Marina Rodriguez Bludgeons Jessica Aguilar in UFC on ESPN 2 Featured Preliminary Bout

HOW TOUGH IS JESSICA AGUILAR!!!#UFCPhiladelphia pic.twitter.com/Iw2a7jEtFO

— UFC (@ufc) March 30, 2019

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Brazilian striker Marina Rodriguez was nearly disqualified for repeated pokes to Jessica Aguilar’s eyes, but once she kept her fingers at bay, the strawweight showed no mercy as she beat “Jag” to a pulp for the final two rounds in the UFC on ESPN 2 featured preliminary tilt.

Rodriguez (11-0-1) hurt Aguilar with dozens of elbows and knees in the clinch and picked her apart with punches and kicks on the outside. Agular (20-8) was a bloody mess at the end of the fight, but she never stopped trying to pull off a miracle come-from-behind win. It never came as Rodriguez was relentless with her striking, gunning for the knockout until the final horn.

Two judges favored Rodriguez 29-27 and the third saw it 29-26, allowing her to prevail via unanimous decision.

Green Pummels Former ‘TUF’ Season 9 Winner

Desmond Green wanted to score a huge win on Saturday and he did. “The Predator” lived up to his nickname by dismantling longtime veteran and “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 9 winner Ross Pearson in the opening round.

Green (22-8) scored a single-leg takedown at the midway point of the stanza and proceeded to unloaded 17 unanswered right hands to the head and shoulder area, knocking the Englishman senseless. “The Real Deal” couldn’t get back to his feet and was unable to properly defend himself and eventually had to be rescued by referee James Chappell. The end officially came at 2:52 of the round.

Aguilar Moves to a Stellar 17-1

Kevin Aguilar continued his winning ways by offsetting most of what highly-touted opponent Enrique Barzola tried in their featherweight encounter. “The Angel of Death” landed several punches to the head, opened a cut above Barzola’s left eye and stuffed nearly every takedown attempt. Aguilar (17-1) never truly hurt “El Fuerte” in the fight, but he was busier and much more effective.

Barzola (15-3) rallied late in the third, but it wasn’t enough to turn the tides, allowing Aguilar to win a unanimous decision with scores of 29-28 across the board.

Related » UFC Philadelphia Round-by-Round Scoring

Holland Takes Split Decision Over Meerschaert

Kevin Holland and Gerald Meerschaert put on a grappling clinic for three rounds and it was entertaining from start to finish.

The middleweights took turns taking each other down, threatening with a treasure trove of submissions and escaping everything. Holland (14-4) was the busier of the two and latched on more attempts in the battle, but “GM3” never stopped trying to impose his will on Holland. “Trailblazer” apologized to the crowd during the third round for a lack of action and criticized Meerschaert (28-11) for just “wanting to hug” him, but Holland got the win regardless. While one judge saw it 29-28 for Meerschaert, that score was offset by the other two officials, who had it for Holland 29-27 and 30-27.

Kenney Wins Controversial Nod Over Borg

Ray Borg scored nearly a dozen takedowns, threatened with a few submissions and dished out a number of clean punches to the head, but he wasn’t given the judges’ nod against Casey Kenney.

Borg (11-4) appeared to do more than enough to win against the former Legacy Fighting Alliance flyweight and bantamweight champion, but all three judges felt that Kenney (12-1-1) was more effective over the course of three rounds. The fight was close, but “The Tazmexican Devil” was much more effective in all aspects of the contest in rounds two and three. However, Kenney won via tallies of 29-28 (twice) and 30-27. When he was announced as the victor, the crowd angrily booed the decision.

Moroz Denies Mazo in Much-Hyped Debut

Flyweight contender Maryna Moroz was a slight underdog against former LFA flyweight champion Sabina Mazo, but it didn’t matter. “The Iron Lady” used a superb striking attack and a powerful clinch game to offset most of what Mazo tried and won a unanimous decision along the way.

Moroz (9-3) bloodied The Colombian Queen’s nose early and picked her apart with punches on the feet. Mazo (6-1) rallied strongly in the third behind a steady stream of kicks to the head and body, but her push was too little, too late. Moroz won the judges’ decision on scores of 29-28 (twice) and 30-27.

Perez Takes Three Rounds From De La Rosa

The opening bout of the evening saw bantamweight contender Alex Perez dominate jiu-jitsu black belt Mark De La Rosa over three rounds. Perez (22-5) scored multiple takedowns behind timely striking to win virtually every minute of every round.

De La Rosa (11-2) was never able to find a rhythm, either on the feet or off his back, and Perez won a lopsided unanimous verdict via tallies of 30-27 across the board.