Manon Fiorot's impressive run in the UFC continued at UFC Atlantic City, as she became the first women to defeat Erin Blanchfield in the main event of the card.
In the main event, both women were looking to add to their perfect 6-0 promotional records and secure themselves as likely the next women to take on the victor of the Alexa Grasso vs Valentina Shevchenko trilogy, if the bout is made.
It was largely considered the contest between Fiorot and Blanchfield would be a striker vs grappler affair, with Fiorot's striking proving to be the best path to victory.
Although Blanchfield had glimmers of success, the bout was largely contested at Fiorot's pace, with the Frenchwomen taking all 5 rounds on all three judges scorecards.
It was an emotional night for Joaquin Buckley, who has seemingly secured his place in the rankings with a second finish over Vincente Luque in the co-main event.
Heading into the contest, Buckley had discussed being ready for either the forthcoming aggressive Luque or the more technical version fans have witnessed in recent bouts. It ultimately turned out the be the latter, with it being Buckley the aggressor in the first round.
Luque looked to take the fight to the ground in the second round but the decision would cost him the contest as the takedown was successfully stopped by Buckley and the American found himself in top position and reigned down strikes, forcing the referee to step in.
The ending of Chris Weidman's bout with Bruno Silva was unexpected. Although Weidman looked back to his old self over the first two rounds, taking both rounds on all three judges score cards, it was the unintentional eye pokes that would sway the contest heavily.
In the second round, Weidman was cautioned for an accidental eye poke. The eye pokes continued in the third round, with both men catching each other with them. During the final stanza, Weidman caught Silva flush with an eye poke which sent Silva crashing to the mat, Weidman then piled on with strikes and the referee stepped in and waved it off. After initially being declared as TKO win, the bout was then overturned to a unanimous decision win for Weidman.
Kyle Nelson delivered a brutal first round finish to Bill Algeo in their Featherweight contest. With just less than 90 seconds left on the clock, Nelson landed a huge overhand right that send Algeo dancing back towards the cage. Although trying to stay in the contest, Algeo didn't have any answers and after a 20 second onslaught, the referee stepped in.
There were also big wins for Caolan Loughran, Ibo Asian, Dennis Buzukja and Julio Arce.
Find the full fight night results, below
- Caolán Loughran (30-27, 30-27, 30-26) defeats Angel Pacheco by Unanimous Decision
- Jacob Malkoun defeats Andre Petroski by TKO (strikes) at 0:39 of Round 2
- Ibo Aslan defeats Anton Turkalj by TKO (right hand) at 1:32 of Round 3
- Dennis Buzukja defeats Connor Matthews by TKO (strikes) at 0:22 of Round 3
- Julio Arce defeats Herbert Burns by TKO (strikes) at 2:00 of Round 2
- Virna Jandiroba (29-28, 29-28, 30-27) defeats Loopy Godinez by Unanimous Decision
- Nate Landwehr defeats Jamall Emmers by KO (strikes) at 4:43 of Round 1
- Chidi Njokuani (30-27, 30-27) defeats Rhys McKee (28-29) by Split Decision
- Kyle Nelson defeats Bill Algeo by TKO (strikes) at 4:00 of Round 1
- Nursulton Ruziboev defeats Sedriques Dumas by KO (strikes) at 3:18 of Round 1
- Chris Weidman defeats Bruno Silva by Unanimous Decision following an accidental eye poke
- Joaquin Buckley defeats Vicente Luque by TKO (strikes) at 3:17 of Round 2
- Manon Fiorot (50-45, 50-45, 50-45) defeats Erin Blanchfield by Unanimous Decision
Watch Manon Fiorot's full post fight interview, below:
