Sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then stream the UFC live on
your smart TV, computer, phone, tablet or streaming device via the
ESPN app. Chalk up one more acquisition for the Ultimate Fighting Championship from the
Invicta Fighting Championships ranks. On Friday, Mexican outlet
Milenio reported that Montserrat
Ruiz (9-1) would be stepping up on short notice to compete at
UFC on ESPN 21 on March 20. The fighter out of Mexico will be
replacing Kay Hansen,
as the latter suffered an injury and was forced to withdraw from
the contest. Ruiz will meet fellow debutant Cheyanne
Buys (5-1), and she confirmed that she would be making her
Octagon debut on this card on her Instagram.
Ruiz made her Invicta debut in 2018, where she dropped a decision
verdict to UFC vet Danielle
Taylor and suffered her first career loss in the process. Some
19 months later, “Conejo” returned to face former Invicta
strawweight title challenger Janaisa
Morandin, and she pulled off a thrilling scarf hold armlock to
get back in the win column. Of note, she was the second woman to
land this maneuver inside the Invicta cage, with the first being
Cindy
Dandois over Jessamyn
Duke in 2016.
Fellow Invicta competitor and Legacy Fighting Alliance vet Buys nudged her
way into the UFC following a successful performance on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2020. “The
Warrior Princess,” per UFC President Dana White, harassed him on
his social media until he gave her a shot, and signed the
25-year-old with a win. All but one of the Florida native’s bouts
have gone the distance, with the lone stoppage in her pro debut in
2018.
UFC on ESPN 21 goes down at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas, and
middleweights will be on the marquee as Derek
Brunson looks to halt the momentum of Kevin
Holland. Other noteworthy matchups on the card include a
lightweight tilt between once-beatens as Gregor
Gillespie faces Brad
Riddell, while Marion
Reneau and Macy
Chiasson throw down at women’s bantamweight.
