Czech flyweight Tereza Bleda was in search of her first win inside the UFC octagon at Saturday’s UFC Vegas 75, paired up with Brazil’s Gabriella Fernandes.
“Gabi” Fernandes had dropped a decision in her promotional debut last time out, opposite the now-ranked Jasmine Jasudavicius. With Bleda also 0-1 in the company, barring a draw or wonky finish, someone was getting their first UFC win on Saturday in Las Vegas.
Of course, there had already been one wonky finish on the night.
Bleda vs. Fernandes opened with some feeling out and positional work; Fernandes landed a low kick, while Bleda worked her jab. Fernandes did an admirable job avoiding the striking attacks of Czech Republic’s Bleda, who had a slight size advantage. Towards the midway mark of the round, however, Bleda caught her opponent, not with a combination but with a takedown.
Fernandes wound up flat on her back, with Bleda working on top and lots of time on the clock. Even with a lack of submission attempts from Bleda, she stayed busy enough on top for the ref to let her stay there, working the body and attempting to improve position. Bleda added a few short elbows to the forehead towards the end of the round, finishing on top for a very likely 10-9.
Bleda took the fight right to the cage to open round to, pinning Fernandes and throwing knees. Fernandes fought off a takedown attempt with a whizzer, then took control of Bleda’s back, threatening to climb it at one point. Bleda freed herself and spun back around; Fernandes defended with a guillotine but didn’t have her hands clasped; she instead fired a few hammerfists before Bleda competed the attempt.
With a full three minutes on the clock, Gabriella was not where she wanted to be, once again flat on her back. This time, Bleda wound up in guard, working over the body. Fernandes eventually got her back to the cage, but couldn’t manage to wall-walk up or hip escape, and when a scramble did create space, it was Bleda who capitalized, moving to full mount and teeing off with elbows and punches.
Tereza Bleda ran out of time before the finish came in the second. To start the third, the pair traded a few wild punches, and Bleda mixed in a few high kicks, including a front kick that fell short. Fernandes pressed forward firing some very heavy shots, and Bleda moved into takedown mode only to see it stuffed. Fernandes then loaded up some left hands that hurt Bleda! With Bleda against the fence, it was left hand after left hand landing for Fernandes until Tereza finally landed a desperation takedown.
That was key. Fernandes had had nothing to offer off her back all fight long, and that didn’t change. Bleda transitioned to the back, landed plenty of punches, and screamed in sheer triumph when the horn sounded.
Casually clocking in 10+ minutes of control time! 😮💨
🇨🇿 Tereza Bleda gets her first win inside the Octagon, a night she'll never forget! #UFCVegas75 pic.twitter.com/CPQwhgVvhi
— UFC (@ufc) June 18, 2023
Official Result: Tereza Bleda def. Gabriella Fernandes by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
