Preview: Bellator 235 ‘Barnett vs. Markes’

Veta Arteaga vs. Alejandra Lara

Arteaga is much better than her 5-3 record indicates. In fact, with a couple of breaks she could very well be undefeated. Two of her losses were razor close split decisions and her other loss came by a cut in her last fight when she was challenging Ilima-Lei Macfarlane for the title — a fight that many believe she was winning when the fight was stopped. The 32-year-old is a high volume striker who overwhelms her foes with nonstop pressure and an endless gas tank. She does well to set up her attacks with feints and draws power by sitting on her punches. The Combat Fitness team member works behind a snapping jab and a good straight right hand. She marches down her adversary with combinations and invites her opponent to brawl with her. She is strong in the clinch with knees and elbows and will look for takedowns, though she isn’t a good wrestler. In fact, her Achilles’ heel is her takedown defense. She can be brought down to the canvas, but, fortunately for her, she is good at winning scrambles. She is also hard to keep down, but, unfortunately for her, she often makes the mistake of giving up her back in trying to work up to her feet. On the plus side, she has displayed strong submission defense. If the Boise, Idaho native finds herself on top, she mauls her opponents with relentless ground strikes.

Lara enters the bout on the heels of a first-round stoppage win over Taylor Turner, which snapped a two-fight losing streak. The win moved her record to 2-2 in the promotion. The Colombian fighter is a former two-time National Champion in karate. She likes to switch stances but does better from the southpaw stance. She has fast hands and works well from range with long punches and kicks. “Azul” is good at bouncing her head off the center line but does make the mistake of dropping her hands. She not only has the propensity to back straight up to avoid attacks, she also opens herself up for counters when throwing kicks with no set-ups. The 25-year-old likes to close the distance to get the fight to the canvas but isn’t a very good wrestler. She has the inclination to just dive in on a takedown, even if it leaves her stuck on the bottom, where she struggles to escape back to her feet. She has displayed good flexibility and is a submission threat, having won three fights by submission and generally being good at keeping her opponent pinned to the canvas from the top position.

I think this is one of the easier bouts to pick on the card. I expect Arteaga to come forward like a woman possessed with nonstop strikes. I see her swarming her younger counterpart with high volume strikes until Lara succumbs to the relentless pressure. Arteaga wins via third-round TKO.

Continue Reading » Claxton vs. Akeo