Athletes
Women’s Flyweight Division Takes Center Stage To Close Out March
Two Huge Matchups At 125 Could Help Shape The Title Picture Before Alexa Grasso And Valentina Shevchenko Square Off For A Third Time
As champion Alexa Grasso and former champion Valentina Shevchenko prepare to coach opposite each other on the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter, therefore setting up their championship trilogy bout sometime later this year, the women’s flyweight division will feature in a pair of main events to conclude the month of March.
First comes former strawweight champion Rose Namajunas facing Brazilian grappling ace Amanda Ribas on March 23. That bout is followed with a headliner between French kickboxing savant Manon Fiorot and the prodigious grappler from New Jersey, Erin Blanchfield, on March 30 in Atlantic City.
Namajunas was up against it in her flyweight debut when she faced Fiorot in Paris and injured her finger early in the fight, eventually leading to a decision loss. However, “Thug Rose” is always going to live near the title picture, and a main event against Ribas is just the bout she needs to get some traction at 125 pounds. Ribas has also dabbled in both strawweight and flyweight, so the size between the two should run more or less even.
Ribas is coming off one of her most impressive finishes, as she picked up a TKO win over Luana Pinheiro in November 2023, which earned her a Performance of the Night bonus. Her last flyweight contest came against Maycee Barber, in which she suffered a TKO loss, but she has a win over Viviane Araújo to her name.
On the other hand, Namajunas is looking for her first win since she bested Zhang Weili in their title fight rematch at UFC 268 via split decision. Since then, she lost her belt to Carla Esparza in an infamously low-volume performance before dropping the bout to Fiorot in September 2023.
WATCH: Catching Up With Kayla Harrison | UFC 300
While the winner of the bout won’t catapult themselves into title contention with a win, it is a big step toward a Top 5 matchup the next time out for both women.
Meanwhile, Fiorot and Blanchfield have made plenty of headway toward challenging for the flyweight title since joining the roster in January and September 2021, respectively. Both have gone 6-0 in the Octagon, with each posting their fair share of impressive performances.
Fiorot scored two consecutive TKO wins over Victoria Leonardo and Tabatha Ricci before outworking Mayra Bueno Silva, Jennifer Maia, Katlyn Chookagian and Namajunas to decision wins. Along the way, she showed sharp karate-based striking as well as strong offensive and defensive grappling.
New Jersey’s Blanchfield, at just 24 years old, has fought with the kind of patience and composure that testifies to her “Cold Blooded” moniker.
After securing a couple of decision wins, Blanchfield ripped off three submission wins over JJ Aldrich, Molly McCann and, most impressively, Jéssica Andrade in a performance bonus-worthy fight. She then outhustled Taila Santos to a decision win and cemented her place as a true title contender.
Fighting in Blanchfield’s home state, the two will clash in a fight dripping with title implications with the winner likely in pole position to challenge whoever comes away with the belt later this year.
These fights follow Maycee Barber's contender-making win over Katlyn Cerminara at UFC 299 as well. The women’s flyweight division has never been more charged with exciting and intriguing contenders, which matches with the fascinating rivalry playing out between Grasso and Shevchenko.
UFC Fight Night: Blanchfield vs Fiorot took place live from Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey on March 30, 2024. See the final Prelims & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
