Amanda Ribas’ father immortalizes first UFC win, championship dream with tattoo

Amanda Ribas has scored important victories in the UFC, like a first-round armbar over Paige VanZant on Fight Island and being the first to defeat Mackenzie Dern. That said, her octagon debut still ranks No. 1 for her father and coach Marcelo Ribas, who decided to have it inked on his left arm.

Ribas’ first appearance under the bright lights of the UFC took place in June 2019, three years after his previous MMA bout in the Brazilian circuit. The strawweight prospect submitted Emily Whitmire with a rear-naked choke in Minneapolis, Minn., a turning point for the Ribas clan.

Photo via Marcelo Ribas

“This tattoo is very important for me,” Marcelo Ribas told MMA Fighting. “It was my biggest accomplishment professionally speaking because I almost had three shots at having someone in the UFC and it never worked, and all of a sudden Amanda got in.

“Her first fight was two years after that doping case and everything we went through, it was very important, so I decided to eternalize that victory on my arm — the night she showed the world who she was.”

Ribas tested positive for ostarine ahead of her planned UFC debut in 2017 and was hit with a two-year ban. The United States Anti-Doping Agency announced on May 2019 that her suspension had been “terminated” after concluding that her test failure was the result of a contaminated supplement.

Marcelo Ribas has also inked the UFC belt, another goal for the family in the sport.

“Everybody knows we’re going after two belts, the strawweight and flyweight titles,” Ribas said. “The first goal is the strawweight belt. Unfortunately, Carla Esparza didn’t want to fight and postponed it for us. We were planning on fighting in September and again in December and we have waited for a long time because of her.”

Ribas is currently booked to face Marina Rodriguez at UFC 257, a pay-per-view show scheduled for Jan. 23. Rodriguez replaced Michelle Waterson on the card, and Ribas says he will “definitely” tattoo a second belt if his daughter manages to become a two-division UFC queen in the future.