Marina Rodriguez def. Amanda Ribas in vicious TKO
The first fighter to hold two UFC titles simultaneously is back to headline UFC 257 on Saturday, Jan. 23.
The former UFC lightweight and featherweight king Conor McGregor returns to the octagon in a rematch with the former 155-pound interim champion Dustin Poirier in Abu Dhabi. The former Bellator lightweight title holder Michael Chandler makes his UFC debut against ranked contender Dan Hooker in the co-main event.
Starting out the PPV features a straw weight bout between two top ranked contenders. Marina Rodriguez faces no. 10 Amanda Ribas. While Rodriguez is currently the eighth ranked fighter in the division, she is currently coming off a loss to the inaugural straw weight champion Carla Esparza. Ribas is a significant betting favorite for the early match at UFC 257.
Amanda Ribas controlled the first round with her superior jiu-jitsu skills. She didn’t land any definitive strikes on the ground but still took the round. In the second round, Rodriguez controlled the stand-up game and finished the fight early with massive blows to Ribas.
Round 1:
Start of the fight is slow as both fighters try to establish distance. Rodriguez landed a few leg strikes to keep Ribas at bay. Ribas gets in close and lands the first takedown of the fight. Ribas controls top guard looking for a position of control. Ribas has controlled the round since the takedown. She hasn’t thrown any significant strikes. But she is tiring out the Muay Thai fighter also from Brazil. With top guard for the majority of the round, Ribas takes the first round.
10-9 Ribas
Round 2:
Rodriguez starts the round with more Muay Thai striking with big strikes. Huge controversy after Herb Dean looked to step in and call the fight. After a little misconception, Rodriguez smelled blood in the water and went in for the finish. Ribas had a tale of two rounds and after trying to stand toe-to-toe with Rodriguez, found that she was on the opposite end of the fight game.
Marina Rodriguez def. Amanda Ribas via Round 2 TKO (:54)
