Undefeated Montague meets ranked Cavalcanti in bantamweight clash at UFC Qatar

The UFC has officially booked a compelling women’s bantamweight matchup for its Nov. 21 event in Doha, pitting No. 9-ranked Jacqueline Cavalcanti (10-2) against the undefeated Michelle Montague (8-0) at Ali Bin Hamad al-Attiyah Arena.

Cavalcanti enters the fight looking to bounce back from her first UFC defeat — a unanimous decision loss to longtime contender Ketlen Vieira this past May — having previously gone 5-0 inside the promotion. She sits at No. 9 in the MMA Fighting Global Rankings at 135 pounds, with Montague close behind at No. 12. Both fighters also hold top-15 positions in the UFC’s official bantamweight rankings.

Montague, a former PFL standout, has made an immediate impression since joining the UFC in 2025, picking up decision wins over one-time title challenger Mayra Bueno Silva and Luana Carolina. Before arriving in the UFC, she had finished her first six professional bouts via rear-naked choke submission, leaving her perfect record intact heading into this ranked test.

Also confirmed for the Nov. 21 card is a welterweight bout between Dom Mar Fan (9-3) and Nikolas Motta (15-6, 1 NC).

UFC Qatar is headlined by a light heavyweight contest between former champion Jiri Prochazka and Navajo Stirling. The full confirmed lineup also includes Aljamain Sterling vs. Kevin Vallejos, Dan Hooker vs. Brian Ortega, Asu Almabayev vs. Kyoji Horiguchi, Jared Cannonier vs. Ikram Aliskerov, Aleksandre Topuria vs. Santiago Luna, Shamil Gaziev vs. Tallison Teixeira, Jake Matthews vs. Tahir Abdullayev, and Amir Albazi vs. Alessandro Costa in a rematch.