Strawweight rising star Alexa Grasso made a successful UFC debut in front of a partisan crowd tonight at UFC Fight Night 98: “Dos Anjos vs Ferguson” in Mexico City, Mexico. The undefeated Mexican standout took a convincing Unanimous Decision victory over TUF 20 alum “Hurricane” Heather Clark.

Grasso hurt her opponent with a head kick and a barrage of punches in the opening round tonight, but Clark survived the onslaught and kept the fight competitive in rounds two and three. Grasso’s superior striking kept her ahead on the scorecards, and she was rewarded with a well-deserved win.

Grasso (9-0-0) countered an early combination from Clark (7-6-0) with a head kick, and she kept her distance as Clark lunged in with combinations. Clark found success with kicks to Grasso’s lead leg and body, but Grasso connected with a head kick as Clark dropped levels for a takedown and Clark fell to her knees. Grasso unloaded with punches and knees as Clark stood up and staggered backwards, but Clark regained her composure and landed some hard counterpunches. Grasso bloodied Clark’s nose with right hands and the spirited round ended in a clinch.

The pace slowed somewhat in round two, and the fighters battled for position in a clinch against the cage. Grasso was active with short punches and knees in close, but Clark walked her down with a combination after breaking free from the clinch. Grasso landed some nice knees on the feet until Clark took the fight to the ground with a lateral drop. Grasso attacked with an armbar from the bottom and she scrambled up to her feet before the bell.

After a body kick and a hard right hand from Grasso in round three, Clark clinched and attempted another lateral drop, but Grasso shrugged her off and stayed on her feet. She picked her shots with jabs and right hands that bloodied Clark’s nose again, and fought off Clark’s clinch attempts. Late in the fight, Grasso elevated Clark up in the air and slammed her down to the mat, and she finished the round with a final flurry of punches.

All three judges scored the fight in favour of Grasso, who kept her perfect professional record intact in her home country. She has earned back-to-back wins since returning to the sport in July following a lengthy injury hiatus and remains one of the brightest prospects in the women’s strawweight division.

Winner: Alexa Grasso by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) after three rounds. She improves to 9-0-0.

(Photo Credit: UFC)