Preview: UFC 294 Prelims

Women’s Strawweights

Victoria Dudakova (7-0, 1-0 UFC) vs. Jinh Yu Frey (11-9, 2-5 UFC)

ODDS: Dudakova (-500), Frey (+380)

This is a well-made bout between two fighters who each have a lot to prove. Frey’s UFC callup in 2020 was a pleasant surprise. A longtime top atomweight, Frey was certainly worthy of fighting in a major promotion for years if any had decided to offer her weight class. A lot of Frey’s success at 105 pounds centered around her physicality, so it was not necessarily a shock when she started to struggle against larger opposition on the UFC roster. However, when 2021 saw her chain together wins over Gloria de Paula and Ashley Yoder, the hope was that Frey had figured things out enough to find some consistent success going forward. Instead, her output has gotten even more anemic as she enters her late 30s, and she has not been able to bank enough control time with her wrestling to make up the difference. Frey came out a bit more aggressive in her November bout against Polyana Viana, only to get knocked out in under a minute, so it was not a surprise when she returned to her slow-paced ways against Elise Reed, which ended up as another disappointing decision loss. Even with her recent struggles, Frey could still find a path to victory against Dudakova, one of the most unproven fighters on the UFC roster at the moment. Dudakova is a young fighter with enough physical tools to be worth the flier for the UFC, particularly after she gutted out a decision win on Dana White’s Contender Series with a torn ACL. As of now, her game consists almost entirely of some dogged wrestling and grappling that has not always stood out on the regional scene, and her striking is a clear liability; her knee injury came during one of the brief moments her DWCS bout was on the feet. The hope was that her July debut against Istela Nunes would provide some clarity, but Nunes suffered a fight-ending injury just 34 seconds into the fight, leaving Dudakova as a complete question mark. Frey is firmly in the territory where she can no longer be trusted to get a victory over the finish line, but this is still a matchup she should be able to win on paper. Dudakova is willing to wrestle but is not overpowering when she gets there, and a powerful wrestling game is the most reliable tool Frey has left. Dudakova’s tendency to charge in for takedowns could even lead to Frey being able to find some effective striking in close quarters, though once again, it is hard to fully trust her to fight at maximum capacity. Still, the pick is Frey via decision.

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