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Vanessa Alessandra Teixeira Porto (born March 16, 1984) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and amateur boxer who competes in the flyweight division.

Background

Porto grew up in Jaú, São Paulo in a family of soccer players. She had an appreciation for martial arts from a young age and started to practice Brazilian jiu-jitsu in 2004. She is currently married to her trainer Pedro Iglesias.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Porto began her professional MMA career in 2005. She initially fought only for Brazilian promotions such as Storm Samurai and Champions Night and faced opponents including Carina Damm, Cris Cyborg and Brazilian kickboxing champion Juliana Werner Aguiar. She defeated Aguiar on three occasions.

With a record of five wins and two losses, Porto signed with the U.S.-based Fatal Femmes Fighting promotion.

Fatal Femmes Fighting and Revolution Fight Club

Porto made her FFF debut against Tonya Evinger on July 14, 2007, at Fatal Femmes Fighting 2. She defeated Evinger via submission due to an armbar in the first round.

Porto was expected to face FFF bantamweight champion Roxanne Modafferi on November 3, 2007, at Fatal Femmes Fighting 3. However, Modafferi was removed from the event due to a shoulder injury and was replaced by Hitomi Akano. Porto defeated Akano via split decision after five rounds. Her match for the FFF bantamweight title against Modafferi happened on April 3, 2008, at Fatal Femmes Fighting 4. Porto lost via TKO for the first time in her MMA career.

Porto faced Germaine de Randamie on December 19, 2008, at Revolution Fight Club 2. She won via submission due to an armbar in the first round.

Return to Brazilian promotions

Between December 2008 and March 2011, Porto amassed five victories and suffered a single loss against Amanda Nunes. On October 28, 2011, Porto defeated Jennifer Maia via technical submission due to an armbar at Kumite MMA Combate.

Porto became the first Pink Fight champion at 132 pounds on March 10, 2012, when she knocked out Luana Teixeira at Pink Fight 2.

In mid-2012, after a long time away from American promotions, Porto signed with Invicta Fighting Championships.

Invicta Fighting Championships

Porto was expected to make her Invicta FC debut against Kelly Kobold on July 28, 2012, at Invicta FC 2: Baszler vs. McMann. However, Kobold suffered a shoulder injury and Porto instead faced Sarah D'Alelio. Porto lost the fight via submission due to a reverse triangle armbar in the first round.

Porto dropped down to 125 pounds and faced Tara LaRosa on October 6, 2012, at Invicta FC 3: Penne vs. Sugiyama. She won the fight via unanimous decision.

Porto then fought against Barb Honchak on April 5, 2013, at Invicta FC 5: Penne vs. Waterson in a five-round match to determine the first-ever Invicta FC flyweight champion. She lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Porto faced Zoila Frausto Gurgel on December 7, 2013, at Invicta FC 7. She won the fight via unanimous decision.

Porto was expected to face Roxanne Modafferi at Invicta FC 10: Waterson vs. Tiburcio on December 5, 2014. However she was replaced by Andrea Lee due to visa issue.

Porto the fought Roxanne Modafferi at Invicta FC 12: Kankaanpää vs. Souza on Friday, April 24, 2015. She won the fight via unanimous decision.

On March 11, 2016, Porto face Jennifer Maia second time at Invicta FC 16: Hamasaki vs. Brown. She lost the fight via unanimous decision.

At her next fight, she faced Agnieszka Niedźwiedź at Invicta FC 23: Porto vs. Niedźwiedź. She lost the fight after three round with the judges handed down a win to Niedzwiedz via a unanimous decision.

Porta was expected to face Jessica-Rose Clark on December 8, 2018, at Invicta FC 26: Maia vs. Niedwiedz; however, Clark was replaced byd Milana Dudieva.

At the weight-ins, Porta weight 127.6 Ibs, misse weight by 2.6 Ibs of the upper flyweight limit of 125 Ibs, and was fined twenty five percent of her purse. The bout proceeded at catchweight. Porta won the fight via technical knocked out on round three.

One month later, she fought against Mariana Morais on January 13, 2018, at Invicta FC 27: Kaufman vs. Kianzad. She won the fight via a rear-naked choke on round one.

Porto faced Pearl Gonzalez for the vacant Invicta FC Flyweight World Championship at Invicta FC 34 on February 15, 2019. She won the fight via technical decision after an eye poke rendered Porto unable to continue.

