Beatriz ‘Bia’ Mesquita has gone on an incredible run since starting her professional MMA career, and now she’s taken the next step by signing with the UFC. She will be making her debut at UFC Fight Night 261 when the promotion touches down in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil on October 11th, 2025. Her opponent is reportedly going to be another skilled grappler, Irina Alekseeva, who already has a few UFC fights under her belt. Although Alekseeva has been doing MMA a lot longer than Mesquita, the Judo black belt has the same amount of wins. Her professional record stands at 5-3 and she’s 1-2 in the UFC, currently riding a two-fight losing streak.
Mesquita on the other hand has been absolutely flawless during her career so far, racking up a perfect 5-0 record on the regional MMA circuit. It’s hardly surprising of course, as she’s one of the best grapplers on the planet and has spent over a decade winning at the highest level of BJJ. She only made her MMA debut a little over a year ago, dominating her opponent at Spaten Fight Night and submitting her in the first round. She also finished three out of her next four opponents and nobody has made it into the final round against her, with her other win coming by way of disqualification.
Most recently, Bia Mesquita became the bantamweight champion at LFA 211 and it was clearly just a matter of time before the UFC signed her. Champions in bigger regional promotions like LFA or Fury FC are almost always headhunted by the UFC afterward, as they’ve more than proven themselves ready. Mesquita will now be making her UFC debut just 16 months after her first MMA fight and given that the UFC bantamweight division isn’t particularly deep, a win over Alekseeva could see her getting a ranked opponent in her very next fight.
The news that Bia Mesquita had signed with the UFC was first reported by Brazilian journalist Leo Guimaraes on his official Twitter account:
