Yan Xiaonan Bests Karolina Kowalkiewicz – UFC Auckland Results

Next up on the UFC Auckland main card is a women’s strawweight contest between Karolina Kowalkiewicz vs. Yan Xiaonan.

Round 1: The pair start things off striking with Yan being the more aggressive fighter. Yan continues to advance forward and land more. Kowalkiewicz looks for a takedown and has Yan clinched against the fence. Yan reverses and is on top. Yan gets up before they start clinching again. They separate. Kowalkiewicz seems to have trouble with her eye as she keeps touching it. Kowalkiewicz looks for a takedown but Yan reverses with a hip toss. Yan gets up and lands leg kicks on a downed Kowalkiewicz. Kowalkiewicz gets up and the round ends.

Round 2: The round begins after a delay with the doctor checking Kowalkiewicz’s eye. Yan continues to advance forward and land strikes. Kowalkiewicz is moving very slowly as she continues to touch her eye. They clinch up. Kowalkiewicz reverses and is looking for the takedown. However, Yan is showing great defense and balance. Yan reverses and trips Kowalkiewicz. The fight resumes on the feet. Yan gets Kowalkiewicz’s back and lands a big takedown. She eventually decides to get back up. Kowalkiewicz responds with some strikes. The round comes to an end.

Round 3: Yan comes out aggressive as expected. She lands punches and a body kick. Kowalkiewicz looks more sluggish but she’s still in the fight. Yan lands a big one-two followed by a kick that gets the crowd to react. She takes Kowalkiewicz down soon after. Kowalkiewicz, however, has her leg and is threatening with a submission. However, it doesn’t seem like she has the right bend on the leg as Yan strikes at her thigh. Yan eventually escapes and passes to be on top. She controls Kowalkiewicz for the rest of the round and should earn a clear-cut win.

Official result: Yan Xioanan defeats Karolina Kowalkiewicz via unanimous decision (30-26).