Kiwi Grappler Montague Inks UFC Deal
American Top Team Star Drops to Bantamweight
New Zealand’s **Michelle Montague** is set to make waves in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), officially joining the promotion’s stacked bantamweight division. The move comes after a successful amateur career and a flawless 6-0 professional MMA record.
Training Alongside the Best
Hailing from Matamata but honing her skills at the renowned American Top Team (ATT) in Florida, **Montague** follows a similar path to ATT teammate and current UFC bantamweight queen **Kayla Harrison**. She recently confirmed she would drop down from featherweight, a strategic move mirroring **Harrison’s** own career progression.
While **Montague’s** journey in mixed martial arts has been extensive, including stints at Core MMA in Hamilton and City Kickboxing (CKB) in Auckland, her base at ATT was solidified after COVID-19 travel restrictions complicated her return to New Zealand following an amateur event in Russia.
Despite her international training base, Core MMA head coach **Carlo Meister** remains a constant presence, cornering **Montague** on fight nights. **Meister** highlighted the significant benefit **Montague** has gained from training alongside Olympic judo gold medalist and successful MMA fighter **Kayla Harrison**.
“I think one of the benefits for Michelle at this stage of her career has been having someone like Kayla to emulate, and just see how easily possible some of that stuff could be for her. Now it’s her turn to have a crack and see what we can do with it.”
—Carlo Meister, Head Coach, Core MMA
Proven Submission Specialist
Before transitioning to the UFC, **Montague** secured the amateur lightweight world championship in 2019. Her professional career boasts six victories, all achieved via submission, with most of her fights taking place under the Professional Fighter’s League (PFL) banner.
The path to the UFC was a considered process, with an initial target being Dana White’s Contender Series. According to **Meister**, the UFC contract represents a faster track to the sport’s pinnacle.
“That was the plan for this year anyway, but it seems to just fast-track that. She’s kind of proved that she can hang with the women’s pro scene, and I guess the question is how much depth is there in the UFC divisions, really. It’s a tricky one because in PFL she’s had maybe two fights that have really pushed her a little bit at the pro scene. The rest have actually been comparable to what she’s already achieved on the amateur scene. So, what we want to know, and what we’ve kind of been waiting for was, we know that we can hang at this kind of entry level for the UFC, but how good are the ones that are, you know, up the tier at the title? What’s the difference?”
—Carlo Meister, Head Coach, Core MMA
Montague’s signing comes a few months after she declared herself a free agent, signaling her intention to compete at bantamweight. This move has been anticipated within the New Zealand MMA community since she did not re-sign with the PFL.
**Montague** is the second fighter from the Core MMA gym to reach the UFC, following welterweight **Luke Jumeau**, who competed for the promotion between 2017 and 2019. This achievement underscores the gym’s ability to develop talent for the elite level of MMA.
In 2023, the UFC saw a significant increase in viewership, with its events averaging over 1.1 million viewers in the United States across ESPN platforms, indicating the growing popularity of the sport and its athletes like **Montague** (SportsPro Media 2024).
