Irene Aldana is heavily favored against Vanessa Melo at UFC Fight Night 159 on Saturday, September 21 in Mexico City, Mexico. This event is one of five fights on the main card on ESPN+. Aldana is 10-5 in her career, while Melo is 9-5 in her career. There are a total of five fights on the main card on ESPN+ at UFC Fight Night 159, with the headliner a bout between Yair Rodriguez and Jeremy Stephens. There are also a total of seven fights on the preliminary card, all on ESPN+. Let’s look at the bout between Aldana and Melo and UFC picks.
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Irene Aldana (10-5, 3-3 UFC)
Aldana came into the UFC with a record of 7-2 and she has three wins and three losses in the UFC. She defeated Talita Bernardo by unanimous decision, Lucie Pudilová by split decision, and Bethe Correia by armbar submission; while losing to Leslie Smith by unanimous decision, Katlyn Chookagian by split decision, and Raquel Pennington by split decision. Aldana has been a pro since 2012 and she has five wins by TKO/KO and three by submission. She has seven first round finishes.
Vanessa Melo (9-5, UFC debut)
Melo will be making her UFC debut this Saturday. Her last fight was on May 24, 2019 where she defeated Mariana Morais by split decision. Melo’s last loss in her career was against Suvi Salmimies by split decision on November 26, 2016. Melo has been a pro since 2011 and she has two wins by submission. She has two first round finishes.
Even though Melo is making her UFC debut, she has been fighting since 2011 and she has won her last five fights. The problem for her in this bout is that the matchup doesn’t favor her style. The fight is probably going to stay standing and Melo simply doesn’t counter very well.
Striking Stats
Strikes landed per minute: Aldana 5.84/ Melo 0.00
Striking Accuracy: Aldana 39% / Melo 0%
Strikes absorbed per minute: Aldana 6.26/ Melo 0.00
Defense: Aldana 61% / Melo 0%
Grappling Stats
Takedown average: Aldana 0.34/ Melo 0.00
Takedown Accuracy: Aldana 50% / Melo 0%
Takedowns defended: Aldana 93% / Melo 0%
Submission average: Aldana 0.21 / Melo 0.0
UFC Picks
Melo will be making her UFC debut, but she is not without a chance in this fight, as Aldana is nothing special. This division is wide open and it is hard to get too excited about laying a 4-1 price on a fighter in Aldana who is just 3-3 in the UFC. Melo has fought some decent competition and she has won seven of her last eight bouts, so she can be competitive. I am sure not laying 4-1 on Aldana and I am tempted to take a small shot on Melo. The safer pick is probably to just take the rounds to go over the total.
UFC Fight Night 159 takes place at Mexico City Arena in Mexico City, Mexico on Saturday, September 21, with five fights on the main card on ESPN+ headlined by Yair Rodriguez vs. Jeremy Stephens and seven preliminary bouts, also on ESPN+.
Main Card (ESPN+)
Featherweight - Yair Rodríguez -119 vs. Jeremy Stephens
Women's Strawweight - Alexa Grasso -135 vs. Carla Esparza
Flyweight - Askar Askarov -185 vs. Brandon Moreno
Women's Bantamweight - Irene Aldana -470 vs. Vanessa Melo
Featherweight - Martin Bravo -115 vs. Steven Peterson
Preliminary Card (ESPN+)
Bantamweight - José Alberto Quiñónez -150 vs. Carlos Huachin
Featherweight - Kyle Nelson -125 vs. Polo Reyes
Women's Strawweight - Angela Hill -140 vs. Ariane Carnelossi
Light Heavyweight - Vinicius Moreira -120 vs. Paul Craig
Women's Bantamweight - Sijara Eubanks -270 vs. Bethe Correia
Lightweight - Claudio Puelles -250 vs. Marcos Rosa Mariano
Flyweight - Sergio Pettis -320 vs. Tyson Nam
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