Michelle Waterson vs. Amanda Ribas Targeted For UFC 257
A strawweight fight with potential title implications is in play for UFC 257. The #6 ranked contender Michelle Waterson is set to square off against surging prospect Amanda Ribas on the undercard of Conor McGregor vs. Dustin Poirier II on January 23.
Brett Okamoto announced the news to his followers on social media last night, he wrote.
“UFC working on a fun one at 115 pounds … Michelle Waterson ( @karatehottiemma ) vs. Amanda Ribas ( @amandaribasufc ) is nearly finalized for UFC 257 on Jan. 23, per sources.”
Waterson (18-8) is coming off a big win in one of the best fights of 2020 against Angela Hill at UFC Vegas 10 on September 12. Since joining the UFC in 2015 Waterson has picked up several high-profile wins over the likes of Karolina Kowalkiewicz, Felice Herrig, Cortney Casey, Paige VanZant, and Angela Magana. However, she has struggled against the upper echelon fighters at 115lbs, losing to Joanna Jedrzejczyk, Tecia Torres, and Rose Namajunas during her time in the UFC.
Ribas is currently ranked at #9 in the UFC’s strawweight division. The 27-year-old joined the promotion in 2019 and has looked like a future champion during her first four Octagon outings. Ribas choked out Emily Whitmire in her UFC debut before picking up back-to-back decision wins over. Since then, she has picked up stoppage wins over Randa Markos and Mackenzie Dern. Ribas last fought at UFC 251 on ‘Fight Island’ in July. The Brazilian needed less than one round to take out Paige VanZant.
Who do you think will win at UFC 257? Michelle Waterson or Amanda Ribas?
