Contender Series alum Julia Polastri, who appeared twice on the show, initially against Jasmine Jasudavicius then again last year, made her UFC debut on Saturday opposite Josefine Knutsson at UFC Vegas 93.
The pair had originally been booked for March, only for Knutsson, an undefeated strawweight prospect, to withdraw from the fight, resulting in it being pushed back several months.
When the fight started both ladies traded kicks. Knutsson was keeping Polastri at bay with those kicks, including a lot of teeps to the body. Knutsson went off with a flurry of output including knees in the clinch. Polastri was letting Knutsson dictate the pace; Knutsson was loose just throwing constant volume. Those push kicks to the body from Knutsson were setting back Polastri every time she came forward. In the final seconds, Polastri got a takedown. She went right into the mount and landed some really good elbows. Maybe too late to win the round.
In round two Josefine Knutsson was back to work putting her kicks and hands together. Knutsson was mixing up her kicking patterns going to the head, body, and legs. Polastri caught Knutsson in a lull and got a clean takedown. Off her back, Knutsson was leaking blood from her right eye. From a lack of concentration or something Knutsson was flailing her legs and landed on Polastri as a grounded opponent. The ref paused the fight and later restarted them back on the mat. Knutsson almost landed another illegal kick but Polastri bypassed it and moved to half-guard. Knutsson had a modified triangle but it was never close and that’s where the round ended.
In the final round, Knutsson wanted to get back to her kicking game. The advantage on the feet was clear for Knutsson. Polastri would throw back but she wasn’t landing. When Knutsson would throw combinations Polastri would just cover up and take it. Two minutes left, Polastri shot in for a takedown. Knutsson used a whizzer to defend but made the mistake of hanging around too long and Polastri got the fight down. Polastri had an arm triangle from the other side. As she tried to cross over to the other side Knutsson reversed and got top position. The fight ended in Knutsson landing a flurry against the cage.
On the scorecards, all three judges saw it the same, favoring Knutsson.
Official Result: Josefine Knutsson def Julia Polastri by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
