Jacqueline Cavalcanti is living a good life in Las Vegas. Leaving the favelas in Brazil to move to Portugal at age 11, and now waking up just a few miles away from the UFC APEX, she’s experiencing things were only possible through video games.
In October, weeks before Saturday’s UFC Vegas 111 clash with former title challenger Mayra Bueno Silva at the APEX, Cavalcanti went to shoot guns in the desert with some friends and TV personality Austin Russell, better known as Pawn Stars’ “Chumlee.”
“Everything
is very big here in Vegas, but at the same time everything is very small and everybody knows each other,” Cavalcanti told MMA Fighting. “Chumlee” is friends with one of Cavalcanti’s managers, and handed her shotguns, machine guns and even a sniper rifle for a night of “a lot of fun.”
“He invited me to do some shooting, which is one of his hobbies too,” Cavalcanti said. “I told him I had never fired a gun so it was really cool because he has some incredible weapons. What you see in Free Fire, or when you’re playing Call of Duty became real, and it was very fun — I wasn’t shooting at anyone [laughs], we were shooting at targets in the desert, but I think I’ll do it again.”
Cavalcanti would love to have “Chumlee” in attendance for one of her fights, but doesn’t believe he will be around this weekend. She has, however, taken him out for a tour around the UFC Performance Institute before, which “he liked it a lot.”
The Brazilian-Portuguese bantamweight is looking to make an impact in the bantamweight division now. Cavalcanti joined the UFC after winning the LFA belt in 2023 and has since won four straight in the promotion against Zarah Fairn, Josiane Nunes, Nora Cornolle and Julia Avila.
“I think it will be the toughest fight [of my career] because I’m facing a fighter who has already been a title challenger, no doubt, so the goal is to win this fight and show my full potential to everyone,” Cavalcanti said. “I don’t think ‘Sheetara’ has ever fought a striker at my level. I know ‘Sheetara’ also has very good jiu-jitsu and everyone tries to take me down when they can’t find the distance, and I think that will be her plan. She’ll try to take me down, I’ll defend it, and I’ll knock her out.”
Bueno Silva lost her past three against Raquel Pennington — for the vacant UFC bantamweight title —, Macy Chiasson and Jasmine Jasudavicius, and Cavalcanti expects her to be under pressure. Cavalcanti hoped to come back to action earlier, but said the UFC had trouble finding ranked athletes willing to face her after her most recent victory in February.
“If you’re coming off three losses you come in with more pressure — or not, maybe you really say ‘screw it’ and go for it,” Cavalcanti said of Silva. “I hope that’s what she’s doing, that she’s decided to not care and give her best. It could be that, or she might feel more pressured. For me the most important thing is how I’m feeling, not how my opponent is feeling. Whether she’s good or bad, the key is how I’ll feel that day.”
