Livia Renata

Lívia Renata Souza, known as 'Livinha', is a Brazilian mixed martial artist and former Invicta FC Strawweight Champion who built her reputation on elite grappling credentials and submission finishing power. Born in Araraquara, Brazil, in 1991, she began training in combat sports at age seven and went on to earn multiple world-class accolades: she is a black belt in both Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Judo, a World BJJ Champion, a seven-time Sao Paulo State Judo Champion, and a former member of Brazil's Olympic Judo squad. Her amateur accomplishments translated directly into pro success, as she made her MMA debut in 2013 and remained undefeated through her first seven professional bouts.

Souza's breakthrough came when she signed with Invicta FC and won the Strawweight title in her promotion debut against Katja Kankaanpää. She defended the belt once, scoring a first-round TKO over DeAnna Bennett with body kicks and strikes before losing it narrowly to UFC veteran Angela Hill via split decision in May 2016. This split-decision loss remains her sole pre-UFC professional defeat and showcased her willingness to test herself against elite company.

Her UFC tenure spanned 2018 to 2021 and produced a mixed 3-2 record. Souza announced her arrival with a submission specialist's signature: a guillotine choke finish of Alex Chambers in round one of her UFC debut. She followed with a split-decision win over Sarah Frota and a clean unanimous decision over Ashley Yoder at UFC 252, demonstrating her ability to control fights at mid-card level. However, a devastating first-round knockout loss to rising prospect Amanda Lemos at UFC 259 in March 2021 derailed her momentum, and a subsequent unanimous decision loss to Randa Markos five months later led to her release from the UFC roster in November 2021.

Souza's fighting style is built on technical ground work and submission mastery: 57% of her professional wins come by submission, reflecting her deep BJJ and Judo background. While she lands significant strikes competently (mostly at distance), her true art is grappling control and leg-lock and arm-lock finishes. For fans who appreciate the technical elements of elite submission grappling and want to see world-class judo integrated into MMA, Souza's catalog offers instructive and dominant performances, even as her recent UFC record suggests she may have peaked prior to her stint in the organization.