UFC 275 goes down this weekend at the Singapore Indoor Stadium as former strawweight champs Zhang Weili and Joanna Jedrzejczyk face each other in a title eliminator.
Zhang made her first title defence by beating Jedrzejczyk in a razor close split decision at UFC 248, but has since lost two in a row to Rose Namajunas. Jedrzejczyk hasn’t fought since UFC 248 and will make her return to the Octagon after more than two years, hoping to reclaim the title that she defended a record five times.
UFC 275: Zhang vs Jedrzejczyk Analysis And Prediction
The first fight between the two was razor close, with Zhang winning by split decision. Their five round war is regarded as the greatest fight in women’s MMA history, and both fighters are hoping to top their UFC 248 performance this weekend.
Both fighters are very well matched. Zhang is a ferocious striker with a great amount of power in her hands and an excellent grappling skillset. Jedrzejczyk has a world class striking skillset and mostly relies on her volume to outpoint her opponents. She isn’t much of a grappler but she has a very impressive takedown defence.
Statistically, Jedrzejczyk is slightly better as she lands a little over six significant strikes per minute on average, whereas Zhang lands five and a half. The Pole has a better striking defence as she absorbs three significant strikes per minute, whereas Zhang absorbs a little over four.
Zhang is the better grappler. She is very strong and lands close to two takedowns per 15 minutes but her takedown accuracy isn’t very impressive, whereas Jedrzejczyk defends takedowns extremely well. China’s first ever champion will succeed in landing takedowns but she will struggle to hold her opponent on the ground for long.
A three round fight will favour Zhang because she won’t have to conserve energy for championship rounds and will come out all guns blazing to try and put Jedrzejczyk on the back foot and finish the job early. Jedrzejczyk hasn’t fought for more than two years, so we should expect some ring rust, although it’s not a guarantee.
Expect Zhang to get another win over Jedrzejczyk at UFC 275.
Prediction: Zhang Weili by KO
Betting Odds:
Zhang Weili (-155)
Joanna Jedrzejczyk (+135)
Who do you think will win the strawweight title eliminator between Zhang Weili and Joanna Jedrzejczyk?
