Crystal Vanessa Demopoulos (born September 22, 1988) is an American 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 Strawweight 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 ...

Background

Born in Cleveland, Ohio, her parents and paternal grandparents raised her in Greece, as she is half Greek herself and Greek is her first language. After she got involved with drugs and became homeless as a teenager, she followed in her mother's footsteps at the age of 18 and became an

exotic dancer A stripper or exotic dancer is a person whose occupation involves performing striptease in a public adult entertainment venue such as a strip club. At times, a stripper may be hired to perform at a bachelor party or other private event. M ...

, continuing in the profession until right before her appearance at

UFC 270 ''UFC 270: Ngannou vs. Gane'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 22, 2022 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California. Background A UFC Heavyweight Championship title unificati ...

. Demopoulos started training in MMA around the age of 21, however her childhood was filled with fighting, even getting kicked out of schools for fighting.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

In her MMA debut at Iron Tiger Fight Series 79, she faced Emme Weber and went on to submit her in the first round via armbar. She made her

Legacy Fighting Alliance Legacy Fighting Alliance is an American mixed martial arts promotion, created as a result of the ''Legacy Fighting Championship'' and ''Resurrection Fighting Alliance'' merger in early 2017. History Resurrection Fighting Alliance On October 11, ...

debut at LFA 52, losing via unanimous decision to Itzel Sequivel. In her second appearance with LFA at LFA 62, She defeated Valerie Soto via majority decision. At LFA 69, she submitted Nadine Mandaiu in the first round via armbar, before defeating Loveth Young at LFA 81 via unanimous decision. Demopoulos faced

Sam Hughes Sir Samuel Hughes, (January 8, 1853 – August 23, 1921) was the Canadian Minister of Militia and Defence during World War I. He was notable for being the last Liberal-Conservative cabinet minister, until he was dismissed from his cabinet post ...

for the inaugural LFA Women's Strawweight Championship on July 17, 2020 at LFA 85. She won the bout after chocking Hughes unconscious in the 4th round via inverted triangle choke. On 11 August 2020, Demopoulos appeared on Dana White's Contender Series 28 against Cory McKenna. She lost the bout via unanimous decision. In the next bout at LFA 94, Demopoulos attempted to defend the LFA Women's Strawweight Championship against

Lupita Godinez Lupita "Loopy" Godínez (born September 6, 1993) is a Mexican-Canadian female mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As of November 14, 2023, she is #11 in the UFC women's strawweight ...

, losing the close bout and the belt via majority decision. She rebounded from the loss, defeating Cynthia Arceo in 37 seconds via TKO stoppage at LFA 103 on March 26, 2021. Demopoulos was booked to face Kathryn Paprocki on August 27, 2021 at LFA 114, however she was called to fight on short notice in 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 ...

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Demopoulos made her promotional debut on short notice replacing

Tracy Cortez Tracy Cortez (born December 10, 1993) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. As of March 7, 2023, she is #14 in the UFC women's flyweight rankings. Background Of Mexi ...

against

JJ Aldrich JJ Aldrich (born September 29, 1992) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Flyweight division. She is currently signed with the Ultimate Fighting Championship and has fought for Invicta FC. Background Aldrich was born to a ho ...

on August 28, 2021 at

UFC on ESPN 30 ''UFC on ESPN: Barboza vs. Chikadze'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 30'' and ''UFC Vegas 35'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on August 28, 2021, at the UFC Apex facility in Enterpri ...

. She lost the fight via unanimous decision. Demopoulos was scheduled to face

Ashley Yoder Ashley Elizabeth Yoder (born October 20, 1987) is an American mixed martial artist and competes in Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Biography Yoder was born on October 20, 1987 in Indianapolis, Indiana, United ...

on January 15, 2022 at

UFC on ESPN 32 ''UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Chikadze'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 32 '' and ''UFC Vegas 46'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on January 15, 2022 at the UFC Apex facility in Enterpri ...

. However, Yoder withdrew from the event for undisclosed reasons and she was replaced by

Silvana Gómez Juárez Silvana Gómez Juárez (born December 6, 1984) is an Argentinian mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division. She has previously competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background Gómez Juárez started training kung f ...

. The bout was pushed back to

a few days before the event. She won the bout via armbar in the first round. Demopoulos faced

Jinh Yu Frey Jinh Hie Yu Frey (born May 20, 1985) is a Korean-American mixed martial artist and currently competes in the strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). She is the former Invicta FC Atomweight Champion Background Frey was ...

on June 25, 2022 at

UFC on ESPN 38 ''UFC on ESPN: Tsarukyan vs. Gamrot'' (also known as ''UFC on ESPN 38'' and ''UFC Vegas 57'') was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on June 25, 2022, at the UFC Apex facility in Enterprise ...

. She won the bout via split decision. Demopoulos faced Maria Oliveira on November 19, 2022 at

UFC Fight Night 215 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 ...

. She won the fight via unanimous decision.

Championships and accomplishments

(LFA) ** LFA Women's Strawweight Champion (one time; former) *

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 ...

(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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Cory McKenna Cory McKenna (born 11 July 1999) is a Welsh professional mixed martial artist who competes as a strawweight for the Ultimate Fighting Championship. She has also competed for Cage Warriors. Early life and background Born in Wales, McKenna spen ...

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References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Demopoulos, Vanessa 1988 births American practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu Female Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners Living people Strawweight mixed martial artists American female mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu Ultimate Fighting Championship female fighters 21st-century American women American people of Greek descent