Porto was supposed to make her first title defense against Karina Rodríguez at Invicta FC 38: Murato vs. Ducote on November 1, 2019. However, Rodríguez missed weight by a pound and she was unable to compete for the title. She won the bout via unanimous decision.

Bellator MMA

On September 2, 2020, it was announced that Vanessa was vacating her Invicta title and signing with Bellator MMA.

As the first bout of her four-fight contract, Porto made her promotional debut against Liz Carmouche on April 9, 2021, at Bellator 256. She lost the bout via unanimous decision.

Porto was scheduled to face Ilara Joanne on June 11, 2021, at Bellator 260. However, after weigh-ins, she was deemed unfit to compete by the commission and the bout was scrapped. The bout was rescheduled for July 31, 2021, at Bellator 263. Porto won the close bout via split decision.

Porto faced Veta Arteaga on July 22, 2022, at Bellator 283. She lost the bout via guillotine choke in the second round.

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

• Invicta Fighting Championships
  • Invicta FC Flyweight World Championship (one time)
  • Fight of the Night (One time) vs. Jennifer Maia
• Pink Fight
  • Pink Fight 132-pound champion (one time; only)

Amateur boxing

• Federação Paulista de Boxe
  • São Paulo State Champion
• Jogos Abertos do Interior
  • 2nd Women's Division: Silver Medal (2011, 64 kg)

