With the Oct. 3 Salt Lake City card fast approaching, the promotion has booked Natalia Silva and Wang Cong for the marquee. The vacant women's flyweight title is at stake after Valentina Shevchenko was forced to vacate the title due to injury that will sideline her for up to a year. No 125-pound women's fighter deserves this opportunity more than Silva.
A perfect 8-0 inside the Octagon, she's the No. 1 ranked contender for good reason. Her last three wins have come against former UFC champions Rose Namajunas, Alexa Grasso and Jessica Andrade. Had Shevchenko been available, it's very likely Silva would be challenging for the undisputed title.
Wang is a decorated striker working her way through the women's flyweight ranks. The Chinese fighter won gold medals at the 2013 World Wushu Championships and 2014 Asian Games, and won a silver medal in amateur boxing at the 2019 World Championships. Inside the Octagon, she's 5-1, most recently beating perennial contender Tracy Cortez.
The fight taking place in the main event of a numbered card marks the first time women will get the top spot on such an event since UFC 289 in 2023 when Amanda Nunes defended the women's bantamweight title against Irene Aldana. The winner will walk out with the women's flyweight title and begin circling dates on the calendar for a showdown with Shevchenko once she's fully healthy. Shevchenko was last seen in November, dominating two-time women's strawweight champion Zhang Weili in Madison Square Garden.
UFC 332's undercard is largely complete. Rising star Payton Talbott continues his bantamweight climb against former two-time flyweight champion Deiveson Figueiredo. Talbott isn't the only up-and-comer making waves in the UFC.
Ateba Gautier, Damian Pinas and Imanol Rodriguez are all confirmed for the card. Longtime light heavyweight contender Johnny Walker takes a play out of Costa's playbook by moving up. He makes his UFC heavyweight debut against Mick Parkin.
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