The Rookies: UFC Fight Night 230

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Brendon Marotte had his bags packed and ready.

The New England Cartel prospect will fill in as a short-notice substitution for Chris Duncan when he makes his Ultimate Fighting Championship debut opposite Terrance McKinney as part of the UFC Fight Night 230 undercard this Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The 26-year-old Tyson Chartier protégé enters the cage on the strength of a three-fight winning streak.

“Brendon is one of the most competitive fighters I’ve ever been around, whether it’s practice or a fight. He’s always looking to win each time,” Chartier said in an interview with The Eagle-Tribune. “He brings an intensity to each scramble and drill that can’t be taught.”

Marotte carries an 8-1 record into his first Octagon assignment, an April 2019 decision loss to Adli Edwards his only misstep. The Hampstead, New Hampshire, native has spent his entire nine-fight career on the northeast regional scene inside the Combat Zone and CES MMA organizations. Marotte last competed at Combat Zone 81, where he subdued Lionel Young with a rear-naked choke in the first round of their Aug. 26 encounter.

“I’m not in this game just to say I made it to the UFC,” he said. “I’m going in to fight the best, beat the best and ensure that my name goes down in history. It’s not about martial arts for me; it’s about proving that I can beat any man that stands in front of me and that I am simply the best, most violent and most entertaining fighter there ever will be.”

The ambitious Marotte understands the value of sharpening his skills alongside accomplished stablemates like Calvin Kattar and Rob Font, both of whom have headlined events in the UFC.

“Training with young, hungry and like-minded pros that all have the same goal keeps the work competitive and high quality,” Marotte said. “Working with two guys that are high up in the UFC shows you that you’re with the right people and shows the work it takes to be at that level of the UFC.”

Two other hopefuls are set for their promotional debuts alongside Marotte: the undefeated Melissa Dixon and the once-beaten Ravena Oliveira.

Dixon, 32, faces Irina Alekseeva in a three-round women’s bantamweight prelim. Operating out of the Lions Gym in Coventry, England, she boasts a perfect 5-0 record ahead of her showdown with Alekseeva at 135 pounds. Dixon last appeared on Nov. 3, when she put away Dariya Zheleznyakova with first-round elbows and punches at Ares Fighting Championship 9.

“This is the culmination of years of sacrifice, hard work and a never-ending belief in myself,” she told the Coventry Observer. “I can’t wait to step into the Octagon in the UFC and show the world what I’m capable of.”

“This is the culmination of years of sacrifice, hard work and a never-ending belief in myself,” she told the Coventry Observer. “I can’t wait to step into the Octagon in the UFC and show the world what I’m capable of.” Oliveira, meanwhile, meets Tainara Lisboa in a three-round undercard clash at 135 pounds. The 26-year-old Life MMA rep has rattled off seven consecutive victories, all of them finishes, and appears to have hit her stride on the talent-laden Brazilian circuit. Oliveira last fought at Liberty Kombat 5, where she captured the LKC women’s flyweight title with a technical knockout of Simone da Silva in the third round of their Aug. 12 confrontation. “Kenoudy” already has four first-round finishes to her credit.