Latest news with #ShaunaBannon
Irish Daily Mirror
30-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Irish MMA star in line for big opportunity at UFC Paris
Irish MMA star Shauna Bannon will return to action in September on a huge UFC card that is taking place in Paris. The Irishwoman will face Sam Hughes at the Accor Arena on September 6th on what is shaping up to be a huge card that is scheduled to be headlined by Nassourdine Imavov clash with Caio Borralho. Strawweight star Bannon is coming into this contest off the back of two consecutive wins. The most recent of these victories came in March when she defeated Puja Tomar in London to improve her record to 7-1. Hughes also last stepped into the Octagon in March of this year when she beat Stephanie Luciano by split decision. The 33-year-old is a veteran of the UFC and has fought for Dana White's promotion since 2020. Her professional record stands at 10-6. Bannon - who goes by the nickname Mama B - made her UFC debut three years ago when she was surprisingly defeated by Bruna Brasil by decision. After a year out of the cage, the 31-year-old returned with a split decision win over Alice Ardelean last Summer before submitting Tomar with an armbar in March of this year.
Yahoo
30-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Ireland's Bannon to fight Hughes in UFC Paris
Shauna Bannon defeated Puja Tomar in March with a superb performance in London [Getty Images] Irish fighter Shauna Bannon will take on the USA's Sam Hughes in the UFC fight night in Paris on 6 September. The strawweight bout will be on the undercard of French fighter Nassourdine Imavov's middleweight showdown with Caio Borralho. Advertisement Bannon, 31, last fought in March when she defeated Puja Tomar with a superb performance in London to take her professional record to 7-1. Her sole defeat came on her UFC debut when she lost to Bruna Brasil by unanimous decision. Like her Irish opponent, Hughes was last in action in March when she beat Stephanie Luciano on a split decision. The 33-year-old American holds a professional record of 10-6 and has been fighting in the UFC for five years. Welsh fighter Mason Jones will also fight in the preliminary bouts against Bolaji Oki in a lightweight fight, while England's Kennedy Freeman will face Yuneisy Duben in a flyweight encounter. More MMA from the BBC
BBC News
30-06-2025
- Sport
- BBC News
Ireland's Bannon to fight Hughes in UFC Paris
Irish fighter Shauna Bannon will take on the USA's Sam Hughes in the UFC fight night in Paris on 6 September. The strawweight bout will be on the undercard of Frenc fighter Nassourdine Imavov's middleweight showdown with Caio Borralho. Bannon, 31, last fought in March when she defeated Puja Tomar with a superb performance in London to take her professional record to sole defeat came on her UFC debut when she lost to Bruna Brasil in a unanimous her Irish opponent, Hughes was last in action in March when she beat Stephanie Luciano on a split 33-year-old American holds a professional record of 10-6 and has been fighting in the UFC for five years. Welsh fighter Mason Jones will also fight in the preliminary bouts against Bolaji Oki in a lightweight fight, while England's Kennedy Freeman will face Yuneisy Duben in a flyweight encounter.
Irish Daily Mirror
06-06-2025
- Sport
- Irish Daily Mirror
Shauna Bannon: "With the good and the bad days, I still have my son"
Irish UFC fighter Shauna Bannon has cited her son Jayce as her biggest motivator as she pushes for success in the UFC strawweight division. "Mama B" is 7-1 in professional MMA, with the 31-year-old's only loss coming in her UFC debut against Bruna Brasil. She told the Irish Mirror: "I thought I was motivated before I had him, but now it's just on a different level. I could be having such a bad day, a bad training session, or I'm injured or whatever, and I still get to go home and he's there, making me laugh and joke. "I remember when I lost my debut, I felt like s***. And then I got to go home to him, and he just put a smile back on my face. "With the good and the bad days, I still have him, and that's huge to me." While providing for her son is now Bannon's biggest motivation, it was her father who sparked her love for kickboxing. "Only the other day, my main kickboxing gym, Tallaght Martial Arts, my Dad's gym, was moving to a new location and clearing up, and I was looking at the collages on the walls of photos from all over the years. "I actually got so emotional seeing those photos. I was crying because I was thinking that I don't know where I'd be today if my Dad had never got me into kickboxing. "Normally young girls go into dancing or singing or something completely different. So, I'm so grateful that my Dad put me on that journey, and it led me to the path that I'm on now. "I can't imagine what my life would be like if I didn't do kickboxing. I literally get to live every day doing what I love. And I couldn't imagine it being any different. "My Dad is still in my corner now when I fight in the UFC and it's really special to have him there." Bannon is unsure whether kickboxing or jiu jitsu is her main discipline, as she practised so much jiu jitsu during her early career that she is now used to both styles. She explained: "When I first started, I soon realised that I needed to learn how to do jujitsu, because I had no background in it. I'd never even watched it. So, it wasn't like I even had a slight idea about it. I had to learn everything from scratch. "I remember my first sparring session, I was like, kick, kick, kick, and I just got double-legged [a