Canadian flyweight Jamey-Lyn Horth gets her second UFC bout on home soil in just a few weeks, when she takes on the #14-ranked JJ Aldrich at UFC Winnipeg.
It’s a big night for Canadian MMA and the ladies side in particular, with Horth, Melissa Croden, and Jasmine Jasudavicius all joining the card.
For Squamish, B.C.’s Horth in particular, however, the fight represents a chance to crack the top 15 of the weight class. When the bout was booked, Aldrich was ranked #15 (she’s since bumped up a spot after Gabriella Fernandes was defeated at the end of March). It’s a fight that as been on Horth’s radar for a while. Or at least her team’s radar.
“She’s been in the UFC for around 10 years now, so there’s lots to see and some experience to gain from that. Obviously I’ve got coaches that are super nerdy and they love to just look at the top 15 and sort of like potentials,” Horth (9-2) told Cageside Press in a recent interview. “I don’t ever really do that myself. I kind of just let them handle that and I’m just the worker, I’m told to do what I do. That match-up is something I’m told my team has been looking at for a while, even just shortly after my last fight. Within days, that’s what they thought I was going to be offered.”
Turns out, her team was spot on. The fight was booked about six weeks out, a little after the Winnipeg card was announced.
“I think it’s a great fight, I think it’s an awesome opportunity for me, coming off of a couple good wins this last year and getting a crack at the top 15,” added Horth. “I think that’s sort of the ultimate plan when you make it to the UFC, is trying to be the best and trying to climb the ladder, whatever steps that they may give you. I think we’re [putting] ourselves into a good position for that.”
Jamey-Lyn Horth has always been up for a challenge. She’s not thrown by fighting a southpaw, for one, noting that “out of my pro career, I think three quarters of my fights have been against southpaws, so that’s nothing new to me.” And while Aldrich has the experience edge – she’s been in the UFC since around the time Horth herself went pro – Horth added that “I feel like I’ve kind of been a sponge to that myself in some ways. My whole fighting career, I’ve never been given a fight that was easy, I’ve always challenged myself. I’ve always been given, presented opportunities to find growth and succeeded in that.”
“Definitely not slacking off or not being prepared to see what she has to offer, but excited to go in there and prove again that I’m learning and evolving quite quickly as well.”
Late last year, Horth was awarded her black belt, and the Squamish native feels that rather than the culmination of her journey, “it’s the beginning. I feel like I’m a white belt again. I feel like this sport is forever changing and evolving.” Getting her black belt, added Horth, “showed that I’ve been putting in the work and I deserve it. And with that being said, I think what this belt has given me is just some confidence, that my team sees that I have what it is. I think after my last fight, you can kind of see that I’m settling into my confidence, and I’m figuring it out.”
Horth is coming into UFC Winnipeg with all cylinders firing. She’s won three of her last four fights, two straight, and is coming off her first finish in the promotion, against Tereza Bledá. Competing on the last card of 2025, she just missed the UFC’s new $25,000 finishing bonus, which launched this year.
“I was just outside of it,” Horth laughed. “I wish I’d had the opportunity to get a little bit more of a stylish finish. I mean, I’m just happy– I’ve said it before, I’ve scored sh*tty goals playing soccer and still won games. I’m just always grateful for the opportunity to be part of the UFC roster, and be able to show and provide some excitement for people as I get more and more fights.”
“Just missing that was a little bit of a sad day, but it is what it is. Everyone’s trying to fight for the same things, and some nights, unfortunately in December of last year, a lot of people showed up and they proved that they wanted it just as bad. So all props to the rest of the roster for getting better knockouts than me that night, but it’s just something to look forward to for the next one.”
Watch our full interview with UFC Winnipeg flyweight Jamey-Lyn Horth above. The card takes place on April 18, 2026 at the Canada Life Centre in Winnipeg, Manitoba.
