UFC 300’s 3rd early prelim bout is Jessica Andrade vs Marina Rodriguez. Andrade looks to keep her winning streak after knocking out Mackenzie Dern at UFC 295 ending a 3 fight losing streak. Rodriguez also looks to continue a winning streak knocking out Michelle Waterson Gomez ending a 2 fight losing streak.
Jessica Andrade Scrapes Past Marina Rodriguez UFC 300
Andrade and Rodriguez have the opportunity to set the tone for the female fights on this cards and continue the momentum from the previous fights. Both fighters are willing to bring the heat and a win for either would do wonders in maintaining relevancy in the top 5 at 115lbs.
Andrade is coming off a big KO over Dern in round 2 ending a 3 fight losing streak. Andrade is always game being an ever present threat on the feet carrying serious power in her hands. She looks to put pressure on her opponents and utilise her power to finish this fight as soon as possible. Although, Andrade has lost a few recently she has only lost to quality opposition and remains a factor at strawweight and flyweight.
Rodriguez is also coming off a KO win over Michelle Waterson Gomez on UFC Fight Night Fiziev vs Gamrot. Rodriguez ended a 2 fight losing streak with her victory over Loopy Gomez. A win over Andrade would give Rodriguez a boost in the rankings and help her enter the title picture at strawweight. Rodriguez has the ability to beat Andrade and capitalise on her pressure style. Andrade very often will run at her opponents winging hooks which makes her dangerous but leaves her very open to counters. However, if Rodriguez can’t get the respect of Andrade early on she will be in for a rough night.
What Unfolded?
Round 1 was largely spent on the mat with Andrade capitalising on a kick thrown by Rodrigues. Andrade subsequently took Rodriguez down while she was off balance spending the majority of the round on top. Round 2 consisted of Rodriguez utilising her range throwing 1s and 2s catching Andrade as she blitzed in. However, towards the end of the round Andrade caught Rodriguez with her hooks rocking her stealing herself the round. Round 3 was more of the same with Marina having success in most of the round however her leg gave out towards the end. This allowed Andrade to pour on late pressure. Andrade was rightfully awarded a split decision having more stand out moments in the fight.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
