Jasmine Jasudavicius is a Canadian prospect competing in the flyweight division. Having turned pro less than a year ago, Jasudavicius has already compiled a 4-0 record with 3 finishes. Prior to turning professional, she also had a successful amateur career where she went 4-0. At 31, Jasudavicius is a bit of a late starter and did not have prior combat sports experience before starting MMA. Nonetheless, Jasmine has fully emerged herself in combat sports and has competed as an amateur in both boxing and Muay Thai, going undefeated.
Strengths
Clinch Work
The first thing that stands out when you watch Jasudavicius fight is her willingness to get into the clinch. After she is able to do so it is evident why she was so eager to get there. She has been able to finish several fights as a result of her clinch work. The Canadian is often able to pummel her opponents with knees as soon as she gets into the clinch. Her relentlessness tends to surprise and overwhelm her opponents which in turn allows her to dish out damage. What is even more impressive to me, is that Jasudavicius does not headhunt in the clinch. Instead she often focuses on the body instead. By attacking the body early, she is putting money in the bank for the later rounds should she not be able to find the finish straight away.
Agressiveness
Another key aspect of Jasmine’s game is her pathological aggressiveness and willingness to slug it out. In my opinion, this is a very important attribute in young fighters because it’s something that is difficult to learn. If a fighter is confident and aggressive but lacks certain techniques then it can be sorted out in the gym. However, if a fighter does not ‘enjoy’ to fight then it might be difficult to change it. Jasudavicius’ aggression can be seen both on the feet and on the ground. As a striker, she is more than happy to engage in a brawl and usually tends to come out on top. On the ground, Jasmine is active from top position with ground and pound and submissions.
Weaknesses
Striking Defence
As is the case with a lot of young fighters, Jasudavicius tends to leave herself open in striking exchanges. This is especially evident when her opponents pressure forward and initiate a brawl. So far, this hasn’t led to any real problems but her striking defence will need to improve if she is to reach the top of the division. Jasmine has great size for the division, so it would suit her stature to become more comfortable fighting off her back foot and utilising the jab to keep her opponents at range. Nonetheless, it’s only natural for a fighter that young in their career to struggle a bit with the defensive side of the game. It is often believed that defence is the last thing a fighter learns so Jasmine has plenty of time to improve on it.
Takedown Defence
One thing that I did not like from the tape I watched on Jasudavicius is how easily she got taken down in some her fights. Although it is understandable that a fighter with no prior wrestling experience will struggle with defending takedowns it is still an area of weakness. Furthermore, with how dangerous Jasmine can be on the feet, I would be very surprised if her future opponents won’t base their game plan around exploiting the wrestling holes in her game. To Jasudavicius’ credit, whenever she gets taken down she is often successful with getting back to her feet or into a more advantageous position. She has shown some natural ability on the ground and has been able to hit sweeps and looked comfortable in wrestling based scrambles. It is also worth noting that Jasudavicius’ boyfriend and coach is considered as one of the top wrestling coaches in Canada so it is reasonable to expect improvements in that area.
Overall
I am very impressed by Jasmine Jasudavicius considering she is less than year into her professional career. I believe that she has great physical gifts combined with a natural feel for fighting and dangerous clinch work. She is also at the point of her career where she is likely to improve from fight to fight. Jasmine has also attracted the attention of the training staff at Syndicate MMA who brought her in as a sparring partner for Roxanne Modafferi in preparation for her fight against Maycee Barber. In my opinion, we will see Jasmine in a major organisation sooner rather than later and when she gets there I expect her to rise up the ranks quickly providing she keeps working on all areas of her game.