TEMECULA, Calif. – Cat Zingano and Leah McCourt placed on among the most amusing, back-and-forth female battles of 2023 on Friday night at Bellator 293, however something made the clear distinction.
Damage.
That came from Zingano, who came away with a unanimous choice by ratings of 29-28, 30-27, 29-28, much to the pleasure of the greatly encouraging crowd at Pechanga Resort Casino.
The battle had lots of transitional series on the mat. Zingano (14-4 MIXED MARTIAL ARTS, 4-0 BMMA) and McCourt (7-3 MIXED MARTIAL ARTS, 6-2 BMMA) each managed and hurt the other at different points. But Zingano was more penalizing, which highlighted by a substantial knee to McCourt’s face in the 3rd round that triggered a bloody gash on her forehead.
“I’m hard to keep on my back. I’ve heard that before,” Zingano said later. “She’s really tall and really strong and a lot of body. I’m not used to that, still, at this weight class. Yeah, I knew it was going to be a tussle with her, and it was going to be a lot of work. What I do know is I know how to cause damage and a lot of it. I think the damage made up for some of the transitional periods, and here we are.”
WOW! @CatZingano cuts @leahmccourtmma with a knee, however McCourt reverses the takedown.
Watch the #Bellator293 Main Card RESIDE ON @SHOsports 🇺🇸 pic.twitter.com/9A2tF5b9nG
— Bellator MIXED MARTIAL ARTS (@BellatorMIXED MARTIAL ARTS) April 1, 2023
Zingano, a previous UFC females’s bantamweight title opposition, now discovers herself in the driver’s seat of a Bellator featherweight title shot versus, most likely, Cris Cyborg, who stays champ however hasn’t re-signed with the promo given that she combated out her agreement in April 2022.
“I mean, right now, it sounds like it’s a vacant belt half the time,” Zingano said.
Up-to-the-minute Bellator 293 outcomes:
- Cat Zingano def. Leah McCourt by means of consentaneous choice (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
- John Salter def. Aaron Jeffery by means of consentaneous choice (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Luke Trainer def. Sullivan Cauley by means of submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:58
- Rakim Cleveland def. Christian Edwards by means of submission (standing guillotine choke) – Round 3, 3:55
- Mike Hamel def. Nick Browne by means of TKO (head kick, punches) – Round 1, 0:42
- Adam Piccolotti def. Mandel Nallo by means of submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 3, 4:26
- Sara Collins def. Pam Sorenson by means of submission (armbar) – Round 1, 2:43
- Jeff Creighton def. Joey Davis by means of split choice (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
- Lucas Brennan def. Josh San Diego by means of submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:14
- Vladimir Tokov def. Lance Gibson Jr. by means of knockout (punches) – Round 1, 1:02
- Randi Field def. Ashley Cummins by means of consentaneous choice (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
- Bryce Meredith def. Brandon Carrillo by means of submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 3:11
- Mackenzie Stiller def. Maria Henderson by means of submission (armbar) – Round 1, 3:17
For more on the card, go to mixed martial arts Junkie’s occasion center for Bellator 293.