Mixed martial arts record

See also

• List of female mixed martial artists

References

1. ^ Kyle Nagel (2012-07-13). "Fight path: struggling to get fights, Vanessa Porto thankful for all-female Invicta 2". MMAjunkie.com. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
2. Josh Gross, Dave Mandel (2007-07-15). "Ward wins while eying Mega Megu". Sherdog.com. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
3. Tatame Staff (2007-11-06). "Vanessa Porto vence no Fatal Femmes" (in Portuguese). Tatame.com.br. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
4. Robert Sargent (2009-11-04). "Roxanne Modafferi's Journey To Strikeforce". MMARising.com. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
5. Robert Sargent (2011-10-31). "Vanessa Porto, Hannah Stephens Earn Weekend Victories". MMARising.com. Retrieved 2013-10-01.
6. Robert Sargent (2012-03-11). "Vanessa Porto, Kalindra Faria Capture Titles At Pink Fight 2". MMARising.com. Retrieved 2013-10-01.
7. Mick Hammond (2012-07-26). "After four years away, Vanessa Porto returns to US at Invicta FC 2". MMAWeekly.com. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
8. Tristen Critchfield (2012-06-25). "Invicta FC 2 update: Sarah D'Alelio replaces Kelly Kobold, faces Vanessa Porto on July 28". Sherdog.com. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
9. Chris Leslie (2012-07-28). "Invicta FC 2 recap: McMann victorious in instant classic, Davis crushes Akano". MMAFrenzy.com. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
10. MMARising.com. "Tara LaRosa vs Vanessa Porto Confirmed For Invicta FC 3 | MMARising.com". www.mmarising.com. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
11. Brian Hemminger (2012-10-07). "Invicta FC 3 results recap: Penne crowned inaugural Invicta champion, Baszler shines". MMAmania.com. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
12. MMARising.com. "Barb Honchak vs Vanessa Porto Title Bout Set For Invicta FC 5 | MMARising.com". www.mmarising.com. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
13. Jeff Cain (2013-04-06). "Invicta FC 5 results: Michelle Waterson and Barb Honchak capture titles". MMAWeekly.com. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
14. "INVICTA FC 7 COMING TO KANSAS CITY ON DECEMBER 7TH". InvictaFC.com. 2013-10-11. Retrieved 2013-10-17.
15. Robert Sargent (2013-10-11). "Vanessa Porto Faces Zoila Frausto Gurgel At Invicta FC 7". MMARising.com. Retrieved 2013-10-17.
16. "Invicta FC 7 results: Vanessa Porto edges Zoila Frausto-Gurgel via unanimous decision". FanSided. 2013-12-07. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
17. "Andrea Lee in for Vanessa Porto against Roxanne Modafferi at Invicta FC 10". MMAjunkie. 2014-11-20. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
18. Modafferi, Roxanne (2015-03-23). "Roxanne Modafferi to face Vanessa Porto at Invicta FC 12". MMASucka.com. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
19. MMARising.com. "Invicta Fighting Championships 12 Live Play-By-Play & Results | MMARising.com". www.mmarising.com. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
20. "Vanessa Porto vs Jennifer Maia 2 - full fight Video Invicta FC 16". All The Best Fights.com. 2016-03-12. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
21. "MMADecisions.com". MMADecisions.com. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
22. "Vanessa Porto vs. Agnieszka Niedzwiedz set for Invicta FC 23 main event". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
23. "Invicta 23 Results: Porto vs. Niedzwiedz". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
24. Sherdog.com. "Milana Dudieva Replaces Jessica-Rose Clark, Meets Vanessa Porto at Invicta FC 26". Sherdog. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
25. "Invicta FC 26 weigh-in results and video, 4 women miss weight". MyMMANews.com. 2017-12-07. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
26. "Invicta FC 26 results and video: Jennifer Maia retains flyweight title, Mackenzie Dern wins via submission". Bloody Elbow. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
27. "Pannie Kianzad Faces Sarah Kaufman in Invicta FC 27 Main Event | MMAWeekly.com". www.mmaweekly.com. 19 December 2017. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
28. "Invicta FC 27 results: Sarah Kaufman too much for Pannie Kianzad to handle". MMAjunkie. 2018-01-14. Retrieved 2018-01-14.
29. Tristen Critchfield (January 16, 2019). "Vanessa Porto, Pearl Gonzalez to Vie for Vacant Flyweight Crown at Invicta FC 34 on Feb. 15". sherdog.com.
30. Raimondi, Marc (2019-02-16). "Invicta FC 34 results: Vanessa Porto beats Pearl Gonzalez for title by technical decision after eye poke". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
31. "Invicta FC 38 results: Kanako Murata decisions Emily Ducote, claims strawweight belt". MMA Junkie. 2019-11-02. Retrieved 2021-05-15.
32. Guilherme Cruz (2020-10-04). "Vanessa Porto signs with Bellator, causes Invicta FC to crown new flyweight champion in November". MMA Fighting. Retrieved 2019-10-29.
33. Kaplan, Amy (22 March 2021). "Bellator 256: Liz Carmouche vs. Vanessa Porto official for April 9". FanSided. Retrieved 22 March 2021.
34. Marcelo Alonso (March 29, 2021). "Vanessa Porto Expects Well-Rounded Fight vs. Liz Carmouche at Bellator 256". Sherdog.
35. Anderson, Jay (9 April 2021). "Bellator 256 Results: Liz Carmouche Imposes Her Will Against Vanessa Porto". Cageside Press. Retrieved 10 April 2021.
36. "Vanessa Porto e Ilara Joanne se enfrentam no Bellator 260". ge (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2 June 2021. Retrieved 2021-06-02.
37. King, Kristen (2021-06-10). "Bellator 260 loses Vanessa Porto vs. Ilara Joanne". Bloody Elbow. Retrieved 2021-06-11.
38. "Bellator 263 adds three fights including Brent Primus vs. Islam Mamedov, loses ranked bantamweight bout". MMA Junkie. 2021-07-19. Retrieved 2021-07-20.
39. Anderson, Jay (2021-07-31). "Bellator 263 Results: Vanessa Porto Wins Split Decision Against Returning Ilara Joanne". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2021-08-01.
40. "Lorenz Larkin vs. Mukhamed Berkhamov, more matchups complete Bellator 283 line up". MMA Junkie. 2022-06-28. Retrieved 2022-06-29.
41. "Brasileira comete erro, é finalizada no Bellator 283 e perde a chance de chegar no top 5 dos moscas". SUPER LUTAS (in Brazilian Portuguese). 2022-07-22. Retrieved 2022-07-23.
42. Primeiro Round Staff (2011-11-04). "Vanessa Porto fala sobre vitória no Kumite MMA" (in Portuguese). Primeiroround.com.br. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
43. "Jogos abertos 2011: cerimonial de premiação (boxe)" (PDF) (in Portuguese). Jogosabertos2011.com.br. 2011-11-15. Retrieved 2013-08-27.
44. "Invicta FC 3 weigh-in results; Atomweight title bout set". MMAWeekly.com. 2012-10-05. Retrieved 2013-08-27.

External links

• Professional MMA record for Vanessa Porto from Sherdog
• Vanessa Porto at Invicta FC

• 1984 births
• Living people
• Brazilian female mixed martial artists
• Brazilian women boxers
• Brazilian practitioners of Brazilian jiu-jitsu
• Female Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioners
• Flyweight mixed martial artists
• Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing
• Mixed martial artists utilizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu
• Sportspeople from Americana, São Paulo
• Sportspeople from Jaú
• Martial artists from São Paulo (state)
• 21st-century Brazilian sportswomen