Gloria de Paula Driven by Failures Ahead of UFC Fight Night 201 Battle Opposite Diana Belbita

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Not much has gone according to plan for Gloria de Paula as a member of the Ultimate Fighting Championship roster.

The 26-year-old Brazilian will attempt once more to break into the win column inside the Octagon when she faces Diana Belbita as part of the UFC Fight Night 201 undercard on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. De Paula, a 2020 graduate of Dana White’s Contender Series, finds herself in a tailspin following back-to-back defeats to Jinh Yu Frey and Cheyanne Vlismas.

“The negative results thus far in the UFC have been difficult,” said de Paula, who returned to her hometown to train under her original MMA coach, Fabiana Belai, ahead of the event. “I felt deep disappointment after those fights, but I’m mentally strong. I’ve learned to use those losses as motivation. Those two losses gave me a strong push to give my all during this training camp so I can achieve my first win inside the Octagon.

“We watched all my fights repeatedly to identify shortcomings in my game so they could be corrected during training,” she added. “This camp was focused on turning me into a more complete MMA fighter.”

Belbita serves as a difficult next test for the onetime Chute Boxe representative, with 10 finishes among her 14 career victories. The Romanian snapped a two-fight losing streak of her own when she took a unanimous decision from Hannah Goldy at UFC on ESPN 27 in July.

“Diana is an excellent fighter, though she has some holes in her game,” de Paula said. “My trainers assisted me in drawing up a very complete strategy so we can beat her by using my strengths against her weaknesses.”

Likely in danger of washing out of the UFC with another loss, De Paula has adopted a tunnel-vision approach in advance of the encounter.

“I prefer to focus on the current moment,” she said. “I don’t like to make plans for the future. Of course, the ultimate goal is a UFC belt, but right now, I’m totally focused on this fight with Diana. I trained hard for this fight. I’m very confident and ready to give my best inside the Octagon.”