded at some events, especially when no knockouts or submissions ...

'' award. In her sophomore performance, Silva faced Invicta Champion

Ketlen Souza Ketlen Souza (born 18 August 1995) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist (MMA) who currently competes in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in the flyweight division. She previously competed in Invicta Fighting Championships where she is a ...

on June 3, 2023, at

UFC on ESPN 46 ''UFC on ESPN: Kara-France vs. Albazi'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 46'' or ''UFC Vegas 74'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on June 3, 2023, at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise, ...

. She won the fight by kneebar submission in the first round. Silva rematched

on August 19, 2023, at

UFC 292 ''UFC 292: Sterling vs. O'Malley'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on August 19, 2023, at the TD Garden in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Background The event marked the promot ...

. She won the fight via a guillotine choke submission in the first round.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

(One time)

Mixed martial arts record

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Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

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, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 14–4 , Qihui Yan , Submission (guillotine choke) , Dana White's Contender Series 45 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:44 ,

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–4 , Sidy Rocha , TKO (arm injury) , Standout Fighting Tournament 22 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:16 ,

São Paulo São Paulo (, ; Portuguese for 'Saint Paul') is the most populous city in Brazil, and is the capital of the state of São Paulo, the most populous and wealthiest Brazilian state, located in the country's Southeast Region. Listed by the GaWC a ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 12–4 , Simone da Silva , Submission (heel hook) , Standout Fighting Tournament 21 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:07 ,

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 11–4 , Geovanna Eduarda , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Cidade da Luta 4 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:00 ,

Curitiba Curitiba () is the capital and largest city in the state of Paraná (state), Paraná in Brazil. The city's population was 1,948,626 , making it the List of cities in Brazil by population, eighth most populous city in Brazil and the largest in ...

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, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 9–4 , Dione Barbosa , Decision (unanimous) , Katana Fight 9 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Pinhais Pinhais is a municipality in Paraná state in Brazil. As of 2020, the population was 133,490. It was emancipated from the municipality of Piraquara in 1992 and is part of the metropolitan region of Curitiba. It is the smallest municipality in Par ...

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, Submission (kneebar) , Fight Nights Global 81 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:58 ,

Omsk Omsk (; rus, Омск, p=omsk) is the administrative center and largest city of Omsk Oblast, Russia. It is situated in southwestern Siberia, and has a population of over 1.1 million. Omsk is the third largest city in Siberia after Novosibirsk ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 9–2 , Juliete de Souza , Submission (triangle choke) , Curitiba Top Fight 11 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 1:38 ,

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 8–2 , Bruna Rosso , TKO (elbows) , Aspera FC 25 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:28 ,

Curitibanos Curitibanos is a Brazilian municipality in the state of Santa Catarina. It is located at 27º16'58" south latitude and 50º35'04" west longitude, at an elevation of 987 metres. It has an area of 953.67 km² and its population, according to 2018 ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Leticia Ribeiro , Submission (armbar) , Aspera FC 20 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:24 ,

Navegantes Navegantes (, ''Seafarers'') is a coastal and tourist city located in Santa Catarina state, southern Brazil. The population is 83,626 (2020 est.) in an area of 112.0 km². Ministro Victor Konder International Airport serves the popular bea ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 6–2 , Cynthia Cândido , TKO (punches) , Aspera FC 17 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:58 ,

, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–2 ,

, Submission (armbar) , XFC International 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:27 ,

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 5–1 , Geisyele Nascimento , TKO (punches) , Aspera FC 8 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:11 ,

Paranaguá Paranaguá (''Great Round Sea'', in Tupi) is a city in the state of Paraná in Brazil. Founded in 1648, it is Paraná's oldest city. It is known for the Port of Paranaguá, which serves as both the sea link for Curitiba, to the west and the cap ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 4–1 , Patricia Marques , TKO (punches) , Aspera FC 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:33 , Itajai, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 3–1 , Cintia Nunes , KO (head kick) , Aspera FC 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:32 ,

Itapema Itapema is a city in Santa Catarina, Brazil. History Colonization The Azoreans already in the communities of São Miguel and Santo Antônio were responsible for the settlement of the bay of Porto Belo, where they helped found the parish of ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 2–1 , Helaine Ribeiro , KO (elbows) , Victory Iron Girls 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:03 ,

Florianópolis Florianópolis () is the capital and second largest city of the state of Santa Catarina, in the South region of Brazil. The city encompasses Santa Catarina Island and surrounding small islands, as well as part of the mainland. It has a populat ...

, Brazil , , - , Win , align=center, 1–1 , Marta Souza , TKO (punches) , Curitiba Fight Pro , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A ,

Xaxim Xaxim is a municipality in the state of Santa Catarina in Brazil. Located at latitude 26º57'42 "south and longitude 52º32'05" West, with an altitude of 770 meters. Its estimated population in 2020 was of 28,983 inhabitants. Name origin Over ti ...

, Brazil , , - , Loss , align=center, 0–1 , Elaine Albuquerque , KO (punch) , Sparta MMA 7 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 2:33 ,

Balneário Camboriú Balneário Camboriú () is a coast beach city in the Brazilian southern state of Santa Catarina. The city, with its steep hills dropping down to the sea, is popular amongst South Americans. The main ocean boulevard is called ''Avenida Atlânti ...

, Brazil , , -

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Silva, Karine 1993 births Living people Flyweight mixed martial artists Brazilian female mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Ultimate Fighting Championship female fighters