This weekend at UFC 255, one of the top contenders in the flyweight division will get her chance to bounce back. Katlyn Chookagian (14-4) will be taking on Cynthia Calvillo (9-1-1) on the main card of UFC 255.
Chookagian suffered a crushing loss in her last fight. Going into her last fight against Jessica Andrade, Chookagian was the top ranked contender in the UFC‘s flyweight division.
She had a massive size advantage against the much smaller Andrade. However, it was apparent from the opening bell that she didn’t have the strength advantage. Despite being smaller in stature, the former UFC strawweight champion was much stronger.
Andrade slammed Chookagian to the ground a couple of times in the first round. Towards the end of the round, Chookagian was blasted with hooks to the body which crumbled her and gave the TKO victory to the former UFC champion.
It was a big setback for Chookagian who was hoping to assert herself as the next in line for Valentina Shevchenko. Chookagian holds a victory over the woman who’s going to be fighting for the title Saturday night, Jennifer Maia.
UFC 255 Flyweight Matchup
For the second time in a row, Chookagian will be taking on a former strawweight. Cynthia Calvillo will be making her second appearance in the flyweight division after making her debut in a main event back in June against Jessica Eye.
Eye was the top ranked flyweight in the UFC when Calvillo took her on. Calvillo used her superior wrestling skills to take a decision that night. What we’ve seen so far is that the strawweights are having success moving up in weight.
However, Chookagian is looking to pause the momentum of the former strawweights. In this fight with Calvillo, Chookagian is going to have to keep it standing if she wants to win. She can’t let Calvillo take her down.
If she doesn’t show good takedown defense on Saturday night, it’s not going to be a good night. We don’t know how much longer Chookagian has in her UFC career. She’s openly talked about walking away to start a family.
If she can’t win on Saturday night, she would be just 1-3 in her last four contests with two of those losses coming to former strawweights. Reality is that Saturday could be a do or die situation for the former title challenger.