Who is the next Brazilian talent to make waves globally in MMA?
The 13th edition of MMA Fighting’s Brazilian prospects to watch list brings talents from the regional scene in Brazil that could end up on a Contender Series card in 2026 — or even join the UFC and PFL straight away. Another major organization can very well pick them up before the bigger leagues notice them, too.
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As always, this year’s list features only athletes under the age of 30 that haven’t competed for a major promotion in the past.
Bia Mesquita, named one of the top talents to watch in 2025, is already 1-0 under contract with the UFC. Alexia Thainara and Felipe Lima, featured on the 2024 class, are also on the UFC roster.
In 2023, we handpicked Marciley Alves, who ended up winning the PFL bantamweight tournament in August, as well as UFC talents Marco Tulio and Jean Matsumoto. Ismael Bonfim and Vitor Petrino were among the 2022 prospects, with Caio Borralho, Jailton Almeida and Mairon Santos favored on the previous year’s class.
Top UFC flyweight contender Natalia Silva was a prospects list in 2020, as well as fellow UFC fighters Joanderson Brito and Julia Polastri. RIZIN champion Roberto Satoshi was named on the 2019 list, with Deiveson Figueiredo, Virna Jandiroba and Juliana Velasquez highlighted in 2017. 2015 and 2016 had the likes of Alex Oliveira and Amanda Lemos, respectively, and the first list ever, back in 2014, pinned future champions and stars Alexandre Pantoja, Larissa Pacheco and Renato Moicano.
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The future is bright for the next 10 prospects listed below, and time will tell if they’ve reached all their potential.
Reginaldo Junior (11-1), a.k.a. “The Beast”, fought twice in 2025 to add another pair of finishes to his record and improve his winning streak to five in a row. First, the 25-year-old Fighting Nerds welterweight stopped Gilberto Sousa in just over a minute, and then he tapped Natan Mota with seconds left on the clock after a fun contest this past November.
Lucas Rafael (6-0) also built a career in kickboxing while competing in mixed martial arts. The 23-year-old striker won twice in kickboxing, clinching the WGP super middleweight title in September, and still won three under MMA rules over the past 12 months, all via knockout.
Luan Pedroso (12-4) is a 27-year-old featherweight with a muay Thai background and a black belt in jiu-jitsu. “Juruna” fights out of TFT in Rio de Janeiro and won five straight since 2024 under the Shooto Brasil and LFA banners, including a picture-perfect spinning back kick knockout against Demison Rodrigues.
Daniel Araujo (8-0) had a long career in boxing — 50 amateur bouts and 7-1 pro record — before transitioning to MMA in 2023, winning his first six fights by first-round knockout. “Brazilian King”, 24, trains with UFC fighters Ismael and Gabriel Bonfim in Brasilia.
Rafael Pereira (14-4) won nine fights in a row, the past four under the LFA banner between 2024 and 2025. The 28-year-old CM System bantamweight is a black belt in jiu-jitsu and brings an exciting style to his matches, plus past experience competing in Muay Thai.
Laura Vasconcelos (5-0) won and defended the Jungle Fight strawweight championship with knockouts, stopping Laura Fontoura with a brutal head kick in the first round this past May. Vasconcelos fights out of Revira Black Team, a gym where Alex Pereira and Diego Lopes have trained early in their careers.
Gabriela Fujimoto (7-0) has a perfect MMA record with all bouts taking place under the LFA banner, and scored four stoppages. The 22-year-old fights out of KO Squad MMA in Rio de Janeiro and received a honorable mentions on Jed Meshew’s MMA All-Star Team at strawweight in 2024.
Neto Lopes (5-0) has a 100 percent finish rate in MMA with five stoppages, the last two being knockout of the year candidates in spinning fashion. The 26-year-old bantamweight won three bouts in 2025.
Juan Pablo Vieira (9-0) is unbeaten as a professional with nine finishes, seven of those inside the first round. A protege under Dyogo Teles in Tocantins, “Problema” turned 22 this past September and went 4-0 inside the LFA cage since 2023, winning all bouts in five minutes or less.
Adriano Sousa (7-0) is the youngest prospect on the 2026 list. “Imperador” started his pro career as a teenager and won seven in a row since late 2023, going 5-0 before even turning 18. The Black’s MMA flyweight has since added two first-round submissions to his record, collecting all but one of his wins in the opening round.
