Local fighter signs with UFC

“IT’S PRETTY MUCH MY DREAM COMING TRUE.”

KELOWNA – A local MMA fighter will make her official debut in the UFC this summer.

Sarah “Cheesecake” Moras, 26, first gained attention after she made it to the semifinals of The Ultimate Fighter, an MMA reality show and competition on the FX network.

Moras, who is originally from Chilliwack but came to Kelowna to train with Toshido MMA, says this is what she has been training for since getting the fight bug eight years ago.

“I knew I was signed for a while now but I couldn’t say anything,” she says. “Now I’ve finally got a fight lined up.”

A member of Miesha Tate’s team, Moras, who has a professional record of 3-1, will face fellow UFC newcomer Alexis Dufresne July 6 in Las Vegas.

“She’s making her debut like me so I haven’t seen much of her but I think she will be a tough opponent,” Moras says. “It’s pretty much my dream coming true. When I started this there weren’t any females in the UFC  but I always wanted to fight the best. Right now the best are in the UFC so that’s where I want to be.”

Moras is the second UFC fighter to come out of Kelowna’s Toshido MMA. Rory MacDonald, 25, also fights out of Kelowna and is currently ranked the #2 welterweight in the world by the UFC.

Cheesecake, as her fans know her, says the only pressure she is feeling is from herself.

“Whenever you’re fighting you’re always nervous,” she says. “I’m going to worry about my game, not her game. I’m just going to do my thing.”

Moras will be one of ten fighters on the finale, which will aire live on the FX network. The main event features rivals Frankie Edgar and Brazilian jiu-jitsu fighter BJ Penn.

To contact the reporter for this story, email Adam Proskiw at aproskiw@infotelnews.ca or call 250-718-0428. To contact the editor, email mjones@infotelnews.ca or call 250-718-2724.