T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas. USA.
At UFC 264, on the Poirier vs McGregor fight undercard, Russian fighter Yana Kunitskaya (No. 5 in the UFC) will meet Mexican Irene Aldana (No. 4). The bout will take place in the women’s lightest weight division.
Yana Kunitskaya: She’s on a good run
Yana Kunitskaya was remembered when she made her UFC debut straight away in a title fight against the undefeated Cris Cyborg. She expectedly lost, but she made a name for herself and has been consistently at the top ever since.
Yana had her previous fight against a strong Ketlen Vieira and was the underdog among the bookmakers. The fight was a close one; the Russian avoided take-downs and dangerous ground positions but at the same time hit hard, including with her elbows. And she took the end of the fight clean. After three rounds, all the judges preferred Yana: 29-28, 29-28, 29-28. A very hard, but, as it seems, quite a fair victory for Kunitskaya.
Yana called her opponent:
She has a strong punch; her strongest side is boxing. She came from boxing. So I think that she will try to box it in the rack and not let it go to the ground.
Irene Aldana: After a brutal defeat
Irene Aldana is at the top of the division for a reason, but we cannot say that she is unequivocally stronger than the same Ketlen Vieira that Yana defeated in her last fight. But she is higher in the rankings.
Irene lost her last fight in one round. Moreover, at the last minute, she was close to an early defeat. Holly Holm, who held the advantage all five rounds, managed to put in a high-kick. Aldana then missed two more tight hand punches and the legs went wild. Holly finished hard but ran out of time and the final stats were 154-69 for significant strikes and 5-0 for touchdowns.
Expert Betting Tips
If you compare previous fights, Kunitskaya looked better. Holly Holm may be a stronger fighter than Vieira, but it’s all about styles. On the other hand, Irene Aldana knocked out Ketlen Vieira a year and a half ago.
But Irene’s style, in my opinion, is very suitable for Kunitskaya. So I suggest betting on Kunitskaya’s victory for 2.06.
Other predictions
