LAS VEGAS — No. 5 ranked Virna Jandiroba showcased her elite grappling skills with a second-round submission victory over No. 3 ranked Amanda Lemos in the UFC Vegas 94 strawweight main event Saturday night at the UFC APEX.
From the first moments of the fight, Jandiroba was in relentless pursuit of the takedown, coming close to submitting Lemos multiple times during the first round.
Lemos survived the first five minutes of Vandiroba’s onslaught, but after a series of ground exchanges in the second round, Jandiroba took control of Lemos’ back.
After controlling both Lemos’ arms and legs, Vandiroba attacked the throat in search of a rear-naked choke — transitioning to an arm bar submission and causing Lemos to tap out.
With this win, Vandiroba cements herself as a fierce force in the strawweight division, as well as a top contender for the title. During her post-fight speech, Vandiroba made her intentions for the title clear.
“Dana (White), I’m the next one," she said. "I’m the one who needs to get that title shot.”
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Vandiroba could be next in line for the strawweight title, but, an imposing force in Zhang Weili stands in her way.
In an exciting featherweight showdown, Steve Garcia secured a spectacular first-round knockout victory over Choi Seung-Woo. Going at each other from the first moments of the fight, Garcia and Seung-Woo both landed power shots to wobble each other.
However, Garcia’s aggressiveness and heavy forward pressure allowed him to counter Seung-Woo during a wild striking exchange and sending him crashing to the canvas. Garcia quickly followed his opponent to the ground, landing a series of hammer fists until the referee was forced to stop the fight.
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“I really want that fight with (Dan) Ige. I think that guy brings it, he’s proved that he’s a badass.”
Ige recently earned fan respect after stepping in to face Diego Lopes in a short-notice fight at UFC 303.
Next week, the UFC will return to the UK for UFC 304 in Manchester, England. Leon Edwards vs. Belal Muhammad is set to headline with Tom Aspinall vs Curtis Bladyes as the co-main event.