There are many UFC shows nowadays, but the UFC 175 pay-per-view featuring both Chris Weidman and Ronda Rousey defending their championships will separate itself as one of the best MMA cards of 2014.
With a card that features Weidman defending the UFC Middleweight Championship against Lyoto Machida and Ronda Rousey battling Alexis Davis for the Women’s Bantamweight Championship, fight fans won’t want to miss this event.
Here is the full match card, predictions for every match and a preview of the most interesting bout on Saturday night.
Match of the Night: Ronda Rousey vs. Alexis Davis
While most fans will be focused on the battle between Weidman and Machida, the potential fight of the night could be the co-main event featuring Rousey vs. Davis.
MMA Infographics has a great visual comparison between the two fighters:
Rousey comes into this bout as the heavy favorite. She is the four-time defending champion, and no woman has been able to step into the Octagon with her and finish the fight. In nine career bouts, she is undefeated and has only been out of the first round once.
During her undefeated stretch, the champion has eight submission victories and a TKO win.
When asked about her mindset heading into her fight against Davis, Rousey told Michael Huang of ESPNW.com that she is focused on building her legacy and expects greatness when she looks back on her career:
It’s getting to the point where I’ve accomplished so much that I’m really starting to think of what kind of legacy I leave behind. I’m envious of seeing Royce Gracie at the UFC events, and you can see him with a look of contentment and accomplishment. This is something he did. I really want that opportunity in the future to sit and watch women fight in the UFC with regularity and think, ‘Wow, I was part of that.’
There is no doubt that Rousey deserves to be confident as the most decorated female fighter of all time already, but she is still a vicious competitor. She understands that Davis will bring everything she has to the table and will be looking for a war.
Former UFC star Kenny Florian shared on UFC Tonight what Davis needs to beat Rousey:
Even if Davis brings the best jiu-jitsu game she can, it still may not be enough to stop the Olympic-caliber judoka from pushing the pace of the fight and dictating her will on the challenger.
Rousey proved in her three-round bout with Miesha Tate that cardio and endurance won’t be an issue if the fight drags on, but the bad news for Davis came when Rousey destroyed Sara McMann with a knee to the body that ended the fight.
As if Davis didn’t have to prepare enough for Rousey‘s ever-dangerous armbar, now she has to contend with the defending champion’s evolving striking. That’s a task too tall to tame.
Prediction: Rousey via first-round submission
*Stats via UFC.com.
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