You only get one Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) debut!
Only one athlete made her Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) debut in “Marvelous City” yesterday (Sat., Oct. 11, 2025) at UFC Rio inside Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil — and it couldn’t have gone much better.
UFC Rio’s lone rookie turned heads with a dominant performance, so now that the dust has settled, let’s grade her debut below:
Mesquita entered fight week as the biggest betting favorite on the card (-650), and she fought exactly like it. She dominated Irina Alekseeva from start to finish, battering her on the mat before finally locking up a rear-naked choke for the submission win (watch highlights).
Heading in, I said the only real concern for Mesquita was her raw striking, and while she threw a few looping punches early, her elite grappling quickly took over.
In the first round, she was a bit hesitant at first, but once she threw an overhand right into a clinch, it was all downhill for Alekseeva. Mesquita converted that into a takedown, transitioned straight to mount, and unleashed brutal ground-and-pound — punches, elbows, and even a few borderline 12-6 shots while threatening a scarf choke. She easily could’ve earned a first-round stoppage if not for Alekseeva’s toughness.
By Round 2, with 10-8s across all three judges’ scorecards, Mesquita had enough. She hit a clean double-leg takedown, passed guard, took the back, and sank in the choke.
For a UFC debut, it was about as perfect as you can get — complete dominance mixed with relentless aggression.
She’s still raw, and her striking will likely cause problems against top-tier competition, but that’s a conversation for another day.
At 34 years old, and with the division as thin as it is, UFC might be tempted to fast-track her up the rankings. Hopefully, they don’t rush her — one more fight outside the Top 15 would make sense, perhaps against Montserrat Rendon.
For complete UFC Rio results, coverage, and highlights click HERE!