Mariana Morais (born May 3, 1995) is a Brazilian female

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

Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class is derived from Ba ...

division. From April 2020 to October 2020,

Fight Matrix Fight Matrix , MMA Rankings, Records, Statistics is an independent, comprehensive, mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter ranking system portal. It is one of the sport's most recognized ranking websites. According to FightMatrix: "The rankings on thi ...

had Morais ranked within the top 10 of the rankings for Women's Featherweight+, rising to as high as #9.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Starting her career in 2012, Morais compiled a 9–2 record on the regional Brazilian scene before she was signed to

Invicta Fighting Championships Invicta Fighting Championships, also known as Invicta FC, is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion dedicated to Women's mixed martial arts that was founded in 2012 by Janet Martin and Shannon Knapp. The promotion is currentl ...

as a 19 year old. In her one fight at the time in the promotion, Morais faced

Roxanne Modafferi Roxanne Vincenta Modafferi (born September 24, 1982) is an American retired mixed martial artist, who most recently fought for the UFC. Though she last fought in the flyweight division, she has fought in multiple weight classes in her career. A p ...

at Invicta FC 14: Evinger vs. Kianzad on September 12, 2015, and lost via TKO stoppage in the third round. Returning to the regional Brazilian scene, Morais won 3 out the next 4 bouts, losing only to future

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 ...

fighter

Karol Rosa Karolline Rosa Cavedo (born December 30, 1994) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. A professional since 2012, she currently competes in the Bantamweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of October 3, 2022, she is #9 in t ...

via unanimous decision. Morais faced

Ariane Lipski Ariane Lipski (born January 26, 1994) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. She is a former KSW Women's Flyweight Champion and currently competes in the flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background Lipski was bor ...

on October 22, 2017, at KSW 40 for the KSW Women's Flyweight Championship. She lost via rear-naked choke less than a minute into the first round. Morais faced

Vanessa Porto Vanessa Alessandra Teixeira Porto (born March 16, 1984) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and amateur boxer who competes in the Bellator MMA flyweight division. Background Porto grew up in Jaú, São Paulo in a family of soccer players. S ...

on January 13, 2018, at Invicta FC 27: Kaufman vs. Kianzad. She lost the fight via a rear-naked choke on round one. Morais would then lose the next 4 out of 6 bouts on the regional Brazilian scene, including for the Shooto Brazil Women's Bantamweight Championship at Shooto Brasil 81 against Lara Fritzen via unanimous decision. One of the bouts she did win was for the NCE Flyweight Championship. Morais competed in the one night Shooto Brasil Women's Lightweight Grand Prix on March 1, 2020, with the winner gaining a contract for the 2021 Professional Fighters League season. Morais started the event by facing

Dayana Silva Dayana Silva (born August 17, 1990) is a Brazilian female mixed martial artist who competes in the Featherweight division of Bellator MMA. As of September 27, 2022, she is #6 in the Bellator Women's Featherweight Rankings. Background Discovere ...

, from Nova União. In a tough fight, she won by split decision. She qualified for the final, where she faced Bianca Daimoni, from Chute Boxe, who had beaten Yana Gadelha in the semifinal. The São Paulo fighter needed less than two minutes to knock out Daimoni, in a straightforward exchange of blows.

Professional Fighters League

Morais was announced to be participating in the PFL for the 2021 season, and faced

Kayla Harrison Kayla Jean Harrison (born July 2, 1990) is an American professional mixed martial artist and former Olympic and world champion judoka, currently signed to the Professional Fighters League (PFL). Harrison competed in the weight category in jud ...

on May 6, 2021, at PFL 3. She lost the bout via TKO in the first round. Morais faced

Kaitlin Young Kaitlin Young (born September 15, 1985) is an American mixed martial artist who currently competes in the lightweight division. A professional mixed martial artist since 2007, Young has also competed for EliteXC, Invicta Fighting Championships, a ...

on June 25, 2021, at PFL 6. She won the close bout via split decision. Although she was eliminated from championship contention, she was scheduled to face Zamzagul Fayzallanova on August 19, 2021, at PFL 8. However, Zamzagul has to pull out of the bout and she was replaced by Claudia Zamora. After

Larissa Pacheco Larissa Moreira Pacheco (born September 7, 1994) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division of the PFL. Since 2020, Pacheco was ranked within the top 10 of the Women's Featherweight+ rankings by Fight Matrix, ha ...

was removed the tournament due to weight cut issues, Morais, who finished fifth in final standings, was reinstated as a replacement to face Taylor Guardado in the Semifinals off the Women's Lightweight tournament on August 19, 2021, at PFL 8. She lost the back-and-forth bout via split decision.

Post PFL

In her first bout after leaving PFL, Morais faced Abril Anguiano on January 7, 2023, at Peak Fighting 25, winning the bout via rear-naked choke in the first round.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

* New Corpore Extreme ** NCE Flyweight Championship

Mixed martial arts record

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Vanessa Melo Vanessa De Melo Silva (born March 27, 1988) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist who competes in the Lightweight division of Professional Fighters League (PFL). She is most known for her time spent fighting in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (U ...

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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 ...

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Norma Dumont Norma Dumont Viana Ferreira (born October 1, 1990) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist in the Featherweight Featherweight is a weight class in the combat sports of boxing, kickboxing, mixed martial arts, and Greco-Roman wrestling. Boxing Profes ...

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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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Vila Velha Vila Velha (; Portuguese for "Old Village") is a coastal city in Espírito Santo, Brazil. It lies across from Vitória, the state capital. Its population was 501,325 (2020) and its area is 210.23 km². Location Vila Velha forms part of th ...

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, TKO (punches) , Invicta FC 14: Evinger vs. Kianzad , , align=center , 3 , align=center , 4:40 ,

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, Peru , , - , Win , align=center, 7–2 , Stephanie Bragayrac , Submission (arm-triangle choke) , Explosion MMA 4 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, N/A ,

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São José dos Pinhais São José dos Pinhais () is a municipality in the state of Paraná in Brazil. It is a part of the Metropolitan Region of Curitiba. Etymology With geographical and religious origins the city's name is a homage to São José (Saint Joseph) and ...

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Jennifer Maia Jennifer Maia (born October 6, 1988) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist. Maia currently competes in the Flyweight, Women's Flyweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Maia trains at Chute Boxe Academy in Brazi ...

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Poços de Caldas Poços de Caldas is a municipality in the south of Minas Gerais state, Brazil, in the microregion of the same name. Its estimated population in 2020 was 168,641 inhabitants. The city is known for its hot springs. History Poços was founded in 1 ...

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References

External links

Mariana Morais
at PFL * {{DEFAULTSORT:Morais, Mariana 1995 births Living people Brazilian female mixed martial artists Lightweight mixed martial artists LGBT mixed martial artists People from São João da Boa Vista People from Niterói Afro-Brazilian women