Just before the main event of UFC Fight Night: Sandhagen vs. Dillashaw, MMA fans will delight themselves with a tasty appetizer in the form of a women’s bantamweight showdown between Aspen Ladd and Macy Chiasson. Check out our preview and pick to win this fight below.
Ladd is making a return to the Octagon after quite a lengthy layoff. The last time she fought was in 2019 when he stopped Yana Kunitskaya in the third round. That was a solid rebound for Ladd who prior to that match was coming off a brutal TKO loss at the hands of Germaine de Randamiein July of that same year. Ladd is looking to regain his footing in the UFC after dealing with a devastating knee injury and this fight against Chiasson will be a good test for her. Ladd is known more for her striking than anything else inside the Octagon. She has six wins via knockouts and owns a 1-0 record submission record. That said, it’s hard to sleep on her ability to dominate opponents on the ground. She is averaging 2.45 takedowns per 15 minutes on an impressive 75 takedown accuracy.
Chiasson is steadily moving in the right direction after her unanimous decision loss to Lina Lansberg in 2019. After that setback, Chiasson scored back-to-back unanimous decision victories over Shanna Young in February 2020 and Mario Reneau in March 2021. Chiasson will present a tough challenge for Ladd, largely because of her size advantage. Ladd stands just 5’6” while Chiasson is way taller at 5’11.” Chiasson also has a huge six-inch reach advantage, which she could use to keep Ladd’s aggression in check while scoring on jabs and solid strikes from a distance. She is averaging 4.16 significant strikes per minute with a striking accuracy of 49 percent. Against Reneau, Chiasson landed 51 significant strikes, while absorbing just 30. She has out-struck her last two opponents, 137-70. Chiasson is perhaps known best for his win via rear-naked choke in The Ultimate Fighter 28 Finale against Pannie Kanzad back in 2018.
