Jessica Eye vs Joanne Calderwood will be a flyweight bout of great importance to both fighters, as each woman is looking to make a run for the championship in their division. Oddsmakers have chosen Calderwood as the slight favorite, but Eye is slightly higher in the Flyweight rankings. Calderwood’s conditioning is better at this point, so I’m backing her up to win.
The main card for UFC 257 is absolutely stacked with fantastic matchups from top to bottom. We’ll get an interesting Women’s Flyweight bout between Jessica “Evil” Eye and Joanne “JoJo’ Calderwood. Eye has dealt with numerous health issues due to gallbladder surgery last year and looks to bounce back here after dropping her previous fight against Cynthia Calvillo on June 13, 2020. Although Eye denies it, there’s clearly some animosity between her and Calderwood, who engaged in a back-and-forth social media argument last year. Bad blood or not, all disputes will be settled in the Octagon on January 23. Top MMA betting sites and UFC predictions are calling for a close fight between the flyweights. NJ online sportsbooks list Calderwood as a small favorite against Evil Eye despite her being ranked higher. NJ sportsbook reviews have summaries available for top oddsmakers for this fight, but FanDuel has the best moneyline odds for Calderwood at -118. “Evil” Eye is an agile fighter with excellent boxing ability and strong striking, but her return is a bit sketchy considering her recent health issues. She has a chip on her shoulder because of those issues, but Calderwood seems to be in better condition lately. Although “JoJo” lost her last fight, she’s a talented fighter who will exchange hits with Eye. She has a Muay Thai background and is an excellent grappler. This is a tough fight to predict. Both fighters are in a state of urgency to secure a win. A loss for either one of them would push them out of a shot at the title, but I’m inclined to side with Calderwood for this one.
This fight will be interesting based on the pre-fight narrative alone, and I expect it to be close, but if I have to pick a winner, I’m going to go with JoJo. My prediction: I don’t think we’ll see a knockout (unless Eye comes out hard), but FanDuel lists Calderwood to win by decision at +125. That’s good value for the Scotswoman, and I’m going to take it.
