Tainara Lisboa and the Art of Adaptation

Tainara Lisboa must now prove she can adjust on the fly.

The “Thai Panther” heads into her sophomore Ultimate Fighting Championship appearance with a fair amount of uncertainty, as she faces Ravena Oliveira in a three-round UFC Fight Night 230 women’s bantamweight prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Oliveira steps into her promotional debut as a short-notice substitution for Lisboa’s original opponent: Dariya Zheleznyakova, who withdrew from the event less than a month ago.

“The good thing for me, as a far as training goes, is that both of them are primarily standup fighters, so there was no need to change our training focus after three months,” Lisboa told Sherdog.com. “Of course, we made some adjustments and adaptations. Again, I’ll be bringing 100 percent and leaving everything inside the Octagon. The end result will be a consequence of all the good work we’ve been putting in.”

The 32-year-old Lisboa enters the cage on the strength of a four-fight winning streak. She made her promotional debut at UFC on ABC 4, where she submitted Jessica-Rose Clark with a rear-naked choke in the third round of their May 13 pairing. As far as first impressions go, it could not have been stronger.

“To debut in the world’s biggest MMA promotion was the realization of a lifelong project,” Lisboa said. “I’m feeling very happy and thankful to be living this moment. She was exactly how my coaches expected her to show up. Our strategy was based on that. The fight played out how as we had trained repeatedly. We were positive I would catch her in a submission. Whoever trains with me already knew this. Of course, every fight is different, and we were ready for anything.”

Lisboa credited Clark for her efforts.

“It was a battle,” she said. “Jessica also contributed in making it a very active and aggressive bout. I was truly happy to fight, win and do it by submission in the UFC.”

Still relatively new to the mixed martial arts scene—she turned pro in 2016, then stepped away from the sport for more than three years—Lisboa operates out of the Damas 013 MMA camp in Santos, Brazil. There, Bruno Polengo, Carlos Cruz, Saulo Salge, Anderson Fonseca and a host of other accomplished coaches, including American Top Team’s Adalyton Freitas, oversee her development. Lisboa expects the training to pay off in her performance against Oliveira.

“We have a multidisciplinary team,” she said. “It hasn’t changed at all since the last time, just the strategy. This time around, I believe we may see more standup fighting since my opponent also enjoys that. I expect it’s going to be a war between two strikers.”

Lisboa has finished all six of her career victories—three by submission and three by knockout or technical knockout. She understands the weight of the difficult path she has chosen.

“I take it one step at a time,” Lisboa said. “Of course, getting to the top is my ultimate goal, but I’ll accept anything the UFC offers me. I’ll always work hard to have great performances. I’m not just looking to win but to bring what the fans want to see. I am excited for what’s next. I have far to go.”