UFC On ABC: Can’t Miss Fight On The Prelims For The Night

For some reason, these debut cards just seem to bring out the best in the women’s division. And that could definitely be the case at UFC on ABC this Saturday.

Two women’s bantamweight fights are currently on the docket for the ESPN+ prelims with Sarah Moras meeting Vanessa Melo and Wu Yanan taking on Joselyne Edwards.

While the Yanan-Edwards bout is sure to be a good one, Moras vs. Melo is the one we are focusing on for this article.

Moras is a 32-year-old native of British Columbia, Canada who trains out of the Xtreme Couture team. She is a former competitor on The Ultimate Fighter, which featured Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate as head coaches.

After competing on The Ultimate Fighter, Moras made her official UFC debut in 2014 with a decision victory over Alexis Dufresne. That improved her record to 4-1 overall,  with the lone loss coming to Raquel Pennington.

In 2015, officials paired Moras up with her toughest challenge to date: Jessica Andrade. While she was unable to come out with the win, going a full three rounds and 15 minutes showed just the kind of toughness that Moras presents. 

Following a bit of a break in active fighting, she returned in 2017 with a first round submission in her native country of Canada over Ashlee Evans-Smith. 

Moras has fallen on hard times since, losing four of five with three of those being via decision. She did finish Liana Jojua back in 2019 in Abu Dhabi. 

Her opponent is 32-year-old Melo, who fights out of Brazil and the Babuino Gold Team. She made her UFC debut following a 15-fight run in other promotions, signing in 2019.

Melo, though, is still searching for her first Octagon victory after coming up short in three bouts. All have went to the scorecards, including a 2019 setback to Irene Aldana.

When you are facing the pressure of a must-win fight, you tend to throw everything and anything you can at your opponent. With both Moras and Melo in the same position, this should be nothing short of a three-round, 15-minute firework-filled fight.