Preview: UFC 254 ‘Nurmagomedov vs. Gaethje’

NASTY knee by @laurenmurphymma earns her the TKO win #UFCNewark pic.twitter.com/3tb2BSfDqn

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) August 3, 2019

Women’s Flyweights

Lauren Murphy (13-4) vs. Liliya Shakirova (8-1)

ODDS: Murphy (-250), Shakirova (+210)

Thanks to a late replacement, this bout is all risk and no reward for Murphy, but it will still be nice to see the flyweight contender get some shine. Murphy endured a rough run to open her UFC career. Her fights against Sara McMann and Liz Carmouche were grinding affairs that many felt Murphy should have won, but they still resulted in two decision losses for the Alaskan. Murphy recorded a victory against Kelly Faszholz in her next bout to help save her career inside the Octagon, but it was not until a drop to flyweight that she started to enjoy consistent success. Sijara Eubanks, who has since moved up to bantamweight, proved to be too strong, but things have otherwise gone great at 125 pounds. Murphy now often possesses a strength advantage in the clinch, along with rounding out her game with effective striking. After a three-fight winning streak, Murphy figured to be in title contention if she could win a planned fight here with Cynthia Calvillo, but with the latter a late scratch, she now faces a UFC newcomer in Shakirova. Uzbekistan’s Shakirova has some interesting aspects to her game. She can throw some wild and powerful strikes, but she is at her best when she controls her opponents with her wrestling. Based on what film is available, Shakirova looks more like a strawweight at the UFC level in terms of strength and physicality. There is certainly a chance that Shakirova could land something damaging if Murphy has not done her homework. Otherwise, the MMA Lab product figures to be able to control this fight without much trouble. The pick is Murphy via clear decision.

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