Molly McCann gave it her all, but was simply outmatched against Taila Santos at UFC Fight Island 1.
“Meatball” Molly McCann entered UFC Fight Island 1 having won three straight inside the octagon. That was a rather nice return to former, after losing her Octagon debut to Gillian Robertson in 2018.
The British fighter was paired up with Brazil’s Taila Santos Wednesday night. Santos, who had won on the Contender Series in 2018, was looking for her first win in the UFC, after dropping her own debut against Mara Romero Borella earlier this year.
Santos started the fight with a big body kick then a long one-two. McCann caught a kick, but Santos responded with a pair of punches to the head. McCann fired back with a big hook and escaped a clinch attempt. McCann snuck in a right straight then avoided a few punches from Santos. The Brazilian closed the distance and landed a pair of knees to the body. The referee stopped the fight briefly after Santos allegedly pulled the hair of McCann. Action kept picking up when the fight resumed. McCann was starting to land at a higher clip, then with two minutes left in the round, Santos landed a barrage of big knees to the body. She chained that into a slam and landed some ground and pound. McCann stood up, but Santos stayed on her, landing another takedown before the round came to a close.
McCann came out aggressive in round two, but wasn’t quite as effective as she wanted to be. McCann caught a kick, then initiated a clinch off of it. Santos turned things around then pushed her opponent against the cage. McCann spun things the other way and nearly secured a takedown. The fighters returned to the center of the Octagon, then soon after it was a clinch followed by a takedown for Santos. The Brazilian quickly moved to mount. McCann tried to roll out of it, but found herself in a D’arce choke. McCann worked her way back up, then Santos ripped her down with a beautiful trip, quickly returning to mount. Santos rode out the round on top.
McCann came out firing in the final round, appearing to be down by two rounds. She couldn’t find the angle she wanted. Santos kept her at the end of her jab, as McCann continued to wing haymakers. After two minutes went by, Santos drove in with a double leg, got McCann against the fence, then threw her down. Santos went to half gurad then postured up. A few kicks from McCann forced Santos up, but not for long. Santos took her down one more time, going from side control to full mount. McCann was able to stand up before the end of the round.
Taila Santos def. Molly McCann by Unimous Decision (30-27 x3)
