Preview: UFC on ESPN 18 Prelims

Women’s Flyweights

Gina Mazany (6-4) vs. Rachael Ostovich (4-5)

ODDS: Mazany (-150), Ostovich (+130)

Ostovich came into the UFC with some notoriety from her time in Invicta Fighting Championships, but she could badly use a win here to turn around her run inside the Octagon. Ostovich kicked off her UFC tenure with a win over fellow “Ultimate Fighter” castmate Karine Gevorgyan in a match that showed the Hawaiian at her best as an aggressive wrestler and submission hunter. However, she has found herself outgunned in terms of both skill and athleticism in her ensuing two bouts. Montana De La Rosa outboxed her and got the better of her on the mat, while Paige VanZant eventually cinched a second-round armbar. Ostovich certainly has some tools with which to work, but at this point, there has not been one reliable skill that has allowed her to find a foothold on the UFC roster. The VanZant fight came at a rough time for Ostovich, who was dealing with the fallout of domestic abuse involving her now ex-husband, so the hope is that she is in a much better place to develop her career. Mazany entered the UFC without much of a resume, and while she did not find much success in her first stint with the promotion, it certainly was not for lack of trying. Mazany is a fairly relentless pressure wrestler but found herself physically overwhelmed against most of her opposition. To her credit, Mazany kept fighting where she could, but she often just found herself getting pressed against the cage or quickly knocked out against stronger competition at bantamweight. “Danger” got the call back as a late replacement in June, when it was much the same story against Julia Avila, but this fight represents an interesting gambit, as Mazany cuts down to flyweight. That additional size and strength advantage should help make her approach much more functional, and Ostovich is a good opponent for proof of concept given her tendency to get physically overwhelmed. It is difficult to parse this out without knowing how Mazany looks after the weight cut, but she is worth the flier. The pick is Mazany via decision.

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