Preview: UFC Fight Night 185 Prelims

DON'T CALL HER AN UNDERDOG!!@shana_dobson with the RELENTLESS GnP#UFCVegas7 pic.twitter.com/O5bQkmZdkb

— UFC Canada (@UFC_CA) August 23, 2020

Women’s Flyweight

NR | Casey O'Neill (5-0, 0-0 UFC) vs. NR | Shana Dobson (4-4, 2-3 UFC)

ODDS: O’Neill (-145), Dobson (+125)

On Season 26 of “The Ultimate Fighter,” which crowned the UFC’s first women’s flyweight champion, Dobson was the clear bottom seed. “Danger” showed some potential with her boxing-heavy style but barely had a pro resume before getting thrown onto the season and into the UFC. A knockout win over castmate Ariel Beck was promising, but Dobson’s career quickly stalled against more athletically talented opponents. After suffering a sudden knockout loss to Priscila Cachoeira in early 2020, the consensus was that Dobson would likely soon end up outside the UFC. However, top prospect Mariya Agapova surprisingly called her out a few months later, and even more surprisingly, the UFC actually made the fight. To her credit, Dobson made good on the opportunity in spectacular fashion, showing more of a wrestling-heavy game and overcoming some rough moments to score one of the biggest money-line upsets in UFC history. Dobson’s reward? She faces another well-regarded prospect. O’Neill has a well-rounded game and some skill on the mat, but at this point, youth and potential are her most promising traits. O’Neill does not appear to be a particularly overwhelming athlete, and while she has done well to handle the opposition in front of her, the question of how her skills will translate to the UFC remains open. Dobson is a good test to see exactly where O’Neill stands; while beatable, she is also by far the Scottish-Australian newcomer’s best opponent to date. This is not entirely dissimilar to a fight Dobson lost to Lauren Mueller in 2018, but she showed enough improvements in the Agapova fight— despite the rough moments before the win—that she feels like the safer bet. The pick is Dobson via decision.

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