MMA Junkie analyst Dan Tom breaks down the UFC’s top bouts. Today, we look at the co-main event for UFC 275.

UFC 275 takes place Saturday at Singapore Indoor Stadium in Singapore. The main card airs on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.

Valentina Shevchenko (22-3 MMA, 11-2 UFC)

Staple info:

• Height: 5’5″ Age: 34 Weight: 125 lbs. Reach: 67″

• Last fight: TKO win over Lauren Murphy (Sept. 25, 2021)

• Camp: Team Shevchenko (Las Vegas, NV)

• Stance/striking style: Southpaw/muay Thai

• Risk management: Excellent

Supplemental info:

+ UFC flyweight champion
+ 17x muay Thai and K-1 championships
+ 9x IMFA Champ (56-2 as a pro)
+ Tae kwon do black belt (2nd dan)
+ 6 KO victories
+ 7 submission wins
+ 6 first-round finishes
+ KO power
+ Excellent footwork
^ Seldom out of position
+ Accurate check hook and counter cross
+ Hard knees, elbows and kicks
+ Crafty clinch game
^ Good trips and tosses
+ Strong positional grappler

Taila Santos (19-1 MMA, 4-1 UFC)

Staple info:

• Height: 5’6″ Age: 29 Weight: 125 lbs. Reach: 68″

• Last fight: Submission win over Joanne Wood (Nov. 20, 2021)

• Camp: Thai Brasil Floripa (Brazil)

• Stance/striking style: Orthodox/muay Thai

• Risk management: Good

Supplemental info:

+ Aspera FC bantamweight title
+ Brazilian jiu-jitsu blue belt
+ Regional muay Thai accolades
+ 10 KO victories
+ 3 submission wins
+ 12 first-round finishes
+ KO power
+ Consistent pace and pressure
+ Solid striking acumen
^ Counter punching, positional awareness, etc.
+ Hard kicks and knees
+ Strong inside the clinch
^ Double collar-tie attacks to takedowns
+ Good transitional grappler
^ Works well from front headlock

Point of interest: Thai boxing

Taila Santos

The co-main event in Singapore features a flyweight title bout between two people who are familiar with the art of eight limbs.

[autotag]Taila Santos[/autotag], whose father was a muay Thai coach, started training martial arts in her teenage years. A natural athlete, Santos’ leg dexterity from her soccer days seems to have translated nicely into the striking department.

Staying light but loaded on the feet, Santos seldom throws herself out of position while maintaining a solid sense of space. The Brazilian challenger will often prod with jabs or front teeps, but countering appears to be at the heart of her game.

Against her small sample of southpaw looks, Santos will get more aggressive with weapons like body kicks in an effort to abuse the open stance, occasionally following up with shifting hooks when opponents attempt to flee the scene. But against a pinpoint counter striker like [autotag]Valentina Shevchenko[/autotag], she’ll need to be mindful of doing the latter.

Also indoctrinated into martial arts through her family, Shevchenko has been a practitioner of combat sports since she was 4, amassing multiple titles in K-1 and the IFMA (the same organization where she fought and beat Joanna Jedrzejczyk three times).

A counter fighter by nature, Shevchenko wields all the weapons that a southpaw should never leave home without, keeping everything from check-hooks to counter crosses on a hair-trigger. And whenever someone tries to step off to the champion’s weak side, she offers answers in the form of spinning assaults that pair perfectly with liver kicks to help keep her opposition corralled.

Still, Shevchenko will be paired up with another powerful muay Thai practitioner who prefers to counter, so don’t be surprised if these two get stuck in some weird stalemates this Saturday.

Point of interest: Clinch country

Sep 25, 2021; Las Vegas, Nevada, USA; Valentina Shevchenko lands a hit against Lauren Murphy during UFC 266 at T-Mobile Arena. Mandatory Credit: Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

Considering that the clinch is quietly a huge part of each competitor’s game, tie-ups will likely be the key junction in this contest.

Despite being more associated as a striker, Santos has a clear comfort within the clinch. Whether she is launching knees from a double collar tie position or looking to lock her hands and hit an angle for a takedown, the 29-year-old is not shy about asserting her power.

That said, Santos will need to be careful when closing in on attacks given the champion’s propensity to hit counters.

Shevchenko has a knack for hitting takedowns in a countering fashion that may come to light in closed quarters. As we’ve seen in past Shevchenko fights, fighters who come in hot on the champion tend to get grounded accordingly – particularly when trying to do so from the clinch.

No longer underrated inside of this space, Shevchenko possesses all the tools you would expect from a muay Thai practitioner. Not only does Shevchenko wield mean elbows off the break, but the Kyrgyzstani is also better about getting her back off of the fence at this weight class.

Although many high-level strikers have failed to develop grappling games in MMA, I think that fighters who come from traditional muay Thai backgrounds bring an aspect of grappling that is typically understated. A devastating striking art with an often-overlooked emphasis on clinch wrestling, Shevchenko embraced and excelled in the grappling aspects of muay Thai, which in turn granted her success while competing in that sport (as well as this one).

Even when taken down, Shevchenko offers credible submission threats off of her back and is mostly positionally sound when playing from topside. But if Shevchenko does end up on her back, then she cannot afford to sleep on the skills of Santos.

She may only be a blue belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu on paper, but Santos shows serviceable grappling from many positions.

Not only does Santos appear to be strong in a positional sense, but she also works well from front-headlocks, utilizing them to either go for front chokes or transition to the back. But if Santos is the one who ends up on the bottom, then she’ll need to weigh the risks of playing guard against someone who is primarily looking to pass to the crucifix position.

Point of interest: Odds and opinions

The oddsmakers and public are siding with the sitting champion, listing Shevchenko -600 and Santos +400 via Tipico Sportsbook.

Given the spreads that we usually see in Shevchenko fights, I can’t get too mad at what is listed above.

Santos’ size and skills are earning her some deserved respect by pundits, but this is undeniably a huge step up for the Brazilian standout. And unless Santos can demonstrate the ability to score takedowns early and often, then I have a hard time seeing how she wins this fight.

Sure, Santos also has the proverbial puncher’s chance given the number of knockouts she was able to score on the regional scene. She just hasn’t shown that same potency since stepping up to the UFC level (as Santos’ pace isn’t exactly overwhelming, either).

That said, this fight ultimately comes down to the clinch for me. Santos may be strong there, but Shevchenko just simply does things better.
Whether we’re talking about angles off of collar ties or turning corners and working the feet on takedown finishes, Shevchenko seems to be much smoother and more layered with her attacks. I also suspect that Shevchenko will carry a slight edge in the speed and power department, which should serve her well in striking exchanges.

For that reason, I’ll side with Shevchenko to sway the judges with bigger moments down the stretch of what I suspect will be a tentative fight between two counter fighters.

Prediction: Shevchenko by decision

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