SHAUNA BANNON is Ireland’s only current female fighter in the UFC – and it happened by accident.
The Tallaght woman, 32, had only been a professional mixed martial artist for a year when she was signed by the promotion in 2023.
She is 2-1 in the promotion having bounced back from losing her debut bout,
And ‘Mama B’ wants to show that, no matter the obstacle, dreams can come true.
She told SunSport: “I just want people to know that it doesn’t matter where you’re from or where you start. Anything is possible.
“I remember people laughed when I said that I was going to be in the UFC, but anything is possible.
“Once you put your mind to it, it doesn’t matter what background you come from or where you’re from.”
Bannon’s background was predominantly in kickboxing, having started in her dad’s gym when she was three.
‘Mama B’ had designs on being an Olympian much like Katie Taylor, who won a boxing gold medal at London 2012.
She won seven world and six European titles in the discipline towards that ultimate goal.
However, kickboxing is still not part of the Olympic programme and, unwilling to wait for its inclusion, she pivoted.
Bannon explained: “I didn’t actually want to go into MMA and it kind of happened by mistake.
“I had done kickboxing for years and I always wanted to go to the Olympics. And every time there was a new Olympic cycle, they kept saying it’ll be in the next one.
“I switched to taekwondo for a period of time because that was in the Olympics and I was in that for like a year and a half.”
In 2018, seeking a new avenue, Bannon linked up with Paddy Holohan, who is a former UFC fighter himself.
She added: “Paddy was moving gyms, so he had nowhere to train. He was actually training between where I was doing Taekwondo at the time and my dad’s gym.
“I was finishing a taekwondo class and they were starting their jiu jitsu class and I was just looking at it and I was like, ‘what the hell? That’s so interesting.’
“I was starting jiu jitsu and then I ended up in an MMA class after my second jiu jitsu class and I fell in love with it.”
“I remember how it made me feel waking up the next day after the fight and how I felt that day was a horrible feeling.”
The strawweight was similarly successful in jiu jitsu, winning gold at the IBJJF World Championships.
It contributed towards a promising amateur MMA career in which she went 10-3 before turning pro to fight in Cage Legacy and Invicta in 2022.
Bannon signed with the UFC in 2023 – becoming the first Irishwoman to do so since Aisling Daly – and made her debut against Bruna Brasil that July.
It was a baptism by fire for the Dubliner, who lost by decision on a night that went against what was supposed to be a triumphant script.
She admitted: “That was the hardest loss of my life.
“There was such hype when I got signed to the UFC, like the Irish media were all over it.
“It kills me to say this, but looking back, I do believe maybe I wasn’t ready for an explosion.
“I don’t know if I have accepted that loss because it really did affect me.
“I remember how it made me feel waking up the next day after the fight and how I felt that day was a horrible feeling.
“I’m so grateful to be in the position that I am in, like not many fighters can say they’re a UFC fighter and anyone that does MMA, that’s where they want to be.”
BOUNCING BACK
The mum-of-one would not fight again until July 2024 as she caught the injury bug.
Bannon was scheduled to fight Stephanie Luciano in March 2024 but, in January, she tore her meniscus which flipped and had to be surgically removed.
Her second experience in the octagon was considerably better than the first, as she beat Alice Ardelean by split decision at UFC 304.
Not at 1-1, she ticked into the winning margin at UFC Fight Night London in March when she submitted Puja Tomar.
It very nearly ended differently, with the Irishwoman dropped with a headkick from the Indian fighter.
But as the second round ticked closer and closer to its end, she locked Tomar in an armbar from which there was no escape – just as she had planned.
She revealed: “I only said in the changing room before we walked, I said to my coaches, all her losses are by armbar.
“That was the last thing we drilled before we left the changing room, was that armbar.
“I didn’t plan on getting dropped – I would have liked it better to take her down and do it – but I do think that it made it that little bit more special.
“That’s what the UFC wants. They want entertainment and hopefully we can keep giving fights like that.”
In the wake of that win, Bannon signed as a sponsored athlete with OnlyFans, joining the likes of Stipe Miocic and Charles Oliveira.
And as she targets a summer return to the octagon, Bannon revealed previous financial concerns are a thing of the past.
“If I don’t fight, I don’t get paid so that’s quite tough as well with injuries because it’s a contact sport, that can happen.
“OnlyFans is a continuous flow of income and that kind of helps me financially and that takes the stress and the weight off me and it can help me be in a better mood and perform better.”
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