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Jessica Andrade, the former UFC strawweight queen, is making her return to the division after a two-fight stint at flyweight that saw her go 2-1. A great debut against Katlyn Chookagian had 'Bate Estaca' thinking that the weight cut to 115lbs may have held her back. Although she had some success, she just wasn't on the same level as the flyweight champion, Valentina Shevchenko.
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Opposite the former champion is Amanda Lemos. Although she's four years Andrade's elder, she's the fresher face in this main event equation. Lemos will try to make the most of her first main event spot and make a stepping stone out of the former champion.
Preluding this match is a whole card filled with some of the world's best fighters. Dynamic strikers, long-awaited returns, and true legends of the sport have coalesced to create what should be a non-stop action event. Here are five must-see fights at UFC Fight Night: Lemos vs. Andrade.
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#5. Jessica Andrade vs. Amanda Lemos at UFC Vegas 52
The titular bout on this card and one that'll significantly impact the strawweight division is former champion Jessica Andrade taking on Amande Lemos. 'Bate Estaca' is making the move back to the UFC's stacked strawweight division and is looking to punch her way back into title contention.
After Weili Zhang ran through her to steal the belt, she lost the following rematch to Namajunas, making the Brazilian move to flyweight. Her impressive debut against Katlyn Chookagian led her to the champion Valentina Shevchenko. Albeit a valiant effort, she was simply a step behind the 'Bullet' at every turn of the fight and lost via second-round TKO. A rebound victory over Cynthia Calvillo saw Andrade score another first-round victory placing her back to her winning ways. She has since returned to strawweight, a division where she once reached the pinnacle of her dominance.
Standing opposite her in the cage is Amande Lemos. With a record 5-1 in the UFC, 'Amandinha' is a prolific finisher, seeing as she's finished 82% of her victories. Most recently, she took on Angela Hill in what was a ridiculously close but wildly exciting match. She won this fight via split decision and the two fights before this were won by first-round TKO. If the style and timing of this match are indicative of anything, it's that this will be an absolute war.
#4. Tyson Pedro vs. Isaac Villanueva
The Aussie and brother-on-law of UFC heavyweight, Tai Tuivasa, last fought in December 2018 where he suffered a TKO loss at the hands of Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua. In this bout, a kick landed that tore his ACL. A series of subsequent injuries has had this light heavyweight sidelined for the last few years.
Though the injuries are part of his story, they don't define him. He's 7-3 with all 7 wins coming via stoppage. This lay off might end up being the best thing to happen in his career as it may have given him time to fix any holes in his game and allow his body to recover completely.
His opponent in this card is Isaac Villanueva. Though he's 1-4 in his last five bouts, a fighter backed into a corner is a very dangerous one. Not only does the return of the 30-year-old Australian make this exciting, but both two fighters hate going to the judges' scorecards as their records prove this point.
#3. Maycee Barber vs. Montana De La Rosa
Maycee Barber may have fallen short of her goal of becoming the youngest UFC champion in the promotion's history, but she's still young and ever-improving. 'The Future' remains a befitting nickname for the 23-year-old.
Barber was once a well-hyped fighter. She had the fans and the UFC pushing her to do great things. The past few performances may not be her best, but the lessons learned should pay dividends in the the long haul.
1-2 in her last three bouts, she's slated against another young fighter who is no stranger to a finish. De La Rosa is coming off a TKO victory over Ariane Lipski and has a 75% finishing rate. With two flyweights hopefully looking to extend their winning streak to two, fans can expect fireworks from this matchup.
#2. Clay Guida vs. Claudio Puelles
This right here is a very interesting one. The tenured veteran is taking on a streaking 26-year-old. Claudio Puelles entered the UFC in 2016 and despite losing his debut, he's proven himself to be a problem in the lightweight division as he's now won four in a row.
However, this is quite the leap up in competition. Clay Guida may be 40 years old and on the last fight of his contract, but he seems to only be getting better. 2-1 in his last three, he's looked phenomenal in all of these bouts, including the controversial split decision that he lost to the undefeated Olympian, Mark Madsen.
This fight is sure to hit the mat. Guida candidly spoke about his passion for wrestling and how it's gotten him this far in life. "Live by the sword, die by the sword" - this rings very true with 'The Carpenter', for most of his losses come from grappling exchanges. The scrambles in this fight should make for quite an entertaining bout.
#1. Lando Vannata vs. Charles Jourdain
To anyone who appreciates high-level striking, I implore you to watch this fight. Lando Vannata kicked in the doors with a short notice UFC debut against none other than the legend himself, Tony Ferguson.
Though the debut didn't go exactly how 'Groovy' would've liked, the fight was about the best performance one could have without winning. Beyond this bout, Vannata proved that his debuting performance wasn't a fluke. He's since turned in many battles and highlight reel moments.
His opponent, Canada's Charles Jourdain, is quite the fighter himself. He's put on some great performances against Andre Fili, Julian Erosa and, most recently, Andrew Ewell. Finishing 11 of his 12 wins, this bout should be wild for as long as it lasts.
