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Main Event Spotlight | UFC Fight Night: Ribas vs Namajunas
We Break Down Some Key Stats For Saturday’s Flyweight Main Event
An exciting flyweight tilt will take place at UFC APEX this weekend, as Amanda RIbas is set to collide with two-time strawweight champion Rose Namajunas. The main event bout is a pivotal one for both women, who look to shine while the 125-pound division is in the spotlight over the next few weeks. Here’s a stat-based preview of the matchup.
Amanda Ribas
Don’t let the big smile and infectious laugh fool you, Amanda Ribas is the real deal. Since making her way to the UFC in 2019, she’s been a fixture in the rankings at both strawweight and flyweight. Ribas has fought the likes of Mackenzie Dern, Marina Rodriguez, Katlyn Cerminara, Viviane Araújo, and Maycee Barber. In her last trip to the Octagon, Ribas connected with a spinning wheel kick, followed up with punches, to knock out Luana Pinheiro in one of her best performances to date.
A main reason for Ribas’ success has been her defense, both on the feet and in the grappling department. During her strawweight career, Ribas avoided 67% of her opponents’ significant strike attempts, which is the second highest defense in the division’s history. She also has the fourth best takedown defense in women’s history, regardless of division.
Ribas thrives when outpacing her opponents, on average connecting with 2.49 more significant strikes per minute. Her ability to constantly put pressure on and lead the dance also sets up her grappling game. Ribas has taken down nine of her ten UFC opponents and holds a takedown ratio of 15:3.
Rise Of Amanda Ribas
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Rise Of Amanda Ribas
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With such a high output, and such good defense, fight fans can always expect Ribas to force her opponent to fight her fight.
RELATED: Women’s Flyweight Division Takes Center Stage To Close Out March
Rose Namajunas
“Thug” Rose Namajunas’ flyweight debut didn’t go her way, as the former strawweight champion dropped a decision to No.3 ranked Manon Fiorot. Prior to making the move up a division, six of Namajunas’ last seven fights featured a title on the line. Namajunas’ run included two wins over current champion Zhang Weili, two wins over future Hall of Famer Joanna Jędrzejczyk, and a victory over former titlist Jéssica Andrade.
Over that time, it became clear that Namajunas’ hands possess unique power for a strawweight. Namajunas notched four knockdowns during her time at 115 pounds, and her five victories by finish are the second most in strawweight history.
Even with all the success at strawweight, moving up to flyweight presented a new challenge with new opponents that was appealing to Namajunas.
Meeting In The Middle
It makes a ton of sense why UFC matchmakers booked a bout between Ribas and Namajunas. There are a ton of similarities between the two, such as their high-level striking, impressive defense, grappling skills, and their ability to stand toe-to-toe for an entire fight.
Ribas and Namajunas have an almost identical striking defense percentage, with Ribas at 63.1% and Namajunas at 62.6%. So, it stands to reason that whichever fighter can find their rhythm first and lead the dance will have a good shot at getting their hand raised.
MORE FIGHT NIGHT: Fight-By-Fight Preview | UFC Fight Night: Ribas vs Namajunas
One thing to keep an eye on is that Ribas will certainly look to make Namajunas the tenth opponent she’s taken to the canvas, while doing her best to prevent Namajunas from getting a takedown of her own. Ribas’ 87.5% takedown defense is ranked the fourth best in UFC women’s history while Namajunas’ takedown accuracy is 48.7%.
Keeping the fight standing works well for Namaunas, who will look to download the data presented by Ribas before finding a gap to land her power strikes. And while Ribas has good defense, her opponents have had some success in finding her chin in the past.
UFC Fight Night: Ribas vs Namajunas took place on March 23, 2024 live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada. See the final Prelim and Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
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