With the Strawweight Championship Being Vacated, Can Tatiana Suarez Get Back in Title Contention?
Tatiana Suarez was 11-0 and looked like it was just a matter of time before she was holding gold in the Strawweight Division. However, she finally got her shot against Zhang Weili and was dominated. The world found out that if you can stop Suarez’s wrestling, she has nothing to threaten you on the feet, so if you move forward, she will have a hard time shooting takedowns. Zhang Weili will be moving up in weight to take on Valentina Schevchenko. With Mackenzie Dern facing off against Virna Jandiroba to crown a new Strawweight Champion, Suarez will look to showcase a new version of herself and make a statement against a tough opponent. She will be facing off against a former title challenger in her own right, Amanda Lemos. Will Tatiana Suarez show why she ran through the division and will one day become a champion, or will Amanda Lemos show that Suarez’s newfound weaknesses will be her downfall once again?
Tatiana Suarez was on an absolute roll when she entered the UFC in 2017. However, after her win against Nina Nunes in 2019, she was on the wrong end of countless injuries that kept her out all the way to 2024. When she came back, she looked like she hadn’t lost a step at all, completely dominating Montana De La Rosa and subbing her in round two. Being as elite a wrestler as Suarez is, you don’t really need the best striking; you just need enough of it to shoot your takedowns and keep your opponents honest. Her standup was so bad against Weili, you wouldn’t know if you never watched her fight how she was undefeated and fighting for the title. I’m sure she spent this entire training camp working on her striking, and it will look better this time around. With Lemos being her opponent, who has struggled with bigger and stronger wrestlers in the past, she won’t need to worry much about the standup and her power if she can close the distance and get a hold of her. Lemos won’t be able to stop the relentless takedown attempts, and she could find a submission at some point throughout this fight.
Amanda Lemos has been looking to get herself back in title contention after her poor performance she also put on against Zhang Weili. She has heavy power in her hands and is arguably the hardest-hitting Strawweight in the entire division. However, her grappling has always been her downfall and has been the reason she has lost three times in the UFC. Now, going up against one of the best wrestlers the UFC has seen isn't a recipe for success. Lemos knows this is going to be her best chance to get another title shot and has had multiple training camps to work on her wrestling; something eventually has to give. If she can go forward and rock Suarez with something clean early, she will gain her respect, and that could prevent Suarez from marching forward as often as she does. Lemos likes to grapple herself and could use her hips to turn Suarez around the way Weili was able to do continuously. If she can take Suarez down or use her own body weight to flip positions, she can do serious work on the ground and wear Suarez down. If this fight stays on the feet, somehow Lemos is going to have the advantage and the power on those exchanges. If she can stay off the fence, she will have her best chance at securing the massive upset victory.
This matchup is most likely the number one contender for the next title challenger. Both of these fighters should be ultra-aggressive in this fight because a boring decision victory is not going to cut it. With that being said, you're going to want to tune in early as this fight is on the prelims. Noches UFC is back with an earlier start time this Saturday, September 13th, with the prelims starting at 3:00 p.m. EST.
