UFC fighters Mayra Bueno Silva and Jasmine Jasudavicius will make history this Saturday when the UFC returns to Saudi Arabia for a loaded Fight Night card.
Emanating from the ANB Arena in Riyadh, the event will see Israel Adesanya compete in his first non-title UFC bout in six years when he squares off with rising middleweight contender Nassourdine Imavov in the main event. We’ll also get the return of former Bellator standout Michael ‘Venom’ Page who is set to square off with undefeated Russian knockout artist Shara Magomedov in the co-main.
But long before those two fights go down, history will be made when Bueno Silva and Jasudavicius take the stage, becoming the first two female UFC fighters to compete in Saudi Arabia.
Ahead of their flyweight clash in the Middle East, Bueno Silva offered fans a look at the fight kit both she and Jasudavicius will be wearing on Instagram.
Jasmine Jasudavicius exited to represent the UFC and women’s MMA in Saudi Arabia
Jasudavicius, who hails from Canada, shared her excitement over the opportunity to make history and represent the sport in another country.
“Once I heard about that, I was so inspired,” Jasudavicius told MSN. “To be able to be the first to be able to represent women’s martial arts in another country like that, it’s such an honor. I don’t take it lightly. I really, really am appreciative. I want to make sure I put on a really good and represent women’s martial arts to the Saudi Arabian people.”
She rides into Riyadh on a three-fight win streak, including victories over Priscila Cachoeira, Fatima Kline, and Ariane Lipski da Silva. Overall, she is 6-2 under the UFC banner, 12-3 overall.
“I’m really looking forward to seeing what the culture’s like and experiencing it right then and there,” she added. “I feel like it’s going to be super-cool.”
Her opponent, Bueno Silva, will be looking to climb back into the win column after coming up short in her first UFC title fight against Raquel Pennington last January. She followed that up with a second-round TKO loss due to a doctor’s stoppage against Macy Chiasson at UFC 303 after suffering one of the worst cuts in promotional history.
