Stuart Fontaine and Sarah Moras outside of Warrior Spirit Martial Arts Academy. (Ryan Lambert/BattlefordsNOW Staff)

By Ryan Lambert

Warrior Spirit Martial Arts Academy

Warrior Spirit Martial Arts Academy brings in former UFC fighter Sarah Moras for combat seminar

Sep 23, 2025 | 3:45 PM

It’s not often members of the public get to train in martial arts with a celebrity, but last weekend Warrior Spirit Martial Arts Academy was host to Sarah Moras – a former professional UFC fighter and contestant on the Ultimate Fighter.

The opportunity to train with Moras was thanks to a history she shares with Stuart Fontaine, the lead trainer and owner of the North Battleford academy.

“Stu and I used to train together a bit. He’d come out to Kelowna where I trained at Toshido…that’s probably 10 plus years ago that he’d come out, so we’ve stayed connected, and he invited me out to help,” Moras said.

She did two different classes. A women’s only self-defence class, as well as a co-ed grappling class where she taught what she called “jiu-jitsu for MMA.”

Moras kept the women’s-only class separate from the co-ed grappling so new participants could get more familiar with the atmosphere.

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“It’s really important for women, and there’s not that many that feel comfortable being in a gym, especially with guys in these positions and being this close to people. So it’s nice to have that space where women can just be there and learn these things and feel more comfortable,” she said.

Fontaine also offers women-only classes. He hopes those who participated in Moras’ event not only feel more comfortable, but also learned some life-saving skills.

“Just learning to throw proper punches or little techniques to get back up to your feet from getting taken down might give you a little bit of time to get some help or save your life. It’s good to have these in your back pocket,” Fontaine said.

He wanted to bring in someone with Moras’ experience to show others they could reach her level if they want to.

“These fighters that are fighting a big show are just normal people. They’re just like them; the only thing is they stayed consistent and worked hard to achieve their goals,” he said.

Since people learn in different ways, Fontaine said it is important to bring in guest instructors who can offer different perspectives and allows students to interpret moves that make sense to them.

“Me and Cleve, my husband, we both learn mostly from the same people and yet we have a completely different style,” said Moras. “Sometimes, what I show might be a little different than what someone else has learned, even if they’ve been in the game for a little while. I have to remind myself that maybe I have a little thing that they might get out of it…I feel like everyone can learn from everyone.”

When it comes to Fontaine’s Warrior Spirit Academy, Moras has high praise.

“It’s such a great environment. Stu’s such a great guy, and it’s just a really welcoming place to be friendly and it’s a good place to learn a bunch of things. You learn about life, not just martial arts…it’s a good place to come grow as a person too.”

This environment is what Fontaine strives for every day in his gym, stating, “We’re not just a fitness class…from beginners to fighters, we treat and train everybody the same, right? You push to the best of your ability, but we make sure you’re learning something, so you don’t have false confidence when you leave the gym.”

Warrior Spirit will have similar seminars in the future and will be bringing in more professional fighters, such as Tanner Boser and Sheldon Westcott. More information will be available on the Warrior Spirit Martial Arts Acadamy page on Facebook.

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Ryan.lambert@pattisonmedia.com