Jennifer Maia

Early Life and Career

Jennifer Maia, born on October 6, 1988, in Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil, had a passion for soccer since childhood, but at 15, she transitioned to muay Thai, winning several national titles before moving on to boxing and mixed martial arts. Her professional MMA debut was on December 5, 2009, where she won her first four fights in the first round, three of which were submissions and one TKO.

Maia's first loss was on October 28, 2011, to Vanessa Porto in a second-round armbar. However, she bounced back with a second-round submission win over Tatiane Porfirio Aguiar at Pink Fight 1 on January 29, 2012.

Maia withdrew from her scheduled rematch against Porto at Pink Fight 2 to participate in the Cage Warriors women's flyweight title tournament. At Cage Warriors Fight Night 4 on March 16, 2012, she suffered a knockout loss to Sheila Gaff in just 10 seconds.

On December 15, 2012, Maia faced Jéssica Andrade at Samurai FC 9: Water vs. Fire, winning via unanimous decision.

Jennifer Maia’s Career in Invicta FC

After winning her first Invicta FC bout in 2013 against Zoila Frausto Gurgel, Maia faced Leslie Smith in a Flyweight Championship contender's fight at Invicta FC 6: Coenen vs. Cyborg, which she lost via unanimous decision.

She then went 2-0 on the regional scene in Brazil before returning to Invicta to face DeAnna Bennett at Invicta FC 10: Waterson vs. Tiburcio in December 2014, losing via unanimous decision.

After going 3-0 on the regional scene once again, Maia faced Vanessa Porto in a rematch of their 2011 bout at Invicta FC 16: Hamasaki vs. Brown on March 11, 2016, where she won via unanimous decision to claim the interim Invicta FC Flyweight Championship.

She then successfully defended her interim title against Roxanne Modafferi on September 23, 2016, winning via split decision after Barb Honchak was stripped of her undisputed championship.

Maia then defended her undisputed championship against Agnieszka Niedźwiedź at Invicta FC 26: Maia vs. Niedzwiedz on December 8, 2017, winning via unanimous decision.

She vacated her Invicta FC Flyweight Championship on July 7, 2018.

Jennifer Maia’s Career in UFC

Maia joined the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) in 2018 and lost her debut fight to Liz Carmouche in July of that year.

In January 2019, she tested positive for banned substances in an out-of-competition drug test, but it was found that she had unknowingly ingested them through contaminated supplements, and she received a six-month retroactive suspension.

Maia won her next two fights in March and July 2019 against Alexis Davis and Roxanne Modafferi, respectively, but missed weight for the latter bout and was fined. In November 2019, she lost to Katlyn Chookagian and was once again penalized for missing weight. This was the first fight of her new six-fight contract with the UFC.

Maia was supposed to fight Viviane Araújo at UFC on ESPN: Poirier vs. Hooker on June 27, 2020, but due to travel restrictions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the fight was rescheduled for August 1, 2020, at UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Shahbazyan. However, Araújo was later removed from the card after testing positive for COVID-19, and Joanne Calderwood replaced her. Maia won the fight against Calderwood via armbar submission in the first round and received the Performance of the Night award for her victory.

Maia fought Valentina Shevchenko for the UFC Women's Flyweight Championship on November 21, 2020, at UFC 255, but lost the fight via unanimous decision. She then defeated Jessica Eye via unanimous decision at UFC 264 on July 10, 2021.

Maia had a rematch with Katlyn Chookagian on January 15, 2022, at UFC on ESPN 32, but lost via unanimous decision. In her first bout of a new four-fight contract, Maia faced Manon Fiorot at UFC on ESPN 33 on March 26, 2022, but lost via unanimous decision.

Maia defeated Maryna Moroz via unanimous decision at UFC Fight Night 214 on November 19, 2022.

She won her fight Casey O'Neill on March 18, 2023, at UFC 286 via a unanimous decision.

