Amanda Nunes (UFC) Wiki, Height, Weight, Age, Wife, Family, Biography & More

Amanda Nunes is a Brazillian professional mixed martial artist who competed in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where she was the former UFC Women’s Featherweight Champion and a 2-time UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion. At the time of her retirement on 10 June 2023, she was ranked #1 in the UFC women’s pound-for-pound ranking. Nunes, widely recognised as the greatest female MMA fighter of all time, was the first woman to become a two-division UFC champion, and the third fighter, after Conor McGregor and Daniel Cormier, to hold UFC titles in two weight classes at the same time. She is the UFC’s first openly lesbian champion.

Wiki/Biography

Amanda Lourenço Nunes was born on Monday, 30 May 1988 (age 35 years; as of 2023) in Pojuca, Bahia, Brazil. Her zodiac sign is Gemini.

Amanda Nunes comes from a family with a fighting background. Her uncle, José Silva, was a Vale Tudo fighter, and her mother Ivete, who trained in boxing, often supported him during his matches. Due to her energetic nature, Amanda began attending capoeira lessons at the age of five, after her teacher noted her excess energy. By seven, she had taken up karate. At first, Amanda’s father was not in favour of her fighting career, but he eventually supported her. Her mother, Ivete, was a caring yet strict parent who suggested Amanda take up sports to channel her boundless energy. While Amanda initially had a dream of becoming a professional soccer player, playing for local teams in Pojuca and Salvador. She even had a chance to try out for the Vitória football club. However, her mother’s main aim was for her to get educated. At 16, Amanda began Brazilian jiu-jitsu training, after her sister, Vanessa’s suggestion. She also started to learn boxing around that time. Even as the only woman at her gym, she quickly stood out and overpowered her sparring partners. After defeating all local challengers, she moved on to Salvador at 17 to train at the Edson Carvalho Academy, guided by Ricardo Carvalho. There, she learnt judo as well. While initially living with her sister, she later moved to the gym for convenience after her coach suggested her to. Nunes began competing in Brazillian Jiu-Jutsu events and won several major tournaments, including the Pan American Jiu-Jitsu Championship in 2008, and the World Jiu-Jitsu Championship in 2009. By 2012, she became a world champion in the North American Grappling Association (NAGA). She began her MMA training in 2007 with Edson Carvalho. After moving to the US, she trained in New Jersey and then in Miami. As of 2023, she trains at the American Top Team in Florida, with coaches Conan Silveira, Phil Daru, and Jose Rojas.

Physical Appearance

Height (approx.): 5′ 8″

Weight (approx.): 61 kg

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Black and Blonde

Figure Measurements (approx.): 30-28-32

Family

Amanda Nunes belongs to a Brazillian family.

Parents & Siblings

Amanda’s father is Sindoval Nunes, and her mother is Dona Ivete Nunes, who works as a school administrator. They got divorced when Amanda was 4 years old.

In an interview she said,

My mother was a warrior woman. There was nothing missing at home, at school she had everything she needed to study for education. She found a way to get everything I really wanted, to give it to me as a gift… I was happy. That’s the most important thing, she managed to make me happy. Me and my sisters. One thing that I really admire, the determination she had to create us. She managed 30 years to keep the house. My two sisters started working early to help around the house and when they left, my mother said: ‘No, there’s no need. You can leave it to me, there’s money here for us to survive and whatever we need’. But my sisters wanted to help. I was very little and they helped my mother raise me.” ¹

Amanda and her mother

She has 2 elder sisters, Valdirene, who works as an administrator and advisor, and Vanessa, who is a marital artist.

Wife & Children

Amanda Nunes got married to Nina Nunes (Nina Ansaroff), who was an ex-fighter in the UFC, on 25 January 2019. Nina had a daughter, Raegan Ann Nunes, on 24 September 2020.

Relationship/Affair

Amanda started dating Nina in 2013 and later on got married.

Signature/Autograph

Career

Mixed Martial Arts

On 8 March 2008, Nunes had her first professional fight at Prime MMA Championship 2, and she lost to Ana Maria in the first round by an armbar.

Strikeforce

Before her Strikeforce debut on 7 January 2011, in Nashville, Nunes had a winning streak of five fights, all of the wins by knockouts. She made a remarkable 14-second knockout win against Julia Budd in her debut match.

 

On 18 June 2011, she was set to face Julie Kedzie in Dallas, but she had to cancel the fight due to a foot injury. Later on 10 September 2011, she fought Alexis Davis at Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov. Nunes began with high-power strikes, but got tired in the second round, due to which Davis took advantage, and defeated Nunes knocking her out with rapid strikes. Nunes was set to compete against Cat Zingano on 29 September 2012. However, the event got cancelled due to Gilbert Melendez’s knee injury.

