Ladies will open up the Abu Dhabi-based pay-per-view card that
starts early for stateside audiences, and women will not return
again after this bout until the co-main attraction. It is
strawweight for both matches involving female fighters, a division
with a logjam of contenders that may soon include either Amorim
(10-1, 4-1 UFC) or Inoue (15-6, 2-1 UFC), depending on who
prevails. The two grapple-heavy 115ers will be joined in the cage
by referee Kerry Hatley, and the day commences with a glove
touch. Amorim rushes out behind a front kick, and both women are energized
and jittery to engage. They proceed to paw at one another with
half-hearted range-finding jabs, with the Brazilian beating her foe
to the punch during these engagements. Amorim has her kicks caught,
but Inoue cannot do anything with the limb and it already struck
her so she lets it go on two occasions. Dipping in behind a jab,
Inoue works her way forward while Amorim slides laterally. Amorim’s
front kick buzzes the side of Inoue’s face, and she gets backed to
the corner thanks to the pump-fakes and occasional lead hooks from
her opponent. When Inoue advances, Amorim counters with a level
change to take her opponent off her feet. Inoue scrambles to back
to her feet deftly, but Amorim follows her back upright to be able
to circle around take her back standing. Amorim use her jiu-jitsu to simultaneously threaten while securing
the back, and she wrenches Inoue to the mat from behind. From
there, a rear-naked choke attempt quickly materializes. Inoue turns
the proper direction to break it up, so Amorim snags it under the
chin from an unorthodox angle. The woman from Japan keeps turning
and twisting, managing not only to break free from the submission
but to turn around with Amorim’s body lock wrapped around her
waist. Amorim locks Inoue down when placed on her back, preventing
all but the lightest of offense getting off from Inoue. Inoue
sneaks in a few elbows, and she cracks Amorim with a surprisingly
powerful stream of left hands that knock Amorim’s head around and
shock her a bit. As Inoue pounds away, possibly stealing the round
from her vicious ground-and-pound, the horn sounds. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Inoue Brian Knapp scores the round: 10-9 Inoue Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Inoue

The two ladies get back to it, with Inoue putting on the gas while
Amorim stays on the outside peppering with kicks. Inoue jabs her
way into a few right hands, marking up Amorim’s nose and forcing
her to shoot in on her hips. Inoue smoothly stuffs her opponent and
presses her against the fencing, where she jacks Amorim in the jaw
with shoulder strikes. Inoue manages to drag her opponent to the
floor, but this is where Amorim wants to be, as submissions are in
play. The Brazilian isolates Inoue’s right leg and wraps her hands
underneath it to put together a kneebar, and she tries to crank
it. Inoue defends by keeping her weight pressed down on her own limp to
not allow Amorim to extend it, and this shuts down the attempt
entirely. From there, Inoue sits up and squirms to work back to her
feet, but finds herself still engaged in a tie-up with her
adversary. After getting pressed against the wire for some time,
Amorim decides to pull guard and lock things down. Inoue slowly,
calmly postures up, and she drives down some ground strikes much to
Amorim’s chagrin. Inoue sits comfortably in Amorim’s guard,
stacking her up to shut down the worst of the subs, but Amorim
still manages to roll upside-down and hunt for a last-second
armbar. Inoue shrugs it off and smacks the Brazilian with
hammerfists until the round ends. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Inoue Brian Knapp scores the round: 10-9 Inoue Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Inoue

