Jessica Andrade will put her women’s strawweight title on the line for the first time Saturday when she faces Weili Zhang in the main event of UFC Fight Night 157 as a solid -160 favourite on the UFC odds at sportsbooks monitored by OddsShark.com.
The 27-year-old Brazilian ascended to the women’s strawweight championship in impressive fashion earlier this year, defeating Rose Namajunas with a second-round knockout as a -155 betting favourite at UFC 237. The victory improved her professional MMA record to 20-6 going into Saturday’s matchup at Shenzhen Universade Sports Centre Arena in China.
Andrade powered her march to her first championship victory with four-straight wins, including a stunning first-round knockout victory over Karolina Kowalkiewicz as strong -500 chalk at UFC 228, which earned her the second of her three career Performance of the Night bonuses.
Overall, Andrade owns a 7-1 record since making the move to strawweight in 2016 and has finished opponents in four of those contests. However, she came out on the wrong end of a unanimous decision in her first bid for the UFC women’s strawweight title, falling to Joanna Jedrzejczyk as a +165 underdog at UFC 211, and has also seen two of her six career defeats come by decision.
That could complicate matters for Andrade against Zhang, who enters the octagon pegged as a +130 underdog at online betting sites. The 30-year-old from Hebei, China will enjoy hometown support as she vies for a 20th straight victory, and her fourth-straight win since joining the UFC last year.
Zhang is coming off a three-round unanimous decision win over Tecia Torres, paying out on -160 odds in her Las Vegas debut at UFC 235. She’s also posted first-round submission wins in two of her past four outings, including a decisive victory over Jessica Aguilar as a -650 wager at UFC Fight Night 141. “Magnum” also has nine knockout wins on her 19-1 pro MMA record, but has seen just three of her 20 career fights go beyond two rounds.
Elsewhere on the UFC Fight Night 157 odds, welterweights clash as Elizeu Zaleski dos Santos takes on Li Jingliang as heavy -300 chalk, while Kai Kara-France sets his sights on an eighth straight victory as he takes on fellow flyweight Mark de la Rosa as a -225 favourite. In earlier UFC Fight Night Shenzhen action, Movsar Evloev aims to build on his perfect 11-0 record as he clashes with Zhenhong Lu as heavy -650 chalk in a battle of featherweights.
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