Another fight on the undercard with main event potential, the battle between strawweight champ Joanna Jedrzejczyk and challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz is one that features a pretty interesting story line: who is the best strawweight in Poland? According to UFC president Dana White, Jedrzejczyk specifically requested for Kowalkiewicz to be invited to the promotion to prove who is the better Polish fighter. If true it’s a great premise for a movie, but even without the intrigue the fight would be interesting enough to tune in for. Will Jedrzejczyk’s polished striking and camp switch make her look even more unbeatable or will Kowalkiewicz prove she’s the best in the world with her pressure and clinch game.
Joanna Jedrzejczyk is a competitor. She’s not one to shy away from a challenge, an attitude that has led her to UFC gold. But it wasn’t only her mental strength and will that got her to the top, but her sharp striking skills on the feet. Joanna doesn’t simply play counter striker or pressure fighter but a balanced game that works off her jab. She likes to enter with her jabs to understand and judge distance, but to also set up her combinations. Depending on how her opponent reacts she’ll either wait for a counter or pressure her opponent with a string of blistering strikes. Once her opponent is pressed up on the look for Joanna to continue to pressure while at the same time controlling her adversary’s movement with her own slick footwork.
But the champ has her hands full with challenger Karolina Kowalkiewicz. While many may look at Joanna Jedrzejczyk as an unbeatable force, Karolina Kowalkiewicz has proven that she’s adept at creating chaos in her fights before choosing to enter the clinch and crush opponents with her inside game. Elbows, uppercuts, and knees come flying with no end in sight. Unlike some of the champ’s prior opponents, Kowalkiewicz has an insane gas tank and doesn’t appear to get discouraged if things aren’t going her way. In fact, she does seem to get stronger the longer the fight carries on. If she is able to put some doubt in the champ’s head and continues to work at a high pace in the championship rounds then we could be seeing the belt change hands.
This is a fun and closely contested match up featuring the best Polish MMA has to offer. While Karolina Kowalkiewcz may be a true threat to the champ, Jedrzejczyk’s use of footwork and angles may prove to be too much for Karolina to overcome. Look for Joanna Jedrzejczyk to win by decision.
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Jonathan Salmon is a writer, martial arts instructor, and geek culture enthusiast. Check out his Twitter and Facebook to keep up with his antics.
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