Jessica Andrade entered the cage at UFC 283 hoping that a win over flyweight Lauren Murphy would set up a rematch with strawweight champion Weili Zhang. Zhang has not been announced by the UFC, but “Bate Estaca” is keeping busy.
The former UFC titleholder agreed to face Erin Blanchfield on a week’s notice in the main event of UFC Vegas 69 this Saturday, stepping in for Taila Santos, and maintains the same goal in mind: A win at the UFC APEX, though in a different weight class, should get her the next shot at 115 pounds.
“I’ll keep asking for this opportunity to fight for the belt,” Andrade said on this week’s episode of Trocacao Franca podcast. “Wins are wins regardless of which division you’re at. Four wins in a row can give me this opportunity. I will continue to ask .”
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Andrade lost her title in the first round to Zhang in 2019,. She has now won three consecutive titles since she challenged Valentina Shevchenko in for the flyweight silver in defeating Cynthia Calvillo and Amanda Lemos as well as Murphy.
“She stated that [Zhang] does not have an opponent yet so it’s great for her to give me this chance. “I wasn’t able to show anything in my fight against her. I still have her in my throat. It’s important to win this fight. This won’t happen easily. If I win the fight, it’s a sure thing that I will ask for it.
“I wants this chance so bad. It is what I want. All depends on the victory right now. For the rest of my days, I will keep calling for her. Dana! Place me! I’m ready!”
As Andrade said, plans are meaningless if Blanchfield doesn’t beat her on Saturday. The 23-year-old is 4-0 under the UFC banner with wins over Sarah Alpar, Miranda Maverick, JJ Aldrich and Molly McCann, and could very well be one win away from the gold if she’s impressive against a veteran like “Bate Estaca”.
“She is a strong opponent,” Andrade stated. “She’s ranked No. 10, but she’s very tough. She was very difficult to beat and nobody wanted her to be fought on such short notice. I’m ready for anything. Every time I fight, I feel more complete and more at ease .
” I think that my striking will give me the advantage in this fight against her,” said she. “Everything changes after the first punch and the first kick. I know she’s good in the wrestling area, she’s great on top using her jiu-jitsu, she has good submissions, so the gameplan is to avoid her takedowns and grappling. My ground and pound gives me a huge advantage .”
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Andrade is a fighter who has demonstrated finishing skills throughout her UFC career. She can knockout as well as vicious submissions and considers striking the most effective weapon for getting the job done at UFC APEX.
” I really want to knockout,” Andrade stated. “The knockout or the submission. I never want to leave it to the judges. Even though I’m still recovering from the strikes landed on Lauren Murphy, I think I’m still evolving with my striking, so I expect a knockout. It won’t be in the first round or the second, I think I might knock her out between the third and the fourth. Jiu-jitsu saves at the end .”
if nothing else works.
Source: https://www.mmafighting.com/2023/2/18/23604020/jessica-andrade-really-really-wants-weili-zhang-next-with-knockout-win-over-erin-blanchfield-shes?rand=96749
