Amanda Ribas moves up to flyweight, meets Katlyn Chookagian at UFC Fight Night in May

Amanda Ribas has decided to return to flyweight for her next fight.

Ribas was originally scheduled to meet Michelle Waterson at UFC Columbus, but that was postponed to UFC 274 after the ‘Karate Hottie’ revealed she was dealing with a potential ‘career-ending’ injury. The postponement turned into a cancelation after Waterson was forced to withdraw, leaving Ribas without an opponent and removed altogether from the upcoming pay-per-view event. Fortunately, a replacement for the Brazilian has been found.

Raphael Marinho of Combate reported on Friday that Ribas accepted a fight against Katlyn Chookagian at a UFC Fight Night set to take place on May 14 at a soon-to-be determined location and venue. The 28-year-old has fought at 125 before but has not — and will not — commit to an official change in weight class.

Ribas began her UFC career with four wins, which included a first-round submission over Paige VanZant in her flyweight debut at UFC 251 on Fight Island. For her next test, the Minas Gerais native dropped back down to strawweight for a short-notice fight against Marina Rodriguez at UFC 257. She was finished via second-round technical knockout, ending her undefeated run under the UFC banner. Ribas rebounded from the loss to Rodriguez with a unanimous decision over Virna Jandiroba at UFC 267 this past October.

A one-time title challenger, Chookagian has re-emerged as a contender after rattling off three straight wins in her recent Octagon appearances. The No. 2 ranked flyweight earned a championship opportunity against Valentina Shevchenko with decisions over Joanne Wood and Jennifer Maia at UFC 238 and UFC 244, respectively. Chookagian and Shevchenko met at UFC 247, where she suffered a third-round technical knockout loss. She returned to the win column with a decision over the eldest Shevchenko, Antonina, but fell to Jéssica Andrade by TKO five months later. Chookagian has since beaten Cynthia Calvillo, Viviane Araújo and the aforementioned Maia.

The UFC Fight Night Ribas vs. Chookagian has been added to does not have a headliner yet. Stay tuned to Bloody Elbow for more updates as they become available.