TUF 18 winner Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Peña made a triumphant return with a dominant first-round TKO victory today at UFC Fight Night 63: “Mendes vs Lamas” in Fairfax, Virginia. Peña stopped Russian standout Milana Dudieva with ground and pound in her first fight since late 2013.

In a second women’s bantamweight bout on today’s card, former UFC title challenger Liz “Girl-Rilla” Carmouche narrowly edged out former Invicta FC champion Lauren Murphy. Carmouche’s striking in round one and late-fight control on the mat was enough to earn her a close decision victory.

As expected, Peña (6-2-0) dashed in with aggressive punches to open the fight and she avoided a slam takedown from Dudieva (11-4-0) by balancing on one leg. Dudieva got her down on her second try and secured a front headlock as the fighters stood up. Peña countered with a takedown into mount and she began her assault with ground and pound from the top. Dudieva tried to kick off of the cage to buck and escape, but Peña was relentless and she landed numerous punches and elbows until the bout was finally stopped at the 3:59 mark of round one.

Today’s victory was a critical one for Peña, who had not fought since winning The Ultimate Fighter 18 in November 2013. Now fully recovered from the third ACL tear of her career, the 25-year-old remains focused on fighting her way to a UFC title shot.

Winner: Julianna Peña by TKO (Punches & Elbows) at 3:59 of round one. She improves to 6-2-0.

Earlier on the card, Carmouche (10-5-0) halted a two-fight losing streak with a close and contentious Unanimous Decision victory over Murphy (8-2-0), who has now dropped both of her UFC bouts in controversial fashion. Murphy pinned Carmouche against the fence for much of the first half of round one, but Carmouche countered with elbows and stayed on her feet. She fared well in the striking battles, but Murphy took her down just before the bell.

Round two was more of the same early on, and Murphy once again held Carmouche against the cage wall. She blocked a cartwheel kick from Carmouche and took her down, then spent the remainder of the round on top in Carmouche’s guard. Both women scored takedowns in the final round, but a late-fight throw into side control allowed Carmouche to finish the bout strong with punches and elbows.

All three judges favoured Carmouche’s striking over Murphy’s takedowns and clinch control in round one. As a result, Carmouche took home a decision win with scores of 29-28 thrice. Today’s victory may have spared Carmouche from the UFC cut list, as a third straight loss would have dropped her out of contention entirely.

Winner: Liz Carmouche by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) after three rounds. She improves to 10-5-0.

(Photo Credit: UFC)