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UFC Vegas 73 Mackenzie Dern vs. Angela Hill: keeps the prelims moving with a fight in the women's flyweight division between Victoria Leonardo and Natalia Silva. Leonardo has had a rough stretch in her first three fights with the promotion but is coming off her first UFC win. Meanwhile, Silva has looked sensational in her first two octagon appearances winning both in dominant fashion. Silva and Leonardo were originally scheduled to fight in 2021 but Silva withdrew from that contest. With that said, check out our UFC odds series for our Leonardo-Silva prediction and pick.
Victoria Leonardo (9-5) had the daunted task of going against Manot Fiorot and Melissa Gatto to start her UFC career where she dropped both fights via TKO. She was able to bounce back to get her first win against Mandy Bohm her last time out. She's looking for her first winning streak inside the octagon when she takes on Natalia Silva.
Natalia Silva (14-5-1) had a boatload of experience coming into her UFC debut with 18 professional fights. She took two and a half years off before she made her UFC debut and it looked like she made drastic improvements resulting in big wins in her first two fights. She hopes to keep her winning streak alive as she takes on Leonardo this Saturday.
Here are the UFC Odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
UFC Las Vegas Odds: Victoria Leonardo-Natalia Silva Odds
Victoria Leonardo: +680
Natalia Silva: -1200
Over 2.5 Rounds: +112
Under 2.5 Round: -142
UFC Las Vegas: How to Watch Victoria Leonardo vs. Natalia Silva
TV: ESPN+
Stream: ESPN+
Time: 4:00 p.m. ET/ 1:00 p.m. PT (Prelims)
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Why Victoria Leonardo Will Win
Victoria Leonardo is as tough as they come fighting legit competition on her rise to the UFC and even during her short stint. She has the tenacity and grit to make it tough on anyone she faces even someone as talented as Natalia Silva.
She can utilize her grappling and top control as she did against fighters like Mandy Bohm and Chelsea Hackett to make this a difficult fight for Silva. As long as Leonardo can fight her fight and doesn't get caught in a kickboxing match at distance she has the chance to score the massive upset.
Why Natalia Silva Will Win
Natalia Silva has looked like a true contender in just her first two UFC fights. Her striking looks fluent with fast in-and-out movements and powerful strikes. She was able to end Terena Bleda in her most recent bout with a spinning back kick to the body.
In the same way, Manon Fiorot and Melissa Gatto gave Leonardo trouble is the same way that Silva will as well. Silva is a mobile kickboxer but that is hard to track down and corral against the cage. Even if Leonardo is able to clinch her up against the fence, she has shown great takedown defense against reputable grapplers in Jasmine Jasudavicius and Terena Bleda. If Silva can replicate what Fiorot and Gatto did, this should be easy work for her.
Final Victoria Leonardo-Natalia Silva Prediction & Pick
Victoria Leonardo can't catch a break, facing three legit contenders in the women's flyweight division in her first four fights. This is an extremely hard matchup as it goes right with her two losses inside the octagon. Silva is going to make it hard for Leonardo to track her down and take her to the mat and then just piece her up at range. Ultimately, Silva is too fast and powerful on the feet and will fend off the takedowns en route to finishing Leonardo late or getting the decision nod.
Final Victoria Leonardo-Natalia Silva Prediction & Pick: Natalia Silva (-1200)
