Amanda Ribas Expected to Return at Flyweight on March 4 at UFC 285

Just found out that the UFC is looking to book Amanda Ribas on the March 4 event (UFC Fight Night 221).

— Christian Stein (@CopperHeartCT) December 8, 2022

A fan-favorite flyweight up-and-comer in the Ultimate Fighting Championship should be back in action within a few months.

According to a source close to the situation on Thursday, Amanda Ribas (11-3) is being targeted for a flyweight fight at UFC 285 on March 4 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Her opponent is still to be determined, but it is not expected to be Tracy Cortez. Options being considered include a rematch with Katlyn Chookagian, or fresh matchups against either Viviane Araujo or Taila Santos.

Ribas and Cortez were slated to face off against one another at UFC on ESPN 42 on Dec. 3 in Florida, but Cortez was pulled shortly after the weigh-ins concluded. Cortez had successfully made weight, with the medical scratch reportedly unrelated to her weight cut. This put an end to the Brazilian potentially concluding her 2022 campaign with a win, as her lone appearance this year came against Chookagian in May. The 29-year-old dropped a competitive split decision to the top contender Chookagian in her return to the flyweight division in defeat. Before the setback, Ribas bookended a knockout loss to Marina Rodriguez with victories over Paige VanZant in 2020 and Virna Jandiroba in 2021.

UFC 285 will go down inside the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas on March 4, and there is currently no headliner on the books. A few fights are sprinkled on its lineup thus far, including a middleweight pairing between Jamie Pickett and Bo Nickal, a strawweight scrap of Jessica Penne vs. Tabatha Ricci, and a bantamweight battle also reported on Thursday by MMA Junkie where Farid Basharat takes on Da'Mon Blackshear.