TUF 20 Preview: Sam Heard Previews The UFCs New Strawweight Division

TUF 20 Preview: Sam Heard Previews The UFCs New Strawweight Division
by Sam Heard - @SamHeard_

It has been a week since the UFC’s hugely discussed announcement that they would be introducing a Woman’s Strawweight division (106-155lbs), making it the tenth weight division to be featured on MMA’s premier promotion. To compete in this division, the UFC has signed 11 of Invicta’s most exciting Strawweight fighters. Equally exciting as this initial announcement was the development that these 11 fighters would be supplemented with a further 5 signings and would compete in the first ever all-women’s Ultimate Fighter. The winner of the show will become the inaugural UFC Strawweight champion. The stakes in a TUF show have never been higher; even in what I believe to be the most exciting entry into the series – ‘TUF 4: The Comeback’ – the prize was a title shot rather than the belt itself. To fight fans less familiar with Invicta, some of these new signings will be unfamiliar – rest assured they are certainly top-tier. Here is Kingdom MMA’s summary of the 11 new fighters and who to look out for when they compete on The Ultimate Fighter’s 20th instalment:

Carla “Cookie Monster” Esparza (9-2)
Invicta’s reigning Strawweight champion must surely be one of the favourites to exchange her Invicta belt for UFC gold. Her strong collegiate-level wrestling base has been supplemented by improved striking and BJJ skills. Her only losses earlier in her career came via contentious Split-Decision and an unlucky Armbar submission.

Claudia “Claudinha” Gadelha (11-0)
Gadelha was supposed to challenge Esparza for her title only 10 days ago on the Invicta FC 7 card but was prevented by illness. Her flawless record alone is indicative of her prowess in the cage.  Gadelha may be seen as the Ronda Rousey of the Strawweight division, picking up 5 of her 11 wins by first round Armbar.

Joanne “JoJo” Calderwood (8-0)
Scotland’s own Joanne Calderwood has established a reputation as one of the most feared fighters in the Strawweight division. As is often the case with fighters hailing from the United Kingdom, JoJo is an explosive striker who turned to MMA after being a high level Kickboxing competitor. Though her last win at the aforementioned Invicta 7 event came via decision, 4 of her 8 wins have come via nasty KOs, certainly making her one to watch in the upcoming TUF competition.

Felice “Lil Bulldog” Herrig (9-5)
A popular character in the Invicta promotion thanks to her effervescent personality and entertaining promotion of fights, Lil Bulldog has bite behind her bark thanks to her background in high level Muay Thai. Sure to create some very juicy television when she goes into the TUF household.

Tecia “Tiny Tornado” Torres (4-0)
Though she has yet to achieve a stoppage in her 4 fight career, Torres’ training with American Top Team shows us how serious she takes her fight career. Known for possessing a very well rounded skillset, supplemented by her great natural athleticism. She achieved a Unanimous Decision victory over Felice Herrig on the Invicta 7 card – don’t be surprised if there’s still bad blood that’ll resurface in the house.

Juliana “Ju Thai” Lima (6-1)
Brazil’s Ju Thai has lived up to her nickname as a skilled Muay Thai specialist, with an all-round MMA game which has developed greatly in her last few ventures into the cage. Training under world renowned Vinicius Draculino has no doubt improved her skills exponentially.

Alex “Astro Girl” Chambers (4-1)
Formerly a fringe title contender in Invicta’s Atomweight division, Australia’s Chambers has agreed to move up to Strawweight to get a chance at competing in the UFC. With two first round KOs documenting her powerful striking, she is by no means a one-trick-pony as she has also shown to have some slick submissions.

Bec “Rowdy One” Hyatt (5-3)
The second Australian to have been added to the UFC’s Strawweight division, Hyatt has garnered a great deal of renown due to her love-her-or-hate-her ‘Mike Bisping-style’ effect on fans. With three of her five wins coming via submission, the Rowdy One has shown a great deal of skill on the matt despite Kickboxing having been her entry point into MMA.

Emily Kagan (3-1)
Training out of New Mexico with Greg Jackson, Kagan implements the smart fight IQ always associated with Jackson’s fighters. Though she is the most senior of the UFC’s Strawweight signings at 32, her professional MMA record is fairly thin. Don’t be fooled by this though as she has trained BJJ since the age of 18.

Rose “Thug Rose” Namajunas (2-1)
Thug Rose became the focus of the wider MMA world earlier this year with her amazing victory over Kathina Catron via Flying Armbar after just 12 seconds. I look forward to see what Namajunas will try to top that with, though at only 21 she has plenty of time to try. Attempting a demanding technique like that in her second professional fight demonstrates how comfortable she is in the cage.

Paige “12 Gauge” VanZant (3-1)
Aged only 19, VanZant has already got 4 fights under her belt and has bucket loads of potential. She’s recently joined Team Alpha Male’s new female contingent so expect to see her skills improve vastly while training alongside killers like Urijah Faber and Chad Mendes. Expect the 12 Gauge to be upgraded with explosive rounds and laser sight.

It’s safe to say that the twentieth series of The Ultimate Fighter will be one to look forward to. Not only is there that all-important UFC Championship at stake but it seems that the Strawweights who the UFC have signed are of a very high level – based on their records (which as we known isn’t the only indicator) they are superior fighters to the Female Bantamweights who have just competed on TUF 18, many of whom had far lesser MMA records. From an entertainment standpoint, the fighters will already know one another so when placed in the TUF house it’s safe to assume that pre-existing tensions will quickly rise to the surface. In a year which has seen gigantic steps forward in the world of Women’s MMA this development can be seen as the very ripe cherry on top.