Beatriz ‘Bia’ Mesquita has just signed a contract to be represented by First Round Management as she prepares to make her MMA debut. It’s an exciting time for fans of professional grappling, as Mesquita is one of the top female competitors in the history of the sport. Not only has she won an incredible 10 IBJJF world championship titles but 8 of those were in her own weightclass, along with 2 absolute gold medals. She has actually won more gold medals at the IBJJF world championship than any other woman, and only one man has won more than her; Marcus ‘Buchecha’ Almeida.
Although Mesquita has dominated the IBJJF major circuit for more than the last decade, she hasn’t just stayed focused on gi competition either. She has also won an impressive five IBJJF no gi world championship gold medals and added an ADCC world championship title to her gigantic collection back in 2017. She did attempt to repeat that feat at ADCC 2022 but unfortunately had to settle for a bronze medal in the under 60kg division after falling to the eventual champion Ffion Davies in the semi-final.
Bia Mesquita doesn’t have anything left to achieve in the world of professional grappling, so it makes sense that she might have turned her attention towards making her MMA debut instead. She’s been preparing for it in training for quite some time and her signing with First Round Management is a clear statement of intent, showing that it won’t be long before fans see her in the cage. She hasn’t publicly confirmed which promotion she’ll be fighting for yet, although with a resume as impressive as hers it’s likely that she’ll receive offers from several major organizations like Bellator, ONE Championship, or PFL.
Beatriz ‘Bia’ Mesquita announced the news that she had signed with First Round Management to handle her MMA debut in a recent post to her official Instagram account: