Polyana Viana (born 14 June 1992) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist who currently competes in the Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Raised solely by her mother, Viana grew up in São Geraldo do Araguaia, a small town in the Pará region of Brazil.
2013
She started training Brazilian jiu-jitsu in 2013 and also made her professional mixed martial arts debut in late 2013.
2018
Viana made her UFC debut at UFC Fight Night: Machida vs. Anders on 3 February 2018 against Maia Stevenson.
She won the fight via rear-naked choke in the first round.
In May 2018 it was announced that Viana would be fighting against JJ Aldrich on UFC 227 in August.
Viana would lose the fight via unanimous decision as Aldrich out-boxed her most of the fight.
She next took on Hannah Cifers at UFC 235, a fight she went on to lose by split decision.
Viana took on Veronica Macedo at UFC Fight Night: Shevchenko vs. Carmouche 2.
The bout had originally been scheduled between Macedo and Rachael Ostovich, however on July 29 it was announced that Ostovich would be replaced by Viana for an undisclosed reason.
As expected, the fight took place on the ground, but surprisingly Macedo submitted Viana via armbar, a submission Viana herself has finished 6 fights with in her career, as of May 2022.
The result was Macedo's first UFC win and the first time in Viana's career she had ever been submitted in a fight.
2019
In January 2019, a man attempted to rob Viana using a fake gun as she waited outside her apartment.
Viana punched the man and subdued him until the police arrived.
Viana did not face charges as the authorities ruled it was self-defense.
2020
Viana was scheduled to face Emily Whitmire on March 8, 2020, at UFC 248.
At the weigh-ins, Whitmire weighed in at 117.5 pounds, 1.5 pounds over the strawweight non-title fight limit of 116.
She was fined 20% of her purse and her bout with Viana was expected to proceed as scheduled at a catchweight.
Subsequently, Whitmire was hospitalized the day of the event and the fight was cancelled.
The pair was rescheduled on August 29, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 175 in a flyweight bout.
Viana won the fight via an armbar submission in round one.
Viana faced Mallory Martin on February 13, 2021, at UFC 258.
She won the fight via an armbar in round one.
This win earned her the Performance of the Night award.
Viana faced Tabatha Ricci on May 21, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 206.
She lost the fight via unanimous decision.
Viana faced Jinh Yu Frey on November 5, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 214.
She won the fight via knockout in the first round.
This win earned her the Performance of the Night award.
Viana was scheduled to face Emily Ducote on April 29, 2023, at UFC on ESPN 45.
However, the bout was rescheduled for UFC Fight Night 223 on May 20, 2023.
In turn, Viana withdrew from the bout due to undisclosed reason and was replaced by former LFA Women's Strawweight Champion Lupita Godinez at a catchweight of 120 pounds.
Viana faced Iasmin Lucindo on August 12, 2023, at UFC on ESPN 51.
She lost the fight via arm-triangle choke in round two.
Viana faced Gillian Robertson on January 20, 2024, at UFC 297.
She lost the fight via technical knockout in round two.
