This is the UFC 332 live blog for Natalia Silva vs. Wang Cong, the vacant flyweight championship main event Saturday at Delta Center in Salt Lake City.
Silva (20-5-1) is 8-0 in the UFC and has won her past 14 fights overall to become the clear-cut No. 1 contender at 125 pounds and earn the No. 6 spot in the MMA Fighting Pound-for-Pound Rankings. Following consecutive decision wins over former UFC champions Rose Namajunas, Alexa Grasso, and Jessica Andrade, Silva hoped to finally earn a title shot against long-reigning champion Valentina Shevchenko, but Shevchenko instead vacated the title due to lingering injuries, so Silva takes on Wang instead.
Wang (10-1) joined the UFC in 2024 with some fanfare due to her extensive kickboxing career, which included a win over Shevchenko in 2015. She has won four straight fights to boost her contender credentials, defeating Tracy Cortez in her most recent outing at UFC 329.
Check out the UFC 332 live blog for Natalia Silva vs. Wang Cong below.
That’s right, for the first time in almost eight years, we’re about to have a women’s flyweight champion not named Valentina Shevchenko.
Natalia Silva, Wang Cong, forget the haters. This is your moment and a UFC championship belt is a UFC championship belt.
Action is coming in on Silva as she’s nearly a -200 favorite as the fighters make their walkouts, Wang the underdog at +166 (per FanDuel).
Marc Goddard on hand to oversee the main event.
Wang scores first with a jab and just gets out of the way of a Silva counter. Plenty of feinting and footwork, as expected. Wang with a glancing overhand right. Nice flurry by Silva and that definitely got Wang’s attention. She tags Wang with a check left hook. Now it’s Wang who looks like she needs to adjust to the speedy Silva. Silva backs Wang up with another check left. Nice jab by Wang.
Wang cannot get out of the way of that check left. Silva catches a kick and pushes Wang down, but doesn’t get much offense off of it. She pushes Wang to the fence and tests Wang’s takedown defense. Wang fighting the hands. Not much offense here, but Silva has Wang glued to the cage. There’s a short elbow by Silva as they separate. Wang scores with a leg kick. She hits Silva with a left, but Silva fires back and wins the exchange. Clear-cut round for Silva.
MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9, Silva.
Wang gets to Silva’s leg again, that’s been her best weapon. She throws a couple of lunging punches, but Silva isn’t there. Wang with a left hook. Silva implementing leg kicks now. Crowd getting restless with the tactical action. Silva wakes them up with a beautiful combination capped off by a high kick that earns her a knockdown! Nice! Quick recovery from Wang and they tie up against the fence.
Silva persistent with her grappling and she drags Wang down. Two minutes left in the round. Silva staying heavy in Wang’s half guard. She postures up and lands ground-and-pound. Wang takes the opportunity to get to her feet. Silva with another takedown attempt, but Wang just manages to block it. Still, she can’t get anything going with Silva clamped onto her. Flashy spin kick from Silva, but Wang has it scouted. Wang coming forward, looking a step slow.
MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9, Silva. Overall, 20-18 Silva.
Silva opens the round with a combination and she’s all smiles right now. That high kick is coming out quick and she’s forcing Wang to react. Wang lands a 1-2. Her power could still be the difference. Silva with a glancing right. Push kick from Silva knocks Wang off balance. Wang tries to be aggressive, but Silva tags her coming in. It’s not looking good for Wang right now.
Silva clips the lead leg with a low kick. Wang scores with a right hand, the follow-up isn’t there. Funky high kick by Silva lands. They trade lefts a couple of times, Wang definitely trying to make things happen. Hard leg kick by Silva, Wang answers with one of her own. Wang swinging big, Silva avoiding the worst of it. Silva with a counter combination to close the round. Much closer action, but edge still goes to Silva.
MMA Fighting scores the round 10-9, Silva. Overall, 30-27 Silva.
Discover more from NAIRAVOICE.COM.NG
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
