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Fight By Fight Preview | UFC Fight Night: Moreno vs Albazi
Outlining The Action Set To Hit The Octagon At Rogers Place on Saturday Night In Edmonton
By E. Spencer Kyte, on X @spencerkyte
A lot has changed since the last time the UFC rolled into Edmonton.
The promotion’s most recent visit to the “City of Champions” came in the summer of 2019, pre-pandemic, with Max Holloway successfully defending his featherweight title (for the final time, it turned out) against Frankie Edgar, while the undercard included early UFC wins for Geoff Neal, Arman Tsarukyan, and Viviane Araujo, plus future flyweight champs Deiveson Figueiredo and Alexandre Pantoja doing battle early in the evening.
This time around, the UFC touches down with a stacked Fight Night event headlined by a pair of critical five-round fights in the flyweight divisions, as Rose Namajunas and Erin Blanchfield will battle for position in the title queue before Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi do the same in the main event.
It should be an electric night of action at the home of the Oilers, and we’ve got all the details you need to know gathered below.
Main Event Matchup: Brandon Moreno vs Amir Albazi
Originally scheduled to take place earlier this year in Mexico City, Brandon Moreno and Amir Albazi will finally share the Octagon in Edmonton this weekend.
Saturday marks Moreno’s first appearance since losing to Brandon Royval in Mexico City in February and announcing he wanted to take a little time away from competing. It was his second straight split decision loss, as well as his seventh consecutive five-round assignment and 11th fight in less than four-and-a-half years since returning to the promotion, making his eight-month hiatus very necessary and very well deserved.
Albazi competes for the first time since his debated split decision win over Kai Kara-France in June 2023, and enters with a perfect 5-0 mark inside the Octagon. “The Prince” was making a push towards title contention before being sidelined, and could get right back into the thick of the chase with a win here.
The February bout was scuttled because Albazi required neck surgery, so it will be interesting to see how each of these two looks after some time away. At their peaks, they are amongst the best flyweights in the world, with Moreno having already enjoyed two stints as champion and Albazi showing the same kind of elite potential.
Stylistically, this should be an electric pairing between two athletes that are skilled everywhere, but really do enjoy banging it out on the feet. Buckle up and enjoy!
Additional Main Card Contests
Rose Namajunas vs Erin Blanchfield
Rose Namajunas and Erin Blanchfield clash in a five-round co-main event that should further delineate things in the flyweight division heading into 2025.
The former two-time strawweight champion Namajunas makes her third start of the year, seeking a third consecutive win after posting consecutive unanimous decision victories over Amanda Ribas and Tracy Cortez. She’s rebounded nicely after suffering a broken thumb and decision loss in her divisional debut, and seems locked in on making a serious push towards a championship opportunity in her new surroundings.
Blanchfield’s rise through the flyweight ranks was paused momentarily back in March when the New Jersey native landed on the wrong side of the cards in a main event meeting with Manon Fiorot in Atlantic City. Still just 25 years old, the Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt is 6-1 in the UFC and 12-2 overall, and the last time she suffered a setback, she rattled off nine straight wins.
With Valentina Shevchenko returning to the throne at Noche UFC in September and Manon Fiorot seemingly locked in as the No. 1 contender, this feels like a matchup to determine who could be next to face the new two-time champion. It’s also an excellent opportunity to get further reads on where each woman stands at the moment, as Namajunas has the opportunity to show she can out-work another elite contender, while Blanchfield gets a second crack at turning aside an established name in a five-round fight.
Derrick Lewis vs Jhonata Diniz
Big fellas battle it out in the middle of the main card as Derrick Lewis reprises his role as the veteran litmus test in the heavyweight ranks in this matchup with surging Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS) graduate Jhonata Diniz.
Lewis got back into the win column with a third-round stoppage win over Rodrigo Nascimento in St. Louis in May, extending his record for the most knockouts in UFC history to 15 in the process. The former title challenger remains an ever-present, ever-dangerous threat to those looking to climb the ranks, and will look to earn consecutive victories for the first time since posting four straight victories between November 2, 2019 and February 20, 2021.
Diniz has looked solid in a pair of outings since punching his ticket to the Octagon with a first-round stoppage win on Season 7 of the annual talent-search series. After dispatching Austen Lane midway through the second round of his debut, the former kickboxer went the distance with Karl Williams last time out, earning a unanimous decision win to advance to 8-0 in his professional career.
Will Lewis turn aside another hopeful as he’s done repeatedly throughout his career or will Diniz get the better of the tenured veteran and take a big step forward in the heavyweight division?
Caio Machado vs Brendson Ribeiro
Members of the DWCS Class of ’23 looking to find success in the Octagon for the first time meet in this light heavyweight matchup, as Caio Machado takes on Brendson Ribeiro.
Fighting out of Franco Kickboxing Pankration in Vancouver, Machado moves down a division after landing on the wrong side of the scorecards in each of his first two UFC appearances at heavyweight. The 30-year-old was always slightly undersized for the heavyweight ranks and will look to get back to the form that produced an 8-1-1 record prior to arriving on the big stage in this one.
Ribeiro registered a first-round knockout win over unbeaten prospect Bruno Lopes last season to earn his contract, but has struggled to replicate that success through his first two appearances under the UFC banner. After getting stopped by Zhang Mingling in his debut, “The Gorilla” dropped a majority decision to Magomed Gadzhiyasulov last time out.
Marc-Andre Barriault vs Dustin Stoltzfus
Marc-Andre Barriault and Dustin Stoltzfus clash in a meeting of middleweights looking to get things moving in the right direction before the end of the year.
Barriault makes his 14th UFC appearance this weekend, entering on a two-fight skid and brandishing a 5-7-1 record inside the Octagon. The French-Canadian dropped a split decision to Chris Curtis at UFC 297 in January and was stopped by Joe Pyfer at UFC 303 in September and looks to get back to the form that produced wins in each of his 2023 starts this weekend.
Just 2-5 in his UFC career, Stoltzfus is almost never in a boring fight, even if the excitement often ends with his catching a loss. Last time out, the DWCS Class of 2020 representative engaged in one of the most entertaining one-round tussles of the year with Brunno Ferreira, who ended the fight with a spinning back elbow that put Stoltzfus on the canvas.
This should be a high energy scrap from the outset between a pair of guys eager to prove they still have plenty to offer in the always competitive middleweight division.
Mike Malott vs Trevin Giles
The main card opens in the welterweight division, as Mike Malott faces off with Trevin Giles.
Malott makes his second appearance of the year, eager to rebound from a third-round stoppage loss at the hands of Neil Magny at UFC 297 in Toronto in January. The DWCS grad is 10-2-1 overall and boasts a 100 percent finish rate, and makes his third straight UFC appearance in his home country, though he landed on the wrong side of the results in his lone trip to Edmonton much earlier in his career.
The 32-year-old Giles has gone 2-3 in five starts since moving to welterweight, entering Saturday’s contest having dropped back-to-back outings. Each of his last three losses have come against DWCS alums, so it will be interesting to see if the Texan can buck that trend here as he faces off with a third straight opponent to graduate from the series.
Preliminary Card Matchups
Aiemann Zahabi vs Pedro Munhoz
The preliminary card slate closes in the bantamweight division, as Aiemann Zahabi takes on Pedro Munhoz in what is sure to be a technical banger.
Zahabi enters on the best run of his UFC career, having earned four straight victories, including having bounced Javid Basharat from the ranks of the unbeaten last time out. A longtime member of the bantamweight Top 15, Munhoz arrives in Edmonton on a two-fight skid, having dropped back-to-back decisions to Marlon “Chito” Vera and Kyler Phillips.
Ariane da Silva vs Jasmine Jasudavicius
Ariane da Silva looks to get back into the win column, while Jasmine Jasudavicius aims to keep the good times rolling in this intriguing flyweight pairing.
Brazil’s da Silva earned a trio of wins last year to finally begin building some momentum after an inconsistent start to her UFC career, only to have that run halted by Karine Silva in April. The lone ranked Canadian on the roster, Jasudavicius has earned a pair of wins already in 2024 and victories in four of her last five after handily dealing with short-notice replacement and highly regarded prospect Fatima Kline in July.
Charles Jourdain vs Victor Henry
Charles Jourdain drops to the bantamweight division, where he’ll be welcomed this weekend by savvy veteran Victor Henry.
Jourdain went 6-6-1 in 13 featherweight appearances, often giving up size to his opponents, and looks to start fresh in the 135-pound ranks after consecutive defeats. Henry has gone 3-1 with one no contest to begin his UFC career, most recently earning a third-round stoppage win over Rani Yahya in April.
Jack Shore vs Youssef Zalal
Jack Shore and Youssef Zalal face off in a fascinating battle of talented featherweight hopefuls stationed on Saturday’s prelims.
“Tank” won his debut in the 145-pound weight class last year in London at UFC 286, but lost his sophomore outing against Joanderson Brito in May at UFC 301 when he suffered a gnarly gash on his shin. Zalal has gone 2-0 with a pair of impressive finishes since returning to the UFC fold earlier this year, following up his March win over Billy Quarantillo with a first-round submission victory over Jarno Errens in August.
Alexandr Romanov vs Rodrigo Nascimento
There is heavyweight action on the preliminary card, as well, this weekend, as Alexandr Romanov takes on Rodrigo Nascimento.
After opening his UFC career with five straight wins, Romanov has gone 1-3 over his last four outings, most recently being submitted by Jailton Almeida at UFC 302 in June. Nascimento touches down in the Alberta fight town after having his three-fight winning streak snapped by Lewis in their main event meeting back in May.
Serhiy Sidey vs Garrett Armfield
Slick boxers Serhiy Sidey and Garrett Armfield meet in a bantamweight matchup that could be an early Fight of the Night candidate.
After earning a contract last season on Dana White’s Contender Series, Sidey debuted in a rematch with his DWCS opponent Ramon Taveras at UFC 297 in January, landing on the wrong side of a split decision verdict in an absolute slobberknocker at Scotiabank Arena. The 28-year-old Armfield earned quality wins in each of his first two bantamweight starts after dropping his short-notice debut up a division, but was submitted last time out by Brady Hiestand in the third round of a back-and-forth battle.
Chad Anheliger vs Cody Gibson
Bantamweights Chad Anheliger and Cody Gibson meet early in the evening in a matchup between two of the more senior members of the 135-pound ranks.
An Alberta native and 20-fight veteran, Anheliger halted a two-fight skid back in March with a strong outing against Charalampos Grigoriou to bring his record even at 2-2 through his first four UFC appearances. Gibson had his best performance of his two tours in the UFC last time out in July when he steamrolled Brian Kelleher.
Jamey-Lyn Horth vs Ivana Petrovic
Flyweights open the show on Saturday, as Jamey-Lyn Horth takes on Ivana Petrovic in the first of four bouts contested at 125 pounds this weekend.
Fighting out of Squamish, British Columbia, Horth returns for the first time since suffering her first professional loss last December in Austin, Texas when she landed on the wrong side of a split decision verdict in her bout with Veronica Hardy. Petrovic rebounded from dropping her promotional debut last July with a third-round submission win over Liang Na in April to move to 1-1 inside the Octagon and 7-1 overall heading into Saturday’s opener.
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