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UFC

Erin Blanchfield crushes Taila Santos via unanimous decision victory

UFC fans hailed Erin Blanchfield on her hard-fought decision victory against Taila Santos. Blanchfield put her eight-fight winning record on the line in her bid for a UFC championship opportunity against the dangerous Brazilian fighter. After much back-and-forth, she was declared the winner.

Taila Santos, a former championship contender, made it difficult for Blanchfield, especially in the first round, with a flurry of punches that frequently landed with accuracy. Blanchfield escaped the attack and then just outworked Santos for the remaining 10 minutes with an unstoppable tempo.

Santos dominated the early exchanges on the feet, stuffing Blanchfield’s initial takedown attempt. Blanchfield was knocked down by a Santos leg kick, and the Brazilian then cut his nose. Santos then landed a solid right hook, causing Blanchfield to flutter and stack her against the cage. Blanchfield tripped Santos, who attempted to reclaim her, but Blanchfield stood firm. Blanchfield stacked Santos against the cage at the end of the round.

To begin Round 2, Blanchfield flurried Santos and shot in for the takedown. Santos defended effectively until Blanchfield was able to secure the takedown midway through the round. Blanchfield moved into position, hoping for an arm triangle choke, but Santos pushed her back up. Blanchfield had a much better round, controlling the tempo with her grappling. Santos began Round 3 with a series of single strokes, but Blanchfield ultimately forced her to the barrier. Santos held strong, but Blanchfield fired again as soon as they got loose. Blanchfield finished the fight strong with a huge right hand, taking Rounds 2 and 3 on the judges’ scorecards.

Blanchfield remained unbeaten in the UFC with her sixth straight victory, with all three judges scoring the bout 29-28. “Not surprised, I’m fighting top five in the world so everyone’s going to be tough to hit, tough to takedown but I’m happy to get the win,” Blanchfield said about her fight. “She was definitely swinging wild. I didn’t want to chance getting hit with anything crazy.”

Blanchfield, an alum of Shannon Knapp’s Invicta FC, won her sixth consecutive fight, via a tight unanimous judging decision over Santos in Kallang, as the Brazilian returned to the ring for the first time since losing a flyweight title challenge to former champion Valentina Shevchenko in Singapore last year.

Following her victory against Taila Santos, Erin Blanchfield made it clear that she wants to face the winner of the forthcoming championship rematch between champion Alexa Grasso and previous divisional queen Valentina Shevchenko.

Erin told Michael Bisping in her octagon interview: “Oh, I want the title shot next. I want the winner of Valentina vs. Grasso.” Blanchfield has a strong case for a championship opportunity, having won six UFC fights and defeating a past title contender.

 

 

Priyadarshan G

Priyadarshan G

priyadarshan

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