When the UFC makes its way north of the border later this year, fight fans can now enjoy some native representation.
The Oct. 18 Fight Night Card set to take place at Rogers Arena in Vancouver will now feature St. Catharines, Ont.'s Jasmine Jasudavicius, who'll take on former women's flyweight title-challenger Manon Fiorot.
Jasudavicius enters the matchup on top form after her impressive submission victory over No. 9-ranked Jessica Andrade in Montreal at UFC 315. The first-round win via rear-naked choke in May not only earned her a Performance of the Night bonus but also marked the 36-year-old's fifth consecutive win. Three of those victories have come via submission.
The Canadian holds a 14-3-0 record (8-2-0 in UFC), and after her win over Andrade, propelled herself to the No. 5-ranked contender in the 125-pound division. She's one of just two ranked fighters from Canada, the other being Aiemann Zahabi of Laval, Que.
Jasudavicius has also found considerable success competing on home soil, boasting a 5-0-0 record while competing in Canada as a professional. Her first UFC win north of the border coincidentally came in Vancouver, where she picked up a unanimous decision victory over Miranda Maverick at UFC 289 in 2023.
Since then, Jasudavicius has added Toronto, Edmonton and the aforementioned Montreal to her list of Canadian cities in which she's gotten her arm raised.
She'll now take on her toughest test yet in No. 2-ranked Fiorot. The French flyweight jumped out of the gates to start her UFC career, going 7-0, including back-to-back knockout wins in her first two bouts.
Fiorot's strong start earned her a title shot, also at UFC 315 in May, but she fell short, losing to champion Valentina Shevchenko via unanimous decision in the co-main event.
Now, "The Beast" stands in the way of Jasudavicius possibly earning her first UFC title shot since the Canadian made her promotional debut back in 2022. At the very least, a win over Fiorot might grant Jasudavicius a chance at redemption with a matchup against No. 1-ranked flyweight challenger Natalia Silva, who handed the Canadian her first UFC loss three years ago.
Meanwhile, October's Fight Night card will mark the UFC's 36th visit to Canada and seventh appearance in Vancouver.
No other matchups for the event have been announced by the promotion as of yet.
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