Former women’s featherweight champion Germaine de Randamie (7-3, 3 KOs) will meet veteran Raquel Pennington (9-6, 1 KO, 3 SUBs) at UFC Fight Night 139 on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. The card airs live on FS1.
Germaine de Randamie hasn’t fought since winning the inaugural featherweight title by beating Holly Holm at UFC 208. That was in February 2017, and things haven’t gone so smoothly for “The Iron Lady” since then.
If you remember, the UFC wanted her to defend the title against Cris Cyborg - who was basically the reason why the promotion created a featherweight division in the first place. After stalling by saying she was healing up minor injuries, de Randamie’s team switched course and said that they refused to fight Cyborg because the Brazilian had popped for PEDs in the past.
Fans didn’t buy it. Neither did Dana White, who immediately striped GDR of the title. In the sport of prizefighting, one of the biggest ways to earn fan derision is to duck opponents, and by all accounts this was a huge duck job poorly packaged to be a moral stand. Nice try, but the girl was scared. We don’t blame her, as most grownass men would be petrified to get into a cage with Cyborg.
So don’t be surprised if you hear a lot of boos thrown GDR’s way this Saturday when she meets Raquel Pennington. This is quietly a very important matchup between top 5 bantamweights, and let’s not forget that Pennington just fought for the title. She got pieced up by Amanda Nunes, but still.
The UFC odds at BookMaker.eu have GDR as the favorite, but overall this should be a competitive fight. Live UFC betting at BookMaker.eu is also available should you want to hedge your bets or take advantage of something you see happening in game.
UFC Odds at BookMaker.eu
Germaine de Randamie -175
Raquel Pennington +140
Fight goes/doesn’t go to decision: -260 / +180
Striking Stats
Significant strikes landed per minute: Pennington 3.63 / de Randamie 3.2
Accuracy: Pennington 49.1% / de Randamie 47.31%
Significant strikes absorbed per minute: Pennington 3.37 / de Randamie 2.28
Defense: Pennington 63.18% / de Randamie 66.73%
Grappling Stats
Takedown average: Pennington 1.29 / de Randamie 0
Takedown accuracy: Pennington 35.48% / de Randamie 0%
Takedowns defended: Pennington 64.86% / de Randamie 86.49%
Submission average: Pennington 1.06 / de Randamie 0.2
Betting Analysis
Like so many fighters from the Netherlands, de Randamie is an excellent kickboxer. It’s a region with a decorated history in the sport, and GDR was a pro long before she became an MMA fighter. Striking inside an octagon comes natural to her, as her textbook leads to power in her strikes that few women can match.
Though Pennington isn’t a bad striker, she’s not on the same level as GDR. Against Nunes, Pennington got pieced up against the division’s most explosive Thai boxer. GDR is no Nunes, but she also soundly outstruck former pro boxer Holly Holm. Good thing that the 30-year old Pennington is at home in the clinch and can wrestle a bit.
Pennington should fair much better against GDR, and the key here is whether she can press her into the fence. If she can, then it becomes a manageable dirty boxing match with the opportunity to set up takedowns. Out in space, GDR’s kickboxing technique can’t be matched by “Rocky”.
UFC Odds Pick: Pennington to win at +140
This is a tough matchup for Pennington, as highly technical strikers can give her trouble. But this is a girl that gutted out a four-fight win streak en route to a title challenge, taking out Jessica Andrade, Bethe Correia and Miesha Tate along the way. GDR is in for a dogfight, and that’s not something she’s used to.
Bet on UFC odds at BookMaker.eu
Access live betting lines from your mobile device at BookMaker sportsbook! Real-time spreads, totals, props and money line are all available so start betting with BookMaker today. UFC Fight Night 139 takes place on Saturday, November 10, 2018 at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado. The card airs live on FS1.
