Jessica Andrade accuses ex-coach of financial wrongdoing, considers taking legal action: "He was like a father to me"

After cutting ties with her long-time coach, Gilliard Parana, in April, Jessica Andrade might now take more severe action against the former PRVT head coach in the form of a lawsuit.

During a recent interview with Ag Fight, the former UFC women's strawweight champion made cryptic allegations against her former coach, faulting the trainer for many transgressions, including financial fraud:

"There were some issues, both financial and personal. I thought he was one thing in my life and then he became something completely different. He was always saying he was like a father to me and when I found out about the things he did to me, I said, 'That's definitely not something a father would do.' A lot of things happened and I believe in the future, maybe not now because he returned to Brazil and things are getting more difficult, the Brazilian government is quite difficult, but I hope things are resolved soon, that justice is served. [H/t AgFight]"

Check out Jessica Andrade's comments below:

'Bate Estaca' added that she'll probably take legal action against her former trainer and one day hopes to recover the money he has wrongfully stolen from her. Per the 32-year-old, she had been paying 30 percent of her fight purse to the team on top of regular coaching fees.

According to a report by MMA Fighting, Andrade first addressed her troubles with Parana during an interview with UFC Fight Pass, following which the former PRVT head stepped down from his coaching role.

Interestingly, in addition to Andrade, UFC fighters Denise Gomes and Karol Rosa have also recently cut ties with team PRVT.

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Who is Jessica Andrade fighting next?

Jessica Andrade will reportedly take on the No.8-ranked women's flyweight contender Natalia Silva on Sept. 7 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Silva (17-5-1) is on an 11-fight win streak and is undefeated in the promotion. In her most recent outing, the 27-year-old claimed a unanimous decision win over the No.10-ranked Viviane Araujo.

Andrade (26-12) has been producing mixed results in recent years. She is 2-3 in her last five. However, she is currently on a two-fight win streak, with her latest coming via split decision against Marina Rodriguez at UFC 300.

While a win will take 'Bate Estaca' one step closer to the title picture, a Silva win might see her drop out of the divisional top five.