Preview: UFC Fight Night 154 ‘Moicano vs. The Korean Zombie’

Women’s Flyweights

Andrea Lee (10-2) vs. Montana De La Rosa (10-4)

ODDS: Lee (-225), De La Rosa (+185)

It has taken a bit longer than some might have hoped, but Lee looks to finally be developing into a flyweight contender. Almost immediately since she hit Invicta Fighting Championships, Lee was marked as a potential star but had a rough go of things early on. In retrospect, facing Roxanne Modafferi in just her third professional fight was a bit too much of an ask. Since then, it has been a slow progression, as Lee has figured out what works and what does not inside the cage. While she comes from a muay Thai background, she is a bit plodding as an outside striker but has found more and more success using the clinch to bull opponents around with her physical strength. There is a consistent question about how Lee can deal with opponents willing to put her on the mat. However, she has gone 2-for-2 in the UFC when it comes to facing opponents with wrestling or grappling backgrounds, as she has enjoyed one-sided division wins over Veronica Macedo and Ashlee Evans-Smith. The latter was particularly impressive, given that Lee fought through all the drama surrounding her personal life, as her estranged husband spent most of the year fleeing police after a domestic violence incident before recently being caught. As far as her career goes, it is back to facing another submission artist, as Lee takes on a rising prospect in De La Rosa.

De La Rosa was not expected to make much of an impact in “The Ultimate Fighter” tournament that crowned the UFC’s inaugural women's flyweight champion, but if nothing else, she was already battle-tested; two of her losses came to Mackenzie Dern and Cynthia Calvillo, both now firmly top strawweight prospects. De La Rosa did fine on “The Ultimate Fighter” -- she earned a win over Ariel Beck before falling to season winner Nicco Montano -- but since then, she has rattled off three straight wins without much trouble. De La Rosa’s striking is improving from fight to fight, even if she is still quite hittable while she looks to pressure opponents. However, the bread and butter of the Texan’s game remains her grappling, as she has ended all three of those UFC bouts with submissions. At just 24, De La Rosa is still firmly in the throes of prospect status, but she has already proven herself as one of the strongest young fighters in a division that is still trying to sort itself out.

De La Rosa might have the better peak when all is said and done, but this looks like a nightmare matchup for the younger prospect. De La Rosa’s lack of defense as she moves forward should allow Lee to tee off on her, but even if that is not the case, “KGB” should be able to outmuscle her in grappling exchanges and cause some big damage when the fight is in the clinch. De La Rosa’s submission savvy should provide some tension whenever the two lock up, but the pick is Lee to take a one-sided decision.

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