UFC on ESPN 14 results: Carla Esparza extends winning streak, hands Marina Rodriguez first loss
Esparza #Esparza
By Mike Bohn | July 25, 2020 10:01 pm
Carla Esparza added to the best winning streak of her UFC career Saturday when she put the first loss on previously unbeaten Marina Rodriguez’s record at UFC on ESPN 14.
Esparza (17-6 MMA, 8-4 UFC), the former UFC and Invicta FC strawweight champion, pushed her run of victories to four consecutive fights with a split decision against Rodriguez (13-1-2 MMA, 2-1-2 UFC) in a matchup that had important implications for the strawweight division. The scores were 28-29, 29-28 and 30-27.
The 115-pound bout was part of the UFC on ESPN 14 main card, which aired on ESPN and streamed on ESPN from Flash Forum at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.
Esparza wasted no time looking to implement her game plan in the first round. She quickly shot in for a takedown and put Rodriguez on her back, where the fight stayed for nearly four minutes. Esparza worked ground-and-pound until she finally fell back into a heel hook attempt, but that only allowed Rodriguez to get on top. Esparza scrambled and broke free, allowing Rodriguez to tag her with a couple hard punches. Esparza shot in, though, and secured a takedown to close the round.
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Esparza opened the second round looking to do more of the same, but Rodriguez saw it coming. She halted the early attempts and landed some solid shots on the feet, one of which opened some damage around Esparza’s eye. Esparza finally got her takedown and did a little bit of work from on top for a few minutes. She went for the leg submission once again in the late stages, allowing Rodriguez to again overtake top control and land some effective punches, further opening the cut around Esparza’s eye in the final seconds.
With the fight tight going into the final stanza, Rodriguez looked to pick Esparza apart from range and further damage her face. Esparza merely waited for her time to take to the ground, though, and succeeded in her attempt. It was largely rinse and repeat for the rest of the fight, and ultimately Esparza got the win.
“Whoever is going to get me closer to that title fight I’m down,” Esparza said in her post-fight interview with Dan Hardy.
Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 14 results include:
Gallery UFC on ESPN 14: Best photos from Fight Island in Abu Dhabi Gallery UFC on ESPN 14: Official scorecards from Fight Island in Abu Dhabi