Welcome a new contender to the UFC women's bantamweight division after newcomer Jessica 'Evil' Eye pulled off a major upset defeating former Strikeforce women's champion Sarah Kaufman at UFC 166 on Saturday night.
A top prospect from Ohio who fought most of her career at 125 pounds, Eye came into the Octagon with a fearless spirit facing Kaufman, who holds wins over notable names such as Miesha Tate, Alexis Davis and Liz Carmouche.
Eye showed off impressive striking and quick movement to avoid Kaufman's power punches throughout the first two rounds. Eye cracked off a few nasty shots inside the clinch including an elbow that thudded off of Kaufman's jaw.
As the second round wore on, Kaufman developed a big mouse under her left eye that obstructed her vision but never seemed to play a major factor in the fight.
Through two ultra close rounds, Kaufman came out gunning for Eye in the third and caught her with a big shot that rattled the newcomer, ending with a mouse on her cheek as well. Despite the flurry, Kaufman couldn't get Eye to go down and she persevered until the final bell.
The scorecards were all 29-28 with two judges giving Eye the nod for the split decision victory. Eye moves to 11-1 overall with her eighth win in a row while becoming only the third fighter to defeat Kaufman. The other two were current UFC bantamweight women's champion Ronda Rousey and former Strikeforce champion Marloes Coenen.
