In this new specialist column to MMATorch, Rick Monsey and Dante Morgan compete for ultimate MMA bragging rights. For the inaugural MMA Nerd Fight, Rick and Dante pick the UFC strawweight title fight between Rose Namajunas and Joanna Jędrzejczyk.
UFC 223 is in Brooklyn on April 7th and despite the main event changing this event still has a lot to get excited about. Fight night weekend is on the horizon and it’s time again to predict some outcomes.
The rules to this are simple:
- We predict a winner and a looser for each fight and give a quick explanation behind the picks.
- There’s obviously a chance we would pick the same winners on occasion. Well in this competition there are no split decisions. To avoid a tie, we will also forecast the way the fight will end, for example, “third round by decision”.
- The person who gets the most picks right wins bragging rights.
Well folks, let’s get on with the show!
This week competitors are:
- Rick “the Alaskan” Monsey: Regular com contributor and occasional co-host for the “MMA Talk for Pro Wrestling Fans” podcast.
- Dante Morgan. MMA fan since the days of T-Rex and Stegosaurus used to fight no hold barred in the steamy jungles of Patagonia.
UFC women’s strawweight championship
Rose Namajunas (c) vs. Joanna Jędrzejczyk
Rick’s PICKS
WHO: Rose Namajunas
HOW: Decision
WHEN: After 5 Rounds
WHY: Can lightening strike twice? I think yes. I’ve re-watched this fight a dozen times. It still takes my breath away. A true upset in MMA history.
I’ve been listening to interviews with Joanna Jędrzejczyk after their first fight. Joanna seems to have blamed her defeat on everything but herself. Joanna told Polsat Sport (by way of bloody elbow) “The doctor, who had a big impact on how I felt 30 hours before the fight, failed.” Meaning she blames the weight cut for the shocking loss. Was it the weight cut that resulted in her getting knocked down twice by strikes? Was it her battle at the scale that made her eventually tape out after three minutes in the first round? Some might say it was the over confidence she displayed all weekend.
Loosing the title doesn’t seem to have humbled Joanna and this might mean she hasn’t truly learned from her own mistakes. As they say, those who do not learn history are doomed to repeat it. History will repeat itself on April 7th with Rose Namajunas having tears of joy in her eyes and her hand held high. But a knockout finish might not be in the cards for Rose this time around. A five round victory is definitely obtainable for “Thug Rose”. After this fight Joanna will have to abandon the nickname “Champion” for now.
Dante’s PICKS
WHO: Joanna Jędrzejczyk
HOW: Decision
WHEN: After 5 Rounds
WHY: Oh boy, Joanna has her determination set to turbo mode for this one! So is Rose, in her own way. She is a silent killer, with even more confidence this time. So what does this all mean? It means Joanna will not zig when she should have zagged.
Mistakes were made last fight and Rose made her pay with her championship belt. This time will be more calculated, perhaps even a slower pace. Think of Joanna’s fight against Valerie Letorneau. Joanna put constant and firm pressure, but I felt she never hit that top gear, despite the beating Valerie took. She protected the rounds she was up. If she fights with that conservative game plan and Rose can’t style and profile the way she did last time,
I see the fight going 5 and a close decision going to Joanna Champion. So, how about that rubber match??
NOW READ THIS: MMA NERD FIGHT: Max Holloway vs. Khabib Nurmagomedov edition
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