Liana Jojua (born March 22, 1995) is a

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

mixed martial artist who competed 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. She has formerly fought in 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 ...

(UFC) and is also the former Fight Nights Global Women's Bantamweight Champion.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Jojua's interest in MMA started after watching Gina Carano's fights as a 16-year-old. Coming from a background in

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

, she made her MMA debut in September 2015. After winning her initial fight, she went on a two-fight skid in 2016, but Jojua hit her stride and went on a five-fight win streak which culminated in her winning the FNG Women's Bantamweight Championship against Marina Mokhnatkina.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Jojua faced Sarah Moras on September 7, 2019, at

UFC 242 ''UFC 242: Khabib vs. Poirier '' was a mixed martial arts pay-per-view event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on September 7, 2019 at The Arena, Yas Island in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Background The event mark ...

. At the weigh-ins, Moras weighed in at 138 lbs, 2 pounds over the bantamweight non-title fight limit of 136 lbs. Moras was fined 20% of her fight purse to Jojua, and the bout proceeded at catchweight. Jojua lost the fight via TKO in the third round.

Move down to flyweight

Jojua faced

Diana Belbiţă Diana Irena Belbiţă (born June 26, 1996) is a Romanian mixed martial artist, and former kickboxing, judo and kempo practitioner. She competes in the Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Belbiţă is a former world and ...

at UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Ige on July 16, 2020. She won the fight via armbar in first round. Jojua faced

Miranda Maverick Miranda Rachelle Maverick (born July 1, 1997) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). She competed in Flyweight division of the Invicta Fighting Championships. As of ...

on October 24, 2020 at UFC 254. She lost the fight via technical knockout in round one. Jojua was expected to face

Cortney Casey Cortney Ann Casey (born 5 May 1987) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division. She is currently signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Casey is of Mexican descent. A former Divisi ...

on August 21, 2021, at

UFC on ESPN 29 ''UFC on ESPN: Cannonier vs. Gastelum'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 29'' and ''UFC Vegas 34'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on August 21, 2021, at the UFC Apex facility in Enterp ...

. However, Jojua was forced out of the fight due to visa issues. The matchup was rescheduled at

UFC Fight Night 197 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 ...

on November 13, 2021. At the weigh-ins, Jojua weighed in at 128.5 pounds, two and a half pounds over the flyweight non-title fight limit. The bout proceeded at a catchweight with Jojua fined 30% of her purse, which went to her opponent Casey. Jojua lost the bout via unanimous decision. After the loss, it was announced that Jojua was released from UFC.

Post UFC

Jojua made her first appearance post UFC release and faced Dariya Zheleznyakova on May 20, 2022 at Ares FC 6. She lost by the way of unanimous decision.

Personal life

She is a teacher and graduated from Moscow State Pedagogical University. She also has a secondary musical education in

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

and

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

Championships and accomplishments

* Fight Nights Global ** FNG Women's Bantamweight Championship.

Mixed martial arts record

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Jojua, Liana 1995 births Living people People from Tbilisi Female mixed martial artists from Georgia (country) Flyweight mixed martial artists Bantamweight mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing kūdō Ultimate Fighting Championship female fighters Expatriate sportspeople from Georgia (country) in Russia