Sijara Eubanks
Sijara Jihan Eubanks (born April 27, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist who currently fights in the women's bantamweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). Background. Eubanks was born and raised in Springfield, Massachusetts, and graduated from High School of Commerce. She then went to Morgan State University. She started training Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Lloyd Irvin in 2008 and to extend her repertoire for mixed martial arts, she later started boxing and other disciplines. She competed in jiu-jitsu, winning the Women's No-Gi Advanced Absolute division in the 2011 Grapplers Quest  World Championship Finals and IBJJF World Championship as a brown belt in 2014. Mixed martial arts career. Early career. After an undefeated MMA record as an amateur, she turned pro in April 2015. Invicta FC. Eubanks made her professional debut on April 24, 2015 against Gina Begley at . She won the fight via TKO in the first round. In her second pro bout Eubanks faced Katlyn Chookagian at Cage Fury FC 52 on October 31, 2015. She lost the fight via unanimous decision. In her second fight for Invicta FC, Eubanks faced AmberLynn Orr on July 29, 2016 at . She  won the fight via TKO in the first round. In her third fight for the promotion, Eubanks faced Aspen Ladd on January 14, 2017 at . She lost the fight via unanimous decision, bringing her record to 2-2 before joining "The Ultimate Fighter". The Ultimate Fighter. In August 2017, it was announced that Eubanks would be one of the fighters featured on "The Ultimate Fighter 26", where the process to crown the UFC's inaugural 125-pound women's champion will take place. In the first round, Eubanks defeated Maia Stevenson via submission in the second round, allowing her to  move on to the next stage of the competition. In the quarterfinals, Eubanks faced DeAnna Bennett and won the fight via knockout in round one. In the semifinals, Eubanks faced Roxanne Modafferi. She won the fight via unanimous decision after three rounds. Ultimate Fighting Championship. Eubanks was scheduled to face Nicco Montaño on December 1, 2017 at for the inaugural UFC Women’s Flyweight title. She was pulled from the fight for kidney failure while trying to make weight and was replaced by Roxanne Modafferi. Eubanks made her UFC debut against Lauren Murphy at on June 1, 2018. She won  the bout via unanimous decision. Eubanks was scheduled to face Valentina Shevchenko for the vacant UFC Women's Flyweight Championship at UFC 230 on November 3, 2018. However, the fight was canceled on October 9, 2018 after the UFC announced that a fight between Daniel Cormier and Derrick Lewis would instead main event UFC 230 and that Shevchenko would also return to her original bout for the vacant title, against Joanna Jędrzejczyk at UFC 231. Eubanks remained on the card and faced Roxanne Modafferi. At the weigh-ins, Eubanks weighed in at 127.2 pounds, 1.2 pounds over the flyweight non -title fight limit of 126 and she was fined 20 percent of her purse, which went to her opponent Mondafferi. She won the fight via unanimous decision. A rematch with Aspen Ladd took place on May 18, 2019 at UFC Fight Night 152. Eubanks lost to Ladd for the second time by unanimous decision. This fight earned her the "Fight of the Night" award. Eubanks faced Bethe Correia at UFC on ESPN+ 17. She lost the fight by unanimous decision. Eubanks was scheduled to face Sarah Moras on April 18, 2020 at UFC 249. However, on April 9, Dana White , the president of UFC announced that this event was postponed and rescheduled to May 13, 2020 at . She won the fight via unanimous decision. Eubanks was scheduled to face Macy Chiasson on September 5, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 176. However, Chiasson pulled out of the fight for undisclosed medical reasons and was replaced by Karol Rosa. Rosa pulled out on September 3 due to complications related to her weight cut. Eubanks competed a week later at UFC Fight Night 177 on September 12, 2020 against Julia Avila. She won the fight via unanimous decision. As the first fight of  her new contract with the UFC, Eubanks was scheduled for a quick turnaround (replacing injured Marion Reneau) and faced Ketlen Vieira on September 27, 2020 at UFC 253. She lost the fight via unanimous decision. Eubanks faced Pannie Kianzad on December 19, 2020 at UFC Fight Night 183. She lost the fight via unanimous decision. Eubanks was scheduled to face Karol Rosa on June 12, 2021 at UFC 263. However, Rosa pulled out of the fight in late-May citing an injury. In turn, Eubanks was removed from the card and instead faced promotional newcomer Elise Reed on July 24 , 2021 at UFC on ESPN 27. Eubanks won the fight via technical knockout in round one. Eubanks was scheduled to face Luana Carolina, replacing Maryna Moroz, on October 16, 2021 at UFC Fight Night 195. In turn Eubanks was pulled from the event due to Covid-19 protocol and she was replaced by Lupita Godinez. Eubanks faced Melissa Gatto on December 18, 2021 at . At the weigh-ins, Eubanks weighed in at 127.5 pounds, 1.5 pounds over the flyweight non-title fight limit. The bout proceeded at a catchweight. She lost the fight via body kick TKO in the third round . Personal life. Eubanks is an openly lesbian athlete. In February 2021, Eubanks came under fire from many MMA fans and media after a video was posted to her Twitter page that showed Eubanks in a physical confrontation with her former live-in partner, Lilly Ruiz, in front of their child. In a statement posted to her Instagram page, Eubanks claimed that she was the victim of domestic violence and denied any claims that she was abusive to any partners. No charges were filed.