Amanda Nunes stops Shayna Baszler in the first, jumps back into title contention
Amanda Nunes got back on the winning track with a first-round TKO over women's MMA pioneer Shayna Baszler in Rio at UFC Fight Night Saturday. From the start, Nunes put it on Baszler, hard.
First came a hard right hand to the head that hurt Baszler. Then, a flurry of other punches followed, including a big left to the liver.
"The Lioness" stalked Baszler and marched forward. Before long, the Brazilian landed a roundhouse kick to the lead leg of Baszler, and that was the start of her end.
Baszler was hit right on the knee and buckled afterward. Nunes followed her fallen opponent to the mat and connected with several hard punches, forcing the referee to tear her away.
Nunes last fought, and lost, to Cat Zingano last September after starting out strong against the No. 1 bantamweight contender. The overjoyed fighter said that she had been having trouble in the gym prior to the bout.
"Thank God I was able to find myself again in the sport," Nunes said.
She also gave a shout-out to her partner, UFC strawweight Nina Ansaroff. "Nina Ansaroff is going to be the next champion at 115!" Nunes exclaimed.
The fight was officially called at 1:56 of the first round. Nunes improved her record to 10-4, and Baszler's dropped to 15-10.
Despite the intensity of the brief, but violent action, both women shared quiet words and an embrace afterward.
