Prior to each UFC card, Jay Primetown takes a close look at debuting fighters. In the latest installment, we look at women’s bantamweight Anna Elmose as she debuts against 14th ranked Germaine de Randamie at UFC Fight Night 87 in Rotterdam, Netherlands. Anna “Panda” Elmose Hometown: Copenhagen, Denmark Age: 31 Height: 5’3” Reach: N/A Weight Class: Women’s Bantamweight Camp: Rumble Sports Career Record: 3-0 Key Wins: None Key Losses: None Background The longtime kickboxer and muay Thai practitioner trains out of one of the top MMA camps in Scandinavia with Rumble Sports. She just started fighting professionally in MMA in 2014. In all three of her professional fights, she’s won by stoppage. Strengths
- Good technical offensive skill-set
- Diverse striking from the clinch position
- Above average power in her hands
- Works shots in to the body well
- Too aggressive looking for takedowns
Weaknesses
- Undersized for the division
- Should be competing at flyweight
- Can be pushed against the cage by even averaged sized bantamweights
- Wrestling is not polished
- Complete unknown fighting off her back
Match-up against Germaine de Randamie In this matchup of women’s bantamweights, we see two a battle of two experienced muay thai strikers. De Randamie hails from the Netherlands and will certainly have the crowd behind her as she takes on Denmark’s Anna Elmose. The Dutch striker is a big bantamweight at 5’9” and was undefeated as a kickboxer at 37 wins and no losses. She may not have the biggest power in the division, but she is excellent in the clinch and working for opportunities along the cage. Elmose’s skill set is fairly similar to her opponent in what she excels at, but the big difference in this fight is the size of the two fighters. De Randamie is a long bantamweight and holds a six inch height advantage in this bout. Elmose is a stockier fighter and has shown to be able to score some takedowns in her bouts. If Elmose can force the fight to the ground, she could have some success. Otherwise, de Randamie is certainly strong enough to force Elmose against the cage and work in strikes using her superior size advantage. I wouldn’t expect to see a finish in this bout, but look for the Dutch fighter to outland her Danish opponent in root to a unanimous decision win. As nearly a 4 to 1 favorite, there’s not much to look from a betting standpoint at in this bout. If anything, I’d consider the over 2.5 rounds line at -115. Despite being a very good technical striker, de Randamie is not a pure power striker. UFC Ceiling Anna Elmose has a solid offensive skill-set. She’s certainly entering MMA later than most at just 31 years of age. She’s only been fighting professionally for two years, so she’s still very green in her approach. Her offensive output and firepower will make her a game opponent against the bottom feeders of the bantamweight division, but her small stature for the weight class is a major deterrent to her working her way up the ladder at bantamweight. If the UFC fully introduces a flyweight division, Elmose seems like a natural fit for that weight class and could do pretty well in the promotion. Fight Film Check out Anna Elmose in some of her most recent fights: Anna Elmose vs. Mara Romero Borella Anna Elmose vs. Aitek Emadi
