Nunes beats Pena to regain UFC women’s bantamweight belt

DALLAS (AP) — Amanda Nunes gained a unanimous five-spherical selection more than Julianna Peña in the major occasion of UFC 277 on Saturday night at to get back the women’s bantamweight championship that she lost past December.

Nunes (22-5), nicknamed “The Lioness,” is once again a double-winner, by now holding the featherweight belt. The judges’ scoring was 50-45, 50-44 and 50-43.

Peña beat Nunes final December at Las Vegas to claim the title in one of the biggest upsets in UFC historical past.

Saturday’s fight was the 1st title protection for Peña (12-5) in the 135-pound division.

Brandon Moreno won the co-major event with a third-spherical TKO around Kai Kara-France in a scheduled five-spherical bout to take possession of the interim men’s flyweight championship belt.

Nunes dropped Peña a few occasions in the next round, 2 times on appropriate hooks and then with a left to the brow. Nunes took down Peña halfway by the third spherical and retained her on the mat, punching to the head to open cuts alongside Peña’s hairline that remaining blood splattered on the mat.

Nunes experienced Peña on her back again again for a lot of the fourth and fifth rounds. Peña’s face was streaked with blood that stained considerably of the mat.

Referee Herb Dean stopped the fight amongst Moreno and Kara-France at 4:34 right after Moreno, sporting a deep slash under his appropriate eye with blood streaming down his deal with and on to his upper body, landed a liver kick that dropped Kara-France. Moreno then finished him off.

Moreno (20-6), from Tijuana, Mexico, came in as the division’s major-ranked contender and Kara-France (24-10), from New Zealand, second. Moreno was backed by a group that chanted “Mo-re-no!” and “Me-xi-co!” at moments throughout the match.

Deiveson Figueiredo regained the flyweight belt from Moreno last January with a unanimous decision in a trilogy battle in the 125-pound division. But due to the fact of a hand personal injury sustained by Figueiredo.

Afterward Saturday’s bout, Figueiredo entered the octagon carrying his championship belt and achieved with Moreno. Figueiredo mentioned he’d like to host Moreno in his native Brazil for the undisputed title, and Moreno indicated his approval.

Sergei Pavlovich was awarded a TKO in 55 seconds into a scheduled 3-round heavyweight bout from Derrick Lewis, the oldest fighter on the card at 37 a long time aged and a lover beloved from Houston. Pavlovich landed a collection of punches to Lewis’ head and upper system. Lewis ultimately went down but jumped proper back up as referee Dan Miragliotta stopped it, as Lewis and the crowd the two expressed their displeasure with the ruling.

Pavlovich (16-1) went in rated 11th whilst Lewis (26-10) was fifth.

Alexandre Pantoja promptly finished off Alex Perez on a tap out only 1:31 into their scheduled three-spherical men’s flyweight matchup. Pantoja (25-5), rated No. 4, received atop Perez (24-7), No. 6, together the fence and locked his arms across Perez’s jaw to pressure the submission.

Magomed Ankalaev scored a TKO at 3:09 of the second of 3 rounds about Anthony Smith in a men’s mild heavyweight bout. Ankalaev (18-1), rated No. 4, took down Smith (36-17), No. 5, in the first spherical and then pummeled him along the base of the fence early in the 2nd spherical when referee Jacob Montalvo stopped the fight. Smith advised those people attending to him afterward as he sat on the mat that he experienced a broken still left leg before he was aided from the cage.