Big Bad Blog Video Theater-Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs Jessica Andrade

Here's the match video of Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs Jessica Andrade from last night's UFC show in Dallas. This fight went pretty much as I thought. Jessica is tough. She has skills. But Joanna is just on a much higher level right now. Going through an entire training camp at American Top Team and moving in with Perfecting Athletes and having them run her life while training really agreed with her. The big thing was Joanna used her height and reach advantage to maximum effect. Jessica is very aggressive and I thought she might have a chance to swarm Joanna early in the fight. Jessica got a couple of takedowns but they went nowhere and Joanna made her pay. And once that strategy went out the window, Jessica had nothing for her. She had Plan A but no backup plan if that didn't work. Joanna's plan was to keep her distance. She knows Jessica only knows to to go forward. And when she did that, Joanna hammered her with combinations and leg kicks. For the most part, Jessica couldn't get close enough to do much damage. By round three, Jessica was worn out. The only thing Joanna didn't do was finish her. But a lot of those shots would have finished other fighters. Jessica made it through five rounds but it turned out to be an easy win for Joanna. This is Joanna's fifth title defense. She not only throws punches in volume but her striking is accurate. Apparently she broke her own record for volume of strikes. And the other thing is Joanna is built to go five rounds. No fighter in that division will outlast her. And her defense is hard to penetrate. Something might get through occasionally but it's not likely to be enough. Of course as champ, Joanna has a target on her back. Claudia Gadelha and Karolina Kowalkiewicz both want another shot. They will fight in a couple of weeks. I think Rose Namajunas will be the next challenger. She was shown on camera last night with a scowl on her face. That was pretty funny. Of course Rose thinks she can beat Joanna. She should think that. It just seems unlikely that anyone can beat Joanna right now. One fighter to watch is Cynthia Calvillo who has already won twice in the UFC and will face Joanne Calderwood in July. The UFC obviously sees a lot in her and she could face the Claudia vs Karolina winner. I also still like MIZUKI who is currently recovering from knee surgery. She showed a lot of maturity and improved technique in her last couple of Invicta fights. When she returns, she could be UFC bound after one Invicta fight. And another fighter to watch is BJJ ace Mackenzie Dern. She currently fights for LFA but she will be in the UFC soon. The only question about her is weight class as she has had trouble making 115. There's also talk that Joanna wants to fight at Flyweight. Based on her interviews, I don't expect her to try that until late next year. I think Joanna will fight at 125 but not immediately. Her plan is to be a two division champ. Oh and Joanna is now managed by the company that manages Conor McGregor. What a coincidence. Enjoy the fight!