Amanda Lemos ties with Rose Namajunas and Jessica Andrade for epic strawweight record after win over Marina Rodriguez
Amanda Lemos scored a third-round TKO win over Marina Rodriguez in the main-event of UFC Vegas 64. Her win over Rodriguez leveled Lemos with Rose Namajunas and Jessica Andrade for the most finishes in UFC strawweight history (5).
Amanda Lemos is now tied for the most finishes in UFC strawweight history - 5 - with Jessica Andrade and Rose Namajunas. https://t.co/OmB7j3CODB
The Brazilian is also tied with Andrade for the most KO/TKO finishes in the history of the division.
Amanda Lemos ties the strawweight records for most finishes and most KO/TKO wins in the division's history.
Amanda Lemos and Marina Rodriguez were wary of each other during the opening minutes of their main-event clash on Saturday night. Lemos found success with a right hand early in round two and followed it up with a takedown against the cage. Despite finding Rodriguez's back, the Brazilian failed to sink in a rear-naked choke.
Lemos came out as the aggresor in round three, connecting with solid jabs. She then landed a big right hand which visibly stunned Rodriguez. The Brazilian followed up with a barrage of shots, forcing referee Jason Herzog to step in with Rodriguez still on her feet.
Watch Amanda Lemos' TKO of Marina Rodriguez below:
Amanda Lemos TKO's Marina Rodriguez #UFCVegas64 https://t.co/GyWNgYwuKI
Amanda Lemos wasn't expecting to go the distance against Marina Rodriguez
Amanda Lemos was a +200 underdog going into her clash against Marina Rodriguez. Rodriguez was riding an impressive four-fight win-streak going into the fight, while Lemos had only just bounced back from a Jessica Andrade loss with a submission win over Michelle Waterson.
The No.3-ranked strawweight Rodriguez claimed that fighting the No.7-ranked Lemos didn't make sense for her. Lemos certainly wasn't pleased with the comments and stated that no one forced her opponent to accept the fight.
Both fighters also had very little time to prepare for a five-round clash as they were elevated to main-event status due to the cancelation of a fight between Bryce Mitchell and Ilia Topuria. However, Lemos was confident of putting on a show and seemed certain that the fight wouldn't go the distance. The Brazilian said on the MMA Fighting podcast Trocação Franca before the fight:
“I believe we have everything to enter the octagon Saturday and give fans a great fight. I’m aggressive, she’s aggressive, so I don’t think this fight will [go the distance]. I always go in there to finish the fight whenever I have the opportunity, and so does Marina, so this fight will be fire, a brawl.”