FRESNO, Calif. – Just like her Saturday opponent at UFC Fight Night 123, Alexis Davis is hoping her move to the new flyweight division serves as a revival of sorts.

Davis (18-7 MMA, 5-2 UFC) fights Liz Carmouche (11-5 MMA, 3-3 UFC) to close out the prelims at Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif. Their fight airs on FS1 following early prelims on UFC Fight Pass.

Both women are making the drop from their longtime bantamweight home now that the UFC has ushered in the 125-pound weight class. It’s been only a week since new champion Nicco Montano was crowned at the TUF 26 Finale.

There is plenty of new blood in the division thanks to Season 26 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” but there also will be established fighters like Davis and Carmouche, both former 135-pound title challengers, moving down, as well as strawweights moving up.

“It’s great for the fans, and we put on a good show last time,” Davis told MMAjunkie earlier this week. “I’m a huge fan of hers. I see her outside and (she’s) a great person. But I think this is really good for the division. … I think it’s a great way to showcase the new division. This division’s just starting out, and some fans are probably pretty new, too, and probably haven’t seen the previous fight.”

The previous fight was a unanimous decision win for Davis more than four years ago. Carmouche said Davis can expect a completely different opponent from who she saw in that bout.

But what remains to be seen is how the weight difference will affect each of them. Davis said when she was fighting at bantamweight, cutting weight wasn’t really an issue. It even afforded her a dieting lifestyle not enjoyed by many fighters. Now, likely, times have changed.

“I could get away with a lot at bantamweight, so I just had to restrict some of my cheat meals a little more,” she said. “I think before the Cindy (Dandois) fight, like two weeks before I was eating onion rings and chili-cheese fries – but I could do it. I could get away with it. It’s probably better for me (at flyweight), anyway.”

Davis said she’d like to be more active in 2018. Her fight Saturday will be her second in 2017, but 2016 and 2015 featured just one fight each year. (It’s worth noting she took nearly 20 months off when she gave birth.)

But with a new division, and the opportunity to rise through the ranks quickly, Davis sees plenty of potential.

“I’ve been wanting to drop down for a while, and obviously they didn’t have those opportunities then,” she said. “So it’s something that I’ve been wanting to do. … I’m happy. I think it’s going to be a good division for a lot of women.”

For more from Davis, check out the full video interview above.

And for more on UFC Fight Night 123, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.