Former two-time Olympic judo gold medalist Kayla Harrison faced legitimate adversity for the first time in a UFC cage on Saturday and likely secured a shot at the women’s bantamweight title for her efforts.
Harrison (18-1) overcame a pair of cuts and a hematoma on her forehead to outwork No. 2-ranked Ketlen Vieira (14-4) in a unanimous decision inside the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. The kickoff bout to the UFC 307 pay-per-view card saw Harrison, 34, take home judges’ scores of 30-27 (twice) and 29-28. CBS Sports also scored it 29-28 for the former two-time PFL champion.
“My hat goes off to Ketlen. She’s No. 2 for a reason,” Harrison said. “I came to UFC because I wanted to challenge myself. I didn’t come here for money and I didn’t come here for fame. I came here because I want to be the best in the world. This is where the best girls in the world are.”
Harrison made big news in January by signing a free-agent contract with UFC. Three months later, she mauled and submitted former champion Holly Holm in Round 2 of their UFC 300 bout to announce her presence in a huge way.
UFC, however, made her clear one more hurdle against Vieira, while also weighing in as a backup for the co-main event between 135-pound titleholder Raquel Pennington and former champion Julianna Pena. And Harrison ultimately relied upon her strength on the ground, despite some stingy takedown defense from Vieira throughout, to score key takedowns to end the opening and final rounds, both times landing big elbows from top position.
Vieira, a 33-year-old native of Brazil, made her presence felt in Round 2 by finally penetrating Harrison’s strong defense on her feet with a short right elbow to create a sizable mouse above her right eye. A follow-up elbow from Vieira caused the swelling to burst and bleed into Harrison’s face before a stiff 1-2 combination early in Round 3 caused blood to flow from Harrison’s nose.
“Tonight was a great night because it put me through some adversity,” Harrison said. “This is the first time I have bled inside of a cage so thank you Ketlen for bringing out the best in me.”
Harrison was able to hang with Vieira on her feet in terms of striking yet was never fully at ease in the fight with the exception of the two takedowns which led to strong damage, including twice going to full mount.
After the victory, Harrison sent a message to both Pennington and Pena ahead of their bout.
“Ladies, enjoy it while you can because the queen is home and she’s coming for that f—ing gold,” Harrison said.
