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UFC 278 will take place from the Vivint Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah on Saturday, August 20. The main event will be a fight between Kamaru Usman and Leon Edwards for the UFC Welterweight championship. The main card has five fights and the preliminary card is scheduled for four bouts scheduled at 8 p.m. ET. One of the early fights on the main card will feature Wu Yanan against Luckie Pudilova in the women’s bantamweight division.
Yanan (12-6) has struggled mightily since signing with the UFC in 2017. She is 1-4 in UFC fights with her only win coming against Lauren Mueller on November 24, 2018. Yanan has struggled with weight as she dropped from bantamweight to flyweight and then failed to make weight in her second fight at flyweight. Most recently she lost a unanimous decision on April 16, 2022 to Mayra Silva in an excellent fight that earned “Fight of the Night” honors.
Pudilova (13-7) is making her return to the UFC after a solid run Oktagon MMA. She had previously been in the UFC and went 2-5 with wins over Sarah Moras and Ji Yeon Kim. Pudilova was 5-1 during her three-year stretch in Oktagon, earning another shot in the UFC. Nine of her 13 wins have come by a decision.
How to watch Wu Yanan vs. Lucie Pudilova
Date: Saturday, August 20
Fight time: Preliminary card starts at 8:00 p.m. ET
Live stream: ESPN and ESPN+ via WatchESPN or the ESPN app
DraftKings Sportsbook Odds/Predictions
Yanan: +110
Pudilova: -130
Splits: 89% of handle on Yanan, 52% of bets on Pudilova
This seems like a fight that the loser will find themselves out of the UFC. Two strikers here although Pudilova has a slight edge in power. Yanan has the ability to stick and move and connect from distance, but she tends to get into brawls and that’s going to work to Pudilova’s advantage and allow her to take a decision.
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