Best known for their strawweight runs, Cynthia Calvillo and Nina Nunes threw down at UFC San Diego on Saturday. The fight was contested at flyweight, though Calvillo had indicated she planned a return to 115.
Consider it two strawweights moonlighting for the weekend, in that case. Either way, it was two veterans with plenty of high level experience going at it.
One of those vets would hang up the gloves at the end of the night.
About two minutes into the opening round, Calvillo landed a takedown off a kick, but couldn’t keep Nunes there. Nunes’ kicks, meanwhile, were having an obvious impact, with Calvillo showing some redness on her calf. Just halfway through the round, and Calvillo’s lead leg was getting chewed up something fierce. Calvillo would pursue a single leg takedown, to no avail.
In the second, Calvillo led with her right hand, and got her jab going. Nunes was happy to answer back on the feet. She was less happy being planted on her back around the midway mark of the round. Well away from the fence, Calvillo had ample time to work inside Nunes’ closed guard. She couldn’t find a finish, however, and Nunes had the edge on the feet throughout.
The third frame found Calvillo again falling back on her wrestling as the action progressed. A takedown attempt near the midway mark led to a wild scramble; Nunes made it back up, wall-walking up the fence. They moved back to center, Nunes pressing forward. She chopped at Calvillo’s leg some more, leading to Calvillo trying to snatch a leg and pursue another takedown — no dice on that attempt. Nunes’ kicks, including a late high kick that just grazed Calvillo, were money. She turned up the heat in the final minute, and did enough to take the win on two scorecards.
After the fight, Nunes, who is a mom alongside UFC double champ Amanda Nunes, announced her retirement from the sport.
Nina Nunes has left her gloves in the Octagon and announced her retirement from MMA 👏#UFCSanDiego pic.twitter.com/Va9r7rgiwf
— UFC on BT Sport (@btsportufc) August 13, 2022
Official Result: Nina Nunes def. Cynthia Calvillo by split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
