Preview: UFC 237 ‘Namajunas vs. Andrade’

Women’s Flyweights

Luana Carolina Carvalho de Souza (5-1, -165) vs. Priscila Cachoeira (8-2, +145): This should be some dumb fun. Cachoeira is best known for getting absolutely wrecked by Valentina Shevchenko in one of the UFC’s crueler bookings in recent memory, and while she is not particularly strong in terms of ability, she can provide some entertainment. Her fight in March against Molly McCann was an excellent example of Cachoeira’s commitment to sloppy aggression and lack of defense. That may be enough to throw off Carolina, a graduate of the Brazilian version of Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series. Carolina is a rangy striker who looks good in moments, but she is completely untested; and even against a weak slate of competition, Carolina often struggles to control a fight despite her physical advantages. Her range and striking speed should be enough to score points on Cachoeira, but it would not be a surprise if Carolina was scared into inactivity by her opponent’s constant pressure, no matter how much of a mess it may be. The pick is Carolina via decision.

Welterweights

Warlley Alves (12-3, -145) vs. Sergio Moraes (14-4-1, +125): Calling Alves a bust is a bit harsh, but it does not look like he will reach the lofty expectations that were set for him a few years ago. Coming off of Season 3 of “The Ultimate Fighter Brazil,” Alves looked like a wrecking ball capable of running over his opponents with either knockout power or a strong submission game. However, as soon as his first post-“Ultimate Fighter” win over Alan Jouban, it became apparent that Alves had no sense of pacing himself and would be a sitting duck in later rounds. It took a while for the prospect losses to come -- Alves even scored an 86-second win over Colby Covington that continues to age well -- but once they did, they came hard in fights against Bryan Barberena and Kamaru Usman. Alves has since learned those lessons and started to pace himself, but he is now coming off of a loss to James Krause that raises questions about his ceiling, even with this new approach. Sergio Moraes is not an easy bounce-back opponent, as he is one of the more underrated welterweights on the roster. Moraes’ loopy striking style should not work, but his elite Brazilian jiu-jitsu skills serve as enough of a deterrent to allow “The Panther” to outwork most of his opponents. Alves could just scare Moraes into inactivity with some power shots and win a slow kickboxing contest, but at some point, one of these two should look to grapple, at which point Alves figures to be overaggressive and find himself in some bad positions. The pick is Moraes via decision.

Bantamweights

Raoni Barcelos (13-1, -550) vs. Carlos Huachin (10-3-1, +425): The bantamweight class is a prospect-rich division, so add Barcelos to the pile. Even at age 34, he is a rising fighter to watch, as he has supplemented his Brazilian jiu-jitsu base with a willingness to trade on the feet and some knockout power. After running through Kurt Holobaugh and Chris Gutierrez, Barcelos figured to get an interesting test in Said Nurmagomedov, but with Nurmagomedov out, he now faces a Peruvian newcomer in Huachin. Peru is slowly churning out some decent talent, but Huachin has little to offer besides some knockout power; if he trades here, Barcelos should knock him out first. That is a moot point anyway, as Huachin’s takedown defense looks rather porous, so Barcelos should be able to take this to the mat and end it without much trouble. The pick is Barcelos via first-round submission.

Women’s Bantamweights

Talita Bernardo (6-3, -475) vs. Melissa Gatto (6-0-2, +380): Bernardo finally got into the win column in October with a win over Sarah Moras. Since getting the UFC call on late notice in 2017, Bernardo had been a solid wrestler and grappler who improved from fight to fight, so it was nice to finally see her get over the hump. She returns here to face a late replacement in Gatto, who has a decent submission game and not much else, and even that seems to depend on her opponent taking things to the mat so she can get the advantage. Bernardo will look for takedowns, so Gatto will get the fight she wants. However, Gatto’s fights do not show a whole lot, and if Bernardo can survive three rounds with Moras, this should be doable. The pick is Bernardo via decision.