Barb Honchak
Age: 38
Nationality: American
MMA Record: 10-3
UFC Record: 0-1
Notable Wins: Roxanne Modafferi, Leslie Smith, Nina Ansaroff, Felice Herrig
Notable Losses: Cat Zingano, Lauren Murphy, Angela Magana
Last Fight: Split decision loss to Lauren Murphy
Fighter Profile: The former long-time Invicta FC flyweight champion, between 2011 and 2014 Honchak was one of the most successful female fighters outside of the UFC, winning nine-straight fights including multiple title defenses in Invicta over high-level competition. Honchak is a strong wrestler and used her takedowns to dominate her opponents on the ground, but after getting frustrated with the sport decided to retire. She then returned to MMA for TUF 26, but despite being one of the favorites to win the show she ended up losing to eventual winner Nicco Montano in what was a huge upset at the time. Honchak then got a fight in the UFC and lost a split decision to Murphy and needs a win over Modafferi to keep her spot on the UFC roster. Though she is far from the most exciting fighter out there, she is a very successful fighter who knows how to win a decision and even in her late 30s she remains a top contender in the women’s flyweight division in the UFC.
Roxanne Modafferi
Age: 35
Nationality: American
MMA Record: 21-14
UFC Record: 0-2
Notable Wins: Andrea Lee, Tara LaRosa, Marloes Coenen
Notable Losses: Raquel Pennington, Nicco Montano, Jennifer Maia
Last Fight: Decision loss to Nicco Montano
Fighter Profile: A two-time competitor on TUF, Modafferi failed to impress in her first stint in the UFC as a bantamweight but since making the move down to flyweight she had fared a bit better. Though she did lose to Montano in the TUF 26 Finale, she looked pretty good on the show with a couple of stoppage wins and overall it looks like 125lbs is the right decision for her. Modafferi is one of the most experienced veterans in the female weight classes in the UFC and has fought a high level of competiton throughout her career, but she’s been pretty inconsistent overall and at one point had lost six-straight fights. She’s shown more finishing skills as of late but overall she is someone who tends to lose decisions, and that’s probably not a good sign going up against a fighter like Honchak who tends to come out on the positive side of judges’ decisions. Modafferi is a popular fighter but at some point she will have to win in the Octagon to keep her job with the UFC, and in many ways this is a must-win fight for her.
Fight Breakdown: Modafferi is a durable fighter but we have seen her get taken down in the past and Honchak is one of the best wrestlers in the women’s flyweight division. Modafferi is very difficult to finish and Honchak doesn’t have much stopping power so the odds are this fight makes it the full three rounds. I just see Honchak being able to land takedowns at will and at the end of 15 minutes I see her hand getting raised via decision.
Prediction: Barb Honchak via decision
