MMA Preview – Holly Holm vs Yana Kunitskaya at UFC on ESPN 43
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HOLLY HOLM VS YANA KUNITSKAYA FACTS
When is UFC on ESPN 43? Saturday 25th March, 2023 - 21:00 start (UK)
Where is UFC on ESPN 43? AT&T Center, San Antonio, Texas (US)
Where can I get tickets for UFC on ESPN 43? Click here to buy tickets for UFC Fight Night
What channel is UFC on ESPN 43 on? BT Sport 2
Where can I stream UFC on ESPN 43? BT Sport subscribers can stream the fight online via the BT Sport website
For viewers in the United States, the event will be shown live on ESPN+ and you can sign up for access as part of a Disney Bundle here!
HOLLY HOLM VS YANA KUNITSKAYA LOWDOWN
Holly Holm (14-6) walks out for her 14th UFC fight. She is coming off a controversial split decision loss to Ketlen Vieira (2022) to slump to 7-6 in the UFC – the price you pay for fighting the best in the division. Besides Vieira, all those losses have come to former champions but her unanimous decision wins over Raquel Pennington and Irene Aldana in 2020 prove she still has some juice left in the tank.
Looking to prove the same, Yana Kunitskaya (14-6(1)) makes her first appearance since giving birth to a baby girl. She last fought in 2021 when she got TKO’d by Aldana and now she hopes to emulate her performances and unanimous decision wins over Julija Stoliarenko (2020) and Vieira (2021).
HOLLY HOLM VS YANA KUNITSKAYA PREDICTION
You would think sharing the same opponents in their last two fights would make this easy to predict. However, we all know MMA maths does not add up. They have also been inactive in the last couple years and past their prime.
It is fair to say Holm’s prime was in a different league to Kunitskaya’s. The former champion is still a beast on the feet with quality cardio and movement. She has also become at home in the clinch which helps swings this further in her favour.
Kunitskaya is well rounded, but her strengths lie in her grappling. Holm is a physical specimen and is stronger but Kunitskaya is the all round better grappler so we expect Holm to use her skills defensively and create space.
Here, she will remain illusive and dart in and out of range peppering with combinations and kicks from the outside. She has lost some of her knockout threat, but it is not beyond the realms of possibility especially considering the Russian’s last three losses have been via knockout.
We expect a vintage Holm decision frustrating Kunitskaya.
Prediction: Holm via Decision - CLICK HERE FOR PARIMATCH'S WELCOME OFFER (BET £5, GET £30 IN BONUSES!)
Value bet: Holm via KO/TKO
