Tomorrow night on the main card of UFC Vegas 46, we will see an important matchup in the women’s flyweight division. Top contenders will battle it out for a second time as former title challengers Katlyn Chookagian (16-4) and Jennifer Maia (19-7-1) will battle.
As mentioned, this is the second time that these two flyweights will square off. The first time came back at UFC 244 with Chookagian picking up the decision win. That win earned Chookagian a title shot against Valentina Shevchenko.
Of course, Chookagian lost in that opportunity. Since her loss to the champion, Chookagian has gone 3-1 with the lone loss coming against former UFC champion Jessica Andrade. That said, she’s riding a two-fight win streak heading into tomorrow night.
On the other side of the cage tomorrow night is Jennifer Maia. Maia will be looking to pick up her second consecutive win. The last time we saw Maia was back at UFC 264 when she took on Jessica Eye. That night she was able to win a decision.
That win came on the heels of her title loss to Valentina Shevchenko. Whoever wins tomorrow night will be in a good position to potentially challenge the champion once again.
UFC Vegas 46 Prediction
When looking at this fight on paper, I’m not sure we are going to see a much different fight than we saw the first time. The game plan for both fighters is going to be the same at UFC Vegas 46. For Jennifer Maia, she’s going to need to get this fight to the ground.
We saw even against the champion that Jennifer Maia is good in grappling exchanges. She’s very strong and she’s incredibly slick on the ground. If she’s able to get in tight and get the fight to the mat, there’s a clear path to victory.
That said, Katlyn Chookagian is not going to be easy to get down. For Chookagian, she needs to utilize her normal game plan. That game plan involves staying on the outside and working her volume strikes on her way to a decision victory.
Ultimately, I think that’s what’s going to happen. I think the fight will take place mostly on the feet and Chookagian will score more points. I’m expecting the same result as the first fight at UFC Vegas 46.
Prediction: Katlyn Chookagian by Unanimous Decision