Istela Nunes: ‘Everything Happens for a Reason’

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Nothing has gone according to plan for Istela Nunes across her four appearances in the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Her 0-4 record says as much.

The decorated 32-year-old muay thai practitioner will set out in search of her first win in almost seven years when she tackles Loma Lookboonmee in a UFC on ESPN 65 women’s strawweight prelim on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Nunes returns to the stage with precious little margin for error. She has not fought since an arm injury resulted in a technical knockout loss to Victoria Dudakova just 34 seconds into their UFC on ESPN 49 pairing in July 2023.

“Everything happens for a reason,” Nunes told Sherdog.com. “Some people see no value in losses, but I’ve learned so much as both a fighter and as a human being. My training mindset has improved. Sometimes, bad things happen for a good reason. Every time I get ready for a fight, I feel happy and much better prepared. Even when I had my arm in a cast or when I had a knee injury, I always found the motivation to keep training, regardless. Obviously, I’ve had low points, but I’m very happy to be back.”

Nunes understands reality affords her only limited foresight.

“It’s hard to predict the future,” she said. “The plan and focus is always to get to the belt. Despite past losses, I know I have the potential to get far. I do hard work, and I’m very dedicated. When I give my best, I have the best results. I’m not in a hurry. I’m taking it one step at a time.”

UFC matchmakers did Nunes no favors. Lookboonmee carries a three-fight winning streak into the match and owns a 6-2 record inside the Octagon, having lost only to former Invicta Fighting Championships titleholder Angela Hill and onetime Legacy Fighting Alliance champion Lupita Godinez. The Syndicate MMA rep last suited up at UFC Fight Night 236, where she took a three-round unanimous decision from Bruna Brasil on Feb. 10.

“Loma is a striker, just like me,” Nunes said. “Since the UFC is the MMA world cup, anything can happen. If she sees the opportunity to grapple, I expect she may do that. She probably doesn’t expect me to have jiu-jitsu skills. We’re planning for that. We train in every area: jiu-jitsu, boxing, everything. I’m ready. I see us battling on the feet. Everyone who’s seen me fight knows that I always look to get a finish. If I have the opportunity to take her down and submit her, I’ll do that, and if we just bang it out for all three rounds, I’m ready for that, too. It’s what I enjoy most.”

The 5-foot-4, 115-pound Nunes has found a home at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, where she has trained for the better part of seven years. She extracts confidence from her day-to-day preparation at one of the sport’s foremost camps. From Nunes’ perspective, it provides her with the tools and focus she needs to confront an opponent like Lookboonmee.

“We’re going to put on a show,” she said. “In fighting, anything can happen. Sometimes the better fighter loses. You can dominate an entire fight and get finished during the final seconds. In my mind, the most important fight is always the next one.” Nunes brushed off concerns about her conditioning or lack thereof.

“You can expect to see the best of me when I step into the cage,” she said. “Sometimes, I get a lot of critiques from the haters. People notice I look tired by the third round. Of course I do. I give my 100% effort from the first second of the first round, and I’m always willing to still give my 100% until the very end, whether I’m tired or not.”