Jessica Andrade put on a punishing performance over three rounds to win a lopsided decision over Lauren Murphy at UFC 283.
It was one-way traffic from start to finish as Andrade bludgeoned Murphy with punches in nearly every exchange as she just continued to add up gaudy striking numbers during the 15-minute battle. Murphy displayed incredible toughness but there were several moments where it appeared either the referee or even her coaches could have stopped the fight to prevent her from suffering further harm.
When it was over, the judges all gave Andrade the fight with the scorecards reading 30-25, 30-25 and 30-26 as the Brazilian picked up another impressive win in front of her home country in Brazil.
“I wanted to get a knockout or a submission but I think I was able to show my technique,” Andrade said. “There’s certain points where I thought it was going to be stopped.”
Andrade was unflinching in her attack on Murphy with a string of leg kicks. Andrade then went back up top with a flurry of punches that began tagging Murphy on the chin with the one-time flyweight title challenger rattled yet refusing to go away.
The offensive onslaught from Andrade continued as she just kept moving forward and throwing huge hooks that continued to land on target. Murphy was absorbing a lot of damage and despite her best effort to use her wrestling, Andrade was quick to break free from every grappling attempt in the opening round.
Murphy was wearing the damage on her face with cuts, bruising and a bloody nose to show for her exchanges with Andrade on the feet. Andrade was not as precise in her attack to create her combos, but she did use machine gun-like fire when she finally began throwing punches.
Andrade was constantly shrugging off every wrestling attempt and then lighting up Murphy with her hands. By the end of the second round, Murphy’s face was busted up and swelling as the fight appeared out of reach with five minutes remaining.
Possibly Murphy’s greatest attempt to make a comeback was midway through round three, when she attempted a kimura at the bottom from where Andrade had landed. It was a momentary reprieve as Andrade broke free and then continued her absolute assault on Murphy on the feet.
Despite the lopsided way the fight played out, the referee allowed Murphy to keep going to the final horn even as she absorbed an unreal amount of punishment over three rounds.
While Andrade won at flyweight she is already focusing her efforts on strawweight. She hopes her past as a champion will allow her to rematch Zhang Weili. Zhang Weili just regained the 115-pound title by winning against Carla Esparza in November.
“Dana [White], “Who else can I turn to for my title shot?” Andrade stated. I went to China in order to face Zhang Weili. She must now come to me and endure a lot of hardships to defeat me.
Source: https://www.mmafighting.com/2023/1/21/23566009/ufc-283-results-jessica-andrade-unleashes-savage-onslaught-to-win-lopsided-decision-lauren-murphy?rand=96749
