BOSTON – Amanda Lemos has experienced some of the most difficult obstacles life can offer, but if she can claim the strawweight title from Zhang Weili at UFC 292, she’ll have no regrets.
The past eight years alone have been an extreme burden on Lemos (13-2-1 MMA, 7-2 UFC), who challenges champion Weili (23-3 MMA, 7-2 UFC) in Saturday’s pay-per-view co-headliner at TD Garden following prelims on ESPN and ESPN+. Following her UFC debut in 2016, Lemos tested positive for a banned substance and was suspended for two years from competition.
During her time away from the sport, Lemos took a job as a motorcycle taxi driver in Belem, Brazil. She was involved in a serious accident, however, which resulted in a spinal fracture that required surgery in 2018. She finally returned to the octagon in December 2019, and since then has won seven of eight and positioned herself on the doorstep of UFC gold.
