One of MMA’s brightest prospects, Marina “The Supernova From Moldova” Shafir, kicked off her pro career with an impressive win on Saturday night at Lights Out Promotions: “Chaos at the Casino 4” in Inglewood, California. The highly-touted judoka submitted Chandra Engel with a first-round armbar.

Also on Saturday night, undefeated Polish rising star Agnieszka “Kuma” Niedźwiedź secured her sixth professional victory at Cage Warriors Fighting Championship 67 in Swansea, Wales. The 19-year-old submitted England’s Gemma Hewitt with a triangle choke in round one of a one-sided bout.

Shafir (5-0-0 amateur, 1-0-0 pro) reversed a takedown attempt from Engel (9-8-0 amateur, 0-2-0 pro) and wound up in top position early on. She transitioned from Engel’s back into an armbar attempt, but Engel defended well with her leg and she managed to break free. Engel briefly worked from Shafir’s guard until Shafir exploded out and swept into mount. She rained down punches that forced Engel to give up her back. From there, Shafir transitioned to another armbar against the ropes and this time she extended the arm for a tapout victory at the 1:57 mark of round one.

As best friend and training partner to UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey, Shafir has already built up a significant fan following during her brief time in the sport. All six of the 25-year-old featherweight’s victories have come via first-round submission including five by way of armbar. She celebrates her 26th birthday tomorrow.

In Wales, Niedźwiedź (6-0-0) put forth one of the best performances of her young MMA career in victory against Hewitt (1-1-0). The teen standout dominated the action and threatened with elbows and a tight triangle choke from mount as Hewitt struggled to hold on. As the fight progressed, Niedźwiedź rained down more punches and elbows and tightened the choke, which forced a bloodied Hewitt to submit at the 3:59 mark of the opening round.

Following the victory – her fifth inside the distance – Niedźwiedź campaigned for a fight with TUF 18 contestant Laura “Hot Head” Howarth. Both women are 2-0 under the Cage Warriors banner. Howarth most recently eked out a narrow win over Amanda Kelly at Cage Warriors 64. While Niedźwiedź has been dominant throughout her pro career, Howarth’s two wins have come via razor-thin decisions.

(Photo Credit: Full Circle Photo)