The 115ers clap hands to reintroduce themselves, and Inoue appears
the fresher of the two but is not entirely out of the woods yet.
Amorim barrels towards her, hurling a flurry of punches, and Inoue
takes a few on the chin and rolls with others. Amorim backs off to
gain a full head of steam, and she shoots in from a wide berth for
a takedown that Inoue sees coming from a mile away. The Japanese
fighter stands her up and starts jacking her in the jaw with clinch
strikes. As Inoue beats on Amorim up close and personal, she drives
home knees to the liver that take Amorim off her feet—it is
possible that Amorim pulled guard at the same time of one of them,
but the knees certainly appear to have had an impact. Amorim hits
her back and gets into defensive mode, so Inoue stacks her up and
remains fearlessly in her guard until deciding to find another way
in. The two throw hard at one another, and Amorim’s face bangs into
Inoue’s right eye socket and rips open a cut that bleeds
immediately. Inoue does not appear remotely concerned, as she doggedly presses
forward and nails Amorim with punches and a crisp knee. The knee
puts Amorim down again, and Inoue considers busting her up with
ground shots but decides to stay out of her dangerous guard. The
Japanese lady stands back up, and Amorim follows. This allows Inoue
to rip a left hand to the liver that compromises Amorim once more,
and the takedown shots that follow are feeble and telegraphed.
Inoue bowls Amorim over without concern and starts working Amorim
over with hammerfists, all-but ignoring Amorim’s left leg looking
to set something up. Amorim spins over to her knees and forces
herself up to her feet with less than 30 seconds on the clock, and
Inoue is mugging her with clinch offense as the time ticks away.
Inoue’s strawweight blender of punches, knees and elbows from up
close conclude the one-sided fight, one that will likely be a
fairly considerable betting upset. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-8 Inoue (30-26 Inoue) Brian Knapp scores the round: 10-9 Inoue (30-27 Inoue) Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Inoue (30-27 Inoue)

Moving over to the strawweight division, a battle between two
ladies coming off lengthy layoffs will try to shake any rust off
and move forward in the talent-rich division. It will be the first
fight for Inoue (14-6, 1-1 UFC) since August 2020, so it’s anyone’s
guess how she has developed. While Goldy (6-3, 1-3 UFC) has been
out of the Octagon since July 2022, she is the relative bastion of
activity compared to her Japanese counterpart. When referee Mark
Smith tells the women to fight, they touch gloves and then do just
that. Inoue takes the to the middle of the cage, with active
footwork from side to side as Goldy just walks her down. Inoue
scores a quick punch before skirting out of the way of a counter,
and she absorbs a kick on her inner thigh. Goldy comes up short
with a head kick, and Inoue does the same. As the two end up
clinched, they trade short knees, and Inoue jams her up against the
cage wall. Although Goldy explodes out of the position, Inoue
wrangles her back up to the wire. Inoue sneaks in a cheeky elbow up
top, and she exerts her weight on her opponent. Inoue pops Goldy in
the chin with a surprisingly solid shoulder strike, and she gets in
an uppercut from close range as well. Inoue looks for a trip
attempt, and Goldy remains upright and separates. Inoue paws her in
the midsection with a front kick, and Goldy responds with an
overhand right. Goldy walks through a kick to smack Inoue with a
left and a right, and Inoue no-sells it and responds with a left to
the liver. Inoue attacks the body with a kick, and she ignores a
low kick to keep Goldy on her heels. When Goldy plants a kick on
her foe’s midsection, Inoue crowds her and drills her with a right
hand before tying her up. Inoue sets up several knees until Goldy
pushes her away, and Inoue runs at her with a knee. Goldy grabs
hold of her in an attempt to sling Inoue to the canvas, but the
Japanese women is able to keep her footing and lean against the
fence. As Inoue attempts a hip toss, the horn sounds. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Inoue Devin Tejada scores the round: 10-9 Inoue Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Inoue

