The past few months have been rough for former UFC strawweight Viviane Pereira. In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, the 27-year-old revealed she was kicked off her team after informing her coach that she was pregnant with his child.
The man in question is Marcos Batista, who runs the Dragon Kombat team in Fortaleza.
“I didn’t expect this pregnancy. When I told [Batista] I was pregnant, he said right off the bat he didn’t want it and blocked us from everything, kicked me out of the team. He’s still avoiding judicial intimations, not showing up in court. It’s quite complicated. He never helped me or the baby.
“I thought [motherhood] would go differently because I was with the father of the baby since I was 15,” she continued. “I began training with him when I was around 12, and we started dating when I was 15, and everything was fine, but then all of a sudden he changed completely. We spent almost 12 years together.”
Batista declined to comment on the matter.
Pereira gave birth to her son in December and hadn’t fought since June 2019 at Invicta 35. With her lone source of income being the governmental relief program that gives her less than $40 per month, she set up a crowdfunding campaign with a $12,000 goal to help her make her ends meet.
As for her fighting career, Pereira (14-3) climbed through the ranks in regional events before signing with the UFC in 2016. She compiled a 2-3 record with the company, with her biggest win against former title contender Valerie Letourneau. Pereira was released from the UFC in 2018 after a three-fight skid.
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