Strawweight: Isis Verbeek vs. Josefine Knutsson
Tale of the Tape
28-years-old
5’4″
Amsterdam, Netherlands
Team Bigi Boy
4-1
1 Submission
Combined opponent’s record: 9-5
27-years-old
5’3″
Bromma, Sweden
Allstars Training Center
5-0
1 KO/TKO
Combined opponent’s record: 21-8-2
Pros and Cons
Isis Verbeek
Pros
- Excellent muay thai
- Lethal knees
- Good kickboxing
- Athletic
- Good counter striker
- Accurate striker
- Good use of feints
- Explosive
- Tough
- Good leg kicks
Cons
- Poor TDD
- Head movement lacks/Takes a lot of damage
- Lacks grappling defense
Josefine Knutsson
Pros
- Ton of volume
- Constant forward pressure
- Combination striker
- Excellent clinch work
- Mixes in punches and kicks
- Excellent TDD
- Relentless knees
- Good elbows
- Solid pace throughout
Cons
- N/A
Who has the advantage?
Striking: Verbeek
Speed: Knutsson
Output/Volume: Knutsson
Kickboxing: Verbeek
Striking defense: Knutsson
Footwork/movement: Even
Wrestling: Knutsson
Grappling: Knutsson
Gas tank: Knutsson
Prediction: This is a great fight made by the matchmakers. It sucks to see one lose but both are young enough that they can bounce back and find their way to the UFC. Both are young in MMA but have extensive kickboxing careers. Verbeek was a successful Dutch kickboxer. In kickboxing/muay thai she’s arguably most known for her time in Glory Kickboxing. She was also a four-time world champion and a European champion. At least on paper, her record is 51-6. Knutsson’s kickboxing record is 27-5 and she has beat girls like Mellony Geugjes and Kana Morimoto. She also has a background in amateur Muay Thai and was the 2018 IFMA World Championships gold medallist.
Both are similar in a lot of instances. They are both excellent in the clinch, very dangerous on the outside, and both have a credible ground game. Looking at the match-up Knutsson doesn’t have any glaring holes. Verbeek is a banger that loves violence but welcomes damage to give some. Her head movement is almost non-existent and that’s not a good thing to have against Knutsson.
Knutsson is my pick because she’s better defensively. I even think Knutsson wanted to mix in some takedowns she could because Verbeek has big gaps in her TDD. Confidently I’m picking Knutsson because she can hang with Verbeek on the feet and she has more tools to win.
