After overcoming Josiane Nunes in August and achieving her second victory in two fights in the Ultimate, Jacqueline Cavalcanti accepted, with only two weeks’ notice, to replace veteran Germaine de Randamie on the UFC Paris card this Saturday (28). And the risky gamble of the Brazil-born, now Portuguese national paid off. In a rematch against French fighter Nora Cornolle, whom she had already defeated early in her career, ‘Jacque’ once again emerged victorious from the world’s most famous octagon, just a month after her last fight.
The achievement of the UFC women’s bantamweight (61 kg) prospect came via a split decision from the judges. On the scorecards, judges Sal D’Amato and Anders Ohlsson saw the Brazilian as the winner by 29 to 28, while Mongi Zitouni assessed that the French fighter did enough to edge out Cavalcanti, also by 29 to 28.
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Now, ‘Jacque’ has a record of eight victories – three of them in the Ultimate – and only one loss in her career.
How the fight went
After a start filled with distance study from both fighters, the French woman surprised and went for the grappling. With control of the waist, Nora executed a beautiful takedown and achieved mount position. However, the Brazilian defended well and, with an ‘upa,’ reversed the position, getting up and bringing the fight back to striking in the last seconds.
Jacqueline returned for the second round with a greater sense of urgency. Once again dominating the center of the cage, the Brazilian controlled the distance better and trapped her opponent against the cage. With precise strikes, Cavalcanti managed to wobble her rival, who fell in a ‘flashdown,’ but was able to recover. Worse on her feet, Cornolle sought grappling again and, even without being very effective, managed to stifle Jacque’s momentum.
Visibly in better physical condition than her opponent, Jacqueline maintained a good fighting pace in the third round. With precise combinations of strikes, especially punches, the Brazilian pressured and left no room for the French fighter, who seemed unable to find answers to Cavalcanti’s game.