Raquel Pennington's five-fight win streak has gone largely unnoticed by fans, but she's put on good, steady performances for years. One doesn't stick around in the UFC for 10 years without having that in their game.
It just seems like Mayra Bueno Silva's time is now. She's been nothing short of dominant since moving up to bantamweight in 2022. Pennington hasn't faced this level of grappling since Amanda Nunes in 2018, and I'm not sure her game is diverse enough to withstand Bueno Silva's level of top pressure.
Prediction: Bueno Silva by submission, Rd. 2
- Haris Kruskic
Once again, it's hard to argue with Haris.
At this point, there's no questioning Pennington's status as one of the best bantamweights in UFC history. She's beaten pretty much everyone she's met in the Octagon except for greats like Amanda Nunes and Holly Holm.
Still, this feels like Bueno Silva's moment. The Brazilian's recent submission over Holm may have been overturned due to a failed drug test, but it's hard to forget the image of her nearly yanking the former champ's head off.
Pennington will be hard to finish–only Nunes has stopped her in the Octagon–but Bueno Silva will eventually find a way. Like Haris, I see it happening on the mat, just a little later in the fight.
Prediction: Bueno Silva by submission, Rd. 4
- Tom Taylor
No one can debate Pennington's UFC's chops. They're all that and then some.
But even though she's won five in a row, six of seven, and 11 of 16 since the start of 2014, it feels like the second half of those victories have been against a slightly lower level of opposition than she'll be facing Saturday night.
Bueno Silva is not only good, but she's also simply operating on a higher level than anyone Pennington has beaten in nearly five years. Three straight fights have ended (in the cage at least) in submission victories, and, though Pennington hasn't tapped out in more than 11 years, that doesn't mean simply surviving will equate to winning.
It says here it won't.
Prediction: Bueno Silva by unanimous decision
- Lyle Fitzsimmons
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