UFC Fight Night 161 is bringing plenty of action. The “Prelims” will be more than interesting, as some of them might decide the future of several fighters here. The Amalie Arena in Tampa will be the central place of the MMA world this weekend, no doubt about it. We will make a short intro for the main event between Joanna Jedrzejczyk and Michelle Waterson. It is a strawweight division bout, the one who could get us the challenger for the title held by Zhang Well from China.
Preview
The fight was almost canceled due to Jedrzejczyk’s weight problems. She didn’t manage to cut the weight to 116 pounds until this morning, and the entire event was under a question mark up until that point. The Polish fighter, however, managed to get below the weight limit and to proceed with the usual stuff after that. But there were some trash talks before and during the weight in.
Jedrzejczyk (15-3) is an excellent stand-up striker whose style is more fluid than her opponent’s. She is is a Muay Thai stand up puncher with a ferocious right hook, which sometimes comes from nowhere and closes the fight. The Polish fighter knows to measure the rival’s reach and to wait for that one chance to strike, and even though some might think that she is tired or something like that, it is no really the case. Her kickboxing skills are at a high level, and during her career, she had 27 wins and 3 losses. Also, do know that she knows how to end the bouts in clinches with body locks. Jedrzejczyk comes off a loss against Valentina Shevchenko in December last year, which came via unanimous decision. It was a fight for the UFC Women’s flyweight title. She would beat Tecia Torres earlier that same year, and lose twice against Rose Namajunas, thus handing over her UFC Strawweight belt, she defended five times prior that.
Meanwhile, Waterson (17-6) is the former Invicta Atomeweight champion. Her karate approach is very powerful, and with those heavy ad sharp punches, she tends to keep her opponents on the distance. She isn’t astonishing on the ground but does know how to finish a fight when she catches the rival on its back. Waterson is of those fighters who will try to make a blitz at a certain moment, and with the good physical shape she is in right now, the Karate Hottie can do damage to almost anyone.
Predictions
All in all, the overall advantage should go to Jedrzejczyk, who is the former champion in this division, and who has much more experience than her rival when it comes to winning these types of battles. Plus, even though we’ve mentioned that Waterson has great stamina and is in good shape, Jedrzejczyk’s past suggests that she is much better in that area than the American. The only matter which might endanger her win in this one is the fact that she had to cut weight, and this might have decreased her level of energy. If her team doesn’t recover her well enough, she could end up having some issues on Saturday night. But even with that, we are giving her an edge in this clash. BetXChange gives us 0.24 on the former champ’s another victory.
