Best Canadian Women’s UFC Fighters in History

Canada has produced some of the top fighters in UFC history, with all-time greats Georges St-Pierre, Patrick Cote, Rory MacDonald, and Sam Stout becoming some of the promotion’s biggest stars.

But this is not limited to the male fighters. The Great White North also generated top contenders in the women’s division, who have fought in championship matches. Although they haven’t won the ultimate prize just yet, they’ve left their respective marks on the sport.

Additionally, they helped pave the way for current Canadian UFC contenders Gillian Robertson and Jasmine Jasudavicius to compete at the highest level and continue improving their UFC odds of earning a title shot. 

Here are the four best Canadian women’s UFC fighters in history.

Sarah Kaufman

Before the UFC bought Strikeforce in 2011, Sarah Kaufman was already wreaking havoc in the women’s bantamweight division as she won the promotion’s title. She made her UFC debut in 2013 with a no-contest result against Jessica Eye.

Six months later, in April 2014, Kaufman won against Leslie Smith unanimously. Unfortunately, she eventually lost her next two fights to Alexis Davis and Valentina Shevchenko and was cut by the promotion.

Despite the fate that Kaufman sustained, her impact on the women’s Canadian MMA scene is still undeniable. She was the pioneer of the sport and the first female fighter to win a title in any MMA major organization. 

Felicia Spencer

Felicia Spencer was an undefeated prospect with six wins on her pro record when she joined the UFC in 2019. She made a successful debut against Megan Anderson and got a submission victory. 

Although Cris Cyborg defeated Spencer in her next match, she earned a title shot by stopping Zarah Fairn in the opening round of their match in March 2020.

#UFC250 was epic! So we slowed it down 🏆

💻 Watch the full version at https://t.co/YEBaVg1nsi pic.twitter.com/JiZ2H8VZL9

— UFC (@ufc) June 9, 2020

In June 2020, the “FeeNom” challenged Amanda Nunes for the UFC women’s featherweight title but came up short by receiving a unanimous decision loss. 

Before the Las Vegas-based promotion discontinued the women’s featherweight division in 2022 due to the lack of fighters, Spencer recorded a win over Leah Letson and a loss from Norma Dumont. 

Alexis Davis

Alexis Davis debuted in the Octagon in June 2013 and unanimously beat Rosi Sexton. She followed that up with two more victories against Liz Carmouche and Jessica Eye to secure a title fight with Ronda Rousey in July 2014.

The “Ally-Gator” suffered a 16-second knockout at the hands of Rousey to bid goodbye to her UFC title hopes. She went on to fight in three more bantamweight bouts and won two of them before eventually moving down to the flyweight division.

Davis appeared in seven matches in the 125-pound weight class, picking up three wins and absorbing four losses. 

Her last UFC bout was a victory against Julija Stoliarenko in February 2022 before departing the organization to test free agency.

Valerie Letourneau

After winning five of his first eight fights in various organizations, Valerie Letourneau was signed by the UFC in 2014 and made a triumphant debut against Elizabeth Philips. 

She quickly added two more victories over Jessica Rakoczy and Maryna Moroz to earn an outright shot for the UFC strawweight title.

UFC strawweight championship #UFC193@JoannaMMA vs @ValTroubleMMA
LIVE on Pay-Per-View pic.twitter.com/vy9NnbQ9CE

— UFC (@ufc) November 15, 2015

In November 2015, Letourneau challenged Joanna Jedrzejczyk for her belt but was defeated by a unanimous decision. After the title loss to Jedrzejczyk, she absorbed two more losses from Joanne Wood and Viviane Pereira, and the UFC released her from its roster.