As Natalia Silva heads into UFC 324 to face former two-time champion Rose Namajunas, the Brazilian carries one of the most impressive unbeaten streaks in the women’s flyweight division. In fact, she’s tied for the second-longest win streak in division history (7). But every rise has its roots.

Before Silva became the polished, well-rounded contender fans see today, she was a young fighter in Brazil learning MMA the hard way. And those setbacks quietly shaped the fighter now knocking on the door of a title shot. So, who actually beat Natalia Silva, and when did it happen?

How Many Losses Does Natalia Silva Have?

Natalia Silva’s professional MMA record stands at 19–5–1. The key detail? All five of her losses happened before she ever signed with the UFC. Since joining the promotion, she’s been flawless.
Her defeats came during the early years of her career in Brazil, primarily between 2015 and 2017, when Silva was transitioning from a pure taekwondo background into full mixed martial arts.

Silva’s first professional loss came against Kenya Miranda on April 25, 2015, at Fire Cage: Super Fight Night 1, and we’ll dive deeper into this loss in a minute. Later that same year, Silva dropped another bout, this time by armbar submission to Elaine Leal at BH Sparta 7 in August 2015.

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Just weeks later, she faced Kenya Miranda again, suffering a second loss to the same opponent, this time via rear-naked choke at Ratinho FC 2.

Silva also lost a unanimous decision to Daiane Firmino in November 2016 at Batalha MMA 4, which marked her flyweight debut. That fight showed improvement as she survived all three rounds, but still fell short on the scorecards. As she once explained in an interview, “I did learn a lot with my losses. When I fight, I watch my fights when I lose (or) when I win. I like to see what I did good, and what I did bad, and I’ve improved by watching this.”

Her final pre-UFC loss came in December 2017, when she dropped a unanimous decision to Marina Rodriguez at Thunder Fight 14. By then, Silva was already more durable, more composed, and more complete, but not quite finished developing. Now, with that covered, let’s dive a little deeper into her first career defeat.

Who Handed Natalia Silva Her First Career Defeat?

On paper, Silva’s record opened at 0–1 after that first fight in Montes Claros, Brazil. The loss is listed as a TKO, but the context matters. Silva wasn’t overwhelmed on the feet. She was taken down and controlled, a common fate for fighters entering MMA with just a striking background.

Which makes sense, as Silva started martial arts at 16 years old through a voluntary taekwondo social project in Pingo-d’Água, a town of roughly 5,000 people. Grappling wasn’t part of the curriculum. MMA came later, after friends invited her to take a fight at 18. So when opponents dragged her into unfamiliar territory, the outcomes reflected her experience level at the time, not her potential.

And potential is exactly what Carlos Borracha saw. In 2017, Silva was invited by Borracha to fight for Jungle Fight, one of Brazil’s top regional promotions. He didn’t just offer her a fight. He offered her a gym to train in and a place to live.

That changed everything. By 2019, she earned a shot at the Jungle Fight flyweight title, marking the moment when her career truly turned the corner as she won the fight with an armbar!
Now, Silva enters UFC 324 against Rose Namajunas as a fighter who has already been tested, broken down, and rebuilt. She’s not just riding momentum; she’s also carrying harsh experience.