Women’s bantamweight division 7-1-0 fighter Jacqueline Cavalcanti is taking UFC by storm with her winning streak and is making women proud all over the world. Cavalcanti has had her share of hardships but today she is a winner. She is set to clash against Nora Cornolle at UFC Fight Night in Paris so before that let’s see where she comes from and how she came into the UFC world.

The Brazilian went pro in 2018. At such a young age, she is already a top fighter at UFC. However, what was her early life like?

Where is Jacqueline Cavalcanti from? Ethnicity, nationality, and early life

‘The Nightmare’ as she is known in the UFC world was born on 1997 Aug 29 and is 27 years old. The fighter was born in Brazil and now fights out of Portugal. After her debut in 2018, Cavalcanti took 4 years off before competing at the PFL Challenger Series where her only loss came to Martina Jindrova.

She trains in the morning and does MMA from 10 to noon. Her main focus is mostly strength and conditioning training which she does from 3:30 to 4:30 pm. She even said that her hero was her mother and before UFC she was a student of Physical Education. Cavalcanti always shares updates about her life and in one such instance, she shared her childhood picture on Instagram and declared her pride in her roots.

The bantamweight grew up in Sao Paulo in Favela Saloa and even though she had hardships, she was proud of her roots. She also posted a video showing immense love for her mother. She grew up in the vibrant city of Almada and her journey to MMA is a testament to hard work and passion for fighting.

MMA record, journey to the UFC, and more about Jacqueline Cavalcanti

Her matches have garnered significant attention showing her talent and ability to engage fans and make the fight interesting. She became the local promotion Strikers Cage Championship’s bantamweight champion and then won gold at Legacy Fighting Alliance against Melissa Croden at LFA 157.

She is 22 in the best Female Bantamweight worldwide and her favorite fight techniques are the Kata game and Flying Knee. Cavalcanti also said during her UFC interview, “I was only amateur in kickboxing. Undefeated and I recorded 10 victories.” She is always uploading her promotions and fights on Instagram and keeping her fans in the loop.

‘The Nightmare’ won a three-round unanimous decision over Zarah Fairn in 2023 and won a three-round split decision against Josiane Nunes in 2024. So she is a force to be reckoned with. Do you think she can win this next fight against Nora Cornolle?