Montserrat Ruiz
Avelina Montserrat Conejo Ruiz (born February 3, 1993) is a Mexican female mixed martial artist who competes in the Strawweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Background. At the age of 16, Ruiz started practicing Olympic wrestling at the Técnica 1 in León, Guanajuato, later became a national selection, living for three years at the Centro Nacional de Alto Rendimiento (CNAR) in Mexico City and then made the leap to MMA. She was a 7-time national champion in Mexico. Mixed martial arts career. Early career. Montserrat Ruiz made her professional MMA debut in 2014 at the Gladiators  Coliseum, a promoter in Mexico. She achieved a winning streak of nine fights fighting under various MMA promotions in Mexico before entering the American circuit. Invicta FC. Ruiz made her promotional debut for Invicta FC against UFC vet Danielle Taylor at on December 15, 2018. She lost the fight via unanimous decision. After the loss to Danielle, she suffered an injury that kept her out of the cage for more than a year. In her sophomore performance, Ruiz faced Janaisa Morandin on July 30, 2020 at . She won the bout with ease through first round scarf hold keylock submission. Ruiz  was scheduled to face Emily Ducote for the vacant Invicta FC Strawweight Championship at , however on the day of the event, the fight was cancelled due to COVID precautions. Ultimate Fighting Championship. Ruiz made her UFC debut as a short notice replacement for Kay Hansen against Cheyanne Buys on March 20, 2021 at . She won the bout via unanimous decision, keeping Buys in the headlock position for most of the bout. Ruiz faced Amanda Lemos on July 17, 2021 at UFC on ESPN 26. Ruiz lost the fight via a technical knockout in round one. Ruiz was scheduled to face  Mallory Martin on December 4, 2021 at UFC on ESPN 31. However Ruiz was forced out of the event and she was replaced by Cheyanne Buys.