UFC Fortaleza results: Livia Renata Souza gets split nod over Sarah Frota

MMAfighting.com

Sarah Frota missed weight for her scheduled strawweight matchup against Livia Renata Souza at UFC Fortaleza by an eye-popping seven pounds.

And she looked every bit a weight class larger and then some when the duo squared off in the main-card catchweight (123 pounds) opener in Brazil.

But though Souza at times appeared to be attempting to slay a giant, she didn’t let that deter her from her game plan. In a competitive fight, Souza’s takedowns and submission attempts held the day as the former Invicta strawweight champ earned a split-decision victory. Souza got the right side of two out of three 29-28 scores for the win.

Souza showed her hand in the opening round, scoring a takedown and working for armbars and chokes. Frota managed to shift into top position, but even then, Souza was busier from the bottom.

In the second, Frota started to find more success in the standup, as she pushed forward and landed combos. But Souza nearly finished the bout with a tight rear-naked choke in the round’s closing seconds.

Both had their moments in the third, leading to a suspenseful decision after an eventful fight, but Souza got the decision. That puts her at 13-1 in her career, with four straight wins, the last two in the UFC. Frota, who earned her spot through the Brazilian version of Contender Series, is now 9-1.