Amanda Ribas weighs in for her fight against Emily Whitmire in June 2019. PhotoCred: FanSided
Amanda Ribas will now fight Marina Rodriguez at UFC 257
Amanda Ribas had her eyes set on Michelle Waterson at UFC 257, but last night the news broke that Waterson dropped out of their Jan. 23 matchup. A few hours later, the UFC found Ribas a new opponent.
Ag. Fight reported that Ribas will now fight Marina Rodriguez in a strawweight bout on the UFC’s first pay per view of 2021. According to their report, both Ribas and Rodriguez have verbally agreed to the matchup, but contracts have not been signed as of this time.
Following the initial report, sources from the Ribas camp confirmed the matchup to MyMMANews.
This is the third opponent booked for Ribas as she was originally scheduled to fight former champion Carla Esparza at UFC 256, but Esparza withdrew from the fight. After Esparza dropped out, Ribas was then booked with Waterson for UFC 257.
Ribas (10-1) is a rising star and is unbeaten in her UFC career. She fought twice in 2020, picking up wins over Randa Markos and Paige VanZant.
Rodriguez (12-1-2) lost her first professional fight to Esparza over the summer. The Contender Series alum has wins over Tecia Torres and Jessica Aguilar and draws with Markos and Cynthia Calvillo.
The UFC has not announced a location for UFC 257, but the card is expected to be a huge event for the promotion as Conor McGregor makes his return to the octagon to once again square off with Dustin Poirier.
