Manon Fiorot claimed a dominant unanimous decision win over Erin Blanchfield in the women’s flyweight main event of a UFC Fight Night at the Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey, on Sunday morning.
Fiorot picked up a seventh straight win thanks to a fine display of striking, keeping Blanchfield at a distance and suffering relatively little damage herself to take the fight 50-45 50-45 50-45 on the judges’ score cards after five rounds.
The 34-year-old Frenchwomen has now put herself firmly in the title picture for the flyweight division.
Current champion Alexa Grasso and former champ Valentina Shevchenko are set as coaches for the upcoming season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’, and a trilogy match between them is expected to follow – with Fiorot now waiting in the wings.
“I'm ready," Fiorot said through an interpreter during her post-fight interview. "No matter what, I want my title shot.”
The rest of the main card saw Vicente Luque stop Joaquin Buckley in the second round of their welterweight clash; Chris Weidman took a technical decision win over Bruno Silva (originally a TKO but changed to a decision by the athletic commission due to Silva suffering an eye poke leading to the stoppage); Nursulton Ruziboev got the better of Sedriques Dumas in the middleweight division; Kyle Nelson stopped fellow featherweight Bill Algeo; and Chidi Njokuani scored a split decision win over Rhys McKee in the welterweight opener.
The next UFC event is a Fight Night at the APEX Facility in Las Vegas on the morning of Sunday 7 April, headlined by a middleweight clash between Brendan Allen and Chris Curtis.
UFC FIGHT NIGHT: Blanchfield v Fiorot – Main card results
- Main event: Women’s flyweight: Manon Fiorot def. Erin Blanchfield via unanimous decision (50-45 50-45 50-45), R5, 5:00
- Welterweight: Vicente Luque def. Joaquin Buckley via TKO (punches), R2, 3:17
- Middleweight: Chris Weidman def. Bruno Silva via technical decision (unanimous, 30-27 30-27 30-27), R3, 2:18
- Middleweight: Nursulton Ruziboev def. Sedriques Dumas via TKO (punches), R1, 3:18
- Featherweight: Kyle Nelson def. Bill Algeo via TKO (punches), R1, 4:00
- Welterweight: Chidi Njokuani def. Rhys McKee via split decision (28-29 30-27 30-27), R3, 5:00