Julia Avila
Julia Aide Shumate Avila (born May 11, 1988) is an American mixed martial artist currently signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Previously she has competed in Invicta FC, HD MMA, XKO MMA, Total Warrior Combat and King of the Cage (KOTC). As of November 23, 2021, she is #14 in the UFC women's bantamweight rankings. Background. Of Mexican descent, Avila was born in Los Angeles, California. Julia graduated from South High School, where she was a sports standout and a member of varsity team in volleyball, soccer and track and field. She attended The University of  Notre Dame, graduated 2010 from University of California, Santa Cruz, and is currently a geologist in Oklahoma City. She began training martial arts in 2011 after graduating from college. Mixed martial arts career. Avila has notable wins over former UFC flyweight champion Nicco Montaño and Marion Reneau. Ultimate Fighting Championship. On March 22, 2019 Avila was signed to the UFC's women's bantamweight division. Avila was originally scheduled to face Melissa Gatto on July 6, 2019 at UFC 239. Gatto was dropped from the card due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Pannie Kianzad. Avila won the fight  via unanimous decision. Avila was expected to face Karol Rosa on October 26, 2019 at . The fight was later cancelled due to a knee injury from Rosa. The match was rescheduled to April 11, 2020 at . Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was eventually postponed. The pair was rescheduled to meet on May 2, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 174. However, on April 9, Dana White, the president of UFC announced that the event too was postponed to June 13, 2020. Instead, Avila faced Gina Mazany, replacing Rosa, on June 13, 2020 at . She won the bout via first -round technical knockout just 22 seconds into the fight. Avila was scheduled to face Nicco Montaño on August 8, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 176. However, due to Montano's coach John Wood testing positive for COVID-19, the bout was reschedule to UFC Fight Night 177. However, Montaño tested positive for COVID-19 and the bout was moved to . Subsequently, on September 3, it was announced that Montaño withdrew from the bout due to travel restrictions. After negotiating a new contract with the UFC, Avila faced Sijara Eubanks on September 12, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 177. She lost the fight  via unanimous decision. Avila was expected to face Julija Stoliarenko at UFC on ESPN 21 on March 20, 2021. However at the weigh ins, Stoliarenko suffered a syncopal episode on the scale and the fight was scrapped. The pair was rescheduled and took place at UFC Fight Night 190. Avila won the fight via a rear-naked choke in round three. Avila was scheduled to face Raquel Pennington on December 18, 2021 at UFC Fight Night 199. However, Avila was forced to pull from the event due to injury. She was replaced by Macy Chiasson.