Angela Hill secured a second-round submission victory over Luana Pinheiro in the second round of the strawweight bout. After a cautious first round that saw her confuse Pinheiro with feints, Hill quickly grabbed onto a guillotine choke as her opponent was about to take her down. With the victory, Hill has now made it two in a row after the loss to Mackenzie Dern. Hill called out Jessica Andrade for a BMF fight after the loss. Let’s see who are the three possible matchups for Hill.
Jessica Andrade
Jessica Andrade is on a two-fight winning streak and is among the very few fighters ranked at strawweight and flyweight. With the logjam at flyweight, it is safe to assume that her immediate attention is on the strawweight title. Currently ranked 4th at strawweight, Andrade had already fought the fighters ahead of her. Rematching any one of them should be her priority for the next title shot.
However, Andrade’s first title shot against Joanna Jędrzejczyk came after her blood-and-guts war with Angel Hill who just came into the UFC as the Invicta strawweight champion. Even though Hill is ranked 9th, she has name value in the division. Tatiana Suarez looks to be next for Zhang Weili, the champion. Therefore, an impressive performance over Hill could potentially land her a title shot.
Amanda Ribasa
Another fighter ranked at strawweight and flyweight is Amanda Ribas. Angela Hill has already fought almost all the names in the division but Ribas is not one of them. In her previous fight, Ribas lost to Rose Namajunas in a five-round flyweight bout. Ribas seem considerably small at flyweight and has the best opportunity at strawweight. Ribas’ last strawweight fight was against Luna Pinheiro which she won via third round TKO.
Ribas is 8th in the rankings, one spot above Hill. A potential fight between Ribas and Hill would likely be a striking affair. However, Hill has recently shown that she has added wrestling and grappling to her game. On the other hand, Ribas is no slouch on the ground either but has not shown it in the UFC.
Marina Rodriguez
Marina Rodriguez is coming off a close decision loss to Jessica Andrade. Currently ranked 6th, Rodriguez holds victory over big names in the division with Amanda Ribas being one. With her volume striking, Rodriguez had a streak in the division but recently had lost steam.
Hill is 39 years old and her best path to a title shot is through Rodriguez. A victory over the Brazilian could get her in the top 5 or a fight against a top 5. A title shot seems like a long shot for a hill but she could certainly be a viable contender in the division.
