The top two contenders in the flyweight division face off in the main event, as Erin Blanchfield and Manon Fiorot do battle to potentially determine who is next in line for a championship opportunity.
A New Jersey native, Blanchfield has looked like a future champion during her first six UFC outings, showing tenacity and a strong Fight IQ while securing six consecutive victories over increasingly more accomplished opposition. While she’s happy to exchange and continues growing as a striker, her greatest strength is in the grappling realm, where the 24-year-old is a Brazilian jiu jitsu black belt and has earned finishes of JJ Aldrich, Molly McCann, and Jessica Andrade.
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Fiorot is similarly unbeaten inside the Octagon, having run her record to 6-0 with a victory over Rose Namajunas on home soil in Paris last time out. “The Beast” has posted 11 consecutive victories overall, and after opening her UFC tenure with consecutive finishes, the 34-year-old has shown a deft ability to out-work her opponents and dominate the scorecards since.
Each woman can make a credible case for meriting a title shot already, but with Alexa Grasso and Valentina Shevchenko still needing to resolve their differences — and slated to coach opposite one another on the upcoming season of The Ultimate Fighter — pitting them against one another to determine the unquestioned No. 1 contender makes a great deal of sense.
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