Molly McCann vs Bruna Brasil Preview
Molly McCann faces Bruna Brasil at UFC 304 on July 27 looking to make it two from two in the women’s strawweight division. The two 115lbers will fight on the prelims, starting at 4:00 pm.
McCann dropped a weight class following back-to-back losses at flyweight and immediately saw the payoff with a victory. Can she carve out a path to gold at 115lbs or will Brasil stop Meatball Molly in her tracks?
Molly McCann vs Bruna Brasil Head-To-Head and Key Stats
Molly McCann’s stock as a star in the UFC women’s division has risen exponentially in the past three years. Through her close friendship with lightweight and fellow scouse fighter Paddy Pimblett, her charisma has shone through, endearing herself to fans. Meatball Molly appeared on the same card that Pimblett made his debut in September 2021, securing a unanimous decision victory over Kim Ji-Yeon.
In her following fight, she would record one of the biggest moments of her career. McCann faced Luana Carolina in front of a home crowd in London and unleashed one of the most spectacular knockout blows in recent memory. Her spinning back elbow landed on Carolina’s jaw, dropping her to the canvas for a sensational knockout victory. She followed up with a TKO victory over Hannah Goldy, unleashing a flurry of punches to drop her to the canvas before the referee stopped the action.
Meatball Molly suffered back-to-back submission losses in two of her last three fights. A step up in competition against Erin Blanchfield following three straight victories came too soon and the top-five ranked women’s flyweight submitted the Brit in round one via Kimura. She was then stunned by Julija Stoliarenko in July 2023 when the unranked Lithuanian submitted her with an armbar in round one.
It was finally back to winning ways for the scouse fighter in her most recent bout. McCann faced Diana Belbita in February, avenging her previous loss by submitting the Warrior Princess in the first round with an armbar. That gave her the first submission victory of her career, taking her record to 14-6 (Six KO/TKOs, one submission, seven decisions).
Bruna Brasil first announced herself to UFC fans when she appeared on Dana White’s Contender Series in September 2022. The Special One landed a pinpoint switch kick to Marnic Mann’s jaw for the knockout victory. However, her debut in the UFC ended in disaster. Denise Gomes TKO’d Brasil in the second round of her maiden appearance in the UFC. She returned to the octagon three months later with a winning effort over Shauna Bannon via a unanimous decision.
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@UFCFightPassBR @UFCBrasil pic.twitter.com/Ykuci2A3O2— Bruna Brasil MMA (@BrunaBrasilMMA) July 23, 2024
Her most recent fight came in February. She faced Loma Lookboonmee in what turned into a straight-up kickboxing bout with both fighters standing for 15 minutes. Brasil could not deal with the Thai fighter’s strong kicks and allowed her opponent to control the exchanges. Lookboonmee was the more active of the two and came out victorious via a unanimous decision. That brought The Special One to 1-2 in the UFC and 9-4 overall (three KO/TKOs, two submissions, four decisions).
Standing at 5’6” with a 65 ½” reach, Brasil has a significant size advantage. McCann stands at 5’4” with a 62” reach. Meatball Molly has the power advantage with a 45.17% knockout percentage in her career compared to Brasil’s 33.33%. Nobody has finished the British fighter by KO/TKO while Brasil has been left looking up at the lights thrice.
Molly McCann vs Bruna Brasil Prediction
Fight prediction: Molly McCann to win via KO/TKO
Molly McCann’s back-to-back losses over Blanchfield and Stoliarenko came when she had the world at her feet. She probably needed to be brought back down to earth to stay grounded. This is something she alluded to in her post-fight interview following her victory over Belbita, saying she needs to ‘say less, do more’.
In the time between her loss to Stoliarenko and her most recent win, she improved her grappling immensely and competed in The ADCC Submission Fighting World Championship. She dropped to strawweight and looked better than she ever had against Belbita. On this new path, with an improved mind and skillset, Molly can be a real problem. Our MMA prediction is for a Molly McCann victory via KO/TKO at UFC 304.
McCann has not lost her strength or power since her drop to strawweight. She rag-dolled Belbita in her last fight and landed vicious blows from top mount. The scouser was in complete control, outstriking her opponent with an incredible 42 significant strikes from 43 in total and landing two of two takedowns. Meatball Molly has new tools to add to her repertoire since improving her grappling and with the power advantage she will simply be too much for Brasil to deal with.
Brasil has already been knocked out three times in just 13 fights. Whereas, McCann has never been finished via KO/TKO and has six knockouts. Only six women in the strawweight division have more. The power and chin strength differential between these two fighters is stark. Molly has more experience, power, resilience, and stronger grappling than Brasil and this fight can be an excellent launchpad to a bout with a ranked prospect.
Molly will have to be wary of Brasil’s reach advantage at UFC 304, specifically the kicking range. The Special One showed on Dana White’s Contender Series her ability, coming against a fighter similar in stature to McCann. Brasil will utilise low and teep kicks to keep Molly from walking her down, as well as knees in the clinch.
This is something we have seen in Molly’s previous fights, allowing opponents to push the pace and lead exchanges. The British fighter had to learn not to fight out of frustration where she used to swing for the fences. A more composed and mature McCann can overcome the size advantage for a victory at UFC 304.
Molly McCann vs Bruna Brasil Betting Tips
Molly McCann enters this fight as a lopsided favourite in the MMA betting markets. Her experience far outweighs Bruna Brasil and has fought and beaten tougher opponents. A bet on Molly McCann is worth 2/7, but there are more profitable markets for this fight.
Over/under betting for this fight is set at 2.5 rounds. Molly’s fights have frequently seen finishes in the UFC with all her previous five fights failing to reach the judge’s scorecards. Four came in the first round, including her most recent win in her strawweight debut. We like a wager on the under here. This market attractively priced at 11/10 with our online sportsbook.
Two of Molly McCann’s last three victories have come via KO/TKO. Her spinning elbow knockout win over Luana Carolina is one of the most spectacular finishes in UFC history. Brasil’s chin is not the strongest, having already been knocked out three times in her career and we know Molly packs a punch. With the moneyline odds not showing much value, increase them by betting on Molly McCann to win via KO/TKO, worth 9/4.
McCann’s improvement in grappling since going to the ADCC has been remarkable. Her submission victory over Belbita was the first of her career. While nobody has submitted Brasil, it is unlikely that she has faced anyone with the strength of McCann. She handled Belbita with a lifted takedown before slamming her down and sinking in an armbar. A longshot bet on McCann to win via submission is worth 10/1. You can wager on this longshot with reduced risk when signing up with our welcome bonus. Alternatively, wait for the fight to start and work out her game plan. If she is looking to take Brasil to the mat, look at the live betting odds on a submission victory.
Molly McCann vs Bruna Brasil Full Fight Card
UFC 304 in Manchester has a home-nation fighter in every fight on the main card. Arnold Allen, Muhammad Mokaev, Paddy Pimblett, Tom Aspinall, and Leon Edwards will all represent England.
Aspinall will make his first defence of the interim UFC heavyweight title against Curtis Blaydes. The fight will be a rematch from their bout in July 2022 that was cut short when Aspinall suffered a freak knee injury seconds into round one.
https://twitter.com/ufc/status/1815386817857769600?s=46&t=pdHqMoPPfD_yrIbOx1mVsA
Leon Edwards defends his welterweight title for the third time when he faces Belal Muhammad. These two fighters have a history together, having fought to a no contest four years ago. They have engaged in a war of words ever since on their rise up the 170lb rankings.
Molly’s fellow scouser Paddy Pimblett faces Bobby Green in lightweight action. This will be the toughest fight of Paddy the Baddy’s career as he looks to enter the fray of the UFC’s top 15 145lb rankings. He has yet to lose in the promotion since making his debut in 2021, but veteran King Green presents a challenge that the British fighter is yet to face.
Main Card
Leon Edwards vs Belal Muhammad; UFC welterweight title
Tom Aspinall vs Curtis Blaydes; UFC interim heavyweight title
Bobby Green vs Paddy Pimblett; Lightweight
Muhammad Mokaev vs Manel Kape; Flyweight
Arnold Allen vs Giga Chikadze; Featherweight
Preliminary Card
Nathaniel Wood vs Daniel Pineda; Featherweight
Molly McCann vs Bruna Brasil; Women’s strawweight
Mick Parkin vs Lukasz Brzeski; Heavyweight
