Women’s Flyweights
#6 WFLW | Jessica Andrade (23-9, 14-7 UFC) vs. #4 WFLW | Lauren Murphy (16-5, 8-5 UFC)It is unclear if Andrade can work her way back to a title shot, but in the meantime, it is a pleasure to watch her bring violence to any division she pleases. Andrade came to the UFC as a raw bantamweight prospect with some physical potential but did not truly pop as a fighter until she cut down to strawweight, somehow managing to carry all her power down 20 pounds while standing out as a physically intimidating force. With that power, Andrade has not had to develop much physical depth, which has cost her against her most elite opponents. Her three strawweight title fights essentially sum up the entirety of the Andrade experience. Joanna Jedrzejczyk outmaneuvered her for five rounds; Weili Zhang met her head-on and won in just 42 seconds; and Andrade won the title in 2019 by absorbing much offense from Rose Namajunas and then slamming her directly onto her head. After losing her title to Zhang and then dropping a rematch against Namajunas, Andrade moved up to 125 pounds for some greater opportunity, which resulted in a mixed bag. Wins over Katlyn Chookagian and Cynthia Calvillo showed her to be as physically effective as ever, but her title challenge was a one-sided loss to divisional queen Valentina Shevchenko that did not leave much appetite for a rematch. Andrade’s lone fight of 2022 saw her head back down to strawweight and score a rare standing arm-triangle choke submission of Amanda Lemos. She now moves back to 125 pounds for an interesting pairing with Murphy.
It has been a slow rise through the ranks for Murphy, who surprisingly seems as effective as ever at 39 years old. Murphy came to the UFC in 2014 as the Invicta Fighting Championships bantamweight titleholder and immediately hit a wall. She easily could have won what were decision losses against Sara McMann and Liz Carmouche, but her low-output and grinding style did not earn her much benefit of the doubt on the scorecards. Like Andrade, Murphy was helped greatly by a cut down in weight, in this case a 2017 move down to flyweight. Beyond having the extra physical leeway with her wrestling, the move coincided with Murphy developing an effective enough striking game to make an impact during her fights. With her durability and physical strength backing things up, Murphy managed to string together five wins and earn a title shot. Like Andrade, she mostly suffered an extended beating at the hands of Shevchenko. Murphy’s 2022 campaign saw her right the ship with a win over Miesha Tate, and she is an interesting test for Andrade in this one. While Andrade pops as the better athlete, vast swaths of Murphy’s career have seen opponents underestimate her strength, leaving open the possibility that she can neutralize some of the Brazilian’s physicality. However, Murphy’s fight against Shevchenko did show that she can be cowed a bit by a much harder hitter, so even if Andrade cannot join Shevchenko as the only women to stop the Alaska native, she should be able to take the initiative and separate herself as landing the much harder offense over three rounds. There is a chance this is a mess, and there is a chance this is an extended beating instead. Either way, the pick is Andrade via decision.
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Teixeira vs. Hill
Figueiredo vs. Moreno
Burns vs. Magny
Andrade vs. Murphy
Walker vs. Craig
The Prelims