As the date for UFC 294 gets closer, Dana White has replaced Charles Oliveira with Alexander Volkanovski and Paulo Costa with Kamaru Usman. With the card previously looking like Russia vs. Brazil, the changes have flipped all that now. Nonetheless, it will be a much-anticipated card this year.
In the preliminary card, the undefeated Victoria Dudakova an upcoming Russian prospect going against a more experienced Jinh Yu Frey. Victoria is currently undefeated with a record of 7 wins. Her previous fight against Istela Nunes ended in a gruesome fashion, where her opponent dislocated the left elbow during a takedown, winning Dudakova the fight.
One fighter misses weight for Saturday’s #UFC294 strawweight showdown! 😱
• 🇷🇺 Viktoriia Dudakova (116.6) * vs. 🇺🇸 Jinh Yu Frey (116)
* Dudakova missed the strawweight non-title limit by 0.6lbs and will be fined 20% of her purse.#WMMA #UFC pic.twitter.com/VWwg8zsvLN
— Women’s MMA Rankings (@WMMARankings) October 20, 2023
Jinh Yu Frey’s Prior to signing with the UFC, she fought with Invicta FC, where she became the Atomweight Champion. However, her success does not follow her after coming to the UFC, since she has been on a three-fight losing streak. Her last fight against Elise Reed ended in a decision win for Elise.
Victoria Dudakova vs. Jinh Yu Frey stats
Stats | Victoria Dudakova | Jinh Yu Frey |
Wins | 7 | 11 |
Losses | 0 | 9 |
Height | 5’5” | 5’3” |
Reach | 67” | 65” |
Division | Strawweight | Strawweight |
Age | 24 | 38 |
Victoria Dudakova vs. Jinh Yu Frey prediction
Victoria Dudakova is a striker with exceptional skills, which adds to her having two victories by KO and four wins by submission. The Russian fighter has a striking accuracy of 59%, with 1.41 significant strikes landed per minute. Her takedown accuracy stands at 56%, while her takedown average is 4.82 per 15 minutes.
Jinh Yu Frey, on the other hand, has a record of 11 wins and 9 losses, with 3 first-round finishes. The Texan Frey has 43% striking accuracy, with 2.95 significant strikes landed per minute, and has absorbed around 4.11 significant strikes per minute. Frey’s takedown accuracy stands at 38%, with a takedown defense of 89% and a takedown average of 1.02 per 15 minutes.
This fight will be interesting, as the winner might get a shot to take on one of the top 15 next year. As Frey is an older fighter, she seems to have more fight IQ, but Victoria will desperately try to prevent her winning streak from being disrupted. Dudakova has a height and reach advantage in this fight, giving her a clear advantage.
A battle between these strawweight contenders will turn out to be a fiery one, as each will try to dominate the other. Taking into consideration both the fighters’ stats, Victoria Dudakova has a higher chance of winning the fight via Submission.