Croatia’s Petrovic, undefeated prior to signing with the UFC, was looking to bounce back from a loss to Luana Carolina in her promotional debut.

The second bout of the night saw Na look for a takedown early, putting Petrovic up against the cage. For all her effort, however, she could not get Petrovic down.

That scene would repeat a moment later, and by the midway point of the round two takedowns had been fended off. Still, Liang Na had been controlling, even getting some damage in off the break. but it was Petrovic nearly landing her own takedown next, only to end up seated the wrong way with Na, on bottom, sliding on the back.

Another scramble, and Petrovic did in fact end up on top on top. The Croatian fighter then went after an arm-bar, but was in too tight against the cage to finish the submission. Instead, she fired elbows and punches to the body, before chasing the arm-bar again in the dying seconds of the opening frame.

Round two saw Liang Na follow the same game plan, taking the fight to the cage in pursuit of the takedown. She fired knees in the clinch, but the larger, longer Petrovic reversed; Na reversed again before the pair broke and Liang marched forward firing punches. Petrovic fired back targeting the body, but was showing some redness around the temple, and soon landed a takedown of her own, setting up in side control.

Petrovic would from there spend the bulk of the round on top, in control, dropping punches and generally controlling Na. She turned up the heat in the final minute of the round, and found herself in mount. Na turned, gave up her back, and was eating a considerable amount of ground n’ pound. Only the fell saved Na from being finished at the end of the sequence, with the ref right on top of things.

It wouldn’t take long for Ivana Petrovic to get the job done in the third. An exhausted Liang Na had nothing left in the tank, and when Petrovic shot a single-leg takedown, Na pretty much fell over. It short succession Petrovic took the back, locked up the arm-triangle choke and forced the tap for her first UFC win!

Official Result: Ivana Petrovic def. Liang Na by submission (arm-triangle choke), Round 3, 1:29

The post UFC Vegas 91: Ivana Petrovic Locks Up Submission of Liang Na for First UFC Win appeared first on Cageside Press.

Na was still in search of her first win in the promotion when she collided with the American fighter as part of the Fight Night event’s preliminary card. Na was also moving up in weight for the fight, after starting her UFC run at 115lbs.

Early on, Aldrich found some success on the feet, but when they went to the ground, it was Na on top. They didn’t stay down long; Aldrich scrambled up, but was taken down again. Na was looking to set up an arm-triangle choke, but Aldrich used a body lock and butterfly hooks to escape up and out. A left hand followed by a right hook landed for Aldrich, and this time, it was Aldrich taking the back after a Na takedown attempt backfired.

Aldrich would spend the rest of the round on top, but wasn’t able to make much happen, with Na defending well off her back.

Liang opened round two on the attack, then dropped for a well-timed takedown, quickly taking the back. Aldrich nearly gave up mount going to the back, but survived and wound up in north-south position. From there, Aldrich wound up in side control, kneeing the body. In time she moved to mount, looking to lock in an arm-triangle choke. While she didn’t have the submission, she was able to tie up Na’s arms and landing some nasty shots to the face. With ground n’ pound coming in spurts, it felt as if the end would come at any moment — and it did, just ahead of the end of the round!

Official Result: JJ Aldrich def. Liang Na by TKO (ground n’ pound), Round 2, 4:49

The post UFC Singapore: JJ Aldrich Back in Win Column with TKO Finish of Liang Na appeared first on Cageside Press.

While Zhang-Jedrzejczyk 2 had the lion’s share of the attention, however, Liang Na had a memorable scrap in her promotional debut last year, and was now looking to return to the win column. Meanwhile, Juarez had lost two straight after arriving in the UFC on a three-fight win streak.

Two fighters with their backs to the wall often produce fireworks, and that was the case again on Saturday.

After a touch of gloves, both fighters took the center of the octagon. A jab and front kick from Na started the fight. An overhand from Na landed, and then a few seconds later, Na shot for a takedown which Juarez defended. Next, Na slipped off a head kick but got back up. Juarez landed a right hand that stunned Na and then followed it up with another one that put Na’s lights out!!

OH MY GOOOOOOOOOOODNESS!!!!! @Silvana_Malvada just came in and delivered a KO 🤯

[ #UFC275 | Early Prelims LIVE on @UFCFightPass & @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/Cwi6UGa8DE

— UFC (@ufc) June 11, 2022

With her back against the wall, Juarez picked up her long-awaited first UFC win after dropping her first two. On the other hand, Na is now on a two-fight losing streak and will most likely be fighting for her job next time out.

Official Result: Silvana Gomez Juarez def. Liang Na by knockout (punch), Round 1, 1:22

The post UFC 275: Silvana Gomez Juarez Knocks Out Liang Na In Highlight Reel Fashion appeared first on Cageside Press.