Athletes
Amanda Ribas Is Confident and Competitive
Amanda Ribas Looks To Get Back Into The Win Column Against Tabatha Ricci At UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs De Ridder
There aren’t many fighters like Amanda Ribas with her bubbly personality, but make no mistake,once those Octagon doors close, it’s all business.
Ribas has become a strawweight and flyweight staple, fighting against the best those divisions has to offer. This includes Mackenzie Dern (twice), Rose Namajunas and Virna Jandiroba, just to name a few. Having wins over Dern and Jandiroba at 115 pounds can also prove to be very telling if Ribas can continue to climb from that 7th ranked spot she is in.
Ribas just celebrated her Institute’s first benefit dinner and she couldn’t be more excited about how her UFC journey has opened another opportunity to make a difference.
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“The institute, for me, is all the dreams that came true. My fight against Luana Pinheiro, I proposed that if I won that fight and with a bonus, that I would start the institute. I saw a lot of kids next to my gym just playing with bad guys and I know they need to use that energy for good things. The fight game changed my life; it changed my father’s life and my friends’ lives. I wanted to do this for my community. They are doing Muay Thai, Jiu-Jitsu, Karate, they have food, too, and soon, maybe a champion.”
Making a difference inside the Octagon and outside of it just shows the levels to Ribas’ heart. Outside the Octagon, Ribas is a fun-loving and community-driven person, but inside? That’s where the fun begins.
Ribas has already made history in the UFC’s strawweight division, being ranked second in takedown defense at 83.3%, third in striking differential and significant strike defense, and fourthin strikes absorbed per minute. What this spells out is that Ribas is that she can do it all on fight night. There have been great strikers that get hit a lot, then there are those few that show real promise in both facets of the game. Ribas is the latter.
The last two fights have not finished in Ribas’ favor as she lost to Namajunas via five-round decision and, most recently, she lost in the rematch with Dern via submission. Against Dern, Ribas was tied on the scorecards going into the third round, where she was dominating the grappling before getting submitted, but it showed some promise for Ribas.
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“My last two fights have been as the main event and it was a huge experience for myself and that was part of my dream,” said Ribas. “I am really confident that my training is working. I trained more and have eaten healthier to get better for this fight.”
The pressure of a main event, mixed with ongoing adjustments, always spells trouble, but for Ribas, this upcoming fight with Ricci will prove to be the most decisive when looking forward topotential bouts. With someone as skilled as Ribas, it only takes a couple of big wins to realistically make a claim for a shot at the belt.
Rise Of Amanda Ribas
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Rise Of Amanda Ribas
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“I am really competitive, so inside my heart I think, yes, I will win, I want to win,” Ribas exclaims. “So this is the difference between the last fight to this one.”
Ricci is coming off a loss against Xiaonan Yan, but had two decision wins in a row prior. This shapes up to be a matchup of two fighters looking to rebound in this exciting strawweight division. There can be a swap of rankings with a Ribas loss, but with a Ribas win – there could be some top 5 consequences.
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“What attracted me the most is that she is in the rankings, and she is explosive,” Ribas begins telling UFC.com. “She doesn’t wait for something; she just does it. So, for me, this is good because I like to watch fights like this.”
This fight revolves around two competitors that love to advance and push the pace. Where there is some discrepancy is on the defensive end, where Ribas holds the advantage. There is a world where Ribas uses distance and a slick entry to get the fight to the ground and work her magic, but Ribas claims she would rather get a flashy finish instead.
“The perfect performance for me is to win without injuries and maybe with a knockout.”
UFC Fight Night: Whittaker vs De Ridder took place live from Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi on July 26, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!