Jennifer Maia Record

Result	Record	Opponent	Method	Event	Date	Round	Time	Location
Win	21-9-1	Casey O'Neill	Decision (unanimous)	UFC 286	March 18, 2023	3	5:00	London, England
Win	20–9–1	Maryna Moroz	Decision (unanimous)	UFC Fight Night: Nzechukwu vs. Cuțelaba	November 19, 2022	3	5:00	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss	19–9–1	Manon Fiorot	Decision (unanimous)	UFC on ESPN: Blaydes vs. Daukaus	March 26, 2022	3	5:00	Columbus, Ohio, United States
Loss	19–8–1	Katlyn Chookagian	Decision (unanimous)	UFC on ESPN: Kattar vs. Chikadze	January 15, 2022	3	5:00	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	19–7–1	Jessica Eye	Decision (unanimous)	UFC 264	July 10, 2021	3	5:00	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss	18–7–1	Valentina Shevchenko	Decision (unanimous)	UFC 255	November 21, 2020	5	5:00	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	18–6–1	Joanne Calderwood	Submission (armbar)	UFC Fight Night: Brunson vs. Shahbazyan	August 1, 2020	1	4:29	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss	17–6–1	Katlyn Chookagian	Decision (unanimous)	UFC 244	November 2, 2019	3	5:00	New York City, New York, United States
Win	17–5–1	Roxanne Modafferi	Decision (unanimous)	UFC on ESPN: dos Anjos vs. Edwards	July 20, 2019	3	5:00	San Antonio, Texas, United States
Win	16–5–1	Alexis Davis	Decision (unanimous)	UFC Fight Night: Thompson vs. Pettis	March 23, 2019	3	5:00	Nashville, Tennessee, United States
Loss	15–5–1	Liz Carmouche	Decision (unanimous)	UFC Fight Night: dos Santos vs. Ivanov	July 14, 2018	3	5:00	Boise, Idaho, United States
Win	15–4–1	Agnieszka Niedźwiedź	Decision (unanimous)	Invicta FC 26: Maia vs. Niedzwiedz	December 8, 2017	5	5:00	Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Win	14–4–1	Roxanne Modafferi	Decision (split)	Invicta FC 19: Maia vs. Modafferi	September 23, 2016	5	5:00	Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Win	13–4–1	Vanessa Porto	Decision (unanimous)	Invicta FC 16: Hamasaki vs. Brown	March 11, 2016	5	5:00	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win	12–4–1	Dayana Silva	Decision (majority)	Imortal FC 2: Kamikaze	December 13, 2015	3	5:00	São José dos Pinhais, Brazil
Win	11–4–1	Marta Souza	TKO (punches)	Samurai FC 12: Hearts on Fire	October 10, 2015	1	2:51	Curitiba, Brazil
Win	10–4–1	Stephanie Bragayrac	KO (knee)	Imortal FC 1: The Invasion	June 13, 2015	2	2:07	São José dos Pinhais, Brazil
Loss	9–4–1	DeAnna Bennett	Decision (unanimous)	Invicta FC 10: Waterson vs. Tiburcio	December 5, 2014	3	5:00	Houston, Texas, United States
Win	9–3–1	Elaine Albuquerque	Decision (unanimous)	Talent MMA Circuit 11	August 23, 2014	3	5:00	São José dos Pinhais, Brazil
Win	8–3–1	Mariana Morais	Submission (rear-naked choke)	Talent MMA Circuit 9	May 10, 2014	2	2:18	São José dos Pinhais, Brazil
Loss	7–3–1	Leslie Smith	Decision (unanimous)	Invicta FC 6: Coenen vs. Cyborg	July 13, 2013	3	5:00	Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Win	7–2–1	Zoila Frausto	Decision (unanimous)	Invicta FC 5: Penne vs. Waterson	April 5, 2013	3	5:00	Kansas City, Missouri, United States
Win	6–2–1	Jéssica Andrade	Decision (unanimous)	Samurai FC 9: Water vs. Fire	December 15, 2012	3	5:00	Curitiba, Brazil
Loss	5–2–1	Sheila Gaff	KO (punches)	Cage Warriors Fight Night 4	March 16, 2012	1	0:10	Dubai, United Arab Emirates
Win	5–1–1	Tatiane Porfirio Aguiar	Submission (armbar)	Pink Fight 1	January 29, 2012	2	1:17	Porto Seguro, Brazil
Loss	4–1–1	Vanessa Porto	Technical Submission (armbar)	Kumite MMA Combate	October 28, 2011	2	3:55	Porto Alegre, Brazil
Draw	4–0–1	Kalindra Faria	Draw	Power Fight Extreme 4	November 20, 2010	3	5:00	Curitiba, Brazil
Win	4–0	Alessandra Silva	Submission (armbar)	Gladiators Fighting Championship 2	October 16, 2010	1	1:50	Curitiba, Brazil
Win	3–0	Jenifer Haas	Submission (punches)	Challenge Mixed Martial Arts	August 7, 2010	1	1:18	Curitiba, Brazil
Win	2–0	Alessandra Silva	Submission (rear-naked choke)	Power Fight Extreme 2	March 13, 2010	1	4:03	Curitiba, Brazil
Win	1–0	Suelen Pinheiro Ribeiro	TKO (punches)	Brave FC 4: Explosion	December 5, 2009	1	2:01	Curitiba, Brazil

Jennifer Maia’s Most Popular Fights

Jennifer Maia vs. Valentina Shevchenko

Jennifer Maia fought Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 255 on November 21, 2020. The fight went the distance and Shevchenko was declared the winner by a unanimous decision.

FAQs on Jennifer Maia

How old is Jennifer Maia?

Jennifer Maia is 34 years old in 2023.

In which division does Jennifer Maia compete?

Maia currently competes in the Women’s Flyweight division for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

What is Jennifer Maia’s nationality?

Jennifer Maia is a Brazilian.

What are some of Jennifer Maia’s achievements?

Maia is the former Invicta FC Flyweight World Champion and is currently #8 in the UFC women’s flyweight rankings.