UFC Edmonton Start Time, Full Fight Card Details!

Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, TONIGHT (Sat., Nov. 2, 2024) to stage a special “Fight Night”-themed event inside Rogers Place, featuring a Flyweight bout between former division king, Brandon Moreno, and top-ranked contender, Amir Albazi. In UFC Edmonton’s co-main event, Rose Namajunas vs. Erin Blanchfield collide in a pivotal women’s 125-pound fight on ESPN+.

What’s Hot:

It’s been eight months since Brandon Moreno last stepped foot inside the Octagon, as the Mexican-born former champion said he needed a small break from the sport following his split-decision loss to Brandon Royval in Feb. 2024, his second straight defeat. It wasn’t that long of a hiatus, and many expected him to return at UFC 306 — otherwise known Noche UFC — which featured several prominent Mexican fighters. Nevertheless, “The Assassin Baby” is out to snap his funk in order to get back into the championship mix, and recapture the title he lost to to Alexandre Pantoja via split-decision at UFC 290. Standing in his way is a surging contender who has championship dreams of his own in Amir Albazi, who feels he is long overdue for his shot at UFC gold.

Since stepping foot inside in the Octagon in early 2020, Albazi has been perfect, winning all five of his bouts thus far, which includes four finishes with his latest win coming over Kai Kara-France via split-decision in mid-2023. Now, “The Prince” is ready to punch his ticket to the big dance for the first time in his career with a win over one of the most beloved fighters in the division’s history. This is a very intriguing bout, and while both men can entertain on the feet, their bread and butter is on the ground, as Moreno has 11 submission wins to his credit, while Albazi isn’t too far behind with nine. What does that tell you? To me, it means we could have a stalemate once it hits the canvas and this fight will more than likely be played out on the feet, where I feel Moreno has a slight advantage. This one should be fun!

What’s Not:

Pedro Munhoz is currently on a two-fight losing streak and is a paltry 1-4-1 in his last six fights, yet the UFC matchmakers opted to put him up against Aiemann Zahabi, who is currently on a four-fight win streak and is a very impressive 5-2 so far inside the Octagon. Just…why? One man is scorching hot while the other is spiraling downward, these matchups drive me crazy.

Original Card vs. Actual Card (and injuries):

Derrick Lewis was initially slated to face Alexandr Romanov at this event, but for whatever reason the promotion opted to scrap that bout and give “Black Beast” Jhonata Diniz, instead, while Romonov — who is 1-3 in his last four fights — will now face Rodrigo Nascimento, who is coming off a knockout loss to Lewis. Call me crazy, but I liked the original pairing, instead.

In the end, however, it didn’t matter because the day before the event “Black Beast” was pulled from the card after he reportedly came down with an undisclosed illness. While a big blow to the event, the important thing here, obviously, is Lewis’ health. No word yet on if the promotion plans on re-booking the fight at a later date.

New Blood:

There are no newcomers slated for their UFC debut this week.

How The ‘Prelims’ Look:

Kicking off the undercard is a women’s Flyweight fight between Jamey-Lyn Horth and Ivana Petrovic. Horth is 6-1 in her young mixed martial arts (MMA) career, and is 1-1 inside the Octagon. She is coming off a tough, split-decision loss to Veronica Hardy. As for Petrovic, she is also 1-1 under the UFC banner, but she is coming off a win over Na Liang earlier this year.

Both Chad Anheliger and Cody Gibson are 1-2 in their last three UFC fights, but both are coming off wins over Charalampos Grigoriou and Brian Kelleher, respectively. This should be a fun Bantamweight bout between two young prospects ready to make their marks.

Serhiy Sidey didn’t make the splash he was hoping for in his UFC debut, losing to Ramon Taveras via split decision, a man he knocked out in the first round four months earlier on the Contender Series. He will look to lock down his first official win inside the Octagon when he battles tested veteran Garrett Armfield — who is coming off a submission defeat at the hands of Brady Hiestand.

Jack Shore got off to a red-hot start to his UFC career by winning his first five fights, leading many to believe he could be a legit title contender. Since then, however, he has cooled down a bit, only managing to rack up a 1-2 record. He is coming off a TKO loss to Joanderson Brito (see it here), and now eyes a trip back to the winner’s circle when he battles Youssef Zalal, who is on a five-fight win streak, and has won two straight under the UFC banner in what is his second go-around with the promotion.

