UFC Vegas 64 Aftermath: Game Plans Work, Use Them
Amanda Lemos and Marina Rodriguez did both gameplans. They both worked.
This card was a rough one. I managed to catch a few fights between downs with the LSU-Alabama football game on and what I did see was fun. UFC Vegas 64 wasn’t star studded but we had a triangle choke, flying knee finish, armbar, and only two fights went to decision. Neil Magny beat Daniel Rodriguez and became the winningest welterweight in UFC history. The main event was a fiery bout between Amanda Lemos and Marina Rodriguez. So, with that said, Aftermath is here and we have to break it down! Let’s begin!
Marina Rodruiguez: Stop Gameplanning, Stop Winning
In this past week’s Beforemath, I talked about feints being a path to victory for Marina Rodriguez. In the tape study for the fight, I saw in the Angela Hill fight that her feints paralyzed and neutralized the jab of Lemos and made the fight closer than it should have been. We stated that if Rodriguez wanted to slow down Lemos, then feints would play a big part of that path to victory.
Early in the fight, Rodriguez did just that and it worked wonders against the heavy handed Lemos. We saw Lemos pause and try to find the range and rhythm of Marina Rodriguez. Marina Rodriguez spent most of the round using these feints and her footwork to stay at range against Lemos.
Another thing Rodriguez did well in the first round was kick the kicker. Along with a good jab and power, Amanda Lemos also has a good low kick. Rodriguez made it a point to kick first and kick often, not giving Lemos an opportunity to fire off low kicks of her own. All this was fine and dandy until the second round and Marina Rodriguez stopped doing all of this for the most part.
In the first round, Rodriguez rushed in and got caught in a body lock from her foe and was almost taken down. She ended up in top control and had the opportunity get some damage in, which she did. But this is really where the fight changed for Rodriguez.
From the second round on, Marina Rodriguez did none of that and paid the price. She stopped feinting and Lemos started to fire off the jab and find time to throw the low kick and heavier shots. Rodriguez stepped in with her chin high, another problem pointed out in Beforemath, Lemos started throwing.
Lemos eventually got another body lock and brought the fight to the ground successfully. There, Amanda Lemos was able to grab a neck crank and start putting pressure on Rodriguez who, admittedly, fought the hands better. Rodriguez gave up half guard and there, Lemos spent most of the round on top. Rodriguez barely hung on until the round’s close.
Finally, in the third round, Lemos was feeling more confident and Rodriguez was not. Her original game plan was completely gone. Lemos landed a huge left and Rodriguez was reeling backwards as Lemos came in attacking. The referee called the fight off and, while many said it was early, it was justified. Rodriguez was eating shots and the ref saved her from more damage.
Now Rodriguez, who was on the verge of a title shot in the best women’s division, is firmly out of contention and will have to claw her way up to the top again. There’s the rematch with Xiaonan Yan and, should she lose, Carla Esparza, but these fights are very high profile and Rodriguez is probably looking at a huge step back.
Personally, I’d like to see Marina Rodriguez take a grappler on after her loss at UFC Vegas 64. Jessica Andrade is my number one choice. Andrade, who fights at women’s flyweight right now, could provide that test for Rodriguez who has shown that her grappling is just plain bad. She was taken down by Xiaonan Yan, a sanda fighter, and the grappling was unnerving enough to make her abandon her game after being taken down. Andrade is fighting Lauren Murphy in January and Rodriguez may take some time off to adjust. But the fight with Andrade will show if Rodriguez has worked on her grappling and become a better fighter.
Another option is Virna Jandiroba. Jandiroba is a Jiu Jitsu player who has some decent wins and is a step down in competition. Her wins over Angela Hill, Felice Herrig, and more make her out to be a formidable opponent and an addition to the resume of Marina Rodriguez. It would test her take down defense in a less traditional manner.
UFC Vegas 64: Amanda Lemos is the real deal
Amanda Lemos came out and showed that she can stick to a game plan at UFC Vegas 64. As mentioned earlier, we saw that Rodriguez leaves her chin out there at times and it was obvious that Lemos was looking for that with her wide hooks. And while Lemos didn’t connect on a chin-high Marina Rodriguez, it was her power that got the job done.
Amanda Lemos did struggle with the feints early on in the fight and Rodriguez was getting the best of her in the first round which ended in the botched takedown that saw Lemos end up on bottom. But Amanda Lemos dared Marina Rodriguez to keep it up all night and that bet paid off. Hedged with the power in her hands, Amanda Lemos got the job started by not abandoning the takedown after failing to do so in round one and ending up on bottom. She knew the grappling of Marina Rodriguez wasn’t good and that her best path to victory, at least partially, lied through there. The takedown in the first round gave Rodriguez reason for pause and caused her to forget her feints and low kicks which was just enough for Lemos to get back into the fight.
She went out and got the second takedown and that was the true icing on the cake. Once Marina Rodriguez stopped with her feinting approach, it allowed Amanda Lemos to finally get her read on Rodriguez and utilized it in the second round. It truly didn’t take all that long. (1) Lemos saw that Rodriguez loads up on the right hand a lot and decided to take advantage of that. Knowing how sus the grappling of Rodriguez is, Lemos would use the step in to close space on Rodriguez. (2) As Rodriguez threw the right and over extending a bit, Lemos will slip to the inside of the cross, staying in range for a body lock. With the cross over-extending Rodriguez, (3) Lemos would be able to grab the underhook on that side and reach around with her right hand to get the body lock and eventually truck Rodriguez to the fence.
Once they were to the fence, Lemos needed to get to the ground and begin her work. Lemos would press Rodriguez against the fence where she can position herself for the sweep. (1) In the first frame in the diagram above, we can see Amanda Lemos with the left side underhook she secured earlier but has let go of the body lock to position herself for the sweep. (2) To get the takedown, Lemos will use that underhook to pull Marina forward. Rodriguez framing off the face of Lemos gives Lemos the opportunity to also get the back of the bicep and push in a twisting motion as well, adding to the leverage. (3) In the last frame, we see the trinity added and, as we saw in frame 2, Lemos is pushing and pulling on the upper body of Rodriguez. But the third ingredient is the sweep. When she was ready, Lemos shifted to her right and this gave her the opportunity for the sweep which is what ultimately got Rodriguez to the ground.
Eventually, Lemos would get the knockout with a dipping overhand right and then a barrage of punches to convince the ref to call the fight off. There, Amanda Lemos snagged the best victory of her career and has bright things ahead.
As for what’s next, Amanda Lemos is waiting on what happens this weekend between Carla Esparza and Weili Zhang. The two fight for the title and Lemos could be handed the loser of that fight as a final eliminator to see if she’s ready for the title. If Namajunas sits out another title fight, Lemos could very well get the winner. So if we’re being thorough, I guess the next fight really depends on what Rose Namajunas decides to do. If Namajunas wants the title fight, she’ll get it.
But Namajunas could be forced to take a fight back and Lemos could be an option for that as well. Regardless of what happens in the title fight, Lemos is potentially next in line and the win over Marina Rodriguez showed that she can be tactful and stick to a gameplan. While the top of the division is very tough, wins over Rodriguez, Michelle Waterson-Gomez, and Angela Hill put Amanda Lemos in a good situation after her win at UFC Vegas 64.