Cheyanne Vlismas
Cheyanne Nicolae Vlismas (born June 25, 1995) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background. Vlismas began training in karate when she was three years old and then transitioned to taekwondo when she was ten years old, later obtaining a black belt in the sport. She got into MMA at the age of fifteen. When she was seventeen, she got expelled from high school for fighting and her family decided to let her start training full time. She took her first amateur fight four days after her eighteenth  birthday. She was married to fellow UFC fighter, JP Buys. Mixed martial arts career. Early career. In her MMA debut at , she faced Karla Hernandez and went on to defeat her via TKO in the third round, securing her first victory under the banner of Legacy Fighting Alliance in the process. Vlismas faced Helen Peralta at , losing her bout via unanimous decision. Then in her one and only outing with EFC at EFC 74 Vlismas defeated Poland’s Karolina Wojcik via split decision. She also defeated Canadian Lindsey Garbatt at BTC 6 Night of Champions via unanimous decision. In her  second appearance with Legacy Fighting Alliance at , Vlismas faced Rebecca Adney and defeated her via unanimous decision. Vlismas was invited to Dana White's Contender Series 30 on August 25, 2020 and faced Hilarie Rose. She won the bout via unanimous decision, getting a UFC contract in the process. Ultimate Fighting Championship. Vlismas was scheduled to face Kay Hansen on March 20, 2021 at . However, Hansen pulled out due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced on March 12 by promotional newcomer Montserrat Ruiz. She lost the bout via unanimous decision, getting kept in a headlock position for most of the  bout. Vlismas faced Gloria de Paula on July 31, 2021 at . She won the bout in the first round after head kicking de Paula after she was getting up and finished her with ground and pound. This fight earned her the "Performance of the Night" award. Vlismas was scheduled to face Loma Lookboonmee on November 20, 2021 at UFC Fight Night 198. However, Vlismas withdrew from the bout for undisclosed reasons and she was replaced by Lupita Godinez. Vlismas faced Mallory Martin, replacing Montserrat Ruiz, on December 4, 2021 at UFC on ESPN 31. Vlismas won the fight via unanimous  decision. This fight earned her the Fight of the Night award.