The second round begins with Inoue just as energetic as before. She
hops forward, in and out of range as a leg kick comes towards her
so that she can knock Goldy back with a one-two. Inoue sits down on
a right hand as Goldy advances towards her, and this hurts Goldy
and forces her to shoot in for a takedown. Inoue skillfully shuts
down the attempt and nearly takes the back, but Goldy is able to
keep her off and back to a neutral clinch position. When Goldy
pursues a throw, Inoue times this and counters her to throw the
Florida native to her back. Inoue moves to the guard, where she
stacks Goldy up as Goldy defends with a submission setup from her
legs. Inoue jumps over Goldy’s legs but ends up out of position,
which allows Goldy to get back to her knees. Inoue tries to change
levels and drag Goldy back down with a single, only for Goldy to
defend with her back to the cage using a guillotine choke. Inoue
ignores the choke, as it is nowhere near tight, and she stands back
up and squeezes on Goldy. Goldy muscles her back around, and they
both attempt trip takedowns. This time, Goldy is able to plant the
Japanese fighter on her back. Inoue sits up and pushes her foot off
Goldy’s chest to get enough separation to stand. Inoue places her
hands on the floor, and Goldy appears to illegally knee her given
that Inoue’s palms appeared to be flat on the mat. Smith warns her
about the knee, and Goldy thinks twice about attempting another
while Inoue stands. The two grapple in the clinch, trading knees
until Goldy hunts for a trip. Inoue staves it off, knees Goldy in
the side a few times, and the round concludes. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Inoue Devin Tejada scores the round: 10-9 Inoue Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Inoue

The ladies meet in the middle to engage, and the first strike comes
from Inoue in the form of a leg kick. Goldy nails Inoue with a
clean right hand, and Inoue fires back to prove she is not shaken
up. Inoue slips and moves away from additional punches, and she
catches Goldy a few times. One such right hand from Inoue prompts
Goldy to pursue a takedown, only for her to push Inoue against the
fence and not go anywhere. Inoue separates, and she shuts down a
subsequent takedown effort without batting an eye. Goldy lumbers
forward with her left hand outstretched, and Inoue walks into it
and connects with several punches in rapid succession. Inoue chains
a kick into a left hand, and Goldy has to blink it out and paws at
her nose. Inoue leaps forward to strike, and Goldy times this
advancement with a shot. Inoue gets shoved back to the cage, and
Goldy’s attempt otherwise falls flat. The two ladies get off short
knees until Inoue breaks off. Goldy pursues her, snatching up one
of Inoue’s legs for a possible single, until Inoue recoils it and
jams Goldy up with multiple knees. Goldy gets one knee up to the
chin, and they both connect with short but effective elbows that
force them to split apart. Inoue ducks a punch to land two, and
Goldy fails on a takedown but manages to score a right. When
clinched up again, the knees come soon thereafter, adding up on
strike totals but not having much serious impact. Inoue breaks off
and stuffs the takedown that she knows is coming. Inoue pushes off,
rips a body shot and stifles another takedown effort. Inoue pushes
her opponent back to the wall and starts opening up with body with,
only for Goldy to sit down on a final series of punches. The two
trade strikes to the bell. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Inoue (30-27 Inoue) Devin Tejada scores the round: 10-9 Inoue (30-27 Inoue) Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Inoue (30-27 Inoue)

Headlining the preliminary portion of the event is what should be a
fun strawweight scrap between Japanese grappler Inoue (14-5, 1-0
UFC) and heavy-handed Brazilian striker Lemos (7-1-1, 1-1 UFC). The
Octagon ranger is Jason Herzog again, and there is a respectful
glove touch before these women go to battle. Inoue opens up with a
leg kick, and Lemos gives one back that is much harder. Inoue wades
forward and gets tagged with a few hooks on the way in, but
successfully dodges a head kick that soars past her. They land
punches at the same time, and Lemos clips her and backs off out of
range. Inoue eats several hard punches, and she takes a spinning
back elbow but presses forward into the clinch. Inoue gives her a
few short knees to deal with, and Lemos tries to wing an elbow but
skims past her opponent’s hair. Inoue keeps kneeing her just enough
to stave off referee intervention, and Lemos drives a stern knee to
Inoue’s torso. Inoue steps back to start swinging, and Lemos stands
still and fires off a series of punches that Inoue blocks one after
the other. Lemos backs off and lands a few leg kicks, and eats a
right hand but slings four back. Inoue pushes forward again with a
punch, and Lemos lands a body kick and a follow-up one-two that
sets Inoue on her backside. The Brazilian dives in to Inoue’s guard
and starts nailing her with knees, but Inoue throws her legs up to
set up an armbar. Lemos stands up to get out of danger, and she
lets Inoue return to her feet so she doesn’t have to deal with a
submission threat. Lemos kicks at the knee and then fires up a head
kick, and even blocked the impact makes Inoue take a few steps to
recover. Inoue rushes forward to squeeze her to the fence, and
Lemos throws her to the ground. She stands up and dives down to
elbow Inoue in the face as the round ends. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Lemos Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Lemos Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Lemos

