Two UFC strawweight veterans entered the octagon on Saturday night at UFC Vegas 54 in search of a much-needed win. Virna Jandiroba and Angela Hill faced off in the prelims at the UFC APEX.
Jandiroba was coming off a decision loss to Amanda Ribas at UFC 267. Prior to that, the former Invicta FC champ’s career had been inconsistent, trading wins and losses.
Fellow Invicta champ Hill was on a two fight losing streak with decision losses to Tecia Torres and Amanda Lemos, respectively.
It was Hill holding center early, Jandiroba on the outside, until she shot in, looking to get the fight down into her world. Hill defended as well as she could, but the Brazilian would then attack a leg, dragging Hill down in a kneebar attempt. Hill would roll, fight it off, and survive the otherwise very dicey sequence. They’d get back to their feet, where Hill had a chance to shine — though she would finish the round with a takedown of her own.
Hill was busier on the feet in the early portion of round two. And when they went to the fence, it was Hill in control. She did eat a forearm off the break, but immediately after that clinch, landed a three-punch combination. In the next clinch, Hill would connect with a knee. But Jandiroba would change levels, ducking under a punch and finishing the attempt with a trip. That allowed Jandiroba time to work on top, with the Brazilian in half guard, trapping one of Hill’s legs.
From there, Jandiroba worked on a kimura, then caught Hill in an arm-bar attempt. Hill stacked her up, adding a knee to the face of her opponent to make things uncomfortable. They would ride out the round there, essentially in a stalemate.
Hill was taken back to the ground again in the third. While she did get back up, with was carrying Jandiroba’s weight. Jandiroba would pull Hill back down, and that appeared to be the death knell for Angela Hill in the fight. She’d spent far too much time in Jandiroba’s world, and didn’t have much of an answer for the Brazilian’s ground game. She looked to sweep, couldn’t, and Jandiroba would up taking the back, hunting for a choke. Hill would turn in and reverse position, finishing the round on top — little more than a moral victory at that point.
Official Result: Virna Jandiroba def. Angela Hill by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
