TUF 18 winner Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Peña kept her perfect UFC record intact with a well-deserved Unanimous Decision victory tonight at UFC 192: “Cormier vs Gustafsson” in Houston, Texas. Peña outgrappled Jessica “Evil” Eye in featured bantamweight action on the main card.

With tonight’s win, Peña takes a big step towards a future shot at the UFC Women’s Bantamweight Championship. Earlier on the UFC 192 card, strawweight standout “Thug” Rose Namajunas made a triumphant return to the Octagon by submitting fellow TUF 20 alum Angela “Overkill” Hill.

Peña (7-2-0) and Eye (11-4-0, 1 ND) traded power punches in the opening seconds and Peña took the fight to the mat by pulling half-guard. Eye worked for a guillotine choke as the action returned to the feet, but Peña threw her down and landed some nice right hands on the way up. Eye fared well in the clinch battles, but Peña took her down again and she finished the round strong with elbows from side control and a late rear-naked choke attempt.

Eye backed Peña up with punches in the second round and later secured a takedown into half-guard that set up a tight arm-triangle choke. Peña stayed calm and eventually escaped. Eye attacked with an armbar, but wound up on the bottom and was docked one point for an illegal knee to Peña’s head. The point deduction proved to be irrelevant, however, and Peña dominated the final round on the mat. She nearly finished the fight with a rear-naked choke and trapped Eye in a top-side guillotine before the bell.

Scores were 29-27 across the board for Peña, who campaigned for a title fight against current UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion “Rowdy” Ronda Rousey in the future. Peña is 3-0 in official UFC bouts and she has steadily climbed the bantamweight rankings since returning from the third serious knee injury of her career.

Winner: Julianna Peña by Unanimous Decision (29-27, 29-27, 29-27) after three rounds. She improves to 7-2-0.

Competing for the first time since her UFC women’s strawweight title bout in December, TUF 20 finalist Namajunas (3-2-0) steamrolled castmate Hill (2-2-0) in a brief but entertaining bout that showcased Namajunas’s formidable submission skills.

Namajunas opened the action with a combination, but Hill fired back with a knee and a right hook. She followed with a head kick, but Namajunas cracked her with a right hand and tripped her to the ground. From there, Hill’s inexperience on the mat was clear, and Namajunas passed from half-guard to back control. She sunk in a tight rear-naked choke as Hill stood up and Hill tapped out in mid-air before falling unconscious on her face.

Tonight’s victory was a crucial one for Namajunas, who became a star during TUF 20 but came up just short in the championship final against Carla “Cookie Monster” Esparza. The popular and talented 23-year-old is one of the brightest prospects in the UFC’s competitive women’s strawweight division.

Winner: Rose Namajunas by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) at 2:47 of round one. She improves to 3-2-0.

(Photo Credit: UFC)