![Maycee Barber training in boxing gloves [Image courtesy: @mayceebarber on Instagram]](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2021/08/6f274-16279135854931-800.jpg)
![Maycee Barber training in boxing gloves [Image courtesy: @mayceebarber on Instagram]](data:image/svg+xml;charset=utf-8,%3Csvg%20xmlns='http%3A//www.w3.org/2000/svg'%20xmlns%3Axlink='http%3A//www.w3.org/1999/xlink'%20viewBox='0%200%2010%206.65'%3E%3Cfilter%20id='b'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20color-interpolation-filters='sRGB'%3E%3CfeGaussianBlur%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20stdDeviation='.5'%3E%3C/feGaussianBlur%3E%3CfeComponentTransfer%3E%3CfeFuncA%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20type='discrete'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20tableValues='1%201'%3E%3C/feFuncA%3E%3C/feComponentTransfer%3E%3C/filter%3E%3Cimage%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20filter='url(%23b)'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Maycee Barber is a young MMA fighter who is tipped to be the next big thing in the UFC women's flyweight division. Making her UFC debut in 2018, 'The Future' has proven to be more than just another name in the rankings. She is 9-2 in her young MMA career, and has displayed a fight IQ and determination that belies her years.
Barber's most recent fight was against another youngster in the UFC women's flyweight division, Miranda Maverick. Barber proved to be the better fighter of the two, eking out a split-decision victory following a slugfest. The 23-year-old UFC athlete is not just a promising championship candidate but also a future Hall of Famer.
However, sitting in the 13th spot in the UFC women's flyweight rankings, she has a long way to go. In this article, we look at five interesting facts about UFC flyweight sensation Maycee Barber.
#5 Maycee Barber trains in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Rener Gracie and Ryron Gracie
Maycee Barber is training in Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Rener and Ryron Gracie of the Gracie family. Rener Gracie is the grandson of grandmaster Helio Gracie and the second-eldest son of grandmaster Rorion Gracie, who was among some of the first family members to bring Gracie jiu-jitsu to the United States. He is also the coach of UFC veteran Brian Ortega.
Mayce Barber has a purple belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and she uses the martial art form with complete dominance. The first two stoppage wins of her career came via submission, including an armbar on her MMA debut in 2017.
Apart from being a Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner, Maycee Barber has a 2nd-degree black belt in Karate. She is quite skilled as a striker, and has been victorious in many of her bouts, riding on her high-volume striking. 'The Future' has five knockout wins in her MMA career, including a first-round TKO win against Gillian Robertson at UFC on ESPN 6.
She has proven to be a well-rounded MMA fighter, which sets her up to be a dominant force in the UFC women's flyweight division.
#4 Maycee Barber has the second-most knockouts in UFC women's flyweight history
Maycee Barber made her UFC debut in 2018 when she was just 20. On her debut, she knocked out Hannah Cifers in round two, landing elbows and punches. Four months later, she knocked out JJ Aldrich in round two at UFC Fight Night 148, landing knees and punches.
'The Future' extended her stoppage streak to five when she TKO'd Gillian Robertson in October 2019, this time wrapping things up in round one. In doing so, Maycee Barber extended her MMA record to 8-0 and her knockout streak to five (three in the UFC).
Maycee Barber has the second-most knockouts in the UFC women's flyweight division (two), as her promotional debut was as a strawweight. She is second to none other than Valentina Shevchenko, the reigning UFC champion. Shevchenko has three knockout wins in the division, which she picked up over a period of six years.
For Maycee Barber to come this close to the UFC women's flyweight champion in terms of knockouts is impressive, to say the least. It speaks volumes about Barber's striking IQ, as she is close to tying 'The Bullet' for the record in just a little over three years in the UFC.
#3 Maycee Barber works against child trafficking at Operation Underground Railroad
Maycee Barber is a vocal advocate for child rights, and works for an organization called Operation Underground Railroad (OUR). The organization works to eradicate 'child sex trafficking through coordinated rescue and recovery planning'. Barber has worked on several campaigns organized by OUR, and has also made attempts to raise awareness about the cause.
Maycee Barber gave a shout=out to the United States-based non-profit organization during her post-fight interview at UFC Vegas 32. She spoke about the cause, and made an appeal to fight fans to support Operation Underground Railroad, which works to assist government agencies in fighting human trafficking with a special focus on children. 'The Future' said:
"July 30th is World Day Against Human Trafficiking. I'm a big part of Operation Underground Railroad, and it is a super important part of my life. And so, I'll be in Salt Lake City, Utah, and if anyone in Utah would like to come out and support an amazing cause, follow my Instagram right now."
She continued:
"I just made a post with all the information on it. So please go there, follow them, see if you can donate. Be part of rising up for children."
#2 Maycee Barber was picked for Dana White's Contender Series
Maycee Barber started training in MMA at a young age, but unlike most, decided to use her skills for a full-blown professional career. In an interview with Yahoo Sports, Barber's father Bucky revealed how the UFC women's flyweight sensation started her MMA career. He said:
"We got into martial arts for self defense. As a father, you can’t imagine your daughter fighting. But once we got our minds wrapped around the fact that this was what she (Maycee Barber) wanted to do, that she was going to pursue being a fighter regardless of what we thought about it, our entire motivation changed."
"At that point, it was, ‘OK, the better we make her as a fighter, the less damage she’s going to take.’ So we started to travel, and we took her literally all over the United States."
After breezing past the first opponent in her amateur career, she joined the LFA, which is considered one of the top-feeder MMA promotions for the UFC.
'The Future' garnered a 4-0 record in the LFC, earning a call-up from the UFC boss for his Dana White's Contender Series. In the most important fight of her career, Maycee Barber TKO'd Jamie Colleen in round three, landing several elbows and punches.
Winning the fight and taking her professional record to 5-0, Maycee Barber snatched a UFC contract at just 20 years of age.
#1 Maycee Barber is the next big thing in UFC women's flyweight division
Maycee Barber has her eyes set on leaving behind a legacy as the youngest and greatest strawweight champion ever seen. When she joined the UFC, she made it clear that her goal was to break Jon Jones' record of being the youngest UFC champion. When 'Bones' lifted the title for the first time, he was 23 years and 242 days old.
After suffering the first loss of her career against Roxanne Modafferi at UFC 246, Maycee Barber reminded her fans that her objectives had still not changed. She wrote on Instagram:
"What a life. Tonight may not have gone my way, but there is not a single piece of regret in me. I am so blessed to live the life I have, and I thank God everyday for the people in it. Thank you (Roxanne Modafferi) for sharing the octagon with me tonight.. The outcome of this fight may not have happened according to plan, but my goal of beating Jon Jones' record and being the youngest champion in UFC history stays the same."
Before facing Roxanne Modafferi, Maycee Barber was on an eight-fight winning streak (three in the UFC). However, even as she lost two back-to-back fights, she only took them in her stride and treated them as learnings.
Maycee Barber snapped her two-fight losing streak against Miranda Maverick, and has even jumped up a spot in the UFC women's flyweight rankings to #13. She is tipped to be 'The Future' of the division, thanks to her attitude, skillset and determination to be a champion.