The two touch gloves to check in the second frame, and Inoue takes
a pair of leg kicks while trying to make her way in. The Brazilian
keeps kicking from a distance, with a body kick and a front kick to
the midsection to keep Inoue at bay. Inoue sticks her with a right
hand as she presses in to clinch up, and she leaves her neck out a
little too far, leading Lemos to try to set up a guillotine choke.
Lemos bails on it when Inoue fights it off, and the fighter from
Japan presses her weight on her opponent while bringing up a few
knees and short punches. Herzog thinks about separating them, and
Inoue cracks her with a trio of elbows to make him take a step back
and allow them to continue. Inoue digs to the body with a few
punches, but Lemos sets up a Thai clinch and starts swinging knees
and elbows to force a separation. Inoue stays tight as if she has
been glued to her opponent, giving a few knees and eventually
trying to trip Lemos down. Lemos stands up and lifts Inoue’s leg in
the air to slam her down. Inoue keeps a wide guard as she is
already hunting for an armbar again, and when she nearly sets up a
triangle, Lemos pulls out of it in time. Lemos is unable to get off
more than few strikes, mostly elbows, while Inoue is attacking off
her back. When Inoue tries to get into a slugfest with her, Lemos
postures up and delivers an elbow square on the jaw. Inoue eats it
and rolls through to stand up. Lemos starts unloading on her, and
zings a spinning back elbow that Inoue practically laughs at to
clinch her up. The clinch is where this round ends. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Lemos Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Lemos Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Lemos

The two clap hands to open the third, and Inoue walks in with a
heavy leg kick. They kick at the same time, and Inoue gathers
herself to get off a few punches as she wades forward. The
Brazilian tries to fight her off with a kick and punches, but Inoue
closes the distance fast enough to not take them flush, and we
return to the position where much of the fight has been spent.
Inoue changes levels low for a double, but Lemos easily stuffs her
and pushes her away. Inoue kicks at her, and Lemos lets fly a head
kick that gets blocked. Inoue tries to catch a body kick and turn
it into a takedown, but Lemos keeps her balance and gets driven
back to the fence. Inoue drops in again for a takedown, and Lemos
stands her up without much effort. Inoue commits to a few knees on
the inside, and Lemos briefly turns her about but gets put back to
the cage wall again. Lemos looks frustrated as she is trapped on
the cage, and Inoue goes after another double to no avail. Inoue
sneaks in a few lefts, and the power strikes from Lemos force Inoue
to take a step back and break away. Inoue races in to get clinched
again, and Lemos tags her to the head and lead leg, forcing Inoue
to stumble and try again. The Japanese fighter practically
bulldozes her way into the clinch once more, and Lemos’ frustration
is evident on her face. Lemos gets off a few knees on the inside,
and the Thai clinch allows her to land some heavier ones that
practically lift Inoue off the ground. An elbow from Lemos gets the
break she seeks, and like a Terminator, Inoue crashes in to tie her
up. Lemos keeps her distance and gets off a few left hands to give
Inoue pause, and Inoue stings her with a right hook. Lemos is on
her bike as she backs off, and Inoue latches on as we hear the
final horn. Jay Pettry scores the round: 10-9 Lemos (30-27 Lemos) Tristen Critchfield scores the round: 10-9 Lemos (30-27 Lemos) Tyler Treese scores the round: 10-9 Lemos (30-27 Lemos)

Mizuki

Fight History

Fighter Skills Radar

Key Insights

Striking Profile

Key Insights

Grappling Profile

Key Insights

Conclusions Summary