Invicta FC

On 28 July 2012, Nunes was set to fight Milana Dudieva at Invicta FC 2. However, after Dudieva fell ill, and was replaced by Leslie Smith. Smith got injured before the weigh-in, so Nunes faced Raquel Pa’aluhi. She won the match in the first-round rear-naked choke. On 5 January 2013, she fought Sarah D’Alelio at Invicta FC 4 and lost by a unanimous decision. She set to fight Kaitlin Young on 5 April 2013, at Invicta FC 5 but she got pulled out because of an arm injury.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

On 3 August 2013, Nunes made her debut in the UFC. She won her debut match by beating Sheila Gaff with a first-round TKO at UFC 163 in Brazil. She faced Germaine de Randamie next at UFC Fight Night 31 on 6 November 2013 and won in the first round by a TKO.

Nunes was set to fight Sarah Kaufman, as Shayna Baszler’s replacement, but she had to withdraw due to a dislocated thumb. On 27 September 2014, at UFC 178, Nunes faced Cat Zingano. Nunes lost the match to Zingano in the third round by a TKO.

On 21 March 2015, at UFC Fight Night 62, Nunes defeated Shayna Baszler with a first-round TKO. She then faced Sara McMann on 8 August 2015, at UFC Fight Night 73. She won the fight by a first-round submission after a successful punch combination. Nunes then faced Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 196 on 5 March 2016 and won the match by a unanimous decision.

 

Bantamweight and Featherweight Champion

After winning multiple matches in a row, Nunes fought Miesha Tate for the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship at UFC 200 on 9 July 2016. She defeated Tate in the first round and became the first openly gay UFC champion.

On 30 December 2016, Nunes defended her title against Ronda Rousey at UFC 207. She won the fight in just 48 seconds of the first round.

She was set to defend her title against Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 213, which was a rematch from their previous fight at UFC 196, which Nunes had won. However, due to health issues, the fight was postponed. It eventually took place at UFC 215 on 9 September 2016, where Nunes won by a split decision victory. Out of 22 media sources, 10 scored in favour of Nunes, and 10 in favour of Shevchenko, while 2 scored it as a draw.

On 12 May 2018, at UFC 224, Nunes defended her title against Raquel Pennington. She won the fight in the fifth round. This event was significant as it was the first UFC event headlined by two openly gay fighters.
Later, on 29 December 2018, at UFC 232, Nunes fought Cris Cyborg for the UFC Women’s Featherweight Championship. Nunes won the fight in just 51 seconds into the first round and became the first woman in UFC history to hold titles in two different weight classes simultaneously. This victory also earned her the Performance of the Night award.

 

On 6 July 2019, at UFC 239, Nunes returned to the bantamweight division to defend her title against former champion, Holly Holm. She secured the win in the first round with a knockout and earned another Performance of the Night award. On 14 December 2019, at UFC 245, Nunes successfully defended her UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship against Germaine de Randamie. She dominated the fight and won by unanimous decision with scores of 49–44, 49–46, and 49–45. This victory marked her seventh win in women’s title fights and made it a UFC record.

Later on, she was scheduled to face Felicia Spencer on 9 May 2020, at UFC 250. However, due to COVID-19-related concerns, UFC president, Dana White, announced the event’s postponement. The fight was rescheduled for 6 June 2020, at UFC 250, where Nunes won another by unanimous decision with scores of 50–44, 50–44, and 50–45.

Nunes was set to defend her featherweight title against Megan Anderson, at UFC 256, in December 2020. However, she had to withdraw from the fight because of an undisclosed injury. Their matchup was rescheduled for 6 March 2021, at UFC 259. Nunes won the fight in the first round with a triangle armbar submission.

On 7 August 2021, at UFC 265, Nunes was set to defend her bantamweight title against Julianna Peña. However, Nunes tested positive for COVID-19 on 29 July 2021, due to which the fight was postponed. They finally faced off at UFC 269 on 11 December 2021. Peña dominated the fight in the second round and won against Nunes by a rear-naked choke submission. This loss of her title belt caused a significant upset for Nunes and her fans. On 5 February 2022, it was revealed that Nunes and Peña would be the coaches for The Ultimate Fighter 30 on ESPN+, which would feature heavyweight and women’s flyweight contestants.

The much-awaited rematch between Nunes and Peña occurred on 30 July 2022, at UFC 277. Nunes won the match by a unanimous decision. This win not only allowed her to reclaim the bantamweight title but also made her the first fighter of UFC of either gender to become double champ twice. Also, she made another record by winning a title in a weight class below her current title. For her exceptional performance, Nunes earned the Crypto.com “Fan Bonus of the Night” award, worth US$30,000, paid in bitcoin.

Retirement

On 10 June 2023, at UFC 289, Nunes was set to face Julianna Peña for a trilogy match. However, on 2 May 2023, it came to light that Peña had broken her ribs during training, which caused her to step out of the contest. Irene Aldana stepped in as a replacement. In the fight, Nunes won by a unanimous decision. After her victory, Nunes announced her retirement in her post-fight interview and officially ended her MMA career.

Signature Moves/Finishers

 

Awards/Titles/Achievements

Ultimate Fighting Championship

• UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship (two times)
  

  Amanda with her UFC titles

• Six successful title defenses (overall)
  

  Amanda Nunes’s first title defence

• Five successful title defences (first reign)

• One successful title defence (second reign)

• Most number wins in UFC title fights amongst women (11)

• Most wins in UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship fights (8)

• Most bouts in UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship fights (9)

• The first woman in the UFC to win two titles (bantamweight and featherweight) and hold them simultaneously

• First fighter in the UFC to defend titles in two divisions while holding both titles simultaneously

• The Sixth multi-divisional champion in UFC and the third to hold two titles simultaneously (after Daniel Cormier and Conor McGregor)
  

  Amanda with her titles

  

  Amanda’s trophy collection

• The First and only fighter to retire as a multi-division champion in UFC history

• Fourth longest single UFC title reign of all time (1981 days) (behind Demetrious Johnson, Georges St-Pierre and Anderson Silva)

• UFC Women’s Featherweight Championship (one time)

• Two successful title defenses

• Tied (Cris Cyborg) for most wins in UFC Women’s Featherweight Championship fights (3)

• Longest combined UFC title reign of all time (3697 days)

• Most combined title defences by a woman in UFC history (8)

• Tied (Anderson Silva) for fourth most title fight wins in UFC history (11)

• Performance of the Night (five times) vs. Sara McMann, Miesha Tate, Ronda Rousey, Cris Cyborg and Holly Holm

• Tied (Jéssica Andrade & Ronda Rousey) for most Performance of the Night bonuses in UFC Women’s history

• Most wins in UFC Women’s history (16)

• Most finishes in UFC Women’s history (10)

• Most consecutive wins in UFC Women’s history (12)

• Most knockout wins in UFC Women’s Bantamweight division history (6)

• Most finishes in UFC Women’s Bantamweight division history (8)

• Most wins in UFC Women’s Bantamweight division history (13)

• Most consecutive wins in UFC Women’s Bantamweight division history (9)

• Most knockdowns in UFC Women’s Bantamweight division history (9)

• Most knockdowns in a bout in UFC Women’s Bantamweight division history (3 vs. Julianna Peña 2)

• Most takedowns in UFC Women’s Bantamweight division history (32)

• Most takedowns landed in a bout in UFC Women’s Bantamweight division history (8 vs. Germaine de Randamie)

• Tied (Cris Cyborg) for most consecutive wins in UFC Women’s Featherweight division history (3)

• Second most bouts in UFC Women’s Bantamweight division history (15)

• Holds wins over seven former UFC champions — Miesha Tate, Ronda Rousey, Valentina Shevchenko (twice), Holly Holm, Germaine de Randamie (twice), Cris Cyborg, and Julianna Peña

• 2015 August Submission of the Month vs. Sara McMann

• 2018 Female Fighter of the Year

• 2019 Female Fighter of the Year

CombatPress.com

• 2018 Upset of the Year vs. Cris Cyborg

• 2018 Female Fighter of the Year

• 2019 Female Fighter of the Year

MMA Weekly

• 2018 Knockout of the Year vs. Cris Cyborg

Equality California

• 2016 Equality Visibility Award

MMADNA.nl

• 2016 Female Fighter of the Year

• 2018 Female Fighter of the Year

World MMA Awards

• 2016 Female Fighter of the Year

• 2018 Female Fighter of the Year

• 2018 Knockout of the Year vs. Cris Cyborg at UFC 232

• 2018 Upset of the Year vs. Cris Cyborg at UFC 232

• 2019 – July 2020 Female Fighter of the Year

Car Collection

• Ford F-150 pickup truck
  

  Amanda’s car

• Jeep Gladiator Rubicon
  

  Amanda’s Jeep Gladiator Rubicon

• Mercedes GLS SUV
  

  Amanda’s Mercedes

• Chevrolet Camaro

Bike Collection

• RAEV Bullet GT E-Bike
  

  Amanda on her E-Bike

• Surg City S Electric Scooter
  

  Amanda on her E-Scooter

• Honda CG125
  

  Amanda on her bike

Tattoos

Amanda has a sleeve tattoo of an arm shield on her right arm which completely covers her whole arm front front and back.

She got a tattoo of an owl on her left bicep on 17 February 2017. She also has her daughter, Raegan’s, name inked over her left shoulder.

She has a Key tattoo on her left forearm.

In 2018, Amanda got a tattoo of 200, which related to her victory in the UFC 200. She later got a tattoo of 232 and 250.

Amanda has a tattoo on her upper back of a half-and-half portrait of her face and a lioness, inked “AMANDA NUNES – THE LIONESS”, flanked by two Chinese symbols.

She has a tattoo of Super Mario on her leg.

Salary/Income/Earnings

• Strikeforce Challengers: Woodley vs. Saffiedine- $9,000 ($4,500 to show, $4,500 win bonus)

• Strikeforce: Barnett vs. Kharitonov: L (Davis)- $7,500

• UFC 163: W (Gaff)- $12,000 ($6,000 to show, $6,000 win bonus)

• UFC: Fight for the Troops 3: W (de Randamie)- $16,000 ($8,000 to show, $8,000 win bonus)

• UFC 178: L (Zingano)- $15,000

• UFC Fight Night: Maia vs LaFlare- W (Baszler)- $30,000 ($15,000 to show, $15,000 win bonus)

• UFC Fight Night: Teixeira vs. Saint Preux- W (McMann)- $97,000 ($21,000 to show, $21,000 win bonus, $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus, $5,000 Reebok sponsorship)

• UFC 196: W (Shevchenko)- $61,000 ($28,000 to show, $28,000 win bonus, $5,000 Reebok sponsorship)

• UFC 200: W (Tate)- $180,000 ($100,000 to show, $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus, $30,000 Reebok sponsorship)

• UFC 207: W (Rousey)- $290,000 ($100,000 to show, $100,000 win bonus, $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus, $40,000 Reebok sponsorship)

• UFC 215: W (Shevchenko)- $250,000 ($105,000 to show, $105,000 win bonus, $40,000 Reebok sponsorship)

• UFC 224: W (Pennington)- $260,000 ($110,000 to show, $110,000 win bonus, $40,000 fight week incentive pay)

• UFC 232: W (Cyborg)- $440,000 ($350,000 to show, $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus, $40,000 fight week incentive pay)

• UFC 239: W (Holm)- $590,000 ($300,000 to show, $200,000 win bonus, $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus, $40,000 fight week incentive pay)

• UFC 245: W (de Randamie)- $490,000 ($350,000 to show, $100,000 win bonus, $40,000 fight week incentive pay)

• UFC 250: W (Spencer)- $490,000 ($350,000 to show, $100,000 win bonus, $40,000 fight week incentive pay)

• UFC 259: W (Anderson)- $490,000 ($350,000 to show, $100,000 win bonus, $40,000 fight week incentive pay)

• UFC 269: L (Pena)- $442,000 ($400,000 to show, $42,000 fight week incentive pay)

Career Earnings: $4,129,500 ²

Net Worth

As of June 2023, Amanda Nunes has a net worth is $4 million. ³

Favourites

• Actor: Robert Downley Jr.

• Colour: Black

Facts/Trivia

• Amanda was the only female in her training academy, which had two lions as its logo, her coach and fellow trainees began referring to her as “Leoa”, which translates to “lioness” in Portuguese.

• Amanda likes to spend her time reading, playing, and training her daughter in sports.
  

  Amanda reading a book for her daughter

  

  A picture of Amanda training her daughter BJJ

• Amanda Nunes holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Daniel Valverde, and a brown belt in Judo.

• Amanda Nunes fought out of Coral Springs, Florida, United States. Throughout her career, she has trained with several teams like, Team Carvalho (2003–2012), AMA Fight Club (2010–2012), MMA Masters (2012–2014), and American Top Team (2014–2022).

• Amanda occasionally spends her time in activities like swimming and horse riding.
  

  Amanda and her daughter in a swimming pool

  

  Amanda riding a horse

• In order to support her family, Amanda’s mother, Dona Ivete, used to sell hot dogs, sweets, and beauty products while doing her regular job at school.

• Amanda has multiple sponsorships and endorsements. She is one of the brand ambassadors of Celsius, an energy drink company.
  

  Amanda promoting the Celsius energy drink

• Amanda owns multiple dogs like 2 Dalmatians, Zazu and Malu, a Dachshund, named Simba, an American Bulldog, named Romie, and a Spaniel, named Mowgli.
  

  Amanda with her dog

  

  Amanda’s dog

• Amanda and her family like to do cosplays at events and Halloween.
  

  Amanda and her family in a cosplay

• Amanda Nunes is a playable character in the EA Sports video games UFC 3 and UFC 4.
  

  Amanda Nunes in UFC 4 video game

• Amanda consumes a non-vegetarian based diet.
  

  Amanda’s diet

• She occasionally consumes alcohol.
  

  Amanda consuming alcohol

• Amanda made an appearance in the film, Bruised, released in September 2020 on Netflix. The film was starred and directed by Halle Berry, as her debut in film direction.
  

  Bruised film poster

• Amanda was so highly disappointed after her third loss at UFC 178 against Cat Zingano, that she considered returning to Brazil and ending her fighting career.

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