UFC Vegas 94: Amanda Lemos vs. Virna Jandiroba Matchup Preview | Will a New Strawweight Contender Emerge?

While most of the UFC world is already looking ahead to UFC 304, Amanda Lemos and Virna Jandiroba will headline UFC Vegas 94 on July 20.

As two top-five strawweight, both Brazilian fighters are looking to enter the divisional title picture. Lemos has already received a shot at the title, losing to champion Zhang Weili at UFC 292, while Jandiroba has yet to be given the opportunity. Before signing with the promotion, Jandiroba was the reigning Invicta FC 115-pound champion.

UFC Vegas 94: Amanda Lemos vs. Virna Jandiroba Tale of the Tape

UFC Vegas 94: Amanda Lemos vs. Virna Jandiroba Fight Statistics

View the statistics for each fighter as they appear on UFC Stats ahead of their meeting at UFC Vegas 94:

Amanda Lemos’ Last Fight

Entering her fourth five-round fight in the UFC and third main event, Amanda Lemos is coming off a Fight of the Night decision victory over Mackenzie Dern at UFC 298. The thrilling victory was a much-needed redemption performance for the Brazilian after being dominated by current champion Zhang Weili in a five-round title fight at UFC 292.

Though Lemos knocked Dern down in the second round and was seconds away from finishing the fight, she punched herself out in pursuit of a finish, allowing the former Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion to stay alive before rallying in the third frame. By the time the scorecards were read, all three judges gave the nod to the recent title challenger, though Dern misunderstood the decision and briefly celebrated as if she had won the fight.

The additional $50,000 bonus she received afterward for her performance was the second Fight of the Night bonus of her career and the third performance bonus overall.

Virna Jandiroba’s Last Fight

UFC Vegas 94 will mark the first promotional main event for Virna Jandiroba, who has not fought in a five-round fight since 2018. Since signing with the UFC as the Invicta FC strawweight champion in 2019, Jandiroba has gone 6-3 in the Octagon and enters the matchup with Amanda Lemos off a decisive victory over Loopy Godinez.

Jandiroba entered the bout with Godinez at UFC Atlantic City as an underdog despite being the higher-ranked fighter and proved the oddsmakers wrong with her superior wrestling skills. Over three rounds, Jandiroba secured two takedowns — the most Godinez had ever been taken down in the UFC — for over six minutes of control time. She attempted three submission attempts but could not finish a choke.

The win was the third straight for Jandiroba, marking the longest win streak of her UFC career. ‘Carcara’ started her professional career at 14-0 before losing her Octagon debut to former champion Carla Esparza.

Potential Title Shot on the Line

Almost nothing is guaranteed in the UFC in 2024, but the winner of the UFC Vegas 94 main event could find themselves in a title fight in their next outing. A win for Virna Jandiroba would be much more telling than it would be for Amanda Lemos, given that the former has yet to receive a championship opportunity in the UFC while the latter has already had her shot at champion Zhang Weili.

The current No. 1 contender in the division, Tatiana Suarez, is assumed to be the next title challenger, though the 33-year-old has been riddled with injuries throughout her career with her current status unknown. Weili last defended her belt at UFC 300 against Yan Xiaonan and has mentioned her desire to compete at least once more before the end of the year.

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