Former UFC champion [autotag]Jessica Andrade[/autotag] didn’t even need five minutes to get the job done against [autotag]Cynthia Calvillo[/autotag].
In the UFC 266 main card opener, Andrade (22-9 MMA, 13-7 UFC) defeated Calvillo (9-3-1 MMA, 6-3-1 UFC) via TKO (punches) at 4:54 of Round 1.
The women’s flyweight bout took place at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. It aired on pay-per-view following prelims on ESPNews and ESPN+.
When she stepped in the cage Saturday, Andrade became the first woman to compete in 20 fights under the UFC banner. From the opening bell, Andrade moved directly at Calvillo and let her hands go. Calvillo did not react well to many Andrade combinations – and as the round progressed, the volume increased.
As the clock wound down, Andrade landed a combination as Calvillo retreated. She sensed blood in the water and poured on combination after combination on Calvillo, who became stuck against the fence. Calvillo’s intelligent defense quickly disappeared and referee Herb Dean stepped in to wave off the fight just short of the round-end buzzer.
Relentless finish by @jessicammapro 😤
▶️ https://t.co/a6Pwn3C6dK pic.twitter.com/qu5wYV3Fuz
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) September 26, 2021
The win for Andrade bounces her back from a failed title shot against champion Valentina Shevchenko at UFC 261 in April, in which she lost via second-round TKO. A former UFC women’s strawweight champion, Andrade moves to 2-1 at flyweight in the UFC. After the fight, Andrade mentioned a trilogy fight against champion Rose Namajunas as the bout she’s interested in next.
Calvillo’s loss turns a standalone defeat into a two-fight skid. As she entered UFC 266, Calvillo came off a loss to Katlyn Chookagian, which took place at UFC 255 in November 2020. Saturday’s loss was her first-career loss by strikes.
Up-to-the-minute UFC 266 results include:
- Jessica Andrade def. Cynthia Calvillo via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:54
- Merab Dvalishvili def. Marlon Moraes via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 4:25
- Dan Hooker def. Nasrat Haqparast via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)
- Chris Daukaus def. Shamil Abdurakhimov via TKO (strikes) – Round 2, 1:23
- Taila Santos def. Roxanne Modafferi via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Jalin Turner def. Uros Medic via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 4:01
- Nick Maximov def. Cody Brundage via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
- Matthew Semelsberger def. Martin Sano via knockout (punch) – Round 1, 0:15
- Jonathan Pearce def. Omar Morales via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:31
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