Decorated BJJ black belt Claudia “Claudinha” Gadelha kept her undefeated MMA record intact with a well-deserved Unanimous Decision victory tonight at Max Sport 13.2 in São Paulo, Brazil. Gadelha outpointed Hérica Tibúrcio in the lone female bout on the card and will next compete at Invicta FC 6.

Gadelha kept Tibúrcio pinned down on the ground throughout much of the fight tonight. Tibúrcio was active off of her back and initiated scrambles, but Gadelha’s top game and ground strikes allowed her to remain in control of the fight, and all three cageside judges scored the bout in her favour.

The fighters traded jabs in the opening round and Gadelha (10-0-0) scored with a nice combination that backed Tibúrcio (5-2-0) up against the cage. She landed knees to the body and took Tibúrcio down, then used short punches to the ribs to set up a move to mount. Tibúrcio quickly scrambled and got back to half-guard. Gadelha dropped back for a heel hook, but Tibúrcio used the opportunity to take top position. Once again, the fighters scrambled and Tibúrcio attempted a triangle choke and an armbar. Gadelha defended until the referee called for a standup and Tibúrcio landed a flurry before the bell.

In round two, both women were aggressive with their punches right away and each one landed some hard shots. Gadelha scored another takedown and punched from the top while looking to pass to side control. Tibúrcio got back to full guard, but Gadelha postured up and rained down a series of punches. Tibúrcio tried for an armbar and briefly kicked Gadelha off, but Gadelha dove back into her opponent’s guard and landed more punches in the final minute.

Gadelha opened the action in round three with a one-two combination and she dropped levels in search of a takedown. Tibúrcio stayed on her feet and both fighters landed knees to the body. Gadelha used an uchi mata throw to get Tibúrcio back down to the mat. Tibúrcio worked for a Kimura from the bottom, but Gadelha easily avoided danger and pulled her arm free. She spent most of the remainder of the round striking from Tibúrcio’s guard and nearly took Tibúrcio’s back just as time expired.

After 15 minutes of action, Gadelha was awarded the Unanimous Decision win. The 24-year-old had not fought since she picked up her first TKO victory in September. Gadelha had been in line to face Carla “Cookie Monster” Esparza for the inaugural Invicta FC Strawweight Championship in January, but she was forced to withdraw from the title fight on short notice after suffering a broken nose.

Gadelha’s next fight will take place inside the Invicta FC cage when she takes on Scottish striking sensation Joanne “JoJo” Calderwood at Invicta FC 6 on July 13th.

Winner: Claudia Gadelha by Unanimous Decision after three rounds. She improves to 10-0-0.