Author: Chandra Moulee Das
Brazilian strawweight Jaqueline Amorim won her first victory inside the octagon by defeating Mexican Montserrat Ruiz by technical knockout in R3 on the preliminary card of UFC Vegas 78. The fight began with Amorim wasting no time and initiating a quick takedown to take the fight to the ground, where she assumed a half-guard position. With quick manoeuvres, Amorim successfully passed Ruiz’s guard, taking the full mount position with three and a half minutes remaining in the round.
Showing an aggressive stance, she unleashed a series of impactful blows on the ground and on the floor. She further solidified her dominance by locking on a body triangle and taking Ruiz’s back. Opting for an armbar finish, Amorim came close to securing victory, but Ruiz managed to escape the blow.
Jaqueline Amorim v Montserrat Conejo Ruiz #UFCFightNight #UFCVegas78 WHAT A ROUND 1 ! 10-8 ? 10-7 ? pic.twitter.com/7qblWSZPoO
– Just ripped a bong hit with my bear Ted (@stonedagainbro) August 12, 2023
Despite suffering heavy ground-and-pound blows before the end of the round, Ruiz persevered and got to the horn. Without a doubt, this round was very favorable for Amorim, with a score of 10-8.
In the opening minute of the second round, Ruiz absorbed a right kick to the head and still pressed firmly, initiating a takedown. However, Amorim promptly regained the upper hand, skilfully passing to Ruiz’s back with well over three minutes on the clock. As in the previous round, Amorim skillfully maneuvered to full mount, combining precision on the ground and pound with opportunistic submission attempts. Once again, Ruiz withstood the onslaught and managed to finish the round, although it was unequivocally another 10-8 round in Amorim’s favor.
Jaqueline Amorim (W) TKO STOPPAGE GROUND v Montserrat Conejo Ruiz #UFCVegas78 pic.twitter.com/D4pKk0OuDK
– Just ripped a bong hit with my bear Ted (@stonedagainbro) August 12, 2023
Demonstrating tactical skill, Amorim effectively pulled guard in the third round, with total confidence in his ability to sweep to top position. Despite his initial success, Ruiz maintained control of top position for much of the round, confining Amorim underneath. As the fight drew to a close, Amorim executed a quick scramble, securing the top position and quickly moving into a mounted position. Employing relentless ground-and-pound, she left the referee with no choice but to stop the fight at 3:41 minutes.
In another fight on the preliminary card, in the women’s flyweight category, Brazilian Luana Santos defeated American Juliana Miller. At 3.41 minutes of the first round, the judges announced a technical knockout for her opponent.
Luana Santos TKOs Juliana Miller in the 1st round!!! pic.twitter.com/gmayKcyuXz
– FTB VIDS (@anotherFTBacct) August 12, 2023
Luana used to be a member of the Brazilian judo team, but then decided to try her hand at MMA. In the LFA, she had a card with five wins and one loss. In July, the 23-year-old Brazilian signed a four-fight contract with the UFC. She won the first one, and the name of her next opponent and the date of the match are still unknown.