UFC Seattle features a rematch between Brazilian strawweights Alexia Thainara and Bruna Brasil, but a lot has changed since their first encounter in 2019.
Thainara started training martial arts to look good and be in shape before eventually deciding to start a career as a professional MMA fighter. A year into that new adventure, she took the road to Sao Paulo to face Brasil on the Thunder Fight 20 card. They were two green athletes battling in front of a small crowd, Thainara at 2-0 and Brasil with
a 2-2-1 record, and Brasil got the victory with a third-round guillotine choke submission.
Six years later, they enter the octagon Saturday in Seattle to run it back as two completely different fighters. Thainara beat Molly McCann and Loma Lookboonmee in the UFC after topping Rose Conceicao on Dana White’s Contender Series, pushing her win streak to 11, while Brasil has bounced between wins and losses for a 3-4 post-DWCS record.
“It was the only loss of my career so it comes in as a kind of revenge,” Thainara told MMA Fighting. “But the game has reset. Back then I was a different Alexia. I have more experience now, a better mindset, more intense training. I have better people around me and a much more focused mind. Not that I wasn’t focused then, but now I’m truly locked in on reaching the top.”
“We were both at the beginning of our careers,” she continued. “Back then I didn’t even dream about being in the UFC, I was fighting more for aesthetics, to have a good body and all that. But my mindset completely changed after I moved to Varginha. My coach told me, ‘You have potential, you’re going to make it, so let’s work on that.’ I believe now we’re two very experienced fighters, both hungry to compete.”
Now part of the Ribas Family team alongside UFC talents Amanda Ribas and Ketlen Souza, Thainara originally agreed to fight Stephanie Luciano as a replacement for Carol Foro, but the bout was changed one more time with Brasil stepping in for Luciano.
“We basically live in a constant training camp,” Thainara said. “My coach always says an athlete has to be ready at all times. When the phone rings, we have to be ready. It was just a matter of making a few adjustments to my game, staying sharp, improving my cardio and diet to make the weight cut, and now it’s time to go forward and bring the fight.
“I have the best team in Brazil, and Alexia is much better than she was before too. I need to reset everything and stay calm because we’re two completely different fighters now. More experienced, more evolved. I just have to go in there, reset the game, and show my work and why I belong in the UFC.”
Thainara admits she expected a higher-ranked foe after a 2-0 start in the UFC, but understands the circumstances of a short-notice call. At the same time, she sees Brasil as an ideal “test” to show the matchmakers where she’s at in her career.
“The UFC is testing Alexia to see what her level is,” Thainara said, “and I believe this fight is about renewing my contract, staying active and not taking too long to fight again. I have faith in God that we’ll renew the contract because every time the phone rings, I’m ready to fight.”
