UFC News & FeaturesWomen’s Flyweights
Ariane Lipski (14-7, 3-4 UFC) vs. Priscila Cachoeira (11-4, 3-4 UFC)ODDS: Lipski (-170), Cachoeira (+145)
It might just be time for some cautious optimism around Lipski. Expectations were high for Brazil’s “Queen of Violence” upon her 2019 UFC debut. After an extremely successful run in Poland’s KSW promotion, Lipski was immediately thrown into the contender mix with a fight against Joanne Wood. At that point, the holes in Lipski’s game became apparent, mostly on the defensive end. While she had the dogged aggression to live up to her nickname, she quickly got stifled against a better level of opposition—a point driven home even more in a subsequent loss to Molly McCann. Lipski did rebound with a two-fight winning streak, again mostly through sheer aggression, though it did result in a gnarly kneebar victory over Luana Carolina in 2020. However, Lipski’s luck quickly corrected itself with one-sided losses to Antonina Shevchenko and Montana De La Rosa. It did seem that Lipski was finally attempting to work some patience and thought into her approach by the time of the latter defeat, but that did not truly come through until her September win over Mandy Bohm. It was a consistent performance that reminded everyone of Lipski’s potential. Given that she is still somehow just 28 years old, there is the chance she could finally round into form and make a charge up the division. That would require a strong effort against Cachoeira, who has found some shocking success in recent years. Cachoeira’s UFC debut was memorable for all the wrong reasons. Her regional film suggested she would be a low-level brawler who would struggle to stick in the organization, and that was before a bunch of late changes resulted in her getting matched with Valentina Shevchenko in a fight that resulted in an extended beating and multiple major injuries for Cachoeira. The UFC then seemed set to let Cachoeira fight out her contract despite quickly proving she was not a UFC-level fighter. However, the Brazilian somehow managed to string together knockouts of Shana Dobson and Gina Mazany through sheer durability and persistence. It was a bit of a shock to see the UFC keep Cachoeira on the roster after a combination of domestic violence allegations and gouging Gillian Robertson’s eye in their fight at the tail end of 2021, but she got another shot and scored a controversial decision over Ji Yeon Kim in February. Lipski is obviously the more skilled fighter, but the worry is that Cachoeira might be the more unbreakable and aggressive competitor if this turns into an all-out brawl. Even if Lipski sells out on offense here, that typically involves her pivoting to her wrestling and grappling, an area that remains a liability for Cachoeira despite improvements. The pick is Lipski via second-round submission.
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