Charles Jourdain was simply never able to live up to what many expected from the Canadian inside the Octagon. He has never been able to win more than two straight fights during his five-year run, and has only managed to rack up a 6-7-1 record under the UFC banner. That simply will never put you in the Top 15, much less into title contention. He will look to snap his three-fight skid against Victor Henry, who is 3-1-1 inside the Octagon.

Who Needs A Win Badly:

Brendson Ribeiro and Caio Machado both came in hot into the UFC coming out of the Contender Series, but each man has been ice cold so far. Each has lost his two fights inside the Octagon, so I like that they are getting matched up against one another because the loser could very well be getting his pink slip after this.

Interest Level: 6/10

In the co-main event, Rose Namajunas and Erin Blanchfield will throw down to see who could realistically get the next title shot at 125 pounds — after Manon Fiorot, or course. Namajunas is coming off a dominant win over Tracy Cortez, which was preceded by a win over Amanda Ribas. “Thug Rose” — who is ranked No. 5 — is one more win away from attempting to win her second title in as many divisions. As for Blanchfield, she got off to a scorching start to her UFC career by winning her first six fights which includes wins over Molly McCann, Jessica Andrade and Taila Santos, among others. Manon Fiorot, however, brought her back down to earth and defeated her earlier this year, securing her shot at the title. This is a very good bout between to experience vets out for gold.

Marc-Andre Barriault is on a two-fight losing streak, while Dustin Stoltzfus is 1-2 in his last three and coming off a knockout loss to Bruno Ferreira. Still, the two men somehow managed to lock down a main card slot despite the fact that they were each finished in their last bout. Nevertheless, they are in desperate need of wins, so we can expect them to leave it all in the cage in this Middleweight collision.

After the Lewis vs. Diniz fight was scrapped, Ariane Lipski and Jasmine Jasudavicius were bumped up to the main card. Lipski saw her three-fight win streak — the longest of her UFC career — go up in smoke — after losing a unanimous decision to Karine Silva in her last outing. Her opponent, meanwhile, is riding a two-fight win streak into this pivotal women’s Flyweight bout.

Kicking off the main card is a Welterweight bout between two men who are struggling. Trevin Giles is coming off back-to-back losses — one via knockout at the hands of Carlos Prates, and other via submission to Gabriel Bonfim. Mike Malott, on the other hand, is coming off a knockout loss at the hands of Neil Magny, snapping his seven-fight, nine-year unbeaten streak. Mallot was dominating the fight before Magny pulled off the come-from-behind finish (see it again here).

Enjoy the fights!

Full UFC Edmonton Fight Card:

UFC Edmonton Main Event On ESPN+:

125 lbs.: Brandon Moreno vs. Amir Albazi

UFC Edmonton Main Card on ESPN+ (8 p.m. ET):

125 lbs.: Rose Namajunas vs. Erin Blanchfield
265 lbs.: Derrick Lewis vs. Jhonata Diniz — CANCELED (details here)
205 lbs.: Caio Machado vs. Brendson Ribeiro
125 lbs.: Jasmine Jasudavicius vs. Ariane Lipski da Silva
185 lbs.: Marc-Andre Barriault vs. Dustin Stoltzfus
170 lbs.: Mike Malott vs. Trevin Giles

UFC Edmonton ‘Prelims’ Card on ESPN+ (5 p.m. ET):

135 lbs.: Aiemann Zahabi vs. Pedro Munhoz
135 lbs.: Charles Jourdain vs. Victor Henry
145 lbs.: Jack Shore vs. Youssef Zalal
265 lbs.: Alexandr Romanov vs. Rodrigo Nascimento
135 lbs.: Serhiy Sidey vs. Garrett Armfield
135 lbs.: Chad Anheliger vs. Cody Gibson
125 lbs.: Jamey-Lyn Horth vs. Ivana Petrovic

*Fight card, bout order and amount of fights remain subject to change.*

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Remember that MMAmania.com will deliver LIVE round-by-round, blow-by-blow coverage of the entire UFC Edmonton fight card right here, starting with the ESPN+ “Prelims” matches online, which are scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. ET, before the main card start time at 8 p.m. ET (also on ESPN+).

To check out the latest and greatest UFC Edmonton: “Moreno vs. Albazi” news and notes be sure to hit up our comprehensive event archive right here.