jiu jitsu takedown]. And then I was on the ground and I didn't know what to do there. "So, I spent a good chunk of the first, probably year and a half, just doing jujitsu. I actually stopped doing striking completely. "Sometimes I'd take a half day from work to make the lunchtime class. I was sometimes doing jujitsu three times a day, because I just felt like I really needed to catch up. But now, to be honest, if you had to make me choose, and I got paid the same for striking or jujitsu, I'd probably do jujitsu." She revealed that by the time she turned pro, the Dubliner had a multitude of suitors for promotions, before settling on Invicta Fighting Championships, which is an all-women's series. She said: "I had one from Ares, I had one from Cage Warriors, I had one from Oktagon, I had one from KSW. And then I had one from Invicta. And there was PSL [as well]. "I had to do the pros and cons, and I wrote out. It wasn't even about the money at that stage because I had to think long term, you know, I was offered more money with different promotions. "But I went with Invicta because I did see it as the stepping stone to get into the UFC. And luckily it worked out. "I was originally offered an opportunity for the Contender Series, and then they actually just contacted me again, said they watched more of my fights and they wanted to sign me straight away. "Then they had an opponent for me and then I fought on the UFC London, so it all happened very, very fast. "There wasn't a lot of time to kind of digest it, but I'm so grateful for the opportunity that the UFC has given me and Invicta because they were an amazing promotion to fight with as well. Bannon thanked OnlyFans for the ability to pursue a fighting career as funding can be limited without sponsorship, especially at lower levels. "The sponsorship that I have with OnlyFans has given me that financial security because fighters don't get paid a lot, especially at the start. "And since my last fight and the partnership with OnlyFans, I'm financially secure, which takes a huge weight off my shoulders because I'm a single mother. I still have bills to pay. "It's a good way of getting closer to my fans as well because sometimes on other platforms, I wouldn't be able to connect with them in that way. "So it kind of gives that other connection with the fans as well that you're not normally able to give." She is hoping for two more UFC fights before the end of the year. "I'm hoping to fight again this summer. I'm just waiting on confirmation. And then if I do fight in the summer, I'd love to fight again before the end of the year. "I like to keep the momentum going and be active, as active as I can." OnlyFans has a huge range of sport creators offering exclusive behind the scenes content and insights into their training, including boxers, tennis stars, and MMA fighters. Fans can check out Shauna Bannon's OnlyFans at:
USA Today
24-03-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Shauna Bannon on her 'whatever it takes' moment at UFC London after Puja Tomar's head kick
LONDON – Shauna Bannon beat Puja Tomar with a second-round submission Saturday on the preliminary card at UFC Fight Night 255 at The O2 in London. Take a look inside the fight with Bannon, who picked up a $50,000 bonus, the first of her UFC career. Shauna Bannon def. Puja Tomar Result: Shauna Bannon def. Puja Tomar via submission (armbar) – Round 2, 3:22 Updated records: Bannon (7-1 MMA, 2-1 UFC), Tomar (9-5 MMA, 1-1 UFC) Key stats: Bannon's submission was the first of her career and first stoppage since her second pro fight. Bannon on the fight's key moment 'I was just thinking whatever it takes (after I got dropped with the head kick). I knew I got dropped and I was on my back, but I'm quite comfortable on my back. I've spent hours there in jiu-jitsu drilling and stuff, and the armbar is my thing. When I had the arm, but she wasn't tapping, I could feel it in her. She was kind of giving up, and then I just inverted under and I had the arm and the finish was there.' Bannon on activity increase 'I understand (staying active for better mental health). I really do understand that. I think sometimes people find that they don't know what their identity is other than being a fighter. But I am kind of grown from that because I'm a mother, as well. There's a lot more going on in my life. But I do understand that mentality. I'm 31, so I want to give it a good go for the next couple of years and make a run for it. I don't want gaps in between. That's more my purpose of wanting activity.' Bannon on what she wants next 'I would love (to get into the rankings). I would love to fight another three times this year – start of the summer, September and December. That would be the dream for me because I think I work well with momentum. My first 12 professional fights were in the space of five months. I like when I don't kickbox and I competed every other weekend. I work well with that. Having a year gap in between was obviously out of my control, but that that's not something that I would prefer. I prefer to keep going and stay active. Activity is something I'm looking at this year.' 'Everyone thinks I'm a kickboxer but I'd like to think I'm a mixed martial artist now.' Shauna Bannon (@ShaunaBannon5) stops Puja Tomar via armbar at #UFCLondon to earn her first-ever submission win. Results, Interviews & More ➡️ — UFC News (@UFCNews) March 22, 2025 To hear more from Bannon, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above. For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie's event hub for UFC Fight Night 255.
