Could the winner be looking at a potential title shot?

This weekend is filled with a ton of great fights. Frankie Edgar versus Chad Mendes, Chris Weidman versus Luke Rockhold, and of course Jose Aldo versus Conor McGregor. Those are some great match ups that should have casual and diehard fans alike jumping out of their seats with excitement. But there’s perhaps one other fight that isn’t getting as much love this weekend, one that could decide the future of the women’s strawweight division. Rose “Thug” Namajunas replaces Joanne Calderwood to face off against the streaking up and comer Paige “12 Gauge” Vanzant. The fact that no one is talking about this fight is a big indication about just how jam packed this weekend is going to be with all these great MMA battles on hand. Namajunas versus Vanzant is definitely a fight that should be getting attention simply because the styles of both these young women are sure to spark some energetic and spirited exchanges and scrambles.

Like mentioned before, Rose Namajunas is replacing the injured Joanne Calderwood who was originally slated to meet Paige Vanzant in the UFC Fight Night 80 main event. Rather than being given an equal or lesser task, Vanzant will have to deal with an opponent that stylistically will present even more issues than Calderwood would have. Namajunas has great striking, an understanding of timing and distance, a diverse kicking game and the ability to sink in submissions from scrambles. It’s probably the biggest weapon she’ll possess when she heads into the match against Vanzant. Namajunas will have to look to use her rangy striking to stay on the outside and be mindful of Vanzant’s wrestling game. If she hopes to win this fight she’ll have to use a measured approached when dealing with Vanzant’s inside game while at the same time being unpredictable to throw off her opponent’s game. Vanzant on the other the other hand will have her hands full with “Thug”. Joanne Calderwood is a difficult fight for any woman at 115 lbs, but her style matched up well with Paige. Training at Team Alpha Male has turned Vanzant into a pressure fighter who excels in scrambles and ground and pound. The route to victory for Paige is definitely to work an inside game, switching from striking to grappling and back again continuously in an attempt to keep Namajunas unbalanced. Playing an outside striking game with Namajunas would be a huge mistake as Vanzant doesn’t have the same tools available to her.

This will be a bit of an up and down kind of affair, but ultimately I see “Thug” out dueling “12 Gauge”. With a more diverse striking game, submission abilities, and unpredictability, Rose Namajunas latches on a submission in the second round. Who will win the clash of young up and coming strawweights? Let us know what you think in the comments and forums. Also, be sure to follow Generation Iron MMA on Facebook and Twitter.