Coach Conversation | UFC 332: Natalia Silva vs Wang Cong

Kyte: But people should be excited about her, people should be paying close attention, and this is a great opportunity for her to really shine. When you watch her, you see that she’s really good, and she’s only 29.

Barroco: I know! She’s got a lot going for her. Wang’s best traits? She has great boxing, volume —6.82 significant strikes per minute; that’s a substantial pace. She’s good at pressuring and forcing her opponents to deal with her opponents. The boxing is great, and she’s pretty durable, composed in there. Her last three fights went all three rounds, so that’s good to have gone through that going into this, and then she’s got a pretty decent height and reach advantage too, which will be important for her to keep it as a boxing range fight.

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Kyte: We always talk about “they haven’t gone five rounds before” when it comes to championship fights. How crucial is going the distance in those last three fights, going through some tough situations when it comes to something like this for Wang? Is it just that there is no real substitute for the experience of it?

Barroco: Yes and no. You could train for it, but there’s nothing like actually doing it and being in there, under those circumstances: pressure, eyes, and having to fight those extra two rounds, and extra 10 minutes. It makes a difference, for sure.

Sometimes in the fights you go on autopilot, and most people’s autopilot is calibrated for three rounds. Some people can do it, adjust, and make it look easy, but other people, they go in there and just the fact that it’s a UFC fight, you watch their cardio get affected. There is something to be said for it; you can’t write it off, and I think it’s important to have the actual experience, but everybody who won their first world title probably didn’t fight many five-round fights up until that world title fight.

Kyte: Well, that’s what I was gonna ask as the follow-up is that while having the experience of going 25 minutes anywhere is beneficial, but going 25 minutes in the UFC is a whole different kettle of fish because there is so much that goes into it, right? Having some experience with it is great, but having even just main event experience in the UFC is such an advantage. It’s why I’m surprised neither of these women, especially Silva, has had a main event prior to this, just because it’s so beneficial for eventually being in this situation.

Barroco: It’s a very difficult thing to do to line someone up for a main event before a title fight, but it’d be beneficial and nice to see.

How To Watch And Stream UFC 332: Silva vs Wang

Kyte: When you’re looking at each of them from that perspective, is there one of them that has the style or the ability to translate their game over into a 25-minute fight better? I think it’s Silva because she’s more fluid and economical with her movements and striking, but what do you think?

Barroco: I agree; I think she’s more efficient in how she puts it all together, and the fact that she has a bit of a grappling advantage, there’s gonna be moments there where you can rest a little bit, whether it’s on the cage or established position on the ground. Kind of like Coach Follis used to say all the time, “You just cook the beans down there for a little bit.” Even if she is having a hard time with the five rounds, I think she’s going to have an easier time finding positions and spots in the fight to recover or rest or break it up.

Path to Victory

Kyte: What’s the best path to victory for each woman?

For Wang, can the pressure survive Silva’s movement? Can she put the pressure on her, keep her in boxing range without fading into kick range or getting too close that she’s in grappling range —Coach Giff (James Gifford) always talks about it as A, B, and C range, and she wants to be at B range. We know she can be offensive and we talked about whether she can maintain that through a five-round fight and for a target that is continuously changing locations. If she can put her on the fence, the matchup changes drastically because she’ll be able to find her range easier and there will be less exits and angles for Silva. It’s hard to throw kicks off your back foot, especially on the cage.

You usually resort to kicking with your lead leg while you’re drifting back, so it’s not as effective power-wise, and you’re usually going to get cracked back.

Kyte: I’m a little interested to see how Wang looks, how she does making championship weight because she missed earlier in the year and it wasn’t like she was over by half a pound. I know she made weight last time against Tracy Cortez, but even then, it was 125.5 pounds.

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It’s never been a thing Silva has had an issue with, so I just wonder if that becomes a factor, especially over five rounds, with everything else we’ve talked about?

Barroco: A million percent! If you’re already struggling to cut weight, if it’s already tough for you, it’s definitely a factor.

Kyte: I think the size works for Wang in some spots, as you said, but what’s the impact on the other side when it comes to the weight cut and the extra two rounds? Especially if Natalia Silva kicks her in the body, which she’ll do.

Barroco: It’s for sure gonna be a factor, and Silva is definitely going to throw kicks. The weight cut makes a difference in a three-round fight, yet alone a five-round fight, and if you struggle, you’re gonna be more zapped as that fight goes on.

You start sweating, you start feeling like you did during the weight cut…