In a strawweight scrap at ARES FC 29, Payne fired off a spinning back fist, only to spin right into a slam perfectly executed by opponent Fabiola Pidroni. And when Payne tried to break her fall with her arm, things went from bad to worse for the British fighter, competing for the second time under the ARES FC banner.

Fabiola Pidroni finit violemment son adversaire au 3ème round. 😱

📺 En direct sur @CanalplusSport#ARES29 pic.twitter.com/7T60Nx1DK1

— ARES Fighting Championship (@ares_fighting) February 14, 2025

Payne was left writing in pain on the canvas after the slam, and Pidroni, mercifully, opted not to pile on with ground n’ pound or attempt a submission, likely realizing what had happened. The ref was soon on the scene as well to wave off the fight.

No word yet on the extent of her injury, or if the arm was broken.

It’s not every day you see a slam KO from a strawweight, so kudos to Pidroni for pulling it off. Hopefully Payne will heal up and be back to full power. She falls to 2-2 with the setback, after posting a 2-1 record in 2024 having turned pro last March. Italy’s Fabiola Pidroni, who has held gold for regional promotion Octofight, snapped a two-fight skid and improved to 6-2 with the win.

Pidroni vs. Payne was the third fight in on the ARES FC 29 preliminary card on Friday. The event took place at the Adidas Arena in Paris, France.

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