Sinead Kavanagh is an Irish female mixed martial artist who competes in the Featherweight division of the Bellator MMA.
She had a tough upbringing, with her mother forming a drinking habit after her brother and sister were killed in a car crash, and becoming homeless at a young age.
[2] Kavanagh became a five-time national boxing champion, and competed alongside Katie Taylor on the Irish team that went to the World Championships in 2012.
[3] In 2015, Kavanagh made it to the finals of the International Mixed Martial Arts Federation (IMMAF) World Championships, losing to Canadian fighter Jamie Herrington when the referee jumped in and stopped the fight in the third round.
[4] Kavanagh made her professional MMA debut against Hatice Özyurt at BAMMA 22: Duquesnoy vs. Loughnane on 19 September 2015, defeating Ozyurt via TKO 17 seconds into the bout.
[6] From there, Kavanagh secured her third consecutive win against Polish fighter Katarzyna Sadura BAMMA 26: Saadeh vs. Young, which she won via KO in the first round.
Kavanagh returned to face former Australian boxing champ Arlene Blencowe on 25 August 2017 at Bellator 182.
[24] Kavanagh faced Arlene Blencowe in a rematch on 22 June 2024 at Bellator Champions Series 3 and lost the bout by a guillotine choke submission.