Preview: UFC Fight Night 229 Prelims

Women’s Flyweights

Montana De La Rosa (12-8-1, 5-4-1 UFC) vs. J.J. Aldrich (12-6, 8-5 UFC)

ODDS: De La Rosa (-118), Aldrich (-102)

Some late shuffling results in a compelling matchup that pairs two fighters who have been perennial gatekeepers to the UFC’s flyweight rankings. As the UFC introduced its 125-pound division on the women’s side, De La Rosa was a dark horse of a prospect. A solid wrestler, De La Rosa faced some tough grapplers on the regional scene and had a deceivingly poor record as a result. However, De La Rosa kicked off her UFC career with three submission wins and carved out a solid niche from there, even if she has been frustratingly unable to get over the hump to the upper reaches of the division. De La Rosa is a dogged fighter who has also developed some sound striking, but she has hit a clear athletic ceiling past a certain point, most recently getting turned back by Tatiana Suarez in February. Aldrich has been in much the same spot since making her UFC debut in 2016. She quickly proved she had enough technical skill to hang on the UFC roster despite a clear lack of athleticism, but despite filling out her frame with a move up to flyweight, she also can find herself without a path to work into a fight against a much stronger athlete. Aldrich finally scored the first finish of her UFC career against Na Liang in August—a much-needed bit of momentum coming off the first losing streak of her career—and it will be interesting to see if that gives her some newfound confidence that might pay off. De La Rosa gets the narrow nod, if only because she is consistently the more aggressive fighter. Aldrich typically uses her well-roundedness to feel her way into a fight, while De La Rosa immediately looks to start implementing some pressure and pursuing some takedowns. Aldrich might be technically sound enough to make this ugly, but she is also unlikely to scare De La Rosa off. The pick is De La Rosa via decision.

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De La Rosa vs. Aldrich