Two-time UFC women’s strawweight champion Carla Esparza faced Tecia Pennington at UFC 307 in a bout that would serve as the former’s retirement fight.
Esparza, who had also claimed gold in Invicta FC, was the inaugural 115lb champion both in that promotion and the UFC, having won The Ultimate Fighter 20 a decade ago. After winning the belt a second time in 2022, Esparza lost it in her first title defense, and had not fought since, a span of nearly two years, taking time off to start a family.
Pennington walked forward early in the opening round, finding a home for her right hand more than once. Esparza returned fire, but was soon backed up by another Pennington volley. Pennington mixed in a low kick, then another, not much behind them, but overall, she was dictating the fight. About two minutes in, things got a little scrappier, with both women landing. Pennington appeared to clip the former champ, which resulted in a shot from Carla and the pair going down. Esparza came out on top in the ensuing scramble, dodging an upkick then getting into side control.
From there, Esparza was able to land a couple of elbows. They briefly went to north-south before Esparza returned to side control. Moments later, Esparza nearly had a crucifix, but Pennington managed to trap a leg, preventing Esparza from locking it in. Soon, Esparza freed that leg, but the crucifix was no longer in play.
Round two saw Pennington work her outside leg kick, while being careful not to overcommit on anything for fear of being planted on her back again. That led to a slightly less busy fight in the first half of the round, with Tecia firing kicks and the odd combo. With about 90 seconds left, Pennington nearly caught an Esparza kick but didn’t have it. And Pennington continued to throw less volume. Esparza then chose to shoot in, only to end up being clipped, with Pennington launching a few more big shots. Esparza, however, found her opening, and landed a key takedown with just over 30 seconds on the clock. Luckily for Pennington, she was able to bounce right back up, negating a big takedown in a close round.
Round three opened with the pair very possibly tied, depending on how the judges scored round two. Esparza’s corner had urged her to secure a takedown earlier in the round, but through two and a half minutes, she was unable to do so. Pennington meanwhile continued to kick the calf of the ex-champ. Esparza then connected with a punch, surprising both Pennington and fans in the building who might have been expecting her to shoot a takedown. Another flurry from Esparza saw her land, but this time, Pennington fired back, connecting with a solid blow of her own. Despite her bread and butter being in the wrestling department, in the final round of her career, Esparza just couldn’t make a takedown happen. She was, however, in Pennington’s face in the final 90 seconds, showing a scrappier side to her game then usual. And, in the final 20 seconds, Esparza did land one last takedown, finishing the fight on top dropping elbows.
That wasn’t enough to placate the judges, however, who scored it unanimously for Tecia Pennington – including all three rounds being awarded to Pennington on one scorecard. That confused many, and the fans in Salt Lake City let it be known that they were not on board with the decision.
Following the fight, the promotion aired a highlights package including both Invicta and UFC clips featuring Carla Esparza, similar to what they did for Robbie Lawler upon his farewell.
Official Result: Tecia Pennington def. Carla Esparza by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
