Luptia Godinez might be a little “Loopy,” but she had a breakout year in 2021, fighting four times, going 2-2 and setting a couple of records for quickest turnaround in modern UFC history, and being the fastest to get to three fights in the promotion.
To kick off her 2022, the strawweight was matched up with Ariane Carnelossi at UFC 274. The Brazilian had won both of her own fights in 2021, after losing her promotional debut against Angela Hill in 2019 and missing all of 2020.
In the opening round, Godinez got the fight to the ground early, leading to some heavy grappling exchanges. Loopy worked on a choke, but Carnelossi powered her way back up. Godinez got her back down, and had the edge in the grappling department.
In the second round, Godinez proved to have the edge on the feet as well. She rocked Carnelossi early, then landed a blast double, taking Carnelossi down and immediately dropping smashing elbows. Carnelossi was hurt, bloodied, but managed to survive. Getting to a knee, she ate knees to the body from Loopy. Carnelossi gave up her back, and Godinez got hooks in. Eventually, Carnelossi would get her back to the mat; Godinez would work on an Americana. Carnelossi would escape to her feet at the end of the round, but the moral victory in that was minimal.
Round three opened with a blast double from Loopy Godinez, who moved straight to side control. That was not where Carnelossi wanted to be, as it didn’t seem likely that she’d be able to finish the fight off her back in the third round, with the two slick with sweat. Godinez at worst had to defend a leg lock attempt, but her wrestling was too much for Carnelossi. The Brazilian did make it back up, but Godinez slammed her down, and whatever wind was left in Carnelossi’s sails was gone from that point on.
In terms of her performance, “Loopy” Godinez had the best showing of her career in Phoenix. After the fight, she called for a quick turnaround — and is definitely deserving of it after that showing.
Official Result: Lupita Godinez def. Ariane Carnelossi by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-26, 30-26)
