The hype for Erin Blanchfield will likely hit another level after the 23-year-old ripped through fan-favorite Molly McCann on the UFC 281 prelims. Blanchfield dominated nearly every second of the fight before forcing McCann to submit to a kimura in the first round in front of a stunned Madison Square Garden crowd..
McCann's powerful strikes never truly came into play, with Blanchfield landing a few crisp shots of her own before driving through a takedown. Once the fight hit the canvas, Blanchfield never looked back, using her superior grappling to leave McCann in the dust.
Blanchfield locked McCann's arms down in a crucifix and dropped heavy punches and elbows before locking in a deep kimura. McCann managed to gut through the torque on her arm to survive the first submission attempt. After McCann got her arm free, Blanchfield re-secured the crucifix and landed more powerful strikes.
Blanchfield returned to the kimura a second time, twisting McCann's arm until the Brit was forced to tap out at the 3:37 mark of Round 1.
Still undefeated in the Octagon! @blanchfield_mma moves to 4-0 in the UFC with a DOMINANT victory at #UFC281 💪 pic.twitter.com/30t74g5SJX
— UFC (@ufc) November 13, 2022
Octagon side angle of Molly McCann tapping to Erin Blanchfield 😳 #UFC281 pic.twitter.com/leNqOah1I0
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) November 13, 2022
With the win, Blanchfield improves to 10-1 in her career and 4-0 inside the UFC Octagon. McCann had a three-fight winning streak snapped by the defeat and her UFC record fell to 6-4.
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