UFC Fight Night 51 Date: September 13, 2014 Arena: Nilson Nelson Gymnasium City: Brasilia, Brazil Women’s Bantamweight bout: Jessica Andrade (+105) vs Larissa Moreira Pacheco (-115) Fight Breakdown: Getting the action started for the UFC Fight Night 51 main card in Brasilia will be a women’s bantamweight contest between the three-time Octagon veteran Jessica Andrade and now-former Jungle Fight Women’s Bantamweight Champion, the undefeated 20-year old Larissa Moreira Pacheco. The betting odds for this bout are at a near-coin flip, with Andrade being +105 ($100 to win $105) and Pacheco being -115 ($115 to win $100) at Several Bookmakerss. Jessica Andrade (11-3 MMA, 2-1 UFC) is coming off a closely contested split decision victory over Raquel Pennington at UFC 171 six-months ago and now enjoys a two-fight winning streak inside the Octagon, and will be looking to extend that streak to three tonight against the undefeated Brazilian in Pacheco. The 22-year old is a resilient fighter who can take punishment and dish it out. She is always determined, hungry and game for war. Her striking is mediocre but improving. She is not very technical, but she packs power behind her strikes. On the ground, she is talented with her submission game. The fact that she owns half of her professional mixed martial arts career wins by way of submission reflects that sentiment. Andrade is definitely in shape and ready for a hard three rounds of action, should the fight last that long. Her last two fights, which she won, are the only times she has ever gone the three round distance in her professional mixed martial arts career, and her cardio certainly held up. Now she is facing Pacheco, who has never gone the distance in her pro career, so Andrade could have the edge in that department heading into this bout, though she will be at a size and reach disadvantage. Larissa Moreira Pacheco (10-0 MMA, 0-0 UFC) is set to make her promotional debut, coming off a third round triangle choke victory under the Jungle Fight banner in Brazil. She is undefeated and 10 wins and no loses and is without a doubt a finisher, as all 10 of her professional mixed martial arts career victories have come by way of stoppage; four T/KO’s and six submissions. The 20-year old is a well-rounded fighter who excels in every aspect of the sport. She is brilliant on the feet, as well as on the mat. Pacheco mixes it up well on the feet, implementing all of her limbs in her offensive striking attack. She is a great technical striker but also likes to brawl; she isn’t afraid to take a shot in order to land one of her own. The Brazilian puts together a number of effective combinations on the feet and likes to dish out a high volume of strikes. Her takedown defense is solid, but when taken down, she is active off her back. Though she has never been the distance in her professional mixed martial arts career, her cardio is not bad, and I think she will have enough in the tank to go a full 15 minutes against Andrade, should the fight go the distance. Gabe’s Thoughts: I think Pacheco is the superior mixed martial artist in this match-up, most importantly the superior striking. I believe her reach advantage will play the difference in this match-up, as well as her physical size advantage over Andrade. I could see her finishing Andrade either on the feet or on the mat, but I think more often than not, she wins this bout over the course of three rounds of action via a unanimous decision on the judges’ scorecards, which would be the first of her professional fighting career. Gabe’s Call: Pacheco by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) Gabe’s Recommended Play: Pacheco (-115) 5.75u to win 5u
