Randa Markos will step in to fight Brazilian Amanda Ribas at UFC Fight Night 170 on March 14 in Brasilia, Brazil. Ribas’s original opponent Paige VanZant withdrew due to injury. This was first reported by Combate’s Gleidson Venga and Raphael Marinho, with reports that VanZant suffered an arm injury. Venga and Marinho also report that VanZant wanted an extra month to recover to fight Ribas, but Ribas wanted to stay on the card.
Ribas is on a three-fight win streak and is coming off of a unanimous decision win over Mackenzie Dern at UFC Fight Night 161 on October 12, 2019. UFC Fight Night 170 will be Ribas’s first fight in the UFC to take place in Brazil. A possible win over VanZant could have made a great impact on Ribas’s rising MMA career. Ribas’s MMA record is 8-1 and is ranked number 15 in the women’s strawweight division.
Markos steps in coming off a split decision win over Ashley Yoder at UFC Fight Night 161 on October 26, 2019. Markos has been unable to stay on a winning streak since 2013 when she was on a three-fight win streak. With an MMA record of 10-7, Markos has wins over the likes of Angela Hill, Carla Esparza, and Juliana Lima. She also was on Ultimate Fighter Season 20, where she made it to the semifinals with wins over Tecia Torres and Felice Herrig before losing to Rose Namajunas. A win over Ribas can put Markos in the top 15 in the strawweight division.
The headline to UFC Fight Night 170 will be a lightweight matchup between Kevin Lee and Charles Oliveria. Lee and Oliveria are looking to continue their momentum in the lightweight division with a win. Currently, Lee is ranked number eight in the lightweight division and Oliveria is ranked number 13 in the division.