While 2024 still has about two and a half months to go before the calendar turns to the new year, Saturday is the day for the biggest and best card of the year in MMA, Matinee action is on the menu for viewers in North America this weekend.
The world tour of competitive violence touches down in Frankfurt, Germany. Deutsche Bank Park, also known as Waldstadion, the match grounds for Bundesliga side Eintracht Frankfurt, will play host to a mammoth combat sports events while the world’s top soccer (football) leagues are off for the FIFA international break.
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Fittingly, with the record crowd expected to pack the venue, the event from Oktagon MMA is dubbed Oktagon 62: Bigger Than Ever on Saturday. Live coverage begins at 12 noon ET/ 9 am PT on DAZN inside the United States. In the United Kingdom, Channel Four will air the show at 5 pm London time Saturday evening.
Championship Tripleheader Begins at Strawweight
Highlighting the night’s activities is a three-pack of championship fights, topped with a welterweight contest for the symbolic King of Germany belt between No. 8 contender Christian Eckerlin (16-6 MMA, 3-1 Oktagon) and No. 9 contender Christian Jungwirth (15-8 MMA, 7-6 Oktagon) in the main event.
More on that fight later on. Saturday’s tripleheader kicks off at 115 lbs. Current Oktagon Strawweight Champion Katharina Dalisda (11-3 MMA, 5-0 Oktagon), an alumnae of Bellator MMA, defends her belt against challenger and No. 1 contender Mallory Martin (9-6 MMA, 2-1 Oktagon), formerly of both the UFC and Invicta FC, in a rematch of a fight between the two from October of 2022.
As with all MMA championship fights in most promotions, this battle for the Oktagon MMA Strawweight Championship is an advertised maximum of five rounds at five minutes per round.
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The Series So Far…
Heading into the rematch, the series between these fighters stands at 1-0 in favor of the champion. Two years ago, Dalisda scored a unanimous decision victory over Martin in Oktagon 36. How will chapter two play out?
Fighter Comparison and Betting Odds
Heading into this strawweight championship fight on Saturday, challenger Mallory Martin stands as the taller contestant at 5-foot-4, compared to champion Katharina Dalisda’s 5-foot-3 frame. Martin owns a 0.6-inch reach advantage (64 inches even to 63.4 inches) over Dalisda.
Currently, the oddsmakers have Katharina Dalisda installed as a -275 betting favorite on the money line, while Mallory Martin counters as a +200 underdog. If you plan on betting on this or any other fight happening this weekend in MMA or combat sports, please wager responsibly.
Dalisda Looks to Defend Belt in Important “Home Game” Saturday
Champion Katharina Dalisda has posted an undefeated mark in her last five fights. All told, she’s on a six-fight winning streak dating back to Dec. 18, 2021.
Back in the second week of February, she bested former No. 1 contender Eva Dourthe (8-6 MMA, 1-1 Oktagon) during Oktagon 54’s main event from Rudolf-Weber Arena in Oberhausen, Germany. Much like Oktagon 54 this past winter, Oktagon 63 on Saturday is also a “home game” for the champ.
This time, however, the stakes are even higher with the card taking place in an open-air stadium with north of 58,000 audience members in the venue. It’ll be a partisan crowd for the champion, so can she feed off of the energy that they’ll give her in Oktagon 63?
Martin Ready to Bring Oktagon Belt to America
In the other corner, Mallory Martin has gone 2-3 in her last five fights. Currently, she’s won two fights in succession. Last time out, she scored a unanimous decision victory over Anita Bekus (7-5 MMA, 0-1 Oktagon) in May during Oktagon 57.
She’s fought some personal demons in the past, however. Over four years ago, she opened up about her mental health issues after a win versus Hannah Cifers (10-7 MMA, 2-5 UFC.)
“I was in a hard spot mentally,” Martin began, “and I had nothing to look forward to, and I was depressed and just fighting my own demons. I had a hard camp, but before I started camp, I was dealing with some stuff. If it wasn’t for her taking the fight, I probably still would have fought, but just for her stepping in there and being in the cage with me meant a lot to me, because I don’t know if I would be here if it wasn’t for that.”
Up to now, the Oktagon Strawweight Championship has resided in Germany, but Mallory Martin is just one win away from taking the title to the United States.
Analysis, Film Study, and Prediction
Stylistically, this championship fight looks to favor Mallory Martin, a brown belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, compared to Katharina Dalisda’s background as a judoka.
Dalisda’s Movement Could Tell the Tale
Katharina Dalisda is known for being quick on her feet, something that showed itself in spades during her February affair versus Eva Dourthe. Throughout the contest, she was the quicker fighter of the two, leading to her putting Dourthe in the clinch during the second round of the contest, landing knee strikes in the process.
Upon the fighters leaving the clinch later in the round, Dalisda remained the aggressor, driving Dourthe against the cage fence again, landing some punches to the head in the clinch before the official broke the fighters up due to timidity.
Even though Dalisda has gotten some flashy wins on her resume, a clinical performance may be good enough to defend the title in front of the fans in her home country. She just has to keep her foot on the gas pedal and keep moving.
Look For Martin to Overwhelm Dalisda
In the other corner, Mallory Martin has the skills to score the upset on Saturday. One need look no further than her Invicta fight versus Tiffany Masters.
During the second round of the fight, Martin dropped her opponent and scored with brutal elbow shots from the top position, stacking Masters. In short, this round was one-way traffic for as long as it lasted, leading to a burst of ground and pound from back mount to end the contest.
If Mallory Martin takes Katharina Dalisda to the mat, this fight will be over in a hurry,
Final Thoughts
A rematch for a championship takes place Saturday. This should be a cracking affair.
Prediction: Katharina Dalisda by Unanimous Decision.
