The Brisbane Times reported today that Joanne Calderwood vs Bec Rawlings has been added to UFC Fight Night 121 Nov. 19 at the Qudos Bank Arena in Sydney, Australia. This show will air on Fox Sports 1 in the US and TSN in Canada. I expect this fight to air on the main card. This fight will be at Flyweight. So already we are seeing that Flyweight is the answer for either struggling Bantamweights or Strawweights who don't want to cut weight. But is it really the answer? Probably not but I can't fault a fighter for trying. This is the third time an attempt has been made to book this fight. The first time was in Invicta in 2013. Bec was moved to the main event to fill in. The second time was for a July 2015 UFC show. Bec pulled out due to injury. Third time's the charm. For these two fighters, I don't think moving to Flyweight is the answer to their problems. Joanne's from Glasgow, Scotland but she now trains at Tristar in Montreal. Her record is 11-3 but she is 3-3 in the UFC. Joanne is a kickboxer with no ground game. Her last fight was a microcosm of her flaws. Cynthia Calvillo played keep away and scored a couple of takedowns to win the fight. Joanne complained afterwards but it was great strategy. Why would anyone want to clinch with Joanne? She lost because she didn't adjust and she had no answer for Cynthia's strategy. Bec is from Brisbane, Australia but she trains at Alliance in San Diego. Her record is 7-6 and she is 3-3 in the UFC. She is also mostly a striker. Bec's problem is that injuries have slowed her down and that was obvious in her loss to Tecia Torres. She couldn't keep up with her. I think this fight could be similar to that. I think Joanne is much quicker than Bec. And she doesn't have to go to the ground. As I said, switching to Flyweight doesn't solve either fighter's problems.
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