Preview: UFC Fight Night ‘Volkov vs. Struve’

Women’s Bantamweights

Marion Reneau (7-3-1) vs. Talita de Oliveira Bernardo (4-1)

THE MATCHUP: With Germaine de Randamie pulling out a little over a week before the date, this rather compelling women’s bantamweight fight has morphed into a rather confusing one. Bernardo is not without options. An aggressive wrestler and submission grappler, her best bet will be to take down Reneau. Nonetheless, Bernardo is woefully inexperienced for a bout of this caliber, with only two years and five fights worth of professional experience. Whereas Reneau’s similarly shallow history is bolstered by names like Bethe Correia, Holly Holm and Jessica Andrade -- all of them UFC contenders -- Bernardo lost her only bout against an opponent with a winning record.

At 40 years old, there is reason to suspect that Reneau is on the cusp of losing a step -- if she has not done so already -- but her recent fights have been par for the course. Reneau is vulnerable to takedowns but comfortable off of her back. She is a technically sound striker but sometimes struggles to find her range and put out enough volume to win on points. Still, Reneau’s toughest fights have all come against strikers and fighters who effectively blend together the disparate parts of their games. Bernardo could fit the bill, but having spent no more than 30 minutes in the cage, there is little to go on.

THE ODDS: Reneau (-325), Bernardo (+250)

THE PICK: Reneau has to be favored here. She is an established UFC contender, if not a particularly highly rated one, and she has spent the last eight weeks preparing for a fight. Bernardo, on the other hand, received her call sometime after Aug. 21, giving her precious little time to get in shape. Reneau’s striking and effective ground game should be enough to answer the threat of Bernardo’s submission grappling. Reneau by second-round TKO is the pick.

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