Diesel AK Blog
Fighter Profile: Virna Jandiroba
Virna Jandiroba: UFC women's strawweight contender — record, jiu-jitsu and 2026 form.
Background
Brazilian strawweight from Bahia, nicknamed “Carcará”, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and former Invicta FC strawweight champion. Her professional record is 23-4.
Career timeline
- Won the Invicta FC strawweight championship before joining the UFC in 2019.
- Built a long winning streak to earn a title shot at 115lb.
- Lost the vacant strawweight title fight to Mackenzie Dern at UFC 321 on 25 October 2025, dropping a five-round unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47).
- Returned with a unanimous-decision win over Tabatha Ricci on 4 April 2026.
Fight craft
Jandiroba is a grappler’s grappler: strong takedowns for the division, a heavy top game and a genuine submission threat, particularly with the armbar. She is durable and consistent. What the Dern fight showed is what happens when she meets an equal on the mat — neither could impose grappling, the bout became a striking contest, and Jandiroba’s stand-up is the least developed part of her game.
In the modern MMA landscape
Our wider MMA analysis says Jandiroba lost to Dern by “second-round submission”. The fight in fact went the full five rounds and was decided on the scorecards. Jandiroba has since won again, so she remains in the strawweight title picture rather than being a fighter who was stopped in a championship bout.
Return to What the Modern MMA Game Demands.
Sources
Record and competitive status checked 1 August 2026.
