Preview: UFC Fight Night ‘Bermudez vs. Korean Zombie’

Women’s Strawweights

Jessica Andrade (15-5) vs. Angela Hill (6-2)

THE MATCHUP: Andrade was a mid-tier action fighter at 135 pounds, but a move to strawweight in 2016 has opened up a whole new career path for “Bate Estaca,” who is still only just 25 years old. Her first two performances in the new weight class were so impressive that Andrade will almost certainly receive a shot at Joanna Jedrzejczyk’s title with another win. Standing in Andrade’s way is Hill, who experienced a renaissance of her own when she was cut from the UFC, only to quickly win and defend the Invicta strawweight belt.

MMA has a few endemic style matchups fans love to watch: grappler versus striker, striker versus wrestler, wrestler versus grappler and so on. This fight, however, represents a sort of matchup that has dominated the sport of boxing for centuries: swarmer versus out-fighter. Hill uses her 64-inch reach, quick hands and light feet to keep her opponents at bay. She will pressure when her opponent refuses to engage, but that will not be a problem here. Andrade’s style is all about aggression and forward movement. She is not needlessly wild but rather a methodical pressure fighter. When that pressure forces the opponent to throw, Andrade will counter with a ripping flurry of hooks, uppercuts and overhands, deftly switching her targets as she piles on.

Though she prefers to strike, Andrade may indeed try to take Hill to the ground. The high-crotch lifts she used to bring down Joanne Calderwood may not have passed Daniel Cormier’s muster, but they were certainly an impressive display of Andrade’s physical strength in this new division. Andrade was also surprisingly poised and fluid from top position in that fight, a marked improvement over the reckless grappling that got her submitted by Marion Reneau and Raquel Pennington during her time at bantamweight. Hill is not lost on the ground, however. Andrade will have to be careful of her counterpart’s guard and scrambling ability if she does pursue the takedown, as Hill has surprised more than one grappling specialist with her long legs and aggressive ground game.

One question mark arises: Andrade has yet to go the distance at strawweight and we do not yet know how the huge cut to 115 pounds will affect her stamina. A fighter with suspect cardio would probably not have managed the kind of insane output with which Andrade felled Jessica Penne in her first strawweight fight; then again, Penne spent the better half of the bout doing her best impression of a heavy bag. Andrade was not tested in that bout. Hill’s gas tank, on the other hand, is unquestioned. It has carried her to victory in two five-round fights.

THE ODDS: Andrade (-455), Hill (+360)

THE PICK: Hill is coming along nicely as a mixed martial artist, and it is great to see such a charismatic fighter back in one of the UFC’s most talent-rich divisions. Unfortunately for the Invicta champion, her inexperience still shows from time to time. It takes a great deal of discipline and technical skill to consistently keep a determined pressure fighter from closing the gap, and Hill does not possess the kind of power that would be needed to scare off Andrade. Expect the Brazilian to corner Hill frequently and steal damaging shots as her quarry is forced to fight her way out. Andrade by decision is the pick.

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