Yahoo Sports UFC Fight Night 88 Results: Sara McMann Dominates, Decisions Jessica Eye
Sara McMann scored a dominating victory over former training partner Jessica Eye at UFC Fight Night 88.
Despite being two of the better fighters in the women’s bantamweight division, McMann and Eye were both trying to right the ship on Sunday night in Las Vegas. They had each lost their last two fights, so McMann earning a dominant decision was a huge step in the right direction.
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The opening round fell fully in McMann’s column, as did most of the fight. Neither landed much in the striking department, at least at distance, but McMann shot and pressed Eye up against the fence for a couple minutes, softening her up with numerous knees to her body and right leg.
McMann continued to be the aggressor in round two, launching heavy handed punch combinations to try and bridge the distance to take the fight down. Eye, meanwhile, seemed intent to sit in the pocket and wait, perhaps looking to counter McMann.
In the final couple minutes of the round, McMann landed a couple punches to bridge the gap and put Eye on her back, where she landed several hard punches and hammerfists. Eye turned to all fours, trying to escape, but McMann stayed on her back and landed a few more shots before the horn.
The fight continued in the same vein for the last round, only with McMann catching a kick and taking it to the mat much earlier in the round.
After planting Eye on her back in the opening minute of the final frame, McMann stayed in full control, keeping Eye on the canvas for the next four minutes. She landed some hard punches here and there and nearly securing a north-south choke, but she couldn’t find a way to put Eye away.
Keeping the fight where she wanted it for the better part of the fight was enough, however, as McMann got the nod from all three judges.
“I knew that she was fast, and I knew that she was gonna be very patient, so we had to keep it in the area that we were strong,” McMann admitted after the fight.
“It’s difficult when you’ve trained with someone and she knows how I feel, she knows how I set things up. This fight really was a good match-up, but it was a chess match because we’ve trained several times together.”