Silvana Juarez vs. Vanessa Demopoulos Odds
After a shake up at Friday's weigh-ins, the early prelims for UFC 270 are have been cut to two fights and will start a bit later (7 p.m. ET on ESPN+). One of those fights takes place in the women's strawweight division with Vanessa Demopoulos facing Silvana Gomez Juarez.
Both fighters have limited experience at the UFC level: Demopoulos lost twice in two tries while Juarez was submitted in her UFC debut in October.
Which fighter has the better chance at getting their first win in the UFC? Below, I'll break down the matchup and how I'm betting Saturday's early bout.
Tale of the Tape
| Juarez | Demopoulos | |
|---|---|---|
| Record | 10-3 | 6-4 |
| Avg. Fight Time | 4:14 | 15:00 |
| Height | 5'3" | 5'2" |
| Weight (pounds) | 115 lbs. | 115 lbs. |
| Reach (inches) | 65" | 59" |
| Stance | Orthodox | Orthodox |
| Date of birth | 12/6/84 | 9/22/88 |
| Sig Strikes Per Min | 0.71 | 3.13 |
| SS Accuracy | 23% | 42% |
| SS Absorbed Per Min | 2.60 | 4.67 |
| SS Defense | 15% | 38% |
| Take Down Avg | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| TD Acc | 0% | 0% |
| TD Def | 16% | 33% |
| Submission Avg | 0.0 | 1.0 |
Both fighters have a loss to Loopy Godinez on their record and they are a combined 0-3 in the UFC. The strengths and weaknesses of each fighter will tell us everything we need to know about this fight.
Juarez fancies herself as a striker with solid power. She actually almost knocked out now-UFC fighter Vanessa Melo years ago in the XFC. Her overhand right punches are her best weapon and if they connect, Demopoulos could be in trouble.
In her UFC debut, Juarez was stormed with jabs and right crosses from Juarez, followed by a beautiful double leg takedown. Juarez never really got going in that fight and was submitted rather easily. Particularly troubling was how easy it was for Godinez to bring Juarez down. She looked very raw defending takedowns and made several mistakes fighting wrist control.
On the other hand, Demopoulos plays a lot off of her back, which is very rarely a preferred strategy in the UFC. Playing jiu-jitsu off her back without getting a submission does nothing but lose a fighter minutes and rounds.
However, Demopoulos does look legitimately dangerous with submissions, particularly if the opponent is inexperienced. Her highlight-reel submission win over Sam Hughes in 2020 shows her prowess.
She also comes forward wildly with strikes, which are good for volume but could get her knocked out. Although, her durability and cardio held up pretty well in her fight against JJ Aldrich, which took place at flyweight, this one will take place at strawweight.
Juarez vs. Demopoulos Pick
This fight doesn't feature high-level prospects or have any immediate title implications, it could easily be happening in a lower-level promotion.
Juarez looked so raw on the ground in previous fights that I expect her to leave the door open for a submission this weekend, which is where I lean on this fight. Demopoulos should have more success wrestling at the smaller weight class and prefers to go for submissions. In Round 3 against Aldrich, we saw Demopoulos span takedown attempts against the larger and more experienced Aldrich.
Juarez is mostly a boxer, but the path is well laid out on how to beat her. Demopoulos to win by submission is +550 on FanDuel, which could look like a steal if she lands a takedown.
I would bet this down to +425 before I take a look at her double chance submission/decision prop. That prop is currently -115 on FanDuel, but is a great alternative to her moneyline which is as high as -150.
The Pick: Vanessa Demopoulos by submission (+550)
