Final Preventing Championship (UFC) Flyweight finishers Jessica Andrade and Marina Rodriguez will go to struggle this weekend (Sat., April 13, 2024) inside T-Cellular Area in Las Vegas, Nevada for UFC 300.
Andrade — a former champion — endured an absurd 2023. Having payments to pay motivated the Brazilian to take the Donald Cerrone and Kevin Holland route: accepting as many fights as doable and racking up checks. She did endure three straight losses within the course of, however hopefully a return to a extra regular schedule will permit her to carry out her greatest. Rodriguez, in the meantime, practically secured a title shot in 2022 earlier than getting starched by Amanda Lemos in an upset defeat (watch it). She’s 1-1 since then, and the Muay Thai striker is seeking to rebuild again into title competition by scoring one of the best win of her profession.
Let’s take a better take a look at the betting odds and strategic keys for every athlete:
Andrade vs. Rodriguez Betting Odds
How Andrade Wins
Andrade is among the heaviest hitters within the historical past of ladies’s combined martial arts (MMA). She’s a clubbing puncher who works up and down the physique with highly effective combos that may actually break down opponents rapidly. As well as, she’s a really bodily wrestler with underrated offensive Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
This combat feels just like the match up for Andrade to return to her “Bate Estaca” roots. The Brazilian pile driver definitely hits onerous sufficient to rattle Rodriguez, however that’s not the simplest path to victory right here. On the ground, Andrade has an enormous benefit, and looking for takedowns ought to actually assist decrease the probabilities of a significant Rodriguez connection.
Footwork is an everlasting drawback for Andrade, as she tends to chase her opponents quite than lower the ring. If she will enhance on that problem only a contact and tighten up her hooks a little bit bit, herding Rodriguez to the cage ought to be a really manageable purpose. Then, Andrade can get her arms on her opponents, and Rodriguez is prone to rack up some airline miles.
How Rodriguez Wins
Rodriguez is among the greatest representatives of Muay Thai in girls’s MMA. She’s a savage striker who makes use of all eight of the limbs to assault her opposition, and he or she’s notably violent from shut quarters.
For causes illustrated above, going into shut quarters with Andrade most likely isn’t one of the best tactic right here. Deny a takedown and feed her a knee definitely, however then Rodriguez will need to shove Andrade away and return to distance.
Honestly, the sport plan for defeating Andrade at distance was written by Joanna Jedrzejczyk in 2017, and little or no has chanced since. It’s not onerous to persuade Andrade to swing wildly at her goal, and her kind tends to flail everywhere. If Rodriguez can stick and transfer successfully together with her kicks and lateral motion, Andrade will run immediately into counter pictures.
Rodriguez has the ability to make these pictures rely.
Andrade vs. Rodriguez Prediction
It’s tough to have full confidence in Andrade after her tumultuous 2023, however I nonetheless like this match up for her.
At 32 years of age, there’s no actual proof that Andrade has declined bodily. Her shedding streak final 12 months was half circumstance and half preventing elite competitors. Within the cage, she regarded as harmful (and flawed) as ever, the very same lady who grew to become a UFC champion on this weight class.
Rodriguez, conversely, is 36 years previous. She’s proven no indicators of slowing down both, however right here latest historical past doesn’t impress: beating “Karate Hottie” means little at this stage of the sport, she misplaced to Jandiroba and Lemos, and I assumed Xianon Yan deserved the nod of their bout. To discover a robust efficiency towards high competitors, you must go all the best way again to her 2021 win over Mackenzie Dern.
Extra to the purpose, Rodriguez isn’t an evasive distance striker. She might attempt to play that recreation reverse Andrade, however she usually likes to march ahead and construct combos. To win, she’ll be compelled to both cost into Andrade’s wheelhouse or execute a non-typical technique completely.
Feels like a tall order.
Prediction: Andrade victory (-105)
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BIGGEST, BADDEST COMBAT SPORTING EVENT! Final Preventing Championship (UFC) will make historical past inside T-Cellular Area in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sat., April 13, 2024, staging the three hundredth pay-per-view (PPV) occasion since its inception in 1993. Alex Pereira will put his 205-pound belt on the road in UFC 300’s most important occasion towards returning former division roost-ruler, Jamahal Hill. In UFC 300’s co-main occasion, girls’s Strawweight champion, Weili Zhang, will defend towards top-ranked contender, Xiaonan Yan, whereas Justin Gaethje places his “Baddest Motherf—ker” gimmick belt on the road towards former Featherweight deity, Max Holloway, in an all-action Light-weight showdown. UFC 300’s blockbuster PPV most important card (see it right here) will even characteristic Charles Oliveira vs. Arman Tsarukyan and Bo Nickal vs. Cody Brundage. All that and a lot extra! UFC 300 begin time scheduled for six p.m. ET (Prelims) and 10 p.m. ET